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STRENGTHENING AMERICA'S SECURITY IN THE MIDDLE EAST ACT OF 2019--Motion to Proceed

Floor Speech

By: Tim Kaine
By: Tim Kaine
Date: Jan. 8, 2019
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Foreign Aid Foreign Affairs Government Operations

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Mr. KAINE. Mr. President, tonight following this vote, Senator Shaheen and I have organized a group of more than 15 Democrats who will take the floor to talk about the effect of the government shutdown in each of our States. We will talk about the effect on workers, on families, and on citizens needing services. I don't want to repeat what I will say in about an hour, but I want to address the issue of the vote that is now coming before us.

The vote is a vote to proceed to a number of issues that are important to the security of other nations. I am the cosponsor of one of bills that is before us--a U.S.-Israel security assistance bill--and strongly, strongly support it, but as passionate as I have been for the security of the nation of Israel, I am every bit as passionate about the security of the United States, and I think the first business of this Senate should be to reopen the Government of the United States.

I think to take any other action or to focus on any other issue when we have bipartisan bills pending in the Senate that have been supported by our Republican colleagues that would reopen government--to skip by those bills and push them aside for another 18 days or longer--makes absolutely no sense.

So I will be opposing the motion that is on the floor this evening because the first business of this body should be to reopen government.

I think of the question that Abraham Lincoln raised at Gettysburg. He talked about this Nation dedicated to the proposition that all are created equal and the question about whether any nation dedicated to that proposition can long endure. I don't think President Lincoln, the founder of the modern Republican Party, would have supported a government shutdown for a year, for a week, for a day, or for a minute. This issue that is on the table before us is about the endurance of the United States Government and giving people confidence in us that we support the government's operation.

We should not take up other items until we take up the bipartisan proposal before this body and make sure that the government of the United States is funded and that people are protected.

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