grateful my ten years of work leading this bill with debbie dingell in the house is not gone for not. we kept it moving it's probablye a sign for anyone who perseverance matters in this place. i am very pleased it is part of the final negotiation. it will make such a difference for saving lives for thank you, mr. president i yield the floor. >> mr. president. as we speak the united states senate is working on something not seen since the time we passed the brady bill t i off nearly three decades ago. i bipartisan effort to draft meaningful gun safety legislation. for decades the rhythm of the gun debate in congress haveir followed a dispiriting pattern. mass shooting takes placece somewhere in america, innocent people are slaughtered, families grieve and demand action, butot gridlock takes over and nothing, nothing gets done for this was a cycle in action after sandy

hook, las vegas, orlando, charleston, parkland, el paso, atlanta, pittsburgh, and so many others. but, after uvalde and buffalo perhaps, perhaps this time could be different. too many senators on both side this debate certainly feels different. with sunday's announcement of a bipartisan framework for gun legislation, we are further down the road to gun safety reform than we have been in a long time. i spoke with senators cornyn and murphy this morning. they updated me on their progress. they are working with the urgency of the situation demands. and theyin are hopeful the legislative text can be finalized in the coming days. i've assured of my colleagues that once we get legislativee text to a gun safety bill, i won't move to hold a vote on the senate floor as soon as possible. i hope that in the very near future democrats and republicans

can take the real momentum of the past few weeks and translate it into something that has escaped this chamber for decades, voting on and passing long sought gun safety reform. it is a o rare opportunity for e senate. so in order to reach our goal we have to keep working with the same urgency andha good faith tt has carried us this far. p for sure, bipartisan framework is far from perfect.un but it in question we save lives and be the most significant action on guns the senate has taken nearly three decades. if past it would enhance it background checks forh those under 21. it would help states with the red flag logs preventing shootings before they happen. it would make it harder for domestic abusers to acquire a weapon by closing the boyfriend loophole. significantly this framework also calls for new punishment for gun traffickers. we all know one of the biggest weaknesses under countries gun

laws that anyone can buy a gun in one state and simply smuggle it into another. we could begin to fight against that with deferred penalties on gun trafficking. of course this framework will help lower crime and reduceoo gn violence in her neighborhoods. increasing funding for mental health as well and even on its own funding for mental health with great increases in mental health problems that we see after covid is very much needed. taken together the policies outlined by the bipartisan framework will be an important first step to saving lives. it would lay the foundation for a more sensible approach to gun safety in the future. it's certainly not everything democrats want. but if we can save even one life, one lifey our efforts will have been worth it. i hope very soon the senate will break the cycle of violence,

grieving, and gridlock that is held firm for far too long. this is the best chance we have had in years to finally tell the american people that yes, after a horrifying tragedies of uvalde and buffalo, this time, this time it will be different. we have more work to do. so i urge my colleagues not to let this precious opportunity slipn away. now, on the packed act, to date the senate will continue consideration of honoring our pact act. most and vicious expansion of veteran healthcare benefits we have seen in decades. yesterday we invoke cloture on the substitute amendment to the act with a very strong bipartisan vote, 78 -- 17. indication that both sides want this bill passed in the senate. there is no reason to delay that outcome. today we will continue working with our republicanns colleagues tos see if we can speed up consideration of this

legislation. with republican cooperation we could be done with the packed act as soon as tomorrow. we need to pass the packed act asap because our veterans have waited long enough for their healthcare benefits to treat complications from toxic exposure buried over the lastem two decades an estimated 3.5 million service members were exposed to dangerous chemicals while in the line of duty while risking their lives for us. burn pits weref common method of eliminating all sorts of ways throughout iraq and afghanistan. from every date to hazardous and poisonous materials. returning home, many veterans develop terrible diseases because of their exposure to these toxic waste dumps. but even so nearly 80% of all disability claims related to burn pits have been denied by the veterans administration.

what about justice? no veteran should ever have to carry the burden of treating complications from toxic exposure alone. we can change that with this bill. there is every reason in the world to get the packed act done quickly. both parties won it, our veterans deserve it. the time is long past for us to make a change at the va.er and on shipping, last night finally the house overwhelmingly approve the senate ocean shipping reform act. the most significant maritime reform law passed by congress in years. the inflation fighting shipping bill now goes to the president's desk for signature. finally providing relief to american exporters and consumers alike. shipping reform is exactly the kind a of bill that can make a difference to the american people. it fights inflation, it relieves our supply chain comment help small businesses and consumers alike. not too much has been written about this bill because sadly the way our world immediate work

if there's not a big conflicts they don't write much about it. but this is very important. it is high prices are our number one nemesis one of the main reasons is the ships piled up at our ports per we've all seen the pictures outside the ports of l.a. and seattle and savannah, and northville, new york, and new jersey. this is causing people to pay more. it is no one's fault, it was covid related. and now there is a big rush to make up for the delays that covid caused. we have to do something about it, and we have it. there are many frustrating reasons why prices are going up right now. one of the main was his abuses from ocean carriers but over the course of the pandemic listen to this folks, over the course of the pandemic unfair shipping practices lede carriers to increase prices by as much as

1000%. 1000% increase in prices and shipping. and he was paying that? the average family in america. and the average exporting business. even worse, foreign carriers often times refused to transport u.s. goods overseas. by now we are seeing the results. backlogs at the ports of l.a., seattle, georgia, new york, new jersey and other major hubs. b this is not just a problem for the coast. a backlog appears at the ports in los angeles that hurts farmers in minnesota, or wisconsin but hurts truckers and tech companies and manufacturers, mom-and-pop shops all over the country. and most of all hurts american consumers. our shipping reform bill will fix this. if i make it harder for ocean carriers to unreasonably refuse american goods at our ports. while strengthening the federal maritime commission's powers to stop abusive practices by foreign carriers. i want to thank speaker pelosi and my house colleagues who work

to pass thisag t bill. and special thanks goes to senator klobuchar and thune for authoring the legislation as well as chairman cantwell who use orwh legislative skills, whh are indeed very, very fine. she shepherded the bill through this chamber. because of the hard work of these folks, shipping reform will now become law. american consumers will soon fill the benefit. i yield the floor and notice the absence of a quorum. >> a few months ago on this desk to talk about the results of a recall election in san francisco. in february a multilingual, multiethnic coalition in san francisco stood up for common sense and rejected three members of the far left school board that had prioritized woke lunacy