“I want the Senate to name September Dystonia Awareness Month. Dystonia is a painful brain disorder that affects 250,000 Americans, including my mother. Raising awareness will help researchers find better treatments and a cure.”

“Madam President, in a few moments, I am going to ask for unanimous consent for my resolution to designate the month of September as Dystonia Awareness Month. But before I do, I want to speak a little bit about dystonia, what it is, and how personal the disease is for me and my family. Dystonia is a neurological movement disorder that affects nearly 250,000 Americans. It causes involuntary muscle contractions and repetitive movements. These contractions can affect any part of the body, and they can be very painful. Dystonia affects people of almost any age, and it may develop without any clear cause. My mom has suffered from dystonia for nearly 40 years, and I have seen firsthand how difficult the disease can be on anyone who has it. But my mom, with the help of good friends and family and some really good doctors, has never let dystonia hold her back from being a great mom, a great grandma, and from someone who goes out and lives her everyday life in the way that she has. Dystonia is often misdiagnosed, and there is no cure for it yet. That is why it is so important to raise awareness about dystonia, what it is, and what it causes. Greater awareness leads to better research and eventually better treatments and hopefully even a cure. I urge all of my colleagues to support this simple resolution and draw attention to this painful disease that affects so many. Madam President, and, with that, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 917, which was submitted earlier today.”

• Little substance
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  Speech in the House

  Signal 42 of 100

  Much of this statement went to praise, blame, greetings, routine procedure or general stories rather than reasons, requests or specific points.

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“I ask the House to pass this resolution right now without any debate.”

“I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.”

“I object to passing this bill today. Canada treats American trade unfairly, especially with lumber and dairy. President Trump is right to use tariffs to stop that. This bill needs to go through my committee first instead of being rushed through.”

“Mr. President, reserving the right to object, first, with regard to Canada. Canada is a great ally and trading partner of the United States. That is true. It is also true, however, that Canada has for years engaged in nontariff trade barriers against the United States that are unjustified. Think lumber, think dairy, and others. President Trump is trying to stop Canada from these nontariff barriers that are hurting Americans and have hurt Americans for years, and he is doing so by enforcing tariffs. This is not the first time--nor is it likely the last--that a colleague of ours on the Senate floor has tried to pass unvetted legislation on the floor to address a disagreement with President Trump. But as the chairman of the Finance Committee, which is the appropriate forum for legislation, I object to the unanimous consent request for S. 5397. I yield the floor.”