chuck sams is that person. there's no question about it, and i want the senate to know that i have known chuck sams for years, and i have personally seen in action his dedication to communities and to the outdoors. he has been a longtime human till la tribal -- humitilla leader, working with officials from across our region. he's also a veteran of the u.s. navy. i know chuck sams to be a role model in the stewardship of america's lands and our waters, our wildlife, and history. and the congress and park goers are going to be able to count on him in the months and years ahead after he is confirmed because we know the park service faces some very big challenges. there is, for example, a multibillion-dollar maintenance backlog. the parks are often very crowded they're confronting the effects of the climate crisis, whether it's wildfire, floods, droughts. the list goes on and on. there has been for too long, too long a workforce culture front with gender discrimination and harassment. now for almost five years the

charles chuck sam thanked tribal elders for their counsel and said he is on in order he's the first park director in nearly five years. president bind had his annual physical examination at walter reed on the eve of his 79th birthday. his physician said he was fit for duty. after a colonoscopy, he transferred power to vice president harris. and the gobbler named peanut butter and jelly were pardoned by president biden at that time white house today. they'll live out their days at a farm in purdue university in indiana. still to come on "the newshour," how today to get boosters for everyone 18 years and older as covid cases continue to rise in the u.s. and the challenges that wrongly convicted people struggle with. and we weigh in on the house passing the build back better bill. plus, much more. announcer: this is the pbs newshour from weta studios in washington and from the walter cronkite school of journalism. judy: as we reported, house democrats are heading into the holiday with a victory after passing the build back better bill. lisa desjardins in what's in the sweeping legislation.

chuck sams is exactly that kind of person. so i want my colleague to know we're going to be here the rest of today, sounds like some of tomorrow, but we'll have to see. i hope that we can get this work done. i want to pledge to my colleague that i will, myself, be willing to work with him on issues he has with the state just the way we did on those tax concerns with respect to the budget and let's see if we can get this done before we leave this week because the longer we wait -- i mean, just think of the park service here over the holiday. there's going to be a lot of people because the park service is part of the treasures of america who are going to want to enjoy those facilities. so it has real-world consequences. i look forward to working with my colleague and i hope we can get this done before we leave and i pledge to my colleague i will work with him to respond to his concerns, not just about this nominee and the context of this nominee, but in the context of the concerns he has for his state. mr. president, i yield the

i'm just going to take a few minutes to talk about chuck sams about why he is the right person for this critical job. we all know the park service is often called america's best idea and together those parks form a network of treasures that no other country can match. but the fact is the national park service is not only about the views and the photo ops, it is all about our country. it's what makes our country so special for so many. the direct oosh of the national park service is in charge of an organization of over 22,000 employees and almost a quarter million volunteers. the national park system generates tens of millions of dollars of economic activity. the people of my state know particularly how important those critical outdoor treasures are for rural economies and rural jobs. the fact also is there are park units in every state in the country, urban parks, rural parks, historic buildings, ancient archeological sites and the personnel of the park service, they do it all from education to preservation to maintenance, even resilience against wildfire. chuck sams has been a long-tim