I thank Mr. Takano, my friend from California, for entering this amendment. Mr. Chair, I do continue to oppose this amendment. But with that I just ask that he look at making it a little more finite and making it a little less vague, and…

I continue to oppose. Like I said, it is overly vague and broad. With the right words added to this, this could be something that works and that is helpful. But, in its current form, I can't support it. Mr. Chair, I continue to ask my…

I ask unanimous consent to proceed as in morning business. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

I call to the Senators' attention today a disturbing article in the June 29, 2019, issue of The Economist, on pages 36 and 37. It is about the military buildup in China and the way it affects the United States. It says: Xi Jinping wants…

I ask for the yeas and nays. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There appears to be a sufficient second. The clerk will call the roll. The clerk called the roll.

Their refusal undermines the work of this committee, which is exercising its oversight responsibilities.

It is disrespectful to our witnesses from Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands who have traveled here today to inform Congress about the recovery challenges they still face at home.

It is a sad day for our country when we see this kind of disrespect.

There shouldn't be Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands response. There should be an American response.

Political expediency is no longer the order of the day.

So much of what I have heard and seen in my visit to Puerto Rico, especially, in many instances FEMA has been missing in action.

I am not convinced at this point that we are anywhere near a capacity in Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.

We have to stand up to the President. We cannot allow him to believe that he can do all of these things with impunity.

Do you believe that you are an American entitled to the same benefits, a citizen entitled to the same benefits and rights as other citizens?

This level of disrespect is contagious, and it is infecting the body politic in the United States of America.

This probably was not a wise choice to implement this in a situation so far away from the mainland.

I believe that if these agencies that I just spoke of, if these agencies were abolished, that our country would be substantially less safe.

Government use of biometric and personal identifiable information can be valuable tools only if utilized properly. Unfortunately, this is the second major privacy breach at DHS this year. We must ensure we are not expanding the use of…