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You can’t see them, but all of us are surrounded by traffic jams every day. Even if you never set foot in a car, these traffic problems are almost definitely affecting your daily life. And they are getting worse. Do you have a mobile device like an iPhone? Do you use Wi-Fi in your home or at work? If so then you are part of the spectrum traffic jam. Just like cars travel down a highway, information travels on wavelengths in the electromagnetic spectrum. If there is too much information traveling on one particular wavelength then that information can’t travel as fast or as accurately as possible. We do have traffic laws to govern these invisible traffic flows, but with the evergoing demand for wireless communication, our existing roads are clogging up. And if we want to be at the forefront of 5G wireless technology we are going to need all the spectrum we can find. In addition to the spectrum we all use for radio, television, and our mobile devices, the federal government also has set aside parts of the spectrum to key agencies like the Department of Defense and Interior Department. Of the spectrum dedicated to these federal agencies, most of it would be considered four lane express highways; obviously we’d like to reserve the best communications infrastructure for the defense of our country and its citizens. However, we’re not entirely sure how much of that spectrum is actually being used by all of these agencies. While the unused spectrum bands were less of an issue at the beginning of the 1900s when there were fewer entitles – like tech companies – competing for them, that is no longer the case. With more and more people going wireless and demanding faster speeds, more spectrum is needed. This is why Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) and I introduced the Government Spectrum Valuation Act. The bill requires the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and the FCC to determine the value of electromagnetic spectrum assigned or allocated to each federal agency and make that analysis available publicly annually. Once we know how much spectrum each agency has, and how much the spectrum is worth, we can better decide if agencies have the spectrum they need and if they have any unneeded spectrum that can be sold to the public. If the United States is going to maintain its status as a global technology leader we need to make sure we are allocating our finite spectrum resources efficiently. And this bill will help us reach that goal.

Over incarceration is a very real threat facing our nation; it breaks down bonds with family and community and often times the prisoners are released with few skills and lacking the ability to truly reenter society, resulting in a higher likelihood to reoffend. This isn’t to say that those who commit crimes should be given a slap on the wrist and sent on their way. We are, after all, a country of law and order. However, that same law and order requires we dole out justice fairly. When doled out unfairly, it causes a breakdown in trust of our law enforcement officials. This, too, leads to higher rates of recidivism and makes our country less safe.

Eight months ago, the Senate voted to table a resolution that would have forced the president to either: a) end United States cooperation with Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen; or b) submit a formal declaration of war to Congress. That resolution was tabled by a vote of 55-44. This Wednesday that same resolution survived a vote to be added to the Senate calendar, 63 to 37. A final vote on the resolution is set for next week. The chance to end the war in Yemen is in sight.

Mr. President, I stood before this body in March of this year to protest our country’s unconstitutional intervention in Saudi Arabia’s bloody war in Yemen. I was proud to stand with my colleagues Senator Sanders and Senator Murphy to file a discharge motion of our resolution, S.J. Res 54, that would remove U.S. armed forces from Yemen. At that time, members of the Foreign Relations Committee requested additional time to study the issue and debate the resolution in committee. The chairman of the committee, my colleague Senator Corker, requested this with the commitment to “bring forth legislation to actually appropriately deal with many of the issues relative to Yemen, Saudi Arabia, and ourselves.” So the Senate voted to table the motion.