Floor Statements

Mr. President, next on the FBI, a few weeks ago, former President Donald Trump called on Republicans in Congress to defund the Department of Justice and FBI because of personal grievances. Instead of standing up to President Trump, Speaker McCarthy and Republican leaders have been silent, and some Members of their party even echo the former President's call.

That is why today I am introducing a resolution denouncing President Trump's call to defund the DOJ and the FBI. The Senate will act on this measure as soon as next week.

The resolution is simple. It expresses our support for Federal law enforcement, and it condemns Donald Trump's call to defund the DOJ and FBI and any other partisan attempts to undermine their authority.

When the resolution comes to the floor, every Member of this Chamber will have a chance to do the right thing: stand up for the brave law enforcement who keep us safe and reject the former President's dangerous call to strip away their funding.

I hope the resolution passes unanimously. It certainly should.

The DOJ and FBI do critical work to protect our communities from threats at home and abroad, including drug trafficking, gun violence, terrorism, and so much more. Do Republicans really want to cut their funding, the funding of these Agencies, making it harder for them to do their jobs?

Again, where will Republicans stand? Will they stand with the Federal law enforcement who keep us safe or stand with the former President and his dangerous call to defund Federal law enforcement? The American people deserve to know how radical the hard right has become, and this resolution will give them answers.

Mr. President, on the Fire Grants and Safety Act, later today, the Senate will pass a much needed lifeline for our firefighters, the Fire Grants and Safety Act.

I thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for their good work on this overwhelmingly bipartisan legislation.

Passing the Fire Grants and Safety Act will extend two important Federal grant programs that support our paid and volunteer firefighters--SAFER and AFG.

As we approach the fire season, extending SAFER and AFG is crucial to ensuring that firefighters have lifesaving equipment and personnel necessary to do their jobs. This is particularly true in smaller, more rural, more suburban areas where volunteer firefighters staff the firehouses, but the equipment is hard to purchase for smaller and less wealthy communities.

Our firefighters are brave. They risk their lives for us. They run toward danger, not away from it. They work tirelessly around the clock, often in dangerous and unpredictable conditions, putting their lives on the line to keep us safe. Firefighters have had our backs, and passing the Fire Grants and Safety Act today will show we have their backs too.

I was proud, in my early days in the Senate, to work with Senator Dodd to pass this legislation.

Again, I thank my colleagues. This has been an example, again, just like we did a few weeks back on the AUMF, of how the Senate should work--bipartisan. We worked with our Republican colleagues and the ranking member of the relevant committees to allow Republican amendments, and, in turn, our Republican colleagues are supporting us moving forward on this important legislation. It is a good thing, and I hope this model continues. As leader, that is one of the things that I am trying to do.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

I announce that the Senator from Illinois (Mr. Durbin), the Senator from California (Mrs. Feinstein), and the Senator from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fetterman) are necessarily absent.

Mr. President, it is a great moment--or a few moments ago it was a great moment, but it continues to be. Our dear friend Senator Patty Murray reached an amazing milestone--10,000 votes over the course of her career in the Senate, the first woman Senator in American history to do so.

(Applause.)

We are not supposed to clap, but every once in a while, breaking protocol is appropriate, as it is now.

It is a remarkable accomplishment for a truly remarkable public servant. Her accomplishments--if she had just cast 10,000 votes, that would be pretty good, but her accomplishments go way beyond that and often dwarf it. She was also the first woman to serve in several Senate leadership positions: chair of the Veterans' Affairs Committee; chair of the Budget Committee; and, of course, at the beginning of this Congress, she made history as the first woman ever to serve as President pro tempore of the Senate.

She is a voice the Senate and the country rely on, on some of the biggest issues we face. When she speaks, everyone listens--Democrats, Republicans, liberals, conservatives, Independents--because they know that she has studied it carefully and it comes right from the heart; it is not political calculation in any way. In issues like healthcare, environment, labor rights, pension, childcare, there is Patty Murray as a beacon--not just a speaker, not just a legislator, but a beacon--to all of us.

And, let me tell you, she has been such a valued member of my leadership team through the years, where she did so, so much, and I relied on her for advice. I know her phone number by heart because I call her so much.

Let's take a moment to recognize and congratulate this great person, this great woman, this great Senator, this great friend, this great Member of the U.S. Senate, Senator Patty Murray.

(Applause.)

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that I be permitted to speak for 2 minutes following Senator Peters, who will speak up to 3 minutes, prior to the scheduled rollcall vote.

Madam President, I would like to make two points. The first is on this great legislation. I thank Senator Peters and the entire HSGAC Committee--Democrats and Republicans--for moving forward.

Our firefighters are the people who protect us. We need to protect them. Equipment has gotten more and more expensive to save their lives and save the lives of the people they are protecting. Yet for many smaller communities--rural, smalltown, even suburban--there is not the money to afford

this equipment. So we have stepped up to the plate.

I helped author this legislation with Senator Dodd back in 2002 to help them. We desperately need this legislation. We need it for firefighters--both paid and volunteer--around the country. But, particularly, as I said, in the smaller areas and the smaller communities where they desperately need the equipment, we have to get it done.

The second point is this: This is the second bill we have done in a very strong bipartisan way. Our colleagues came to us with a list of amendments. It wasn't dilatory. Some of them were difficult for us, but we agreed to the amendments, and in turn, our colleagues voted to move forward. This, again, is how we can run the Senate in a very good and productive way. I hope to do that in every opportunity, where we can come to agreement on amendments, move forward, and pass good legislation.

This is good and needed legislation. I hope we get an overwhelming vote for it.

Vote on S. 870

The bill was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading and was read the third time.

I ask for the yeas and nays.

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

Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 64.

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 consider Calendar No. 32, S. 326.

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

I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum calls for the cloture motions filed today, April 20, be waived.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to recognize the 30th anniversary of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and then I will say a few words about it.

I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to consideration of S. Res. 167, submitted earlier today.

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

First, I want to thank Senators Cardin, Rubio, and many others for introducing this legislation, this recognition.

The Holocaust Museum is an amazing place. I hope every American and every citizen in the world gets to visit it. It reminds us of one of the greatest, if not the greatest, harms ever inflicted on man, the horrible Shoah, the Holocaust, where 6 million people, 1 million children, died, were exterminated, were murdered.

Every time I go to the Holocaust Museum, something new strikes me. There is so much, so many people lost. You see the faces and the families and why they were killed--just because they were Jews. It reminds us of two things--one, to always remember. The Hebrew word is ``zakar,'' remember. If we remember those who died, we keep their flame alive, and by remembering, we will also prevent future holocausts from occurring because if we realize the horror that can occur, it will importune men and women throughout the world and throughout this country to prevent any occurrence like this and make sure it is stopped.

Second, there is an increase in anti-Semitism in America and in the world today. We must do everything we can to fight that, as we must fight all forms of bigotry. This memorial will remind us that we can never sweep things like this under the rug, that we must remember and we must fight as hard as we can to snuff out anti-Semitism and all other forms of bigotry and prevent the kind of evilness that occurred in the Holocaust from ever occurring again.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Madam President, I have seven requests for committees to meet during today's session of the Senate. They have the approval of the Majority and Minority Leaders.

Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following committees are authorized to meet during today's session of the Senate:

Mr. President, let me begin with a quote:

I can't imagine anybody ever even thinking of using the

debt ceiling as a negotiating wedge.

These words are not mine. They are not even the words of a Democrat. They come from former President Donald Trump.

For all of his terrible flaws--in this case, I would say a broken clock is right twice a day--even Donald Trump understood what House Republicans today do not: The full faith and credit of the United States must never be taken hostage.

Again, to quote former President Trump:

I can't imagine anybody ever even thinking of using the

debt ceiling as a negotiating wedge.

Time is ticking before the United States enters into a first-ever default on the national debt if things don't change.

Yesterday, Speaker McCarthy met with House Republicans in the hopes of uniting his party around a single framework of cuts, albeit one that will never become law. Speaker McCarthy's meeting, from all reports, did not go well, to put it lightly.

One GOP Member said yesterday:

I am still a no.

Another from Florida:

I think that they should go further. . . . I am in favor of

very aggressive cuts.

Another from South Carolina:

I'm not there yet.

We could go on and on with these quotes.

Even now, Speaker McCarthy--this is months and months after he proposed making deep cuts as a condition, as brinksmanship, as hostage- taking, to just simply make sure that we avoid default--even now, he is still very short of the support he needs to pass a debt ceiling bill because the chasm is too big between moderates and the hard-right extremists who are glad to see the economy taken hostage in exchange for their priorities.

As the Washington Post wrote this weekend:

Many GOP lawmakers and aides admit it is not even clear

whether their emerging plan can actually attract 218 votes.

And now the clock is ticking. We are getting closer and closer to when we have to act to avoid default.

So for all the speeches, for all the letters, for all the wish lists and meetings with this family or that family, the underlying facts haven't changed: At this point, Speaker McCarthy does not have a plan for avoiding a catastrophic default on the debt.

I quoted one former Republican President, let me quote another, Ronald Reagan. Ronald Reagan said:

[Debt ceiling] brinksmanship threatens the holders of

government bonds and those who rely on Social Security and

veterans benefits.

And:

The United States has a special responsibility to itself

and to the world to meet its obligations.

When Ronald Reagan and Donald Trump say that the Republican strategy led by Speaker McCarthy is folly, you know how far right the whole MAGA Republican House has gone. Things that were accepted a few years ago, by very conservative Republican Presidents--Reagan, Trump--now seem to be discarded in a headlong rush to make the kind of deep cuts that Americans will never support and to tie it to the debt ceiling, which could head us crashing into default.

The solution to this entire mess is staring Republicans right in the face: Do what we did three times under Donald Trump and twice under President Biden and work with Democrats to avoid default without brinksmanship, without blackmail, and without hostage-taking. If Republicans drop their hostage-taking and approach Democrats in good faith, the default crisis could be resolved. But if Speaker McCarthy does not change course, he--he--will be leading America into default of not paying our debts for the first time.

FOX News

Mr. President, on FOX News, yesterday, FOX News agreed to pay nearly $800 million to end a defamation suit brought by Dominion Voting Systems after FOX spent months lying about the 2020 election. It is one of the largest settlements ever in a defamation case.

Trial or no trial, the world sees that FOX News knowingly and intentionally lied to the country about the 2020 election. The amazing thing is that FOX knew that these were lies, and they still put that propaganda on the air. And it is not just trivial lies; it is lies that go to the essence of our democracy. To think that the leaders of FOX News, Rupert Murdoch, don't give a hoot about democracy and still would put these lies on for political or mercenary purposes is just galling, appalling, and, frankly, downright against what America stands for and has stood for for hundreds of years.

FOX commentators spread conspiracy theories and passed them off as news. They spread distrust in our democracy and claimed it was a legitimate concern. So FOX News's legacy and Rupert Murdoch's legacy is forever sealed as the network that sought to undermine American democracy one prime-time segment at a time. FOX News's legacy is sealed as the network that has minuscule reward for the truth and would knowingly lie to achieve political and mercenary goals.

Even without a single witness taking the stand, what we do know about this case is shocking. Under oath, Rupert Murdoch the owners of FOX News, admitted his hosts were spreading the narrative of the Big Lie. We are not just throwing rhetoric around here; these are facts. Here is what Murdoch said: ``Maybe Sean [Hannity] and Laura [Ingraham] went too far,'' he admitted in one email. That is certainly a way to put it.

Asked if he could have stopped the lies, Mr. Murdoch admitted:

I could have . . . but I didn't.

Amazing. Amazing.

So settlement or not, there is no question that FOX News lied. Sadly, too much damage has already been done. A significant segment of voters--by some measures as much as 30 percent of the electorate--still do not believe the 2020 election was legitimate. And when people start doubting that elections are legitimate, that is the beginning of the end of a democracy. It is just galling.

Again, this is not lying about some trivial thing; this is lying that undermines the essence of what America has been all about.

And 2 years after the Presidential election, FOX News still lies about what happened in 2020. Not 2 months ago, Tucker Carlson claimed January 6 was not an insurrection, using manipulated security footage provided to him exclusively by Speaker McCarthy. FOX News has not shown any remorse--any remorse--for undermining our democracy and blatantly lying.

Again, Rupert Murdoch's legacy and FOX News's legacy is sealed. They will forever be remembered as the ones who sought to break American democracy from within by lying about it.

For their own sake--even more importantly, for the sake of our great country--Mr. Murdoch and FOX News leadership should put a halt to the spread of the Big Lie on their network because when enough people believe elections are not on the level, that is the beginning death knell of a democracy.

Abortion

Mr. President, now on the abortion issue and military holds, for the last 10 months, the American people have made clear they reject the hard right's war on women. After many ballot initiatives, special elections, and one disastrous midterm for the GOP, there is no denying that the MAGA obsession with attacking women's freedom of choice has been a disaster. And yet, the more Americans reject MAGA extremism, particularly on the issue of choice, the more MAGA Republicans double down. Now, through the actions of one Senator, even military families have been taken hostage by the hard right.

We are talking about women veterans. We are talking about women who volunteer and risk their lives oftentimes for us. And now this hard- right group is telling them they don't have the right to decide what to do when it comes to their bodies and their healthcare--it is outrageous. The same people on the other side who praise our military and our soldiers are treating women as second-class citizens. That is outrageous.

It is outrageous when they do it to all women, but particularly outrageous when they do it to women veterans, women who serve because they, again, are our heroes and risk their lives for us.

And now, through the actions of one Senator, even military families have been taken hostage by the hard right. Today, the Senator from Alabama will push legislation that would take away reproductive care for hundreds of thousands of veterans and their families. It is the extreme kind of proposal millions of Americans strongly oppose and one which, if passed, would gravely harm the health of women, particularly our veterans.

Senator Tuberville's legislation is bad on its own, but he has made it even worse because he continues threatening our national security by blocking over 180 military promotions. The Secretary of Defense himself and so many of our leading military figures, past and present, have warned us that this delay is dangerous to the security of America.

What is equally disappointing as the Senator from Alabama's reckless action, it is disappointing to see that more of my colleagues on the other side have not yet called out the Senator's reckless stunts. I thank those who, indeed, have raised their voice, but we need more.

Republicans who claim to be such supporters of our military all of a sudden have gone mum, silent, when the Senator from Alabama risks military security because he believes passionately in something. Every one of us could do this. No one has chosen to do it the way the Senator has.

It is a new chapter, a sad chapter. We hope it will end soon, that, whether publicly or privately, our Republican colleagues go to him and say this is just dead wrong, no matter how passionately he feels.

And why is Senator Tuberville doing this? Because he wants to make the healthcare decisions for the women of our military. He wants to decide that. The military shouldn't decide it. The country shouldn't decide it. The women shouldn't decide it. He wants to make that decision. What arrogance.

He is threatening to permanently inject politics into the confirmation of routine military promotions so he can

push the MAGA hardline on blocking women's choice.

This is the MAGA hard right in a nutshell: Eliminate women's choice at all costs, even at the cost of our national defense.

I urge my colleagues sincerely, passionately, as passionately as he is, maybe even more so, to drop his hold, and I will certainly oppose this measure later today.

I yield the floor.

Recognition of the Minority Leader

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

Mr. President, when the health and safety of our country is at risk, it is up to veterans to step up to protect us. They risk their lives for us. They are always there for us. But today Senator Tuberville from Alabama is pushing legislation that would take away reproductive care for hundreds of thousands of veterans and their families. That is right. The hard right is telling our veterans they should be treated as second-class citizens, our women veterans.

It is the kind of extreme proposal millions of Americans strongly oppose and one which, if it is passed, would gravely harm women's health. There are over 150,000 women veterans. They risk their lives for us. Now we must protect them.

The more Americans reject MAGA extremism, the more MAGA Republicans seem to double down, and this bill is a perfect example. That is the MAGA right in a nutshell: Eliminate women's choice at all costs, even at the cost of our national defense. Again, the MAGA right says: Eliminate women's choice at all costs, even at the cost of national defense.

Here is the bottom line: Our veterans dedicated their lives to our freedom so we should protect their freedom of choice, plain and simple.

Order of Procedure

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the vote in relation to the Scott of Florida amendment No. 81 occur following the vote on the motion to proceed to S.J. Res. 10; further, I ask that the Senate vote at 11:15 a.m. tomorrow in relation to amendment Nos. 85 and 83; and the Senate vote on passage of S. 870, as amended, if amended, at 1:45 p.m., with all provisions under the previous order remaining in effect.

I yield the floor, and I strongly urge a ``no'' vote on this CRA, this awful CRA.

Vote on Motion

Mr. President, preserving the full faith and credit of the United States is one of the most important responsibilities that Members of Congress face. It requires cooperation, bipartisanship, and leaders who can instill confidence and calm to markets and working families alike.

But I cannot think of a worse message to send to the world than for Speaker McCarthy to travel all the way to New York, look Wall Street in the eye, and threaten that the United States will default on its debt unless Republicans get spending cuts first.

Why the Speaker traveled all the way to New York to give a speech that offered nothing new in substance or concept but the same dangerous message--different than what we have done in the past--is beyond me. If Speaker McCarthy continues in this direction, the United States is likely headed toward default.

But do you know what will avoid default? Republicans working with Democrats to avoid this crisis--all together--just as we did under Donald Trump.

The Speaker has insisted for months on cuts, though he has failed to offer any clarity about what kind of cuts Republicans want. House GOP leadership is presenting their wish list to their Members at a closed meeting this morning. No one should confuse this wish list as anything more than a recycling of the same bad ideas we have heard about for weeks, and it is still not clear that Speaker McCarthy has the votes to even pass this. Indeed, a handful of House GOP Members insist they won't raise the debt ceiling for anything, not even a GOP wish list.

One of the few specific items is the Speaker's laughable suggestion-- and it is laughable--that we avoid default for only a year, ensuring that this dangerous crisis repeats itself in 12 months. Why the Speaker thinks anyone--anyone--would agree to have another debt ceiling crisis next year is beyond me.

Nobody is saying that there cannot be a conversation about what kind of cuts Republicans want, but it doesn't belong in this debate, plain and simple. It belongs in discussions over the budget that Congress has every year and not as a precondition to avoiding default.

So let me make this easy for my Republican colleagues. Don't bother with partisan wish lists and unrealistic proposals that will never solve this debt

default crisis. Instead, avoid default using the same approach we did under President Trump twice and under President Biden once: Democrats and Republicans, working together, without preconditions. If Republicans agree to that, there will be no default.

Mr. President, now on GOP extremism and our FBI resolution, today, the Governor of Florida is meeting with a group of hard-right GOP extremists here in DC. As the Governor comes to the Nation's Capital, the ink is still not dry on the bill he signed a few days ago banning practically all abortions in Florida after just 6 weeks.

The Florida law is not the only one. Over a dozen States in the country now have near total bans on abortions. Idaho, for instance, is now the first State to explicitly outlaw out-of-State travel for abortions. That is sinister.

Freedom of choice is not the only victim of GOP radicalism. Over 11,000 Americans have now died from gun violence in the United States this year in school shootings, birthday parties, and New Year celebrations. But what are Republicans doing in response? They pose with machine guns on their Christmas cards. They gin up the NRA. They even expel State representatives who dare speak out against GOP inaction, as the Tennessee State House did to two members of color earlier this month.

Republican radicalism is even taking aim at law enforcement. A few weeks ago, President Trump called for cutting funding to the Department of Justice and the FBI because of personal grievances, and, to date, we have still yet to hear Speaker McCarthy or any Republican leader speak up against this dangerous idea.

But there is good news. The Members of this Chamber will have a chance to do the right thing and stand up for Federal law enforcement later this week. That is because, today, I will be introducing a resolution denouncing the former President's call to cut funding to our Federal law enforcement, and Senators will have to choose between standing with President Trump and his dangerous, dangerous view that we ought to cut funding for law enforcement and the FBI or will they stand with public servants to keep America safe? Again, where will they stand--with the former President's dangerous call to cut funding to Federal law enforcement or with the American people who want to be safe?

The FBI and DOJ do critical work to protect our communities against drug trafficking, gun violence, terrorism, and so much more. We just, yesterday, in New York saw an example where Federal law enforcement arrested two individuals for running a secret, unauthorized Chinese police station right in the middle of Lower Manhattan.

Do Republicans agree with President Trump that funding for Federal law enforcement who guard against terrorism and CCP encroachment should be cut or even eliminated? Again, this is the kind of resolution that should pass unanimously.

If Senate Republicans block this provision, they will be telling the American people that the GOP has been utterly consumed by extremism, where not women, not schools, not even Federal law enforcement are safe.

On this solemn day--on this solemn day--we owe it to the survivors, their families, and the world to continue bearing witness to the tragic legacy of the Holocaust and keep repeating our conviction and our prayer: Never again.

Mr. President, on Senate business, it is a busy week here in the Senate. We are starting with a very important bill that is going to help so many communities, particularly rural and suburban communities in America, and that is the Fire Grants and Safety Act, which I expect to pass the Senate this week.

The overwhelmingly bipartisan legislation would ensure that two important Federal grant programs that support our firefighters--SAFER and AFG--remain available. We had a 96-to-nothing vote last month to move forward with the fire grants legislation, and I hope it portends swift action this week.

And on the nominations front, we are continuing to move ahead. On Thursday, the HELP Committee will hold a confirmation hearing for President Biden's nomination for Secretary of Labor, Julie Su. Julie Su is an outstanding nominee who will be a strong fighter for America's workers, and we should confirm her.

And for the information of all Senators, tomorrow, Members will receive a classified briefing from the administration on the leaked classified U.S. documents on the war in Ukraine.