Regular Session - March 9, 2021
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1 NEW YORK STATE SENATE
2
3
4 THE STENOGRAPHIC RECORD
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6
7
8
9 ALBANY, NEW YORK
10 March 9, 2021
11 3:12 p.m.
12
13
14 REGULAR SESSION
15
16
17
18 SENATOR JAMAAL T. BAILEY, Acting President
19 ALEJANDRA N. PAULINO, ESQ., Secretary
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25
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1 P R O C E E D I N G S
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
3 Senate will come to order.
4 I ask everyone present to please
5 rise and recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
6 (Whereupon, the assemblage recited
7 the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.)
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: In the
9 absence of clergy, let us bow our heads in a
10 moment of silent reflection or prayer.
11 (Whereupon, the assemblage respected
12 a moment of silence.)
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
14 reading of the Journal.
15 THE SECRETARY: In Senate, Monday,
16 March 8, 2021, the Senate met pursuant to
17 adjournment. The Journal of Sunday, March 7,
18 2021, was read and approved. On motion, Senate
19 adjourned.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Without
21 objection, the Journal stands approved as read.
22 Presentation of petitions.
23 Messages from the Assembly.
24 Messages from the Governor.
25 Reports of standing committees.
1315
1 Reports of select committees.
2 Communications and reports from
3 state officers.
4 Motions and resolutions.
5 Senator Gianaris.
6 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President, I
7 offer amendments to the following Third Reading
8 Calendar bills:
9 Sponsored by Senator Gianaris,
10 page 10, Calendar 186, Senate Print 166;
11 And by Senator Kaplan, page 27,
12 Calendar 473, Senate 4704.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
14 amendments are received, and the bills shall
15 retain their place on the Third Reading Calendar.
16 SENATOR GIANARIS: Can we take up
17 the calendar at this time.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
19 Secretary will read.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 198, Senate Print 1633, by Senator Skoufis, an
22 act to amend the Executive Law.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
24 last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
1316
1 act shall take effect immediately.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
8 Calendar 198, those Senators voting in the
9 negative are Senators Akshar, Borrello, Boyle,
10 Gallivan, Griffo, Helming, Jordan, Lanza,
11 Martucci, Mattera, Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt,
12 Palumbo, Rath, Ritchie, Serino, Stec, Tedisco and
13 Weik.
14 Ayes, 43. Nays, 20.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
16 is passed.
17 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
18 199, Senate Print 2884, by Senator May, an act to
19 amend the Executive Law.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
21 last section.
22 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
23 act shall take effect on the 120th day after it
24 shall have become a law.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
1317
1 roll.
2 (The Secretary called the roll.)
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
4 the results.
5 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
6 Calendar Number 199, those Senators voting in the
7 negative are Senators Akshar, Borrello, Boyle,
8 Felder, Gallivan, Griffo, Helming, Jordan, Lanza,
9 Martucci, Mattera, Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt,
10 Palumbo, Rath, Ritchie, Serino, Stec, Tedisco and
11 Weik.
12 Ayes, 42. Nays, 21.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
14 is passed.
15 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
16 223, Senate Print 1187, by Senator Gianaris, an
17 act to amend the Insurance Law.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
19 last section.
20 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
21 act shall take effect January 1, 2023.
22 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
23 roll.
24 (The Secretary called the roll.)
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
1318
1 the results.
2 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 63.
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
4 is passed.
5 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
6 308, Senate Print 2115, by Senator Bailey, an act
7 to amend the Penal Law.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
9 last section.
10 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
11 act shall take effect immediately.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
13 roll.
14 (The Secretary called the roll.)
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
16 the results.
17 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 63.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
19 is passed.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 361, Senate Print 2623, by Senator Jackson, an
22 act to amend the Labor Law.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
24 last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
1319
1 act shall take effect immediately.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
8 Calendar 361, those Senators voting in the
9 negative are Senators Akshar, Borrello, Boyle,
10 Gallivan, Griffo, Helming, Jordan, Lanza,
11 Martucci, Mattera, Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt,
12 Palumbo, Rath, Ritchie, Serino, Stec, Tedisco and
13 Weik.
14 Ayes, 43. Nays, 20.
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
16 is passed.
17 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
18 362, Senate Print 2928A, by Senator Addabbo, an
19 act to amend the Workers' Compensation Law.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
21 last section.
22 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
23 act shall take effect on the first of January.
24 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
25 roll.
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1 (The Secretary called the roll.)
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
3 the results.
4 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
5 Calendar 362, those Senators voting in the
6 negative are Senators Akshar, Borrello, Boyle,
7 Gallivan, Griffo, Helming, Jordan, Lanza,
8 Martucci, Mattera, Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt,
9 Palumbo, Rath, Ritchie, Serino, Stec, Tedisco and
10 Weik.
11 Ayes, 43. Nays, 20.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
13 is passed.
14 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
15 429, Senate Print 33, by Senator Kaplan, an act
16 to amend the State Administrative Procedure Act.
17 SENATOR LANZA: Lay it aside.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Lay the
19 bill aside.
20 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
21 479, Senate Print 3563, by Senator Breslin, an
22 act to amend the Insurance Law.
23 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
24 last section.
25 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
1321
1 act shall take effect immediately.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
3 roll.
4 (The Secretary called the roll.)
5 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
6 the results.
7 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 63.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
9 is passed.
10 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
11 497, Senate Print 4844A, by Senator Biaggi, an
12 act to amend the Labor Law.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
14 last section.
15 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
16 act shall take effect on the 180th day after it
17 shall have become a law.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
19 roll.
20 (The Secretary called the roll.)
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
22 the results.
23 THE SECRETARY: In relation to
24 Calendar Number 497, voting in the negative:
25 Senator Helming.
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1 Ayes, 62. Nays, 1.
2 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
3 is passed.
4 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
5 500, Senate Print 1364, by Senator Serrano, an
6 act to amend the Parks, Recreation and Historic
7 Preservation Law.
8 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Read the
9 last section.
10 THE SECRETARY: Section 2. This
11 act shall take effect immediately.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
13 roll.
14 (The Secretary called the roll.)
15 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
16 the results.
17 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 63.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
19 is passed.
20 Senator Gianaris, that completes the
21 reading of today's calendar.
22 SENATOR GIANARIS: Thank you,
23 Mr. President. Let's move on to the
24 controversial calendar.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
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1 Secretary will ring the bell.
2 The Secretary will read.
3 THE SECRETARY: Calendar Number
4 429, Senate Print 33, by Senator Kaplan, an act
5 to amend the State Administrative Procedure Act.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Senator
7 Lanza, why do you rise?
8 SENATOR LANZA: Mr. President, I
9 believe there's an amendment at the desk. I
10 waive the reading of that amendment and ask that
11 you recognize Senator Oberacker to be heard.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Thank
13 you, Senator Lanza.
14 Upon review of the amendment, in
15 accordance with Rule 6, Section 4B, I rule it
16 nongermane and out of order at this time.
17 SENATOR LANZA: Accordingly,
18 Mr. President, I appeal the ruling of the chair
19 and ask that Senator Oberacker be recognized.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
21 appeal has been made and recognized, and
22 Senator Oberacker may be heard.
23 SENATOR OBERACKER: Thank you,
24 Mr. President.
25 I would argue this amendment is
1324
1 germane because the bill-in-chief relates to the
2 small business liaisons.
3 By the way, it's a good bill that
4 would help our businesses across the state, and
5 I'm planning on supporting it. But it would be a
6 great bill with this amendment.
7 Over the last year the Governor
8 has issued directives and mandates directly
9 impacting our small businesses, many with no
10 scientific reasoning. This legislation is a true
11 repeal. In contrast, the bill passed last week
12 is not a clean repeal but rather an extension of
13 the Governor's emergency powers.
14 My colleagues and I continue to
15 bring this amendment because it is the right
16 thing and would fully restore this Legislature as
17 a coequal branch of government.
18 You know, I've heard this argument
19 from my friends across the aisle, that the action
20 last week is enough. But for the people of
21 New York, it is greatly lacking. Small landlords
22 continue to call my office because renters are
23 claiming they don't have to pay the rent. So the
24 Governor says so.
25 Tourism-related businesses
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1 throughout my district still need to know how to
2 plan for the upcoming summer season. My answer
3 today is same as it was last week: It's up to
4 the Governor.
5 Forget the window dressing and the
6 small print, we need a true repeal of the
7 Governor's overreaching powers. That what this
8 amendment will accomplish.
9 We are duly elected members of this
10 Legislature, sent here on behalf of our
11 constituents to be their voice, not stand by
12 while one man makes all the decisions.
13 Our state is at a difficult
14 crossroads. The pandemic has left us facing a
15 number of social and economic issues. We have a
16 looming deficit that only has been exacerbated by
17 the pandemic, and we are now just over three
18 weeks away from the budget deadline. We need to
19 bring this Legislature back to the table and get
20 to work on the serious issues facing this state.
21 We cannot do that with an embattled Governor
22 calling all the shots.
23 For these reasons, we will continue
24 to bring this amendment. And I urge all of my
25 Senate colleagues to join in doing the right
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1 thing. Support this critical amendment, and get
2 back to the people's business.
3 Thank you, Mr. President.
4 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Thank
5 you, Senator Oberacker.
6 I want to remind the house that the
7 vote is on the procedures of the house and the
8 ruling of the chair.
9 Those in favor of overruling the
10 chair signify by saying aye.
11 SENATOR LANZA: Request a show of
12 hands.
13 SENATOR GIANARIS: Mr. President,
14 we've agreed to waive the showing of hands and
15 record each member of the Minority in the
16 affirmative.
17 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Without
18 objection, so ordered.
19 Announce the results.
20 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 20.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
22 ruling of the chair stands, and the bill-in-chief
23 is before the house.
24 Are there any other Senators wishing
25 to be heard?
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1 Seeing and hearing none, debate is
2 now closed. The Secretary will ring the bell.
3 Read the last section.
4 THE SECRETARY: Section 3. This
5 act shall take effect immediately.
6 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Call the
7 roll.
8 (The Secretary called the roll.)
9 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Announce
10 the results.
11 THE SECRETARY: Ayes, 63.
12 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The bill
13 is passed.
14 Senator Gianaris, that completes the
15 reading of the controversial calendar.
16 SENATOR GIANARIS: Thank you,
17 Mr. President.
18 If we can now return to motions and
19 resolutions, I move to adopt the
20 Resolution Calendar.
21 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: All in
22 favor of adopting the Resolution Calendar please
23 signify by saying aye.
24 (Response of "Aye.")
25 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: Opposed,
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1 nay.
2 (No response.)
3 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
4 Resolution Calendar is adopted.
5 Senator Gianaris.
6 SENATOR GIANARIS: Thank you,
7 Mr. President.
8 At this time can we take up
9 previously adopted Resolution 403, by
10 Leader Stewart-Cousins, read that resolution in
11 its entirety, and recognize Senator Salazar on
12 the resolution.
13 ACTING PRESIDENT BAILEY: The
14 Secretary will read.
15 THE SECRETARY: Senate Resolution
16 403, by Senator Stewart-Cousins, memorializing
17 Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to proclaim March 2021
18 as Women's History Month in the State of
19 New York.
20 "WHEREAS, March is Women's History
21 Month; and
22 "WHEREAS, March 8th is International
23 Women's Day; and
24 "WHEREAS, Each year New York State
25 officially sets aside time to recognize the
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1 unique contributions that New York women have
2 made to New York State and beyond; and
3 "WHEREAS, New York State has a
4 distinguished history of monumental achievements
5 in the area of women's rights; and
6 "WHEREAS, In 1826, New York State
7 opened one of the first public high schools for
8 girls, resulting in a future for women in which
9 they were no longer confined to the home, a
10 future in which they were educated and able to
11 use this education to better their social and
12 economic status; and
13 "WHEREAS, In 1848 in New York, the
14 first women's rights convention was held at
15 Seneca Falls to secure for all women the right to
16 vote; and
17 "WHEREAS, In 1903, The Women's Trade
18 Union League of New York was formed to represent
19 working women, later becoming the nucleus for the
20 International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union; and
21 "WHEREAS, In 1917, New York
22 guaranteed women the right to vote in all
23 elections, and in the following year the first
24 two women, Ida Sammis and Mary Lilly, were
25 elected to the New York State Legislature and
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1 became the first women to then serve in 1919; and
2 "WHEREAS, In 1955, Bessie Buchanan
3 was the first African-American woman to serve in
4 the New York State Legislature; and
5 "WHEREAS, In 1967, Muriel Siebert
6 became the first woman to own a seat on the
7 New York Stock Exchange, opening the door for
8 women to gain positions of greater economic
9 power; and
10 "WHEREAS, In 1968, New York State
11 Assemblywoman Shirley Chisholm became the first
12 black woman elected to Congress and in 1972, she
13 ran for President of the United States, another
14 first for black women; and
15 "WHEREAS, In 1970, New York City was
16 the site of the first Women's Strike for
17 Equality, in which 50,000 people marched for
18 equal rights; and
19 "WHEREAS, In 1978, Olga Mendez
20 became the first Latina woman to serve in the
21 New York State Legislature; and
22 "WHEREAS, In 1983, New York State
23 women legislators established the Legislative
24 Women's Caucus to improve the participation of
25 women in all areas of government, support issues
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1 that benefit women, and provide a network of
2 support for women in the State Legislature; and
3 "WHEREAS, In 2007, Ellen Young was
4 the first Asian-American woman to serve in the
5 New York State Legislature; and
6 "WHEREAS, In 2009, New Yorker Sonia
7 Sotomayor became the first Hispanic Justice
8 appointed to the United States Supreme Court; and
9 "WHEREAS, In 2015, New Yorker
10 Loretta Elizabeth Lynch was appointed as
11 Attorney General of the United States, becoming
12 the first African-American woman to serve in this
13 esteemed position; and
14 "WHEREAS, New York has been the home
15 of many extraordinary women who have led society
16 to a better future: Elizabeth Cady Stanton and
17 Susan B. Anthony led the campaign for women's
18 suffrage; Sojourner Truth spoke out for the
19 abolition of slavery and for suffrage for all
20 women; and
21 "WHEREAS, Carrie Chapman Catt became
22 the first president of the League of Women
23 Voters; Emma Willard opened the first endowed
24 institution for the education of women; Civil War
25 surgeon Dr. Mary E. Walker was the only woman
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1 ever awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor;
2 Harriet Tubman was an abolitionist who led slaves
3 to freedom by way of the Underground Railroad in
4 the 19th century; and
5 "WHEREAS, Elizabeth Blackwell and
6 Belva Lockwood were the first women in the fields
7 of medicine and law; pioneer birth control
8 educator and advocate Margaret Sanger established
9 a research center in New York City; and
10 "WHEREAS, Emma Goldman founded the
11 Free Speech League, which led to the American
12 Civil Liberties Union; humanitarian Eleanor
13 Roosevelt served as United States Delegate to the
14 United Nations; and
15 "WHEREAS, New Yorker Edith Windsor
16 fought to expand marriage equality in the
17 United States prior to the Marriage Equality Act
18 of New York, which became law in 2011; and
19 "WHEREAS, Civil rights lawyer and
20 New York State Senator Constance Baker Motley
21 became the first black woman to sit on the U.S.
22 District Court in New York, and there have been
23 so many more known and unknown women who
24 championed rights and opportunity for all; and
25 "WHEREAS, New York State has hosted
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1 many conventions, campaigns and events of the
2 Women's Rights Movement, from the 1848 convention
3 at Seneca Falls to the 1999 Berkshire Conference
4 of Women Historians, which was held to improve
5 the status of women in history and in the
6 historical professions; and
7 "WHEREAS, 50 percent of statewide
8 elected officials are women and, for the first
9 time, a woman has been elected Attorney General
10 in the State of New York; and
11 "WHEREAS, 2021 marks the 101st
12 anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which
13 guaranteed women the right to vote in the
14 United States; and
15 "WHEREAS, Today, 73 women serve in
16 the New York State Legislature, making up
17 34 percent of the seats, holding leadership
18 positions in both houses and bringing the diverse
19 experiences of women into law and public policy;
20 now, therefore, be it
21 "RESOLVED, That this Legislative
22 Body pause in its deliberations to memorialize
23 Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to proclaim March 2021
24 as Women's History Month in the State of
25 New York; and be it further
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1 "RESOLVED, That copies of this
2 resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted to
3 the Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo, Governor of the
4 State of New York, and the Legislative Women's
5 Caucus of New York State."
6 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
7 Salazar on the resolution.
8 SENATOR SALAZAR: Thank you,
9 Madam President.
10 We began this week with people all
11 around the world recognizing International
12 Women's Day, as well as the month of March as
13 Women's History Month.
14 While International Women's Day is
15 observed across the globe, its roots are traced
16 back to New York. The very first National
17 Women's Day commemorated the direct action taken
18 by workers in 1908 when 15,000 women marched
19 through New York City demanding shorter work
20 hours, better pay, and voting rights.
21 This resolution today to recognize
22 Women's History Month, introduced by Majority
23 Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, is a reminder to
24 me as a young woman, a Latina woman serving in
25 the State Senate, of the women who came before
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1 us. We honor the women who made it possible for
2 women like myself to be legislators today.
3 It was a collective of Black
4 feminists, the Combahee River Collective, who
5 wisely stated: "The major source of difficulty
6 in our political work is that we are not only
7 fighting oppression on one front or even two, but
8 instead to address a whole range of oppressions."
9 These words remain true in our world
10 today and underscore why it is remarkable that in
11 the Senate we have the privilege of witnessing
12 the leadership every day of not only the first
13 woman, but the first Black woman to serve as the
14 Senate Majority Leader in the history of our
15 state.
16 The struggle for truly complete
17 gender equity will only succeed if it is an
18 intersectional struggle to overcome the
19 oppressions recognized by the Combahee River
20 Collective.
21 As legislators, we can understand
22 this Women's History Month resolution as a call
23 to action in our daily lives and in our work
24 together.
25 Facing this public health crisis for
1336
1 a full year has demanded that we recognize the
2 profound value of reproductive labor, the unpaid
3 or underpaid work of caring for our families that
4 sustains our economy and our society -- work that
5 is done mostly by women of color, by new
6 Americans, by women who immigrated and are
7 undocumented.
8 This is a moment to ask ourselves,
9 does our public policy honor these women too?
10 Does the law in our state honor the most
11 vulnerable women among us? Does it include our
12 trans neighbors as well?
13 Women's History Month is an
14 opportunity to celebrate the tremendous progress
15 that has empowered many of us as women. And it's
16 also an opportunity to ask ourselves, how will I,
17 how will we use our position in our state to help
18 forge a world with complete gender equality?
19 Thank you, Madam President.
20 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: Senator
21 Bailey on the resolution.
22 SENATOR BAILEY: Thank you,
23 Madam President.
24 It is fitting to see you presiding
25 as we converse about this resolution.
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1 Thank you to Senator Salazar for her
2 incredible words, and thank you to Leader
3 Stewart-Cousins for being consistent in
4 sponsoring this necessary resolution.
5 And so when you think about the
6 amazing accomplishments of women -- not just
7 women that we serve with, but the women who run
8 the Senate -- and not just our Majority Leader,
9 who is a history maker, who runs the Senate --
10 the Secretary of the Senate is a woman, Alejandra
11 Paulino. If you think about the Majority's chief
12 of staff and lead counsel, she is a woman,
13 Shontell Smith.
14 So quite frankly, the Senate is
15 being run by women. And it can be attributed to
16 such -- to the greatness that we've been having
17 over the last few years.
18 I want to make sure that -- I would
19 be remiss if I didn't recognize the great Senator
20 Velmanette Montgomery, who I didn't get a chance
21 to speak about her when she came up. But I
22 wanted to make sure that she knew that we all
23 follow in her footsteps, and she inspires so many
24 women, she inspires young men like me. So I
25 wanted to make sure that I -- we continue to give
1338
1 Senator Montgomery her flowers while we can.
2 And I was thinking about what I was
3 going to speak about today, and I'm always
4 inspired by the amazing women in my life: My
5 amazing wife, my daughters, my mother, my
6 grandmothers, my aunts, my adopted aunts, my play
7 cousins, everybody.
8 But I was reading something this
9 morning, it was by a British sprinter by the name
10 of Dina Asher-Smith. It was in The Players'
11 Tribune, and it was called "Who We Elevate."
12 And those of you who know me know I
13 am a huge sports fan. And sometimes, in sports,
14 women are overlooked for no good reason. And if
15 we think about what women have done in sports
16 that have gone recognized and unrecognized, I
17 want to illustrate some of that.
18 So we talk about social justice
19 movements, and we don't hear much about the women
20 who lead the social justice movements as we do
21 the men. But I want to tell you about when the
22 protests were happening over this summer, with
23 the Black Lives Matter protests, the NBA players
24 got a lot of credit -- but the WNBA players were
25 first. And quite frankly, the WNBA players went
1339
1 out on a limb.
2 The Atlanta Dream -- amazing women
3 in the WNBA. They were -- their team was owned
4 by an individual who decried the notion of Black
5 Lives Matter. Not only did they oppose that,
6 they showed up with shirts that said Black Lives
7 Matter.
8 And it turns out that after that
9 took place, and after Kelly Loeffler lost the
10 seat, the Atlanta Dream were pivotal in making
11 sure there was recognition about the Senate race
12 with Senator Warnock.
13 Not only did that take place, now
14 Renee Montgomery, a former WNBA player, world
15 champion and All Star, is now the owner of the
16 Atlanta Dream. This is the power of women.
17 Maya Moore, one of the greatest
18 basketball players of all time, in the midst of a
19 Hall of Fame basketball career, she stopped. The
20 reason why she stopped was because she wanted to
21 pursue justice, the exoneration of Jonathan
22 Irons. Maya Moore -- again, one of the greats,
23 one of my favorites -- stopped a Hall of Fame
24 career to pursue justice. Amazing women.
25 We know about the 2019 World Cup,
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1 Megan Rapinoe and so many women on that team
2 showed young women what it was like.
3 But I refer back to this "Who We
4 Elevate" article by Dina Asher-Smith. And she
5 said something that was incredibly poignant, and
6 I want to make sure I get it word for word. I
7 quote:
8 "I wanted to write this for all of
9 the 8-year-old girls who are thinking about
10 getting into sport but have doubts, fears and
11 questions. And for all the young women who might
12 be thinking about giving up sport.
13 "Why don't we see more of their
14 stories, more of their images? Why have they not
15 been elevated to cross over, to transcend our
16 sporting world?
17 "Why aren't their achievements and
18 legacies familiar to more of us, like those of
19 Messi, Ronaldo, Tiger Woods, Michael Phelps,
20 Usain Bolt and all the other amazing sportsmen?
21 "To be clear, I don't need this
22 stuff to feel whole. We don't need it.
23 "We want to win. We want to be our
24 best, to be the best.
25 "But we can see the double standard.
1341
1 "And while we see it, the 8-year-old
2 girl can't."
3 I think about when we have the
4 conversation about the GOAT, about the greatest
5 of all time. If you're not saying Serena
6 followed by Williams, I'm not sure who is the
7 greatest athlete of all time aside from Serena
8 Williams, who made it to the final of a major
9 while 7 months pregnant. Aside from that, she is
10 the greatest athlete irrespective of that. But
11 that is something that we don't recognize in her
12 true greatness.
13 I think about Becky Hammon, somebody
14 who -- a woman who should be a head coach in the
15 NBA. I think about how excited I was when the
16 Liberty drafted Sabrina Ionescu, who was one of
17 the greatest college basketball players of all
18 time but quite frankly didn't get the same credit
19 that male college basketball players get. But if
20 you look at her stats, she was completely
21 dominant at the University of Oregon.
22 I think about Michele Roberts, a
23 Bronxite, Madam President, the first woman to
24 lead a professional sports union. She's the head
25 of the NBA Players Association. So she's from
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1 the Bronx, and she's a woman? Sounds like a
2 winner to me, Madam President.
3 And I think about the up and coming
4 stars like Naomi Osaka, who is a legend in the
5 making.
6 But I think about Allyson Felix, one
7 of the sprinters that we know from the Olympics.
8 And one of the things that she did is she spoke
9 up about Nike not offering support to -- for
10 women with pregnancy complications.
11 I think that we have to make sure
12 that we recognize the role that women are
13 consistently playing in our lives in the world of
14 sports. I think about great sports journalists
15 like Kimberley Martin and Taylor Rooks and
16 Cari Champion and so many other amazing women who
17 break barriers every single day with reporting on
18 the news.
19 And I think about the GOAT -- in my
20 opinion, the GOATs. You might not have heard
21 about them yet. Their names are Giada and Carina
22 Bailey. Those are my daughters. And I was
23 thinking about -- when I was thinking about what
24 to say with the sports, I was putting it
25 together.
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1 This past summer I set up a couple
2 of Fischer Price hoops in my yard. And my
3 daughters like to play basketball. Right? And
4 my daughter, one -- she made a basket and she
5 said something that was so poignant, something
6 that was so incredible, and something that I kind
7 of live by every day. She said, "If you can't
8 win, you win. If you don't win, you still win.
9 If you believe in your heart and your strength,
10 this is what you got."
11 That's my 6-year-old daughter who
12 inspires me every single day. That is the reason
13 why we need to make sure we recognize the
14 accomplishments of women.
15 And I don't know if either Giada or
16 Carina will ever play professional sports. I
17 don't know if they'll play sports beyond the
18 yard. But the most important thing, like Dina
19 Asher-Smith said about "who we elevate," they
20 need to know that not only can they play, they
21 can play just as well as men, if not better.
22 So, Madam President, I thank you for
23 the opportunity to speak on this resolution, and
24 I thank the leader for introducing it.
25 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
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1 resolution was previously adopted on March 2nd.
2 Senator Gianaris.
3 SENATOR GIANARIS: Thank you,
4 Madam President.
5 Leader Stewart-Cousins would like to
6 open this resolution for cosponsorship.
7 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: The
8 resolution is open for cosponsorship. Should you
9 choose not to cosponsor, please notify the desk.
10 Senator Gianaris.
11 SENATOR GIANARIS: Is there any
12 further business at the desk?
13 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: There is
14 no further business at the desk.
15 SENATOR GIANARIS: I move to
16 adjourn until tomorrow, Wednesday, March 10th, at
17 3:00 p.m.
18 ACTING PRESIDENT PERSAUD: On
19 motion, the Senate stands adjourned until
20 Wednesday, March 10th, at 3:00 p.m.
21 (Whereupon, at 3:38 p.m., the Senate
22 adjourned.)
23
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