Floor Statements

Mr. President, the first year of the 118th Congress has come to a close. It is time to look ahead to the many challenges we face in the year ahead. But never in recent memory has the contrast between the two parties been more obvious than in the past 3 years.

Under Democratic majority leaders, we saw the most productive Congress in modern history, but under a Republican House majority this year, we saw a year marked by chaos, extremism, and paralysis. There is no question that divided government and MAGA extremism made legislating in 2023 very difficult. For much of the year, it was as if Donald Trump himself were running the show over in the House, making it exceedingly hard to get anything done.

But in a difficult year, Democrats did not abandon our promise to work to make life better for the American people. This year, Democrats protected the historic wins we have gotten done in the 117th Congress: climate change, prescription drug reform, CHIPS and Science, and so much more.

And I would remind the country that all but one of these major bills we passed and led in the Senate was done with bipartisan support. You need bipartisanship to get so much done, but we protected those historic wins.

Second, we worked all year to implement those wins effectively: new infrastructure projects, new factories, new good-paying jobs. Across the country, manufacturing and job creation is surging; communities long overlooked are getting a second chance; seniors will be paying less for healthcare and prescription drugs; rural people will be able to get broadband--internet service--for the first time. After years of high costs, inflation has dramatically slowed down in the year since we passed the Inflation Reduction Act. We have protected; we have implemented; and the third word is ``prevented.''

Even with the MAGA Republican rightwing majority running so much of the House, we prevented the worst things from happening. We prevented the country from defaulting, which would have been a disaster. We prevented, in both September and November, the government from shutting down. In each case, the keyword was ``bipartisanship.'' We can't do any of these things without both parties cooperating. I urge Speaker Johnson to understand that as we approach the January 19 deadline. Without bipartisanship, we will not get anything done, and embracing the hard-right philosophy is a path to nowhere for not only the Republican Party but for the House and the country.

Finally, in a difficult year, Democrats persevered. We protected, we implemented, we prevented, and we persevered. We persevered at every turn to work, to get things done. We began our critical work on artificial intelligence. We pushed to outcompete the Chinese Government even as we added more historic and diverse judges to the Federal bench.

This work will continue next year. There will be no easing into 2024; we will hit the ground running. There is a lot we must do. We must not only pass the supplemental and finish the job of properly funding our Federal Government, but we have made large progress in a bipartisan way on new parts of our agenda: insulin reform, getting everybody to pay no more than $35 a month; artificial intelligence, where the bipartisan Gang of 4 held some very, very elucidating insight forums, and now we are ready to start looking at legislation; outcompeting the Chinese Government; passing SAFE Banking and cannabis reform; getting something done on railway safety, on online child privacy, and so much more.

In each of these, we have laid some groundwork with bipartisan support. It won't be easy, but we want to get these things done in 2024. The only way, though, we will get them done--just like with the supplemental, just like with the government shutdown--is through bipartisan cooperation. It was the very first thing I said at the beginning of this Congress. Bipartisanship is essential in divided government. We saw that play out all year long. Only through bipartisanship were we able to avoid a catastrophic default, avoid a shutdown, and make any progress on appropriations or anything of import.

We also saw what happens when one party--particularly in the House; not so much in the Senate--refuses to embrace bipartisanship. The unproductive and dysfunctional House majority is the most unproductive and dysfunctional in modern history. What happened in the House because of that dysfunctional majority can be boiled down to three words: chaos, extremism, paralysis.

Donald Trump may not be in office, but his influence drove practically every major decision for the House Republicans, at great cost to our country. We saw MAGA extremists take the debt ceiling hostage to push an agenda that would have crashed the economy, raised costs, and killed millions of jobs. We saw MAGA extremists hijack the appropriations process by adding poison pills, restricting a woman's right to choose, and so much else. We even saw MAGA extremists bring all of Congress to a grinding halt for more than a month by expelling their own Speaker even as crises raged in Europe and Middle East-- shameful.

Unfortunately, the dark cloud of Donald Trump hovers, looms over Senate and House Republicans, and it is something I hope they will resist because he is no good for the country, no good for their party.

MAGA Republicans are incapable of governing, plain and simple. Americans will not forget that when they head to the polls next year.

In conclusion, as we look to a new year, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to work together. I urge my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to resist MAGA extremism that led their side to so much catastrophe. I urge Speaker Johnson not to let the 30 or so hard- right extremists keep running the show in the House, as they did for too much of this year.

It is not going to get any easier. The challenges we face remain great. But it is my hope--my earnest and fervent hope because I love this country; I love

this country--that the experience of this year shows our colleagues on the other side that embracing MAGA is a recipe for failure.

There will be a lot at stake when we return in 2024. If we embrace bipartisanship, I am confident we will succeed.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, Senate Democrats and Republicans understand there is more work to do to pass legislation protecting America's security and the security of the Western World. We have made important progress. But negotiations have not been easy, and it is going to take more time.

But no matter how long it takes, we must succeed because the stakes are high--for America and for our friends in Europe, the Middle East, and around the world. We must send more aid to Ukraine to defeat Vladimir Putin. We must help our friends in Israel prevent another terrorist attack like October 7. We must send critical aid to innocent civilians in Gaza.

Republicans and Democrats must also continue negotiations on an agreement for securing our southern border. As the past few weeks have made abundantly clear, Democrats have always been willing to engage in good-faith, realistic negotiations about border security. We agree the border must be fixed, but not at the expense of our values.

Finding common ground on the border has been difficult--in fact, one of the most difficult issues Congress has faced in a good while. The details here matter immensely, and this is not a topic that Congress has tackled at this level in many years. While we have made important progress over the past week on border security, everyone understands that we have more work to do, and that it is going to take more time.

Later today, I will meet with colleagues at the weekly Democratic caucus lunch to give an update on border and supplemental negotiations.

Now, I thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for working without rest on the supplemental package. I also thank staff from both sides who have been working morning, noon, and night to push us forward.

Again, we still have more to do. It is not going to be easy, and everyone understands it is going to take more time to figure this out. But we must--we must--succeed. Democrats remain committed to working with our Republican counterparts to reach an agreement.

Mr. President, on another matter, it will be a busy day here on the floor with votes on three highly qualified nominees to serve in the administration and on the Federal bench.

For the information of Senators, we will hold votes today on the nominations of Christopher Fonzone to be Assistant Attorney General, Sara Hill to be U.S. district judge for the Northern District of Oklahoma--a member of the Cherokee Nation, Ms. Hill would make history as the first-ever Native American woman to serve as a Federal judge in the State of Oklahoma--and, finally, Elizabeth Richard to serve as President Biden's Coordinator for Counterterrorism, a position that has the rank of Ambassador at Large.

Before the Senate adjourns for the holidays, we must also pass a temporary extension of FAA funding or else funding will run out on December 31. A funding extension for the FAA is critical for minimizing chaos during the holiday season. So Congress must get this done as soon as we can.

Mr. President, finally, before we leave for the Christmas holiday, the Senate will also finish confirming the last of the military nominees held up by Senator Tuberville. A few weeks ago, the Senate finally confirmed the vast majority of officers and military nominees who were on hold.

And at the end of last week, the Senate unanimously passed legislation providing for backpay for all military personnel affected by these damaging holds. Providing backpay for these military families was the very, very least the Senate could do to right this awful wrong. I am glad we did it.

But we are not done yet. There are still 11 nominees who are awaiting confirmation. We will not leave town until every last one of these delayed nominees is confirmed. I hope we can do so quickly.

And, finally, Mr. President, one of the things I am best known for in New York is my commitment to visit all 62 counties every year. This year, we celebrated our silver anniversary--the 25th year of visiting every one of the 62 counties. And I love it every bit as much today as I did my first year. We finished our tour yesterday morning at Columbia Memorial Hospital in Columbia County.

When I visit the counties, I learn so much. I talk to people. I listen to their needs. When you are up close with people, you see their hopes and their joys, as well as their fears, their desires--so many different things. And when you sit up close with someone and talk to them and learn from them, it makes a huge bit of difference. You can't do your job as a Senator unless you are actually in touch with people, not simply talking on the telephone or reading something. And so I do it, and I love it. And I commit to the people of New York that I will visit every one of the 62 counties next year, at least for the 26th time.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate consider the following nominations en bloc: Calendar Nos. 188, 198, 202, 236, 262, 288, 292, 328, 335, 338, 416, and Calendar Nos. 449 through 452, and all nominations on the Secretary's desk in the Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Space Force; that the Senate vote on the nominations, en bloc, without intervening action or debate; that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table; and that the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

Mr. President, for the information of the Senate and the American people, these are the 11 four-star generals who were not included in the last approval of the 300-and-some-odd flag officers whom we did approve last time. So these are the 11 remaining generals that have just been approved and some other regular nominations that we usually do through the military. But these 11 flag officers have now been approved, joining the rest of their colleagues whom we approved a few week ago. That is good news.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 174.

Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 311.

Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 376.