Unanimous Consent Request--S. 4112
Floor Speech
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Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, before my colleague from Utah wishes to object, may I say a few words?
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Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Washington State for introducing this legislation, which I am proud to cosponsor.
Education is the future foundation of our success in America. It has always been. When a crisis occurs, we have to stand by those who educate our kids, and, most importantly, our kids themselves, whether they be in preschool, whether they be in K-12, or whether they be in higher education.
There are so many different ways that this crisis has affected our schools, and, frankly, if our schools can't open in September, millions of Americans who want to go back to work and who could go back to work will not be able to because they have to be home taking care of their kids. There is a need to really step up to the plate in a real way and improve education over the long run, but at the same time not let it deteriorate because the coronavirus has so affected our schools in so many different ways.
I would hope that this body would pass this measure. It is vital-- vital--to get our economy going, vital to resume the education of our kids, vital to make sure that classrooms can function in a healthy way, and vital to providing the kind of childcare that people need as well.
I hope that my colleagues, again, would support this legislation. It is so important. If America is going to have a great future--and I hope and pray and believe we will--we are going to have to have the best schools in the country, and if we are a country that lets a pandemic hurt our schools badly so they will take years to recover, woe is us.
So I thank my colleague from Washington State for introducing this measure. I am for it. Even if there is objection here, we will be coming back to this issue because it is so, so important for the future of our country. I appreciate the gentleman from Utah yielding, and I appreciate the good works of my colleagues who have put together this legislation
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