Barbara Boxer: “I have a number of topics to go over, and I will do this as briefly as I can because I know colleagues want to put…”

“I have a number of topics to go over, and I will do this as briefly as I can because I know colleagues want to put forward a unanimous consent request. In our work every day something happens, and I feel compelled to talk about a few of these things. But before I begin my remarks, I wish to send a message of condolence to all those parents who have lost their children to violence in our country, in the Middle East, and all over the world. Children and all innocents must be protected in a truly civilized world. We need to work toward that day, we have to pray for that day, and it is going to take people who care in order to make that happen. When somebody said you have to walk and chew gum at the same time when you are a Senator, they were more than right. There are so many issues coming at us, and I am going to speak about a few of them. I will start off with the crisis we face in the highway trust fund. I wish to call attention to a transportation government shutdown which will happen in 25 days unless we save the highway trust fund. In August we have a slowdown in payments to the States, and it is very serious. Unless Congress takes action, billions of dollars in transportation funding to the States will be delayed or stopped. I see Senator Corker is here and I know he is here on another topic, but I thank him for his courage in working across the aisle and saying: We need to pay for our roads and our bridges. I see Senator Klobuchar is on the floor.…”