What Tim Kaine said, and what was done

“Madam President, I would like to take this opportunity to recognize an exemplary Virginian and outstanding citizen, LTC Mark L. Haaland, U.S. Army, Retired. Lieutenant Colonel Haaland is retiring from his position as director of government affairs for the Association of the United States Army, AUSA, where he has been a leading advocate and voice for the total Army--Regular Army, Army National Guard, U.S.”

“Mr. President, I rise to speak to what Americans all over this country are deeply feeling at this moment. America is not a nation that prefers wars, but we are being led by an administration that is foolishly choosing war to solve problems that could best be solved by other means or--more troublingly--it is choosing to wage war to distract public attention from larger problems of its own making.”

“But months after the administration produced this PR video of a fatal strike, it was revealed that the full video--the unedited video--also showed struggling survivors clinging to the boat's wreckage and seeking to be rescued.”

“Mr. President, in a few minutes, we will move into a series of votes, and one of the votes is a motion to proceed to a resolution that I filed a number of weeks back, an Iran War Powers Resolution.”

“Mr. President, I rise today to honor and recognize the 30th anniversary of Camp Dogwood Summer Academy and its commitment to the children of the Commonwealth of Virginia.”

“Mr. President, I rise today to address a very serious topic, one that I have often addressed on the floor of the Senate during my 13-plus years here but that I have particularly been focused on since President Trump decided to launch a war against Iran on February 28 of this year.”

“Mr. President and to all here, I rise today to speak about the breaking news that the President has entered into a memorandum of understanding with Iran to end the war he started on February 28.”

“There is a famous example. The United States many, many decades ago got into a nuclear agreement with North Korea, and North Korea hid activities. And so the international agency that monitors nuclear weaponry and material around the world, the International Atomic Energy Agency based in Vienna, they had already developed an inspection protocol that North Korea was following, but they were end running it by hiding stuff.”

“Madam President, I rise to speak, along with my colleagues, on the War Powers Resolution, followed by Senator Warnock, that will be called up soon. I have spoken on this topic often, about once a week, since the war against Iran began at the end of February, sometimes speaking on behalf of my own resolutions and sometimes speaking on behalf of the resolutions of colleagues.”

“Mr. President, I appreciate my colleague from Illinois so much, who has been such a great champion on these issues, and I now move to proceed to Calendar item No. 425, S.J.”

“Mr. President, I thank you and my colleagues for being on the verge of a vote on a matter I placed before the Senate to give Senator Durbin S.J.”

“Mr. President, as we celebrate our Nation's 250th anniversary, I would like to recognize the Virginia American Revolution 250th Commission, which was formed to celebrate the Commonwealth's contribution to the Nation upon the 250th anniversary of its independence from Great Britain, and the VA 250 Car Project, which is part of a national motorsports celebration in honor of the United States of America's semiquincentennial.”

“Mr. President, I rise today to honor the life, legacy, and distinguished military service of 1SG Charlie Bryant, Jr., a 34-year veteran of the U.S. Army and the New York Army National Guard, who passed away on March 18, 2026, at the age of 85.”

“Mr. President, I rise to discuss a CRA resolution that we will be voting on soon, and it is a CRA resolution to challenge a regulation of the Trump administration concerning the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program.”

“The same publication militaryfriendly.com said that the MBA program at the College of William & Mary was the best MBA program in the country for military members and veterans.”

“Mr. President, I am so pleased to be with my colleague Senator Warner to talk about Gerry Connolly prior to offering a unanimous consent motion on this bill.”

“Mr. President, I rise today to recognize the Prince William County Crisis Receiving Center Complex. The crisis receiving center complex, CRC, and colocated community services outpatient and community-based programs opened in October 2025.”

“Mr. President, pursuant to 50 U.S.C. 1546a and in accordance with section 601(b) of the International Security Assistance and Arms Export Control Act, I move to discharge the Committee on Foreign Relations from further consideration of S.J.”

“Mr. President, I rise to talk about the next vote the Senate will have on a War Powers Resolution, and this will be the eighth such vote. I want to dig into the topic for a minute why this vote is different than the earlier seven.”

“Mr. President. I rise today to recognize May 11 to May 17, 2026, as National Salvation Army Week. Founded in 1865, the Salvation Army has been unfailingly committed to serving those in need without discrimination.”

“Mr. President, I appreciate my colleague and strongly support his resolution that will be voted on tomorrow, and I have taken the floor often on this topic and don't need to repeat things I have said before.”

“Mr. President, I rise today to recognize Mr. Richard Ritter, a true patriot who has dedicated more than 55 years of service to this country, first as a commissioned officer in the U.S.”

“In 1990, Mr. Ritter was assigned to the Strategic Defense Initiative Organization, later the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization, where he led theater missile defense systems integration and battle management, command, control, and communications efforts across the Department of Defense and with allied partners.”

“Mr. President, I am about to make a motion with respect to the War Powers Resolution, but I understand there will be a point of order offered that is not debatable.”

“Mr. President, I rise to speak on a War Powers Resolution that will be called up for a vote in the 5 o'clock hour, I believe, and I expect a number of other colleagues might take the floor.”

“Mr. President, I rise to support my colleague Senator Baldwin's War Powers Resolution. I have spoken on all of these resolutions now going back to the very beginning of the war.”

“Mr. President, I rise in support of Senator Murphy's War Powers Resolution, which I am proud to cosponsor. I came to this body in 2013, and as I have described on multiple occasions on the floor under both Democratic and Republican Presidents, I came with one obsession, and that obsession was that the Nation should not be at war without a vote of Congress.”

“What are your plans to protect allies who, if Iran is attacked, are likely to face retaliatory attacks from Iran? Many of our allies were not prepared to face what Iran did because the United States did not consult with them.”

“Mr. President, I am glad to join my colleagues on the floor in support of Senator Booker's War Powers Resolution. For those who wonder what a War Powers Resolution is, it is pretty simple.”

“Mr. President, pursuant to section 601(b) of the International Security Assistance and Arms Export Control Act, I move to discharge the Committee on Foreign Relations from further consideration of S.J.”

“Mr. President, I rise today, I believe, as the penultimate speaker before we have a vote on the War Powers Resolution, a bipartisan resolution I filed with Senators Paul, Schiff, and Schumer.”

“Madam President, I want to thank my colleague from California and my cosponsor on the War Powers Resolution, which will be heard within the next 48 hours or so.”

“I spoke on this at some length on Thursday, before the President launched the U.S. attack on Iran on Saturday morning, and I asked the question: Have we learned nothing from 25 years of war in the Middle East?”

“Mr. President, I rise to discuss a matter that will likely be before the body next week, a vote on my bipartisan War Powers Resolution to advance the proposition we shouldn't be at war against Iran without a vote of Congress.”

“Finally, war is dangerous to the U.S. economy. An invasion of Iran would immediately lead to dramatic increases in the price of oil. American citizens, Virginians, are already laboring under costs that are too high for energy, for health, for groceries, for building supplies.”

“Madam President, I rise today to continue an important Senate tradition. Each year, beginning in 1896, on a day near in time to George Washington's birthday, a Senator, alternating between parties, stands in the Senate to read Washington's Farewell Address, presented 100 years earlier as our first President neared the end of his second term.”

“Mr. President, I rise today--and I know other colleagues have done the same--to talk about H.J. Res. 142, the resolution we will be voting on later. It is a resolution that would overturn a recent law passed by the DC City Council regarding local taxes.”

“Mr. President, I rise to talk about the issue that will dominate attention in the Senate between now and next Friday, Friday the 13th, a discussion about reforms to the Department of Homeland Security and the activities it has engaged in all around the country.”

“Mr. President, I rise to follow my colleague from North Carolina and with Senator Collins, the Senator from Maine, on the floor. I hope also to be voting today--and hopefully soon--on behalf of the bill that is pending before us that would advance five completed appropriations bills that are very solid bills, to my point of view.”

“I have only given you the most egregious errors. If you look at the others that were on that initial list, none of them have ever passed sanctuary city legislation, and none of them have refused to cooperate with immigration officials in doing their job.”

“Mr. President, thank you so much, and what an honor it is to be together with our colleagues from Minnesota to appreciate their leadership and how they stood in the gap for Minnesotans who have really suffered in these last weeks, to be together with so many colleagues on the floor to talk about this most existential moment.”

“Mr. President and my colleagues, last week, the Senate agreed to discharge our bipartisan War Powers Resolution from the Foreign Relations Committee so that we could finally, after months, debate military action against Venezuela and Venezuelans, on the floor of the Senate, and not just allow the administration to wage combat on its own with no information shared except in classified settings.”

“Mr. President, in a moment, I will make the motion that my colleague from Idaho mentioned, the motion to proceed to Calendar No. 298, but I do want to just address the points that he made very briefly.”

“Mr. President, I am glad to join my colleagues to talk about the upcoming vote on S.J. Res. 84, the use of the Congressional Review Act to strike down a recent regulatory attack on the Affordable Care Act launched by the Trump administration.”

“Mr. President, I have spoken before; so I am going to be very brief. And then I am going to call up the business of the Senate, this War Powers Resolution.”

“Mr. President, pursuant to section 601(b) of the International Security Assistance and Arms Control Act of 1976, I move to discharge the Committee on Foreign Relations from further consideration of S.J.”

“Mr. President, I rise to speak with other colleagues about my War Powers Resolution, a bipartisan resolution cosponsored by Senators Paul, Schumer, and Schiff that will be called up for a vote tomorrow.”

“Mr. President, I rise to speak about the invasion of Venezuela that the U.S. military carried out last weekend, which will be the subject of a War Powers Resolution vote on Thursday morning.”

“After the administration actions over the weekend, which resulted in several injuries to U.S. servicemembers, and we are praying for them and their families for their recovery, Congress needs to tell the American public where it stands.”

“As evidence of the administration's own insecurity about its own legal rationale, in October, the U.S. military carried out a strike against a submersible in international waters, and there were two survivors.”

“Mr. President, I first ask unanimous consent that my legislative fellow Molly Sanders, a proud Navy lieutenant, be granted floor privileges for the duration of her fellowship with my office.”

“Mr. President, I rise with my colleagues and thank them for gathering to talk about this most important anniversary. I think all of us are used to giving speeches on the Senate floor to an empty Chamber.”

“Mr. President, I rise today to express deep concern and frustration over President Trump's decision to approve the sale of advanced Nvidia H200 AI chips to the People's Republic of China.”

“Mr. President, prior to my remarks, I would ask permission that, upon the conclusion of my remarks, Senator Shaheen be allowed to speak for up to 10 minutes before the initiation of the scheduled vote.”

“Mr. President, on behalf of myself and my colleague Senator Mark Warner, I rise today to honor the life and service of Retired U.S. Navy CAPT William ``Bill'' Crow, a man whose contributions to our Nation's defense and to the shipbuilding industry were matched only by the warmth, generosity, and joy he brought to everyone who knew him.”

“Mr. President, I thank my colleague Senator Merkley. I have spoken often on this matter on the floor the last few months, and I don't want to belabor a point that I previously made and that I am likely to make again next week when a War Powers Resolution is called forth.”

“Mr. President, I rise today with colleagues to talk about the vote we will cast tomorrow on extending Affordable Care Act premium tax credits. We missed an opportunity in June.”

“Mr. President, I rise to recognize and honor Stephen A. Edwards as he concludes his tenure as CEO and executive director of the Virginia Port Authority. Mr. Edwards leadership from January 2021 to December 2025 has steered the Port of Virginia to new heights of success, positioning it as one of the most modern, efficient, and future-ready maritime gateways in the United States.”

“Mr. President, Juan Orlando Hernandez is the former President of Honduras, a country I lived in when I worked with Jesuit missionaries in 1980 and 1981. In a landmark criminal prosecution, he was convicted by a jury in an American Federal court of a massive conspiracy to traffic more than 400 tons of cocaine into the United States while he was President of this very poor country.”

“Mr. President, I am thrilled to recognize the centennial of Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The American Friends of Hebrew University, AFHU, is helping to celebrate 100 years of accomplishment and toast the next generation of visionaries who will carry forward this tradition to the next century and beyond.”

“Today, it is home to innovative companies, large and small, and exports its goods and services to the world through an international airport and international seaport. We are economically stronger when we invest in our people.”

“Mr. President, I rise together with my colleagues from Maryland and Hawaii to celebrate 50 years of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. I will not speak long because I have a separate matter that I will take up after this.”

“Mr. President, in a moment, I am going to ask unanimous consent for the passage of S. Res. 473, and that is a resolution commemorating the seventh anniversary of the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and calling for accountability for his murder.”

“Mr. President, pursuant to section 601(b) of the International Security Assistance and Arms Control Act, I move to discharge the Committee on Foreign Relations from the further consideration of S.J.”

“Mr. President, I will begin I think a few hours of floor speeches on S.J. Res. 90, and I appreciate the work of Leader Thune and Leader Schumer in scheduling this matter for a vote today at 5 o'clock.”

“But the Framers of the Constitution firmly believed that we should not be at war--we should not be risking our troops who are on all these platforms right now, their life and their health--we should not be risking them without a debate and a vote in Congress.”

“Mr. President, I rise for the closing comments about S.J. Res. 90. My colleague and friend from Idaho talked about strikes on boats. That is not what this is about.”

“A Venezuela of 30 million people is a completely different kind of military operation, and we would not expect it to go perfectly because none ever go perfectly.”

“Mr. President, I appreciate the chance to rise today to talk about a success story in Virginia and the elections last night, but I am going to take a little bit of a different tact than my colleagues, and I am not going to talk about my pride in my friends who won elections; I am instead going to talk about the turnout in the elections.”

“Mr. President, I rise to speak, and I thank my colleague, the lead Democratic Senator from the Finance Committee, Ron Wyden, for his passionate advocacy. And I join him in this effort to get colleagues in the Senate to vote for the resolution that will be pending before us to eliminate Donald Trump's global tariff regime announced in April.”

“Mr. President, I rise to thank my colleague from Minnesota Senator Klobuchar for her hard work on this effort and her work over many years in leading the U.S.-Canada interparliamentary dialogue.”

“Virginia is one of the top 10 States in the country in the volume of wine production. We also produce a lot of whiskey and other spirits. And Canadians like to buy American products.”

“Mr. President, I rise to speak about a vote that we will cast in a few hours with respect to President Trump's imposition of a 50-percent tariff on all goods coming from Brazil.”

“Go back to the definition that I read you earlier. How is a prosecution of a potential Brazilian lawbreaker an ``unusual [or] extraordinary threat . . . to the national security, foreign policy, or economy of the United States''?”

“Mr. President, I rise to speak about the Brazilian tariff resolution that is before the body, and I will speak briefly since I spoke about 4:30 about it.”

“If this is a national emergency for the United States, any President of any party could say that anything is a national emergency for the United States. So the first reason that I asked my colleagues to support this resolution is to not allow the President to end-run Congress and create a bogus emergency to unilaterally claim powers--in this case, trade powers--that are given to Congress in the Constitution.”

“Mr. President, I am going to ask two questions. I am going to tell a story about something that happened recently in Virginia and ask my colleague from Oregon what he thinks about it, and then I am going to hand my colleague from Oregon a picture and ask my colleague what he thinks about it.”

“Thank you. And I will tell a quick story. In fact, I am going to hand you this picture now because my question is going to be for you to describe it.”

“Madam President, I want to thank my colleague. Senator Young and I have worked on this for a number of years. As he mentioned, the first Gulf war started in 1991, the second Gulf war in 2002, and it was over in 2011--14 years ago.”

“Mr. President, I rise to begin a discussion that we will have over the course of the next couple of hours about this Senate joint resolution--a privileged motion pending before the Senate that I filed, together with Senator Heinrich, to terminate a Presidential declaration of an energy emergency that he issued on his first day in office.”

“Mr. President, my colleague from Idaho's emotional speech notwithstanding, this is not about hating a President; it is about loving a Constitution. It is about loving a Constitution.”

“Mr. President, I rise to talk about the reality of the shutdown that we are in and the efforts underway to find a path out, which I am optimistic we can, particularly after discussions among so many colleagues of both parties today on the floor of the Senate.”

“No one relishes that in this body, and I am completely confident that all 100 Senators feel the same way in that this is not a good thing and that there needs to be a path forward.”

“I have Republican colleagues who say: We don't want to completely reverse them because there are some things about the ACA premium tax subsidy we don't like. We would like to design them differently.”

“Mr. President, I rise to discuss a vote that the Senate will take later this week on en bloc Executive nominations. The vote will likely come either tomorrow or possibly Friday.”

“Georgia. And this was recent. This was in August of 2024. This is not years and years and years ago. Mr. White went on to continue in this extreme rhetoric in the aftermath of President Trump's election in 2024.”

“Mr. President, on February 25, 1975, Resolution No. 371 was presented to the City Council of Alexandria, VA, to establish the Alexandria Archaeological Commission. It was the first in the Nation.”

“Mr. President, I will only take 1 minute. A little over a year ago, the Senate voted for $18 billion in defense aid to Israel. On the Democratic side, the vote was 47 to 4.”

“Madam President, I rise today to recognize the remarkable legacy and ongoing contributions of Hampden-Sydney College as it celebrates the 250th anniversary of its founding on November 10, 2025.”

“Mr. President, I would like to honor and recognize Michael S. Treppel for his nearly quarter century of distinguished service to the U.S. Congress. Throughout his tenure, Mr.”

“Mr. President, I would like to recognize the remarkable life and career of Ambassador Lino Gutierrez, a dedicated public servant whose decades of diplomacy helped shape U.S. engagement across the Western Hemisphere.”

“Mr. President, my motion would require the bill to come back with no cuts to faith-based organizations in the International Development account and the Migration and Refugee Assistance accounts.”

“Mr. President, the good news is that I am the last speaker of the day. I wish I could tell you my speech will be short. I don't think it will be long, but I will try to make it interesting.”

“Mr. President, we can stop this, and we should. President Trump has only been in office 6 months, and he has already fired more veterans than any President in American history.”

“Madam President, pursuant to section 601(b) of the International Security Assistance and Arms Control Expert Act, I move to discharge the Committee on Foreign Relations from further consideration of S.J.”

“Madam President, we will begin a couple of hours of debate on this resolution prior to a vote that I understand is scheduled around 6 or maybe a little bit thereafter.”

“I remember--at the time, I was Lieutenant Governor, and I was paying attention to this, and I thought, what is the urgency about this debate in October of 2022 right before a midterm election?”

“Mr. President, the remaining two speakers and Senator Schumer have yielded their time to me. I will be the last speaker before the vote. My colleague from Idaho says this is driven by hate and vitriol toward President Trump.”

“Mr. President, I rise at a late hour with few folks on the floor to talk about the most serious issue we could ever talk about on the floor of the U.S.”

“Mr. President, 2 days from today, June 14, is Flag Day in the United States. It is the day every year where we celebrate the flag, but it is not the piece of cloth that we celebrate; we celebrate core American values.”

“Mr. President, I rise to discuss S. Res. 195, which is a vote on a motion to discharge that will be the next pending vote in the Senate.”

“Mr. President, I rise today to recognize May 12 to May 18, 2025, as National Salvation Army Week. Founded in 1865, the Salvation Army has been unfailingly committed to serving those in need without discrimination.”

“Mr. President, the Constitution of the United States puts two powers clearly--clearly--within the hands of Congress: the power to tax and the power to conduct trade policy, including the imposition of tariffs.”

“Mr. President, I thank the majority leader for locking us in, and I think we will complete our comments well on time for the vote. I am very pleased to be joined by my colleague Senator Collins as we introduce a bill called the Religious Workforce Protection Act.”

“But in addition to the fact that many of our churches of all denominations--synagogues and temples and gurdwaras and mosques--in the country serve new American populations, it is also the case that many of our religious workers in the United States are also immigrants.”

“Mr. President, I rise to join my colleagues--I really appreciate my colleague from Hawaii's leadership on this topic and the Senator from New Hampshire--to talk about the pending discussion about the budget reconciliation bill and the vote-arama that will start in a few hours.”

“Mr. President, I rise for some concluding comments. I believe the vote will follow. I want to acknowledge my colleague from Idaho's comments about the northern border. This is a bill that is fundamentally about tariffs.”

“Mr. President, I rise today, following my colleague from Maine, to talk about S.J. Res. 37, which we believe will come up for a vote later this afternoon, possibly somewhere between 6 and 7 o'clock.”

“Post talks about the stock markets' grim view of tariff shenanigans: Markets have plummeted since Trump announced new levies on Canada, Mexico, and China, erasing all gains since his election.”

“Like President Trump, I think it is right to say, ``America first,'' but I don't want America alone. I don't want an America pushing aside its longstanding allies who have stood with us.”

“Other nations are having to engage in hedging behaviors because they thought we were friends and now they doubt that reality anymore. And so as you look at the signs of these economic times--and then I will get to a second question about the signs of the times in our democracy--how are we to understand this?”

“Mr. President, I rise today to honor and celebrate the remarkable leadership and dedication of Nathan Monell, who will retire as executive director of the National Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) this year.”

“Madam President, I can make it fast or slow. I am joining all of my colleagues to advocate for this bill. One-third of the Virginia population is a resident of the DC metro area and enjoys this Capital, and 150,000 Virginians come to work in DC every day.”

“Mr. President, I rise to discuss the House continuing resolution that will be before this body over the next couple of days, and I want to begin by talking about a Senate Armed Services Committee meeting that we had yesterday morning at 9:30 a.m.”

“Depending on the day, around 67%. I then said: What will one-fifth of ships missing their maintenance schedule under the CR, what will that do to our quest to get to 80% readiness for ships and subs?”

“Mr. President, I rise to conclude the debate. I believe the vote will follow these remarks. I want to thank my colleagues. Seventeen Democrats appeared on the floor to speak on behalf of S.J.”

“Mr. President, I rise to begin a discussion that will take place, during today, about S.J. Res. 10, which is a resolution that my colleague Senator Heinrich and I have filed to challenge President Trump's day-one declaration of a U.S. energy emergency.”

“Mr. President, I rise to describe an amazing journey that I took this weekend that was a powerful journey connected to my Virginia National Guard and also to issues that are very, very prominent right now in the world.”

“Mr. President, I rise to follow my colleague from Connecticut to talk about the impending business before the Senate, the 2025 budget resolution. My colleague talked about this discussion and the Republican proposal as a scam.”

“Mr. President, today, I am joining with Senator Mark Warner to again introduce legislation to designate the General George C. Marshall House, also known as the Dodona Manor, in Leesburg, VA, as an affiliated area under the National Park Service.”

“Mr. President, I am so happy that I follow my colleague from Massachusetts. I will build upon some of the points that she has made, but we have served as colleagues together on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee during earlier terms of Congress, and you won't find a better champion for the health of the American public than Senator Warren.”

“Mr. President, I rise to join my colleagues from Kansas, and Senator Warner, I believe, will be here in a few minutes to support the resolution described by Senator Moran.”

“Mr. President, I rise to continue the discussion about Russell Vought, the President's nominee to be Director of the Office of Management and Budget. Before I do, I thought I would just share with my colleagues and all who are in the Chamber a vigil that I just attended.”

“I couldn't think of any of my own that really were that enlightening, so I fell back on Psalm 90: Teach us how short our lives are, so that we may become wise.”

“Madam President, I rise to talk a little bit about what I am hearing from constituents in the Commonwealth, in the last week, and then, in particular, to direct a message to Federal employees.”

“Mr. President, I rise briefly to just draw my colleagues' attention to two items that, although seemingly unconnected, happened last week that I think are deeply connected. On Inauguration Day, January 20, President Trump declared a national emergency at the southern border of the United States.”

“Mr. President, I am honored to be with my colleagues on the floor to talk about the actions that have become very manifest in Virginia today because of the President's Executive orders, particularly the recent order pausing Federal funding--grant funding, program funding.”

“Federal spending, if he wants to reduce the Federal workforce, if he wants to gut Medicaid, gut Medicare, gut Social Security, gut the SNAP program, gut low-income heating assistance, gut rental assistance, gut title I funding to our public schools, guess what?”

“Mr. President, I rise together with my colleagues to speak in opposition to the President's action pardoning those who attacked this Capitol on January 6, 2021. I was here that day.”

“Howie Liebengood would be alive today--Howie Liebengood would be alive today if President Trump hadn't urged people to gather to do something wild in Washington, DC, on January 6, 2021, and then urged those gathering to go up and raise hell at the Capitol.”

“Mr. President, I rise to talk about the pending matter of the Pete Hegseth nomination to be Secretary of Defense. Before I get into the bulk of my comments, I want to just state my own record in terms of votes for the Secretary of Defense as a member of the Armed Services Committee.”

“Mr. President, I rise as a member of the Armed Services Committee to discuss the nomination of Pete Hegseth to be our Nation's Secretary of Defense. Let me make two preliminary comments.”

“I know the reason why. You were worried that if you told them about this, they would not nominate you to be Secretary of Defense. The relationship between a Secretary of Defense and a President is a very important relationship that demands complete candor.”

“I was very disturbed the other day when we had a committee hearing to forward Mr. Hegseth's nomination, and the Republican majority asked for a waiver to forward it faster than rules allow.”

“Mr. President, I will just direct it, and my answer is going to reveal my naivete because my corporate sector in Virginia--and my companies were like everybody's companies--were saying: Hey, drop that 35 percent rate to 28.”

“I hope we can take this up in the Budget Committee. I have some Budget Committee colleagues who are here on the floor. Senator Whitehouse has been the lead Democrat on the Budget Committee for some time and is now at the helm of another committee.”

“Precisely zero, even though that phrase that ``they will pay for themselves'' or that ``they have paid for themselves'' was used all the time, but no one would, under oath, say that that actually happened.”

“Mr. President, I spoke on the Senate floor on December 11 about birthright citizenship--the guarantee contained in the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that all persons born in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof are deemed citizens.”