Floor Statements

Mr. President, I rise today to recognize and share the inspiring story of Alana Nichols, a six-time Paralympic medalist across three sports and one of New Mexico's greatest athletes and advocates. Alana is being inducted into the New Mexico Sports Hall of Fame this year as part of the class of 2024 for her outstanding accomplishments. Alana grew up in Farmington, NM, and was an avid snowboarder throughout her youth. When she was 5 years old, her grandmother introduced her to T-ball which sparked her interest in sports, along with a competitive nature. Growing up, Alana played basketball, volleyball, and softball with hopes of playing for the University of New Mexico's softball team.

Her story of resilience began at 17 years old when she sustained a spinal cord injury snowboarding. This traumatic event would leave her paralyzed from the waist down. In an instant, her life had changed forever, and the future she had in mind would be altered. Yet this moment was not the end of her athletic journey, it was the start of a new one.

While studying at the University of New Mexico, Alana was introduced to wheelchair basketball. This gave her a spark of hope, and she quickly rose to become a member of the U.S. Women's Wheelchair Basketball Team in 2008, where she helped bring home gold at the Beijing Paralympics Games in 2008. She didn't stop there, going on to medal in alpine skiing at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games and later representing Team USA in paracanoe at the 2016 Rio Games.

Alana became the first American woman to win gold in both Summer and Winter Paralympic Games, she is a three-time gold medalist winner, a national leader in adaptive surfing and a passionate advocate for women and athletes with disabilities. Alana was inducted into the inaugural Superman Hall of Heroes in 2014, celebrating real-life heroes.

Alana's journey is an incredible story of resilience and perseverance. I am honored to have the opportunity to share her experiences with you all today. We are very proud of Alana and the shining example she is for our State. We look forward to the wonderful things she will accomplish next.

Madam President, I heard several of my colleagues speak tonight about what this bill means for Americans all across America. Now, each of us has a responsibility to ask whether this bill meets the needs of the people that we are honored to serve.

Now, I grew up on a small farm, as many of you know, working the land, caring for animals, sometimes even cleaning barns. And I can tell you, this bill does not pass the smell test.

For New Mexicans, hard-working people, this bill does not help our families get ahead. New Mexicans work hard. Folks are not looking for a handout. New Mexicans are the type of people who would give you the shirt off their back if you needed it. It is just who we are, and I am proud of it.

But sometimes people fall on hard times. And I will remind you all that this could happen to any of us. You might need medical care. You might need help putting food on the table, maybe support to care for a loved one, or just want enough security to know that a job will be there for us.

Some claim that this bill will help Americans, which we know is not the truth because, from where I stand, there is very little in this legislation that helps hard-working New Mexicans.

Now, it is important that this debate is happening because now New Mexicans and people all across America can clearly see what is in this bill and what is not. As has been said time and time again this evening, the vast majority of this legislation benefits the ultrawealthy. The wealthiest 0.1 percent are getting over 250 grand back in their pocket. Can you believe this?

How many people might not make that in a lifetime? An extra $250,000 in their pockets, that is what this bill is about. Now, meanwhile, it does not help farmers; it does not support teachers or children.

Nothing for New Mexico seniors who rely on Medicaid SNAP, and nothing for New Mexicans who served our country and deserve our care in return.

New Mexicans are hard-working people who believe in the values of loving your neighbor, following what the Bible teaches us: Do unto others as you have them do unto you.

This bill goes against everything New Mexicans stand for. It is not honest; it is not caring; and it is not fair.

Now, I have heard my colleagues try to claim that this bill does not cut assistance. That is a lie. It is not true. This bill cuts more than a trillion dollars from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Medicaid, for crying out loud. Senate Republicans are gutting the Affordable Care Act and ripping healthcare away from 17 million Americans.

Now a few of my colleagues across the aisle have spoken with some clarity, saying out loud what we all know to be true.

One Republican Senator warned about SNAP, about these cuts, saying:

If we don't watch out, people are going to get hurt.

Another Republican colleague said on Medicaid:

We can't be cutting healthcare for working people and for

poor people in order to constantly give special tax treatment

to corporations.

Now that same Senator went on to say that:

Slashing health insurance for the working poor is morally

wrong.

That is right. I wish more of them spoke with that clarity. At least a few of them are saying out loud what the rest of America is thinking.

Now is the time for more courage, though, the courage to put people first. My colleagues all have a chance to vote against this legislation. They all have a chance to vote for amendments that will say: Hands off Medicaid. Don't cut those nutrition programs that one Senator said are going to hurt people if we don't watch out.

This bill takes food from the mouths of New Mexican children and takes care away from New Mexicans who are sick. It is not just New Mexico. These cuts will hurt people in every State.

My Republican colleagues, to lock up one more vote, offered something called the Polar Payoff--a carve-out for one State. Now, look, these carve-outs are an admission that this bill will leave people hungry and without care--plain and simple. Otherwise, why would they want a carve- out for their State? Why was this carve-out added?

Because this scam of a bill cuts funding for rural hospitals and the programs that feed children and families in need. For our rural communities out there, for the farmers and ranchers who grow our food, this bill will hurt your bottom line while closing rural hospitals, closing rural grocery stores.

For families who rely on SNAP, this bill means less food on the table and more children going to bed hungry, all while making healthcare, especially emergency care, harder to access. That is what this bill does to hard-working Americans. And I am not even mentioning the Americans who currently have healthcare but will no longer be able to afford it because of this bill.

Those of you watching at home tonight who do not think this impacts you, it just might. Earlier this week, I had the honor of speaking with a healthcare worker from Las Cruces, Julee. Julee traveled all the way from New Mexico to Washington, DC, to tell Congress not to mess with her families' Medicaid.

Like many of her colleagues, she had a story to share. Now, Julee's son received mental health care through Medicaid. When that coverage was cut, Julee lost her son. Soon after, her daughter was diagnosed with a serious condition that required immediate care. Now, without Medicaid, her daughter may not have survived either. Just think about that. Let it sink in.

New Mexicans understand the responsibility of looking after family. Like so many families in New Mexico and across the country, I grew up helping to take care of my grandparents. Grandma Nestora and Grandpa Celedon, my dad's parents.

Now, when my other grandparents Grandpa Luis and Grandma Cleotilde were victims of a terrible car accident, I watched my mom, my uncles, my aunts, and my cousins show what grace looks like, what love feels like, what compassion really means.

Now this bill is a direct attack on those values, values of helping one another and shared sacrifice. There is no shared sacrifice in this bill, only more handouts for the wealthy.

There is nothing in this bill that shows that we are all looking out for our neighbors across America. And like so many Americans, I am so deeply concerned about the pricetag. This bill would add more than $3 trillion to the national debt.

To people watching, this is not just a number. It affects your everyday life--higher interest rates. Think about your credit cards, your car loans, your mortgages if you are fortunate to have one. This bill is going to make your life more expensive. It is a total betrayal of our constituents.

So to the American people: Hear me when I say, keep speaking. You have done it before. The American people--all of you that spoke up--you helped stop the sale of our public lands. You made your voices impossible to ignore.

Now, this bill is not the law of the land yet. But if we stay silent, it will be. So keep organizing, keep calling, and keep showing up because part of our responsibility as American citizens is to protect one another, to stand by one another, to treat others the way that we want to be treated, the Golden Rule. It is not hard.

We all have a responsibility to stand up when something this dangerous threatens our neighbors, our values, and our future.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I am sure the American people right now are just starting to see what happened to the U.S. Senator from California--the senior Senator from California--Alex Padilla. He is at a press conference in California, where the Secretary of Homeland Security is, and he wants to ask some questions, with all that is going on in California. Look, I don't know what all happened, but Federal agents took him down--took down a U.S. Senator--saying that they are doing their job.

Why aren't more people down here speaking up about this nonsense?

This is ridiculous. I would use some other language, but I would probably get tossed off the floor right now.

Growing up on a small farm and cleaning a barn, my dad taught me how to take a shovel to all the stuff that came out of the animals. You know what that is called. I know what it is called. And some of the animals that did that were males. They were bulls. And the stuff that came out of them has a few names to it. I will call it manure today.

This is nonsense. This is awful. How can these Federal agents get away with this?

Is the President of the United States telling folks to go down and start arresting U.S. Senators, taking them down to the floor? Is that what we have come to, the executive branch doing this to our colleagues?

This is a Democrat. What happens when it happens to a Republican? Will I hear from my Republican colleagues then to say: No, we should not do this, Mr. President. Back down. Back off. You are wrong.

Will someone here have the backbone to tell the President of the United States: You crossed the line. Stop it.

I am so disappointed, so disappointed. And as a Latino U.S. Senator, for this to happen to another Hispanic here--there are several of us who are Hispanics here, Democrats and Republicans. Speak up.

When one of my predecessors was here, Dennis Chavez, there were places he could not eat in this town because of the color of his skin, because he was from a State called New Mexico.

Are we going to use our voices? Are we better than this in the United States of America? Or are we going to show all the other folks in the world who choose to do this to the people who were duly elected by their people: No, just go arrest them. Throw them down on their face. Treat them like garbage.

We are better than this in America, you all. We have got to speak up. I hope, by tonight, every Democrat and Republican Member of this body has the courage to say something. This has gone too far. It is not right.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, I come to the floor today to raise my voice on behalf of constituents all across New Mexico.

Now, this week, all eyes have been on the U.S. Senate. Millions of people across the country tuned into C-Span, social media live streams, and YouTube to watch our friend from New Jersey. We all got to bear witness to the unyielding patriotism of Senator Cory Booker, who rightfully said: This is a moral moment. This is not about the right or left; this is about right or wrong.

Today, I am proud to join my Senate Democratic colleagues in pushing back against a Republican budget resolution that is wrong for the people not just of New Mexico but every corner of America. Today, Senate Democrats have uplifted the stories of Americans who are worried about the path that President Trump, Elon Musk, and congressional Republicans are putting us on, folks who feel the pain every time they go to the grocery store, moms and dads who don't know how they are going to afford food next week, grandmothers and grandfathers who are scared that their hard-earned benefits are going to be eliminated.

Now, New Mexicans have been calling, emailing, texting, and talking to me from all across New Mexico.

I hear you. I see you.

Every time I go to the grocery store, folks stop me in the grocery aisles back home and ask me when President Trump is going to start lowering prices.

Now, as I was walking over here today, I was surprised to see that while the American people are trying to put food on the table, I see that Donald Trump is out there playing golf. That is what is on the TV screens for all the folks back home that are going to be

going to the grocery store or maybe going to a restaurant and see if you can even afford the food that is over there any longer because of these tariffs and what is coming our way. The President should be listening to the people across the country. Maybe he should go into a

grocery store and do some walking, talking to folks.

Now, one of my constituents who works at a car dealership, a very successful car dealership in New Mexico, said her managers notified the team that they are no longer fulfilling orders in the United States. She wrote to me saying that all of her friends and coworkers are scared of being fired because of President Trump's reckless tariffs.

A woman in Questa, NM, pleaded with me to help restore the U.S. Department of Agriculture funding for schools and food banks. She told me that because of high grocery prices caused by this administration, the demands at their local food bank have more than doubled.

Another constituent told me that she is ready to retire--looking forward to it--but she is scared that the Trump administration will continue to take a sledgehammer to Social Security. And I guess that Elon Musk is going to take a chain saw to it. Unless this stops, she doesn't know if retirement is even an option.

My constituents can see the economy is slipping before their eyes-- they feel it--and their paychecks are not going as far as they used to. Now President Trump is imposing sweeping, across-the-board tariffs that will increase prices for everyone back home. The tariffs are going to cost New Mexicans nearly 4,000 bucks a year--$4,000 that a lot of folks don't have.

Donald Trump's own former Vice President, Mike Pence, said the Trump tariffs will decimate family budgets. That is right. The former Republican Vice President under President Trump's first term said that the Trump tariffs will decimate family budgets.

When the new tariffs were unveiled this week, more chaos and confusion ensued. There was a lot of conflicting information being put out by the White House--I would argue, intentionally--with different countries on different lists and inconsistent numbers that were confusing not only to the American people but to some of our allies across the world.

These tariffs will not only cost hard-working families thousands of dollars each year, but they will undermine many of the relationships that America has built and strengthened for decades.

The U.S. auto industry, they cannot afford the 25-percent tariff already in effect. In Detroit, MI, our proud ``Motor City,'' 900 autoworkers have been temporarily laid off as a direct response to these auto tariffs.

When household costs skyrocket, it crushes entire families. Forget changing to generic brands and not going out to eat anymore; more families will be struggling to get food on the table, period. And because of the Trump administration cutting food programs--the U.S. Department of Agriculture and State food programs--there is less fresh and local food for families on the lunch trays of our students. This is also hurting farmers and ranchers all across America, constituents who have told me that they voted for this President and have now come to tell me this is not what they signed up for.

Now, how does President Trump respond when families start to speak up about the rising cost of groceries? The President says he really doesn't care and he thinks the term ``groceries'' is old-fashioned. I don't know the last time that he went grocery shopping for himself. They are not old-fashioned. It just shows how disconnected he is. He doesn't get it, and I don't think he cares.

To sum it up, groceries are a necessity. I just don't understand. Who is talking to this President? I hope someone gets his ear to help correct that approach to what families depend on every day.

Now, my constituents living in rural parts of New Mexico depend on the local grocery store to have food stocked at prices that don't break the bank, if they can find them in rural America. Some folks in the country take it for granted that they have a Whole Foods or a Trader Joe's on every corner block, but countless Americans and New Mexicans need to drive more than 30 minutes--some, 60, 90, or 2 hours--in one direction to find the closest grocery store. When you are living in a food desert with nothing healthy to eat, what else are you going to get?

Nominee after nominee that are now part of the Trump administration has asked me: Well, why do those folks that live out in the rural parts of New Mexico just eat Doritos or chips?

What other stores are out there? Go out there and see for yourself.

But when this administration and these Secretaries choose to cut the food programs that allow us to do something about these food deserts, to be able to get healthy food out there and support more local farmers and ranchers, they just cause more devastation. They are hurting families. And like I said earlier, I don't think they care. I don't think they know.

And now, thanks to Republicans and this President, a lot of the things we are eating just to sustain ourselves are getting more and more expensive.

Now, a little story about one of these nominees, who is now the Secretary of the Department of the Treasury: I had a conversation with Secretary Bessent in my office about tariffs, and I told him about New Mexico's incredible food culture and how we depend on specialty imported foods and crops and some of the things you might find at the local grocery store or even, if you are fortunate enough to go to one of the local restaurants, even one of the local food trucks.

I told him about something called guacamole. Most people across the country know it is made out of avocados. That is one of the key ingredients. That is where the story begins. I told him people were already upset that they couldn't get avocados for some of their meals or some of the restaurants. Yesterday, the New Mexico Restaurant Association was in town, and two of the restaurants that were represented--I am telling you what--they are scrambling right now to be able to find the ingredients that are part of these old family recipes that have allowed their restaurants to be so successful. This is one of them.

Now, the Secretary said that where he comes from that they grow a lot of peaches and maybe we should try that.

I don't know about you, I have never made guacamole out of peaches. I don't think it is going to work.

I congratulate this Secretary on his success. He is one of the wealthiest people in America. He probably gets subsidies from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the farm that he has, even though he is one of the richest people in America. Talk about not getting it.

Now, at a time when grocery prices are rising, Republicans are actively working to dismantle the programs that keep folks with maybe a meal on the table. As soon as tonight, during these late-night votes that we are going to have this evening, Senate Republicans will move legislation that proposes to cut up to $230 billion from Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs. Some people across America know this simply as SNAP, that acronym.

One in four people in my State rely on this program, many are children. Think about food banks. Think about meal programs for schools. Think about meal programs for seniors. This comes on the back of President Trump and this administration firing the people that are delivering Meals on Wheels to seniors, some of which may not even be able to get out of their home, may not even be able to go to the grocery store to get a meal. This President saw fit to fire those people. Talk about a lack of respect and dignity.

If $230 billion is cut from a program that feeds mostly kids and seniors, what does everyone think is going to happen all across America in all of our districts, in all of our States? I am not the only one that represents rural America. I am not the only person that represents families that have to drive hours in one direction just sometimes to get fuel or to find milk, if they can find it, or find a grocery store.

I am not the only one. I know my colleagues know exactly what I am talking about because when I speak with them in private, they share similar stories with me. This is just about common sense.

We have got to do better here. And then to boot, my Republican colleagues

like to preach about fiscal responsibility. We all know across America that we need to get our fiscal house in order at the Federal level. We all know that we need to work toward those balanced budgets and that we need to find a way to get everything under control; lower our debt; lower those annual deficits.

Part of the gimmick we are going to hear and see tonight is that my Republican colleagues are trying to convince the American people that this Trump tax scam--the same thing that happened in 2017 that they are trying to extend now--here is the secret: The program costs over $4 trillion. You heard it correct--$4 trillion. That is how much this thing costs. Everyone knows it, including my Republican colleagues.

Why is it that my Republican colleagues are trying to tell the American people: Well, after tonight, it costs $0. Doesn't cost a penny. It is going to add $4 trillion, some argue even more, to our debt--to the annual deficit.

If that is the case, then why don't our Republican colleagues just say: No more debt in America. That is gone too. No more annual deficits. That doesn't cost anything. It is nonsense. It is a lie. It is not true.

Don't take my word for it. You are going to see it in the next few hours. You will see it on this floor. You already saw it in the House of Representatives where Speaker Johnson and House Republicans pushed this through. That is what this vote tonight is all about, everyone.

If you have not figured it out, keep a close eye on this because we are trying to open up these curtains to let a bit of sunshine in so the American people can see what they are up to because what they are up to is not right. This is wrong. My Republican colleagues know better.

My colleagues that once called themselves fiscal hawks, let's see if they have the courage to stand up tonight and stop this nonsense because there is many of us that want to work with you to get our fiscal house in order.

There is little piece of policy that was instituted during a recent moment in history under former President Bill Clinton, and it was the legislative branch showing fiscal constraint. It was something called pay-go. It said, if you are going to pass a piece of legislation that cost a dollar, you either have to save a dollar in Federal spending or you have to create revenue, but you have to pay for it. That is how the American people live.

If they spend a buck, they have got to pay for it. They have got to cut the budget or they have got to go get another job or try to find a way to get another dollar. Let's work together.

But after tonight when my Republican colleagues move this nonsense forward, I don't want to hear one of them talking about fiscal constraint or fiscal responsibility because they are about to blow it out of the water. I hope they think about it. I am praying for you. I hope you take a moment and pray before you come to the floor and vote tonight.

Now from the grocery stores to the doctor's office, the budget proposed by Senate Republicans will hurt families everywhere they turn.

A mom from New Mexico told me that she is scared--scared that if congressional Republicans and President Trump rip Medicaid away, she will lose her son. Six-year-olds should be entering the first grade, outside playing, getting into good trouble, getting to know the neighborhood kids, even watching superhero movies, maybe even arguing with siblings about whose turn it is to do the dishes.

Six-year-olds should not have to worry about whether or not they are going to get to see a doctor, where their next meal is going to come from, whether they are going to get the medicine they need to feel better so they can do all things that a normal 6-year-old and healthy 6-year-old can do.

I know each of us has these stories. Whether you are a Member of the Senate or you are just tuning in or you are visiting with us today, you all have these stories.

The Republican tax scam benefits the top 1 percent more than anyone else. Look at the actuary numbers. Look at the economists. Look at the facts around us. Don't fall for the nonsense that is coming from my colleagues who are trying to pull the wool over your eyes. Tell the truth to the American people.

Now, if you make under $60,000 a year, you lose, plain and simple. It is not a fair system for Americans. Look, I want my friends across the country who have done well for themselves, who are so successful financially, that have made millions or tens of millions or hundreds of millions of dollars, I want them to do more and do better. I congratulate them. All I am saying is, I don't think they need a tax cut.

How about we help the folks making less than $60,000 a year, $80,000 a year. I mean, heck, $400,000 a year. How about we agree with our Republican colleagues that let's put a cap there.

A few weeks ago, there were votes on this floor that asked my Republican colleagues, Can we agree to put a cap at $10 million? They voted no. They said: OK. If that is not enough, how about a $100 million? Nope, they voted that one down. So one of my colleagues said: Well, how about $500 million? If someone is making $500 million a year, can we agree to put a cap there that says no one making more than $500 million a year gets a tax cut? Surprise. Surprise. They voted no.

Even the leader asked my Republican colleagues: How about $1 billion? If 10 is not enough, 100 is not enough, 500 is not enough, how about $1 billion? If someone is doing so well in America that they make $1 billion a year, can we agree to put a cap there?

They voted that down. Out of touch.

Today, and all through the night, you will hear from a number of my colleagues, all representing different States across America, different people from all walks of life. They are standing alongside me to speak up about the harmful repercussions that this Republican budget will have and the damage that we are already seeing.

I urge my fellow Americans: Pay attention. Get the facts. Demand that the people that ask for your vote to represent you, that they stop lying to you. Just tell the truth. My Republican colleagues won the election. I understand that. They have the majority votes in the Senate and in the House. They even control the White House. It is no secret that they want to devastate Medicaid and Medicare.

But then my Republican colleagues say: No, no, no. We are not going to touch it. We are going to leave it up to the States while they take the Federal money away. Don't worry about Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs and those food programs that help food banks, that help schools. We are not taking the money. We are leaving it up to the States.

But these votes are going to eliminate all those dollars so there can be another handout to the wealthiest people in America. That is what is at play. I know my constituents cannot afford to pay for another Trump tax scam. My constituents cannot afford to pay for this national sales tax that is coming our way because of the Trump tariffs.

I urge my fellow Senators, listen to your constituents, be honest with them, understand what it is like to walk in their shoes.

Let's work together. Let's find a way to get this done instead of ignoring the Parliamentarian, finding some accounting gimmick to get around this. Let's work together. Let's follow the rules. Let's listen to the American people. Let a little common sense come into our lives.

Reflect, a little prayer is not going to hurt you, and do the right thing.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I call up my amendment No. 1726 and ask that it be reported by number.

Mr. President, the last time we voted on the budget resolution, I introduced an amendment to prevent $1 billion in cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

My Republican colleagues said that $1 billion in cuts wouldn't take benefits away from our constituents and that they were targeting ``inefficiencies.''

Well, this time around Republicans are attempting to pass legislation that would cut $230 billion from SNAP. I am willing to work with all of my Republican colleagues to make SNAP more efficient, but what you are doing is completely gutting the program, probably trying to eliminate it.

Mr. President, 41.2 million Americans rely on SNAP to put food on their family's table. Forty percent of SNAP recipients are children. And the fact it is impossible--

Mr. President, they don't want to listen because they are trying to get rid of the darn program. It is not a surprise. They want to eliminate SNAP, $230 billion completely devastates it.

It is not about the inefficiencies as they claim. This is going to hurt our constituents, and there are hundreds of thousands of constituents in every one of your States that are going to get hurt. This is not right.

Mr. President, how much time do I have?

I ask for the yeas and nays.

I ask for the yeas and nays.

Will the Senator yield for a question?

Senator Booker, thank you. I won't be surprised if Mom is watching right now. So you are probably going to get some messages from her.

But I want to thank my friend and colleague from the great State of New Jersey. You have been holding this space for the American people now for well over 17 hours.

While we represent different parts of the country, Senator Booker, we have the same values. I learned from you the importance of treating people with respect and dignity. That is what we should all be talking about here today--every day. I have also learned a lot about grace from you.

Now, I come to the floor to ask you a question about farmers. You and I both appreciate the long hours that farmers put in to take care of that soil, their families, the planning that goes into this, sowing the seeds. Sometimes you have to do a little weeding to make sure that we are going to all benefit from the fruits of their labor.

Having fresh food in a grocery store is not something that can be taken for granted. And for a lot of our constituents--I have had these conversations with nominees who have come before us, when they ask me: Well, why is someone just eating potato chips or Doritos from that local store?

I will educate them by saying: That is the only store around.

There are food deserts everywhere, but we can do something about that. We have programs in place that recognize the importance of getting someone a meal who needs that meal, supporting our farmers out there to sow those seeds, to help them with their planting.

But what I am seeing right now, Senator Booker, is our farmers have been on the receiving end of these Federal funds being taken away from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, these reckless tariffs that are hurting farmers and ranchers just as much as they are hurting anyone in America.

Outbreaks, bird flu--people know what the cost of eggs is in the store right now. Then they look into what is going on now. There is this bird flu that is going around.

My constituents ask: Well, why does the U.S. Department of Agriculture under Donald Trump fire the people, epidemiologists, that are responsible for containing this thing?

It just doesn't make any sense to folks.

I was in the Ag Committee earlier today, Senator Booker, and I was asking some questions to USDA, and I learned that on March 7, 2025, under the Trump administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture terminated the local food in schools program and the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement. And then they went further, and they also notified grant applicants on March 24 that the fiscal year 2025 competition for the Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program is canceled.

Why does this matter to farmers and ranchers and people back home? These programs allow food banks and schools and others to purchase food from our local farmers.

Now, our local farmers aren't just making a decision on what seeds are going to be planted so they can sell the lettuce next week. They start this a year going back. So when the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a year ago, started talking to these farmers and ranchers about what programs were going to be in place and then these farmers, responsibly, went and found customers to sell their food--food banks, different groups around the country--they planned the rest of the year to be able to get that nutritious food into the bellies of people that need it most. That sounds like respect and dignity.

What is not respectful is when the Trump administration gives them a few days' notice and pulls the rug from under them and cancels the program that is going to allow the food bank--their customer--to buy their food.

What do those farmers have to do now across America?

Now, it gets worse and worse. I won't go into all of it, Senator Booker, but here is one of the dirty little secrets: All of these programs that are being taken away from the American people, it is to find an extra dollar for this tax policy under Donald Trump that my constituents started calling back in 2017 the ``Trump tax scam.''

I asked: Well, why are you calling it that?

They said: Well, everyone promised me--I am making less than the median income, making less than $80,000, which is a lot of money in New Mexico, across America. The median income there is a little lower.

I was told that we were going to get the brunt of this tax cut, recognizing that we are hard-working and how hard it is to make ends meet, but that is not what happened. Most of this went to families and folks making over $2.8 million. I don't have anything against those families. I wish them well. I want them to make more--$10 million--next year. But they don't need a tax cut. That should be going to those hard-working families that were told that they were being prioritized.

But they are the ones that told us--told me, anyway--that this was a Trump tax scam. That is the secret. That is where all this money is going.

So, Senator Booker, whether I am in a grocery store and I am chatting with constituents, we are out there looking at egg prices, or whatever it may be, they are concerned about what is going on here. And all they are asking for me to share with my colleagues here is: Just tell them to tell us the truth.

If they are going to vote to take these programs away-- they have the votes, my Republican colleagues--just be honest. Treat my constituents with respect and dignity so that they can plan, so that a single mom that has a child whose Medicaid may get ripped away but that child has cancer--how are they going to plan for care in 6 months? So that farmer who started planting seeds recently but was planning over a year on what to do, so they can find another customer so that they are not going to lose that farm as well.

Now, before I ask you this question, sir, I want to end with this: Senator Booker, you often share a story of Abraham Lincoln's inaugural address, his second, and the man whose review mattered most to the 16th President of the United States.

When asked his opinion of Lincoln's performance, former slave and abolitionist Frederick Douglass replied:

It was a sacred effort.

Let me be the first to say this is a sacred effort, Senator Booker, and I am proud to stand alongside you.

So, Senator Booker, the question that my constituents and I have for you is: Can the farmers and ranchers of America afford to pay for another Trump tax scam with all this nonsense that is going on?

It is a question I get when I am at church--I will say not during church but after church is OK--or at the grocery store. But when I visit with folks back home, this is what they are asking me.

Mr. President, I rise today to recognize and share the inspiring story of native New Mexican Mr. Valdemar DeHerrera, a World War II veteran and prisoner of war, who celebrated his 105th birthday on October 8, 2024. Valdemar is one of the last American survivors of the fighting in Bataan and Corregidor in the Philippines during the end of World War II.

Valdemar was raised near Taos in the town of Costilla as the third of 14 children. Valdemar helped his family with farming, raising sheep, chickens, cattle, pigs, horses, and crops until dropping out of school in the 10th grade to join the Civilian Conservation Corps. Valdemar did manual labor for conservation projects on rural lands owned by State, local, and Federal governments until he was drafted into the Army at 22 years old. He was sent to train in Fort Bliss, TX, and later deployed to the 515 Coast Artillery in the Philippines.

During the war, Valdemar was captured as a Japanese prisoner of war. He survived the Bataan Death March by escaping to Corregidor Island. Shortly after, Valdemar and his fellow escapees were captured by the Japanese. During his 3 years and 7 months in captivity, Valdemar was forced to work at a textile plant in Manchuria. He survived off rations consisting of one cup of rice, two cups of water a day, and foraging for grasshoppers, monkeys, and wild spinach. Valdemar was liberated in Manchuria when World War II ended. He returned to Santa Fe, weighing just 80 pounds, spending months recovering. Valdemar credits his faith and the presence of his guardian angel for his survival.

Valdemar has lived a full and meaningful life since his time in the Army. Upon his return home to Costilla, he married Consuelo DeVargas. Valdemar and Consuelo were married until her passing in 2019. Valdemar worked for the State of New Mexico highway department and the Molycorp Mine. Family has played an integral role in Valdemar's life as he raised his 8 children, 19 grandchildren, 29 great-grandchildren, and 3 great-great grandchildren. Valdemar still attends the Bataan Memorial Death March memorial ceremony each year at White Sands Missile Range.

I had the pleasure of speaking to Valdemar prior to his 105th birthday. I thanked him for his service and sacrifice during World War II. Valdemar, your service will never be forgotten, and I am forever grateful for your role in fighting for our freedom.

Mr. President, I would like to call up my amendment No. 699 and ask that it be reported by number.

Mr. President, we are experiencing a nationwide shortage of police officers. Police departments are stretched thin, making our communities less safe. In the worst cases, some small departments have disbanded completely. Small towns need Federal dollars to bolster their ranks.

The Musk-Trump freeze took funding away from our police departments and law enforcement officials. The COPS hiring program is a lifeline to many law enforcement agencies. COPS hiring grants provide funding directly to law enforcement agencies to increase their community policing capacity and crime prevention efforts.

On behalf of all Americans who care about public safety, I introduce this amendment to provide increased resources for local law enforcement.

This is a bipartisan issue. It should be easy. I hope my colleagues just accept it, and we don't even have to have a vote on it. There is no reason to oppose this amendment. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, 41.2 million Americans rely on SNAP to put food on the table. I would like to call up my amendment No. 957 and ask it to be reported by number.

Mr. President, 41.2 million Americans rely on SNAP to put food on the table, and 40 percent of SNAP recipients are children.

The Republican budget resolution before us tonight will dramatically slash nutrition; conservation; other farm programs for our children, families, and farmers--all to pay for the Trump tax scam. And we all know it is only going to benefit the wealthiest Americans.

Now, I want to get a farm bill done, and I think most of us here want to do that. Taking critical Federal dollars from our rural communities will make that nearly impossible. And that is not all. This means that costs will go up for families across America at a time when prices are already high. The result: Children and families will go hungry. We all know that that is unacceptable.

I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, over the past week, Elon Musk and Donald Trump have fired thousands of Federal workers, many of them in New Mexico, without warning. The calls that I get to my office from constituents all across New Mexico are expressing concern, surprise, alarm, not knowing what is going to happen next, worried about a project. A professional whom I spoke to who works for the Bureau of Indian Education, who has a responsibility to help diagnose and support students with disabilities, asked: Do I stay and help these kids? What is going to happen with this stuff?

Whether it is our neighbors who work to support the National Labs to keep us safe or our friends who work at the U.S. Department of Agriculture helping our farmers and ranchers feed our Nation--these illegal mass firings are impacting communities across every corner of New Mexico.

To sum this up, what I keep hearing from New Mexicans every day is: Please help me. Speak up. Say something. Do something. Bring attention to what is happening to the harm that is being caused in our communities, for all of our constituents.

This isn't about Democrats or Republicans; it is about right or wrong. It is about real people.

Now, instead of protecting these jobs and helping our fellow Americans, Senate Republicans are pursuing a partisan budget resolution that will make it even harder for families to afford their healthcare, put food on the table, or get an education for their students, for their kids.

This is, quite frankly, chaos. And it is chaos that the American people cannot afford. New Mexicans and Americans from all walks of life rely on the programs that Republicans are now attacking. These are programs that feed seniors, veterans, children, the disabled. These are programs that house our veterans, that keep folks warm during these winter months.

And why are Republicans ripping these services away from people who need them? To fund this Trump tax scam. Now, it is 2.0. The American people and constituents across New Mexico are the ones who told me back in 2017: This really feels like a scam.

What Republicans are saying is middle-class families are going to get everything in here when it comes to a tax cut. But what we saw play out is: If you are making millions of dollars, you did OK, you got the brunt of everything that was in this tax scam.

Lying to the face of the American people is what happened in 2017, and it certainly feels the same now.

Let's talk about one possible outcome of this budget resolution. In New Mexico, Medicaid covers 75 percent of births, supports around 92,000 children in my home State. Across the country, nearly 40 percent of babies are born with the help of Medicaid. For these babies and pregnant women, this program is vital, offering a chance to grow up healthier and have the best opportunity to succeed. We should all want that for our constituents. That is not partisan.

Unfortunately, Republicans have made it clear that they are determined to slash Medicaid. They tried it in 2017. What I hear from my Republican colleagues when they are being interviewed and being asked the question ``are you going to cut Medicaid,'' they certainly attempt to try in every form and fashion to say: No, no, no. We are not going to touch it. We are just going to leave it up to the States.

Let me translate what that means. What Republicans in Congress are going to do is work to eliminate every Federal dollar with Medicaid. There is this acronym FMAP. It is a Federal matching program to make Medicaid work across America. That is what they are going after. And if you visit with anyone across America who knows anything about how this program works, they will all tell you,

without these Federal dollars, this program goes away.

This Republican budget resolution sets the stage for dismantling Medicaid, which could result in pregnant moms and babies losing healthcare. That is just one possible outcome.

As I said earlier, the American people deserve honesty and transparency. Look, I understand if my Republican colleagues want to do this. Just own up to it. Tell the American people what you want to do. Let them know. Just be honest with them. That is the least that the American people deserve.

Last week in the Budget Committee, I offered a number of commonsense amendments to help lower costs for families, to strengthen border security, safeguard healthcare, promote American manufacturing and businesses, and invest in public safety. And top of mind for many Americans, I offered an amendment to ensure that Elon Musk and his companies are not profiting off the same government that he is dismantling. Elon Musk, who was not elected by the American people, is pursuing an extreme agenda to serve his own interests and greed. All while the American people are paying the price for it.

If Republicans are serious about tackling the issues and lowering costs, let's work together. You have partners here ready to do this for the American people.

But my Republican colleagues know better than I that what is happening under this President and Elon Musk is the cost of goods continues to go up. I don't know how many of you were at the grocery store this weekend in this Chamber, but if you haven't been, go by it. Go by and try to buy some eggs. You are going to see a sign that limits you to maybe a dozen, maybe 2. And you are going to see the costs going up and up and up--milk, butter. You look at it, you see it, you name it--it is all increasing in price.

What happened to President Trump saying on day one he was going to lower the cost of these goods for the American people? It is not happening.

Look, to sum this up, Americans will not be able to make ends meet if Senate Republicans dismantle the programs that make our country strong and secure to advance yet another tax scam.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, chaos, corruption, confusion--that is what Russell Vought offers.

For the past 2 weeks, my office has received thousands of calls. Worried New Mexicans are taking time out of their busy days to share their stories and plead for help.

Last Monday, when President Trump and Russell Vought illegally froze Federal programs and grant money allocated by Congress, chaos erupted in New Mexico and across the country.

A single mother of four in Bernalillo wrote to me:

I will literally have to choose between feeding my children

or paying for them to have private health insurance. I barely

make it paycheck to paycheck as it is, this freeze would

definitely put us over. . . . Please help our state.

A senior from Albuquerque told me:

My savings have been wiped out by home care costs after one

hospitalization. I am unable to work, and am living solely on

Social Security income, most of which is eaten up by

insurance premiums. I am dependent on Medicare health

treatments.

Another constituent of mine wrote:

Now, we are scared to lose medical and food. We rely on

Medicaid care for procedures and prescriptions that keep me

and my husband alive. Without SNAP, we can't afford to eat.

A family doctor shared that if the Federal freeze on grants and programs were to be implemented, it would put a family clinic that serves 50,000 New Mexicans in immediate danger of closing. This would leave thousands of patients without access to primary healthcare.

Another constituent said:

I am working at the Senior Community Service Employment

Program to make enough money to live on and pay our bills.

This program allows me to make some money to pay bills

otherwise I cannot make it through the month. I am so afraid.

President Trump's plan is to take away this program. Help

please!

Another young woman in southwest Albuquerque wrote to me saying:

As a type 1 diabetic, I am afraid to lose Medicaid because

of the decision of the President. I will not survive without

it. I am beyond blessed to have Medicaid because I have made

it 12 years of being diabetic and being able to have an

insulin pump. Unfortunately, if I go without Medicaid, I

don't think I would even be able to afford an insulin pen

that only lasts up to 2 weeks.

One New Mexican, who works at a school lunch program, called asking:

Will the students have food tomorrow? We have no way to

make up the difference.

A farmer in Silver City said he was concerned about the devastation a funding freeze would have on the farmers and ranchers across New Mexico.

A nonprofit that helps people with disabilities find housing and employment said they ``would not be able to function.''

A mother and nurse wrote in to say that stopping his two disabled children's healthcare will destroy their lives.

This is just a handful of the countless stories shared with my office in the past 11 days. New Mexicans were scared and didn't know what to do.

The Trump administration offered a two-page memo that effectively took away assistance for millions of Americans, Republicans and Democrats, who would not be able to put food on the table, afford their prescriptions, or put gas in their cars because of Russell Vought and the Trump Administration.

When asked by reporters in the briefing room if this freeze was going to affect programs that help feed young children, provide veterans with healthcare, or keep the heat on for seniors during cold winters--the White House Press Secretary answered over and over again that this freeze would not affect individual assistance programs. She left it at that, no specific details or plans to share with the American people regarding whether the Trump administration planned to freeze the funding they depend on.

What happened was these programs were frozen. Contrary to the lie the White House told the American people, these programs were frozen. Medicaid and Head Start payment portals were frozen with no explanation. After Democrats and the public demanded answers, the portals began to open up again. No explanation was given to the American people, no accountability.

Let me be clear, Vought's fingerprints are all over Trump's funding freeze despite not being confirmed. What Russell Vought is doing is bad for our country. I don't need to stand here and wonder or make guesses about what his policies will do if he is confirmed to be the Director of the Office of Management and Budget. He has already done this job before, and when he did, he broke the law.

Let me repeat that. Russell Vought broke the law. He decided that he and President Trump get to determine what programs are funded. Not Congress, as the Constitution requires, not the people of this country, just them.

The rule of law still needs to matter in this country, and it needs to matter in this body.

Let me also tell you why I don't need to guess what Mr. Vought is going to do. A chief architect of Project 2025, Russell Vought wants nothing more than to have a chance at cutting funding for Medicaid, healthcare and mental health services for veterans, early childhood education for kids, and so much more.

I am proud to serve New Mexico. I know that I do not just represent the people who voted to put me in this job. And because I serve them, all New Mexicans, I went into the confirmation process with an open mind.

The decisions and the leadership of the person who will take the seat of Director of the Office and Management and Budget will affect all New Mexicans.

Under this Presidency, I know this Cabinet will not agree with me on every issue, but I want these positions to be filled by people who will not just serve the Americans who voted for their boss, but serve everyone. I do not have a problem with a Republican running the Office of Management and Budget. I take issue with a nominee who promises to violate the law and strip funding from the American people.

I take issue with slashing funding for children's health insurance, moms and dads trying to put food on the table, seniors being able to afford their medicine. I take issue with this nominee who has a record of disdain for Federal employees and ``wants federal employees to be traumatized.'' I take issue with a nominee who, when it comes to our Federal workers, wants to clean house and replace them with political loyalists.

Let me end with something personal. Russell Vought believes that kids who attend Head Start ``have worse behavior and academic outcomes than children who do not enroll in the program.'' He signed his name on a document saying exactly this. I am a Head Start graduate standing right now in the well of the U.S. Senate. Early education opens up doors for millions of

kids and Russell Vought will try to take it away, take away the opportunity for young children to attain the tools they need to succeed in this world.

My grandparents often told me as a kid to leave things better than you found them. Let me tell you what Vought is going to do. He is going to slash programs that people depend on every day to pay for the Trump tax scam. And Russell Vought is going to leave kids, veterans, and seniors footing the bill. He is going to tell parents they have to make an impossible choice: feed their kids or be able to afford medicine for mom.

Russell Vought has no interest in the advice of my grandparents. He is not going to leave things better than he found them. The best thing for New Mexico right now is to not support a nominee who has already plunged our country into chaos and confusion. Our country and New Mexicans deserve better than this.

I want to thank each and every one of my Democratic colleagues who came to the floor this week to stand up for our constituents and who shared many stories and concerns from across the country over the nomination of Russell Vought.

I urge my Republican colleagues to speak with their constituents who will suffer at the hands of Russell Vought as Director of the Office of Management and Budget, a decision and confirmation that would be damaging to our country.

I yield the floor.

On behalf of Head Start and on behalf of the nearly 9,000 Head Start students in New Mexico, I wish to be recorded no.

Madam President, I especially want to start by giving thanks to our colleague from Hawaii for asking us to come together and have a conversation with the American people.

I am a proud Senator from the State of New Mexico--from a small, rural community in the northern part of the State--and I wanted to come down to the floor to continue this conversation as we have heard from colleagues already talk about what this is and what this isn't. It seems to me, when my Republican colleagues last did this, what I heard in townhall after townhall across New Mexico was that, from Democrats, Republicans, Independents, voters, constituents, they just wanted to hear the truth. They wanted to hear what this is and what this is not.

So I am going to start off by holding up this report that says that almost 60 percent of the benefit of extending the Republican tax policies will go to the top 0.1 percent of the wealthiest in America-- 0.1 percent of the wealthiest in America--and I am not talking about the other 99.9 percent. Now let's define how much money people who are in the top 0.1 percent in America are making. They are doing very well. They are making $2.8 million per year. It is a lot of money, and they are successful, but it is under the guise of giving middle-class families, hard-working families all across America a tax cut when the benefit goes to the top 0.1 percent. If you are making 2.8 million bucks a year, yes, this is for you.

The American people just want to hear the truth. This is not for those hard-working, middle-class families back home--my brothers and sisters, police men and women who fight to keep us safe, the EMS who respond when we need them the most, nurses, teachers, electricians, ironworkers, pipefitters. You know, they are all the folks across America who are doing everything they can to put some food on the table, to keep a roof over their heads, to provide for their kids, and maybe save for retirement if they have a little extra.

They are playing by the rules. This golden rule promised that, if you fight hard and you play by the rules, you will do better than the previous generation, and you are going to help your kids and everyone who follows you. So while you are playing by the rules all across the country--and I am talking to everyone not making 2.8 million bucks a year--my Senate Republican colleagues are getting ready to rig the system with a tax cut that is going to give more money to the people in the top 0.1 percent--remember, the people making $2.8 million a year or more. Well, maybe that will let some of those folks buy another jet plane or another yacht if they are doing well as $2.8 million is a lot of money.

Now, one of the concerns across the country is, just as it happened before, my Senate Republican colleagues are going to try to do this behind closed doors, all the while making false promises that this will be for you, working-class families, all across America, but at the end of the night, all they are going to do is stick you with the bill.

They are going to pay for this, as we have heard time and time again, by eliminating programs that support our

veterans, that feed young children or babies, that take care of our grandparents or elders, or by taking away your children's ability to see the same doctors they have been seeing since they were born. Studies show that just extending this Republican tax scam would blow a $4 trillion hole. Let that sink in. Facts. We are talking about the realities of what this will and will not do.

The incoming administration is going to try and pass this off as--you heard it here--a middle-class tax cut. That is how they are going to sell this to the American people, but it is not. It is a handout to the wealthiest folks who are making more than $2.8 million a year. The economic analysis makes it clear that this tax scam will drive up the debt and leave working families behind. We all know the way to grow the economy is to invest in the working class, to lower taxes for working families, and to bring industry and innovation back to our communities across the country. The success of our teachers, our nurses, our pipefitters, our firefighters, our police officers, and everyone in between will be the success of building up the economy across America.

Now, look, you have heard this from my Democratic colleagues: I and we are ready to work with my Republican colleagues to find better solutions for growing our economy and lowering taxes to prioritize them to target the middle class, to help them, but this scam is horrible. It is why I wanted to come to the floor today to have a conversation with my colleagues and to share the facts about what is happening here with the American people and let my colleagues know across the aisle: Let's work together. Let's truly deliver on a promise to help hard-working, middle-class families all across the country, including in the State of New Mexico.

I want to thank again Senator Schatz.

I yield to my colleague from Vermont as well, with whom I had the honor of serving in the House and being part of this debate when it happened.

Mr. President, I am here today to commemorate a life of public service dedicated to the expansion of human knowledge and the greater good.

On September 6 of this year, New Mexico and the Nation suffered a tremendous loss as Dr. Charles McMillan tragically passed away.

Dr. McMillan, or Charlie as he insisted he be called by all who knew him, is perhaps best known for his work as a groundbreaking physicist and visionary leader of Los Alamos National Laboratory.

Fittingly, Charlie's early career focused on developing tools and diagnostics for eye surgery. His innovations resulted in several patents and benefited countless patients.

Over nearly 20 years at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Charlie was instrumental to maintaining and enhancing our Nation's security posture, leading experimental physics, and computing programs that were critical to modernizing the nuclear stockpile.

In 2006, Charlie moved to New Mexico and became the tenth director of Los Alamos National Laboratory in 2011. Capturing the Lab's achievements under Charlie's leadership would be nearly impossible, but one area that shines particularly bright is Charlie's work on supercomputing.

Charlie not only recognized the critical role of these revolutionary machines for the advancement of scientific discovery and national security, he was able to bring together diverse teams and inspire them to execute his ambitious vision: He was instrumental in bringing Roadrunner online and acquiring Trinity, two of the fastest supercomputers in the world at the time.

These computers did critical work on nuclear stewardship and contributed to scientific advancements in areas ranging from advanced battery design to medical drug simulations. The foundations Charlie established resonate to this day through the Department of Energy's Exascale Program, which continues to host the world's fastest supercomputers.

Charlie retired as director in 2017, but was recently called back to the Department to help steward its transition into the next age of advanced computing: artificial intelligence. In this capacity, Charlie continued to be both

a visionary leader and a scientist's scientist, serving as the connective tissue to unite and inspire the Department during this paradigm shift in technology, exactly as he had done so many times in the past.

Charlie's sudden passing came as a devastating shock to the multitude of people he touched throughout his life; the Department of Energy and the national labs are still reeling from this loss. Charlie dedicated his life to his Nation, and always did so with tremendous humility and an infectious curiosity.

But he was so much more than a public servant and scientist; he was a dedicated husband, father, and grandfather. He had a passion for the outdoors, the night sky, and regularly went backpacking with his family to share both. He was also an accomplished musician and shared his talents by performing in several local Los Alamos theater productions.

He is survived by his wife of 47 years Janet Robb McMillan, son Paul McMillan and spouse Suzanne Long, daughters Caroline McMillan and Katherine McCurry, her spouse Paul McCurry, and their son Oliver McCurry.

Charlie leaves behind an incredible legacy of national service, scientific achievement, and deep personal connections. We are proud that he chose to make New Mexico his home and grateful for the time he spent with us in our community. His significant contributions to the world and his generous spirit will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him.

Mr. President, I come to the floor today to talk about the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act yet again.

I appreciate this opportunity because as I have learned, every opportunity we get to talk about the families, to share the stories of the families who are dying of cancer and suffering--for the Federal Government has ignored them for decades--we are able to earn one more vote, one more Member who will stand courageously in that well and say: We can do the right thing, and we can ensure that we are going to provide support and coverage for these families.

I come to the floor today to share the same concerns as my friend Senator Hawley. I have proudly been working on the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act since I was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2009. Prior to that, my predecessor in the Senate and in the House, Tom Udall, was working on this policy and these issues. I have had the honor of speaking with the late Senator Orrin Hatch--may he rest in peace--about the faults that were made when this legislation was passed in 1990 and amended in 2000, of the families that were left out.

After we hear about this approach, we get a chance to talk a little bit more about another idea, and I hope to be able to share some quotes from Senator Orrin Hatch about how we should be working together.

But today, Mr. President, for this portion, I want to share the story of Mary Dickson. Mary grew up in the fallout of nuclear testing. She lived downwind of the Nevada test site where an estimated 100 nuclear tests were detonated above ground.

She has said that all around these testing sites, Utah families were going about their daily lives, drinking milk from the local dairies, eating vegetables from the gardens that they tended to. Heck, the kids would even mix sugar with snow so they could pretend it was ice cream, she wrote.

In my home State of New Mexico, where the first bomb was tested at the Trinity Test Site just miles from the town of Ruidoso and Tularosa, kids at summer camp not only heard the terrifying sounds of the bomb but saw the white ash falling down from the sky. Those kids thought it was snow as well. They went out and played in it because there was no warning. As a matter of fact, the U.S. Government did something worse. They lied to these families and said it was just a drop of munitions. These kids were playing in radioactive waste. These kids ate radioactive waste.

Some of these kids are now adults fighting for their lives. Far too many of these adults face cancer diagnoses. Many face a diagnosis that was similar to their parents or their siblings or their grandparents or their neighbors. Mary faced her diagnosis at 30. Others gave birth to babies with birth defects. Far too many died far too young.

The Senator from Utah and I agree that the people of Utah deserve justice. I and others, like Senator Hawley, agree that those impacted in other States deserve justice as well. Today's exercise is not the answer.

The Senate has already acted twice--once to amend the National Defense Authorization Act with Democrats and Republicans, 61 votes strong. The same people that once said that the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act could not pass through the legislative branch--through the House or through

the Senate--they were taken aback that there was this enormous vote and success only a few months later to see another bill authored by Senator Hawley that I was proud to work with him on with the advocates. The advocates should be at the table as we are having these deliberations. Where are their voices?

Sixty-nine votes said yes. Now it sits in the U.S. House of Representatives, where recently even Speaker Johnson's office commented on taking action to make sure that this program will not die. I appreciate that.

I certainly hope that the families I have had the honor of meeting with, that I know Senator Hawley has met with, that all Senators share and agree that we should take further action on the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act meet with them as well.

I hope the Senators start with Mary Dickson. Learn her stories. Invite her in. Get to know her, her advocacy, her plight because by learning her story, we are going to help countless others all across America. I strongly urge my colleagues to stand with all the victims.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, let me begin by quoting Senator Orrin Hatch, the primary author of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act. In his final years, Senator Hatch said:

Updating this legislation is a moral imperative. RECA, as

it is currently written, extends benefits only to uranium

miners, millers, and transporters who worked until 1972. But

an updated bill would extend benefits to those who worked

after 1972, many of whom have developed cancer as a result of

radiation exposure.

Let me repeat that. Senator Orrin Hatch said it was a moral imperative to provide justice to what are called Post-71 miners. And what does this bill offer to these Americans who have suffered for our country? Nothing. What does this bill offer to downwinders in Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, Idaho, Montana? Again, nothing. Instead, this exercise is an attempt to undermine the strong bipartisan coalition that passed historic RECA legislation.

I hope no one misreads what is happening today. There is a bipartisan coalition, there is a bipartisan group of advocates across the country that is growing and growing. There are more cosponsors in the House. The strongest vote that has ever taken place in the U.S. Senate has already passed this bill.

Let me be clear. Our bipartisan coalition will work with anyone who wants to meaningfully help the victims of all radiation and uranium exposure illnesses--including those that voted no when the Senate passed the RECA to the House just a few months ago. But we should help all of them, every one of these families that qualifies.

By the way, just because a community is included as a downwind county, it doesn't mean all the people living there benefit from the program. They still have to fight and prove that they lived in this community for a number of years, that their critical illnesses and cancers are those that science shows were due to this exposure. They have to fight. It is not just given to them. There is a whole process associated with the science, and study after study continues to show how these families deserve this help.

As a matter of fact, in committee this week, we were having a hearing to help coal miners in America. And some of the experts that were in that room, I asked them about exposure with uranium and the kind of cancers that we should expect, and I asked them specifically about uranium mine workers. And it wasn't surprising when that witness told us that the same uranium mine workers who worked 1971 and before--their cancers--it turns out that the uranium mine workers that worked in 1972 had the same cancer as well.

Senator Orin Hatch, through his wisdom and his words and in my conversations with this great leader, said: We have to fix these mistakes.

I will close with this. A few years ago, a Navajo elder--and I have shared this with our colleagues before--when she spoke before the House of Representatives, she asked an important question to a panel of Members that were not supportive of expanding RECA, and it was simple: Are you waiting for all of us to die so that the problem goes away?

With a simple vote in the House, taking up this Senate legislation that the Senate passed with 69 votes, authored by Senator Hawley, we can answer her question with a resounding: No, we are going to get help to families.

I yield the floor.