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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made the following remarks on the Senate floor today regarding Senate accomplishments during the Republican Majority:

“One newspaper recently declared that the Senate ‘has settled into a new normal’ under Republican leadership, ‘passing bills at [a] rate not seen in decades.’ And that is good news for the American people. Here’s why.

“This ‘new normal’ includes more than 225 bills that have been passed, along with more than 140 bills that have become law—and I’m not just talking about bills from Republicans, but bills from Democrats too.

“For instance, the Senior Senator from Delaware, who’s seen four of his bills become law. For instance, the Senior Senator from California, who’s seen three become law. And, for instance, our Democratic colleagues from Rhode Island and Minnesota, who saw the CARA bill they worked on with Republican Senators like Senator Portman, Senator Ayotte, and Senator Grassley pass yesterday.

“CARA is a comprehensive legislative response to the prescription opioid and heroin epidemic ravaging our country. Legislation to address this epidemic languished under a previous Judiciary chairman, but Senator Grassley worked to change that. He made it a priority and moved it swiftly. CARA wouldn’t have been possible without him, just as it wouldn’t have been possible without members like Senator Portman and Senator Ayotte who have worked to drive this bill forward every step of the way. I’d also like to thank Senator Alexander for his work in conference committee to secure a strong final bill. The bill we passed will help protect more Americans from addiction and overdose, and we expect the President to sign it into law soon.

“Here’s another important bill we passed yesterday and also expect the President to sign into law soon. It’s the most comprehensive aviation security reform legislation in a decade, and it contains significant consumer protections for airline passengers too. This important bill will help protect Americans at our airports and in our skies, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the good work of Senator Thune who worked with Senator Nelson to guide it through to passage.

“In just the past week or so we saw the crisis in Puerto Rico and we responded—with responsible legislation designed to prevent a taxpayer bailout and help the Puerto Rican people. We saw the threat of rising food prices for Middle-Class families and we responded—with science-based legislation designed to prevent confusing and costly laws in one state from raising grocery bills in another.

“And while Senate Democrats are now trying to make it impossible to get the basic work of government accomplished with some ‘Filibuster Summer’ sequel, we’ve been able to make progress there too. The full Appropriations Committee has approved all 12 funding bills—at record early time and with broad, bipartisan support—many of them with unanimous backing from both sides. The full Senate has passed some on the floor, and if our Democratic friends would work with us, we could pass the others as well.

“The Republican-led Senate set out to give these appropriations bills ample amount of floor time for Senators to debate these measures, so more of the American people could be represented in the lawmaking process, and that’s just what we’ve done.

“The Republican-led Senate set out to give colleagues from both sides more of a voice allowing amendments and bills from both sides, because better process leads to better results for the American people, and that’s just what we’ve done.

“We did so because this Republican majority is following through on what we’ve set out to do from the beginning: open up the legislative process, get committees up and running again, empower members from both sides, find areas of common ground, and advance legislation that can make a difference for people across our country. And just because Democrats are again reverting to their dysfunctional ways because they believe it suits them politically, it doesn’t change the reality that we’ve made significant progress in restoring the Senate to significantly better health.

“We’ve clearly put the Senate back to work too. There are so many other measures we’ve passed besides those I’ve mentioned already. Groundbreaking reforms in education and in transportation. Permanent tax relief for families and small businesses.
Trading more of Washington’s annual patches and punts for real solutions. All of these good ideas—and so many more—are now law, which benefits the people we represent.

“We’ve gotten so much done already. There’s much more we can do too, as long as our Democratic colleagues aren’t determined to obstruct for its own sake. I think many on the other side have much to ponder over the state work period about Zika, veterans, our men and women in uniform…and then they’ll have to decide. Do they want to continue with these partisan games on critical issues like Zika and national defense, or do they want to work with us to keep making progress for our country?

“We’ll certainly give them more opportunities to make progress on appropriations. We’ll certainly give them opportunities to make progress on important issues like energy and defense. And even if Democratic Leaders might prefer dysfunction and partisan games, members from both sides know that the Republican-led Senate has given them more of an opportunity to move legislation and their constituents more of a voice.

“With continued hard work, and cooperation from our friends across the aisle, we can continue to add to that record of achievement for people across the country. Shouldn’t that be what we all want after all?”

“While we will soon learn more about the shocking events in Nice, what will not change is that America stands with the people of France this Bastille Day as they grieve for this tragic loss of life and will stand with them in their response and recovery.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made the following remarks on the Senate floor today urging Senate Democrats to stop blocking funding for our national defense since they support the bill that authorizes that funding:

“As every colleague knows, there are two types of bills necessary to fund our military. First is the defense authorization bill, which authorizes the many things our military needs. Democrats voted with us to pass that important bill last month. Second is the defense appropriations bill, which actually funds the things the defense authorization bill authorizes. Democrats have been filibustering that important bill since last week.

“In other words, Democrats are happy to make promises to our men and women in uniform with the defense authorization bill, but they’re not prepared to keep those promises by passing the defense appropriations bill.

“Both the current and incoming Democratic Leaders essentially just made this point themselves. Here’s what the senior Democrat from New York said just yesterday: ‘[A bill] without actual appropriations…is like a Hollywood movie set: something that appears real on the surface but has no substance and no life behind its false facade.’ Here’s what the Democratic Leader said: ‘Authorizing legislation is a start, but without resources, it’s very, very meaningless.’ Very, very meaningless. A false façade. Harsh words from Democrats about their own actions on defense funding.

“In an attempt to make a misleading political point about the CARA bill—a point that doesn’t hold water of course—these Democratic leaders inadvertently stepped on their own party’s message for opposing the funding bill our military needs. If they really believe what they said to be true, then why are Senate Democrats blocking the defense appropriations bill when they talk about how important it is to actually provide ‘real funding’?

“This a defense funding bill that the top Democrat on the Defense Subcommittee called ‘a responsible approach to protecting our country.’ It’s a bill that every single Democrat and every single Republican supported in committee. It also respects the budget caps in place. It’s the epitome of regular order. Senate Democrats may try to spin their actions now, but it all boils down to one thing: partisan politics.

“At a time when we face an array of daunting challenges around the globe, it’s imperative that the Senate take the next steps today to provide the resources and training our servicemembers need.

“The CIA director recently said he’d be surprised if ISIL isn’t trying to carry out an attack in the U.S. like the one we saw recently in Istanbul. And we’re continuing to see terrorism hit home in Orlando and San Bernardino and across the world in places like Bangladesh, Baghdad, and in Saudi Arabia. These factors only underscore the importance of taking up and passing this defense funding bill as soon as possible. They also underscore the importance of our Commander-in-Chief finally leading a campaign to defeat ISIL, which is the only way to end ISIL -directed and ISIL-inspired terrorism once and for all. It’s clear that preventing future attacks inside our borders requires defeating ISIL where it exists — beyond our borders.

“Passing this defense funding bill is crucial to achieving that goal, just as it’s crucial to fulfilling the commitment that President Obama made last week regarding the 8,400 troops that will remain in Afghanistan through the end of his Administration. The President’s statement represents another glaring example of why the Senate must pass this defense appropriations measure.

“It’s what’s needed to fund the training to prepare forces for deployment to Afghanistan, and the weapons they’ll carry, and the spare parts and fuel consumed in training and operations, and the ammunition they’ll need to execute their missions. It also includes resources to fund basic pay, deliver necessary medical services, and support quality of life programs that military families count on.

“The President has made a commitment to our allies, and we must meet our commitment to the force. Our men and women in uniform courageously put themselves in harm’s way to help keep our country safe. They do so willingly and voluntarily, they don’t ask for much in return, and they never forsake their commitment. Senators shouldn’t forsake their commitment either.

“Today, our Democratic colleagues will have the opportunity to join with us in meeting the first part of that commitment — by voting to go to conference on the defense authorization bill.

“Then they’ll have the opportunity to join with us in meeting the second part of that commitment — by voting to end their filibuster of the defense funding bill so we can pass it.

“America’s men and women in uniform don’t need ‘false facades’ or ‘very, very meaningless’ gestures from our Democratic colleagues. They need Democrats to put politics aside and join us in advancing a strong defense authorization bill and a strong defense appropriations bill, because our servicemembers and our national security depend on both.

“Now, despite Senate Democrats efforts to put partisan politics before pressing issues like national security and Zika, the Republican-led Senate is working hard to advance solutions for the American people.”

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