Floor Statements

I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, I apologize to my colleagues. I am going to give a 1-minute remark on things that probably should have been said on January 21.

In January, Americans celebrated one of its greatest rituals of our Republic; the peaceful transfer of power. I was honored to bear witness to history. I look forward to working closely with President Trump to advance the golden age in America.

As part of the ceremonies, my wife Barbara and I joined the inaugural luncheon in Statutory Hall. We enjoyed a delicious meal featuring food from America's heartland, including Nebraska beef and Minnesota apples.

An Iowa-born artist provided a feast for the eyes at that luncheon. Her magnificent painting hung behind President Trump. It is entitled ``American Horizon.''

Jane Wilson was born on her family farm near Seymour, IA in 1924. It is the first time a female artist's work was selected for this occasion. She painted American Horizon 25 years ago, 10 years before her death at age 90.

Senator Klobuchar told us she selected the piece for its vast, open landscape, noting how its enduring horizon reflects our enduring democracy.

I am proud to pay tribute to an Iowan whose work became part of history at the 60th inauguration ceremony here in the U.S. Capitol.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, last Tuesday, I released a committee report. The committee report was about my investigation about the Obama-Biden administration's obstruction of FBI law enforcement efforts against Iran. My report was based in large part on whistleblower disclosure and FBI records. The FBI records show that the Obama-Biden administration blocked arrests of indicted Iranian terrorists in 2015 and 2016.

Now, I know, to my constituents and my fellow Senators, that is history, but it is history that we don't want to repeat. The records show that interference was done against our own people to score political points for what ended up being the failed Iran nuclear deal. Specifically, then-Secretary of State Kerry actually stopped the FBI from doing its job, and the purpose of that interference was to appease Iran.

One FBI agent emailed:

We're all beside ourselves on asking the field to stand

down on a layup arrest, however, as it stands right now we

all have to sit back and wait until all the US and Iran

negotiations resolve themselves.

The Obama-Biden administration made our country less safe. We don't want history to repeat itself.

So, as you might expect, none of this changed until President Trump took office in his first term. Records show international banks stopped financing projects in Iran because of the incoming Trump Presidency. Whistleblower disclosures show the Trump administration brought criminals to justice when the Obama-Biden administration did not bring those same criminals to justice.

So now we are in a new Trump administration. I encourage President Trump and his new Director of the FBI, Patel, to take heed of the positive impact in the first Trump term and let the FBI line agents do their jobs without political rot getting in the way.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, today is a good day for the Senate and a good day for the American people. The Senate will soon pass a bill that is entitled ``HALT Fentanyl Act.'' The House is expected to take the measure up very soon and send it to President Trump, who is waiting with pen in hand to enact one of his campaign promises.

The HALT Fentanyl Act permanently schedules these deadly substances that have been the main driver of overdose deaths in the United States. No longer does the Drug Enforcement Agency need to play this game of Whac-A-Mole every time a cartel develops a new fentanyl knockoff. In other words, today, a fentanyl knockoff might be illegal, and then they change the chemical makeup of it, and it becomes legal. It is a nightmare for law enforcement.

So no longer will Congress be kicking the can down the road with temporary extensions. We have had many, many extensions over the last several years to keep fentanyl scheduled and its analogs scheduled in I. It also revises policies to research schedule I substances. These are changes the research community has welcomed.

Drug overdoses in the United States have exploded to the highest levels we have ever seen, and, of course, this is thanks to fentanyl and fentanyl knockoffs. The Drug Enforcement Agency has called fentanyl and its knockoffs the ``deadliest drug threat the United States has ever faced.''

Since 2016, I have been raising the alarm on deadly synthetic drugs like fentanyl. As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I held a hearing on these substances and the need to stay ahead of the peddlers of this poison. Sadly, it has taken us 9 long years to get to permanently scheduling these deadly knockoffs.

Of course, we thank each of the previous Congresses that, on a temporary basis, extended the scheduling of fentanyl and fentanyl knockoffs, but this bipartisan HALT Fentanyl Act takes care of this by making it permanent.

Senators Cassidy, Heinrich, and Johnson were very instrumental in this effort. Their interest in permanently scheduling fentanyl knockoffs inspired the Senate to move this bill to the floor. Republican leadership was also crucial in prioritizing this bill for the floor and helping us navigate the floor process.

Credit is also due to our House colleagues--Representative Griffith, Chairman Guthrie, and now retired Chairwoman McMorris Rodgers--who led and championed the HALT Fentanyl Act on the House side.

I would also like to thank Dr. Tim Westlake, who came up with the temporary scheduling structure that we have been using since the year 2018. He has testified before my committee and before the Congress on numerous occasions, and I thank him for his hard work and unflappable dedication.

So, in the end, this campaign earned the support of nearly every major law enforcement organization and also several medical associations and research associations supporting the research component of this bill.

Most importantly, we must say thanks to the countless families organized over a long period of time across the country that have lost loved ones to fentanyl poisoning and have not given up on this type of legislation to make permanent the scheduling.

I want to thank my Senate staff who helped make this possible, especially Colleen Bloss and Michael Perkins, who spearheaded this effort for me and all the committee members. Together, we have taken steps to open the doors of research to permanently schedule the deadliest substance the United States has ever faced and to send a clear message that Congress is willing and ready to act. Together, we have taken an important step to live up to our commitment to our constituents and to the loved ones lost to put them first and to serve them.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I want to pay tribute to a military unit that is being retired in Fort Dodge, IA.

On March 2, the colors were retired for the 133rd Test Squadron in Fort Dodge, IA. The 133rd has an extraordinary legacy. Since its inception in 1948, the 133rd has stood as a pillar of excellence, evolving from radar spotting to pioneering the use of advanced communication technologies.

From the Korean war to the Global War on Terror, the 133rd has answered our Nation's call with unwavering dedication. Its innovation has helped ensure our military remains at the forefront of defense capabilities.

To the men, women, and families of the 133rd, past and present, thank you for your service, sacrifice, and commitment to our State and Nation. Your impact is immeasurable, and your legacy will endure.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, two points--a short one and a long one. The short one is simply this: to remind my colleagues that at the beginning of the year, we get a Senate calendar that says what days we are going to be in session and what days we are not going to be in session.

Between now and the end of the fiscal year, September 30, we have 16 Fridays that we are supposed to be in session. Will we be in session on those Fridays? We have had a few Friday sessions this year so far, but I am afraid that if we don't count on being a little more devoted to a 5-day workweek, those Fridays will slip away from us.

I bring that to our attention because we are always complaining because we don't have enough time to do appropriations bills. These extra 16 days that we might not be in session would be a good amount of time to take care of the 12 appropriations bills that we have to do regularly.

I always say there is enough work for a Senator, an individual Senator, to do 7 days a week if he wants to work. But you can't solve this country's problems if you are only in session 2\1/2\ or 3 days a week. That was the practice of the U.S. Senate before the Republicans took over. Republicans are supposed to make a difference, and I think a big difference we can make in the U.S. Senate is showing that we are running the U.S. Senate in a businesslike way, and that is to get more work done and in particular do our separate appropriations bills instead of doing one great big thousand-page appropriations bill just before government is ready to shut down.

Madam President, every year, Sunshine Week is held around March 16, the birthday of James Madison, who not only is a former President, but the acclaimed ``Father of the Constitution.''

On its 20th anniversary, Sunshine Week continues to be a crucial reminder of the need for transparency and open government. To control a government as big as ours, it takes a lot of very bright light shining on every Agency. As Justice Brandeis wrote in 1913, ``Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants.''

Transparency brings accountability and the public's business ought to be public. That attitude and approach is an important check on the Federal Government. It reminds bureaucrats that they ultimately work for and answer to ``We the People.''

One transparency tool I value is the Freedom of Information Act. This law, first enacted in 1966, requires our government to proactively make material public and to respond to requests for documents, reports, and many other types of information. The presumption under this law is that government actions, rules, and work is public property. Putting this information in public hands helps us hold our government accountable. The Freedom of Information Act is one of the strongest tools we have to ensure that our government is doing what it should be doing and in ways that are best for us.

And speaking of records, a large part of my oversight work includes publicly releasing documents to hold current and former government officials accountable. To accomplish that, I often work with whistleblowers to get the information the government likes to hide. Whistleblowers are patriots and our most powerful tool in rooting out waste, fraud, abuse, and misconduct, including the weaponization of our government.

They are often targeted for retaliation and harassment. That must stop.

Time and again, I have come to the floor of the U.S. Senate to point out specific examples of retaliation. That is why I have called on every President since Ronald Reagan to hold a Rose Garden Ceremony to honor whistleblowers. I hope President Trump will be the first to set this historic precedent.

Unfortunately, there has been a growing trend among Federal Agencies to unlawfully silence whistleblowers by failing to include the anti-gag provision in their nondisclosure policies, forms, and similar agreements. The law requires Federal Agencies to include the anti-gag provision to notify employees of their whistleblower rights.

That is why last Congress, I called on 76 inspectors general to conduct a review of their parent Agency's nondisclosure agreements and similar documents to ensure the anti-gag provision was included. In response, so far, 36 IGs have completed reviews.

Thirty IGs found that their parent Agency's nondisclosure agreements were noncompliant with the law. Twenty-six IGs said their parent Agency updated or was in the process of updating these deficient agreements. The IG community has much work to do, and this Senator won't stop protecting whistleblowers.

Whistleblower disclosures proved that anti-Trump FBI agent Tim Thibault was involved in the genesis of Jack Smith's election interference case against President Trump. The FBI codenamed it Arctic Frost. Internal FBI records revealed Thibault acted outside of established FBI protocol and essentially opened and approved his own investigation into President Trump. This is just one of many instances of political infection at the Justice Department and FBI.

Whistleblowers also provided me with new information that, during the Biden administration, FBI leadership politicized investigations at the expense of saving victimized children. According to whistleblowers, agents working large caseloads on the Violent Crimes Against Children Unit were reassigned by FBI leadership to work January 6 cases.

Political infection isn't just a DOJ and FBI problem. Whistleblower disclosures provided to my office showed that the Obama-Biden administration's then-Secretary of State John Kerry obstructed arrests of indicted Iranian terrorists. Kerry did so to score political points with Iran for the failed nuclear deal.

My consistent efforts to let in sunshine continues across our government whether it is exposing flaws in the Health and Human Services Office of Refugee Resettlement that caused children to be placed in harm's way, pressing the FBI on issuing a memo about targeting Catholics, or fighting to obtain information from DOJ on the horrific January 1, 2025, attacks in New Orleans. We need more whistleblowers to shine light on political infection because we certainly can't count on the government to turn themselves in.

Now, the Federal Government isn't the only bad actor that whistleblowers provided sunlight on. The Simon Wiesenthal Center also disclosed to my office that Credit Suisse engaged in misconduct during in internal investigation. That investigation focused on the bank's Nazi-linked financial accounts. Turns out, Credit Suisse serviced more Nazi wealth than was known during and after World War II and tried to keep it hidden. Thanks to these whistleblowers, I discovered that Credit Suisse lied to Congress about all this, while smearing the reputation of the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

My oversight list could go on and on thanks to whistleblowers.

In conclusion, we all ought to be thankful for Sunshine Week, which is an opportunity for the country to highlight the righteous fight for transparency. Shining a consistent light on the work of our government is essential to making it accountable to ``We the People.''

Mr. President, 35 years ago today, the freely elected Parliament of Lithuania declared that country was restoring its independence after about 50 years of Soviet occupation. This started the breakup of the Soviet Union. The end of that evil empire made the world safer and millions of people freer. So I say: Thank you, Lithuania--or I should say, in their language, ``aciu.''

Lithuania didn't become a country just in the 1990s, however. It is a very old country. In fact, it was a significant regional power in the Middle Ages. The modern Republic of Lithuania was born on February 16, 1918. The United States has maintained continuous diplomatic relations with Lithuania for now 103 years, going back to 1922.

As an American, I am proud that our country never recognized the Soviet annexation of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, just as we don't recognize Russia's annexation of any part of Ukraine to this very day.

Today, Lithuania is free, and Lithuania is prosperous. Lithuania is a close U.S. ally and a beacon of Western values on the frontlines of freedom. I thank Lithuania for its friendship, for its important contribution to the NATO alliance, and for its vocal defense of our shared values.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Mr. President, soon, we will vote on the nomination of Gail Slater to serve as Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division. I support her nomination, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

Antitrust is as important to me as it is to most Senators. I have long been concerned about market concentration and anticompetitive practices in industries that impact Iowans whether it is agriculture or healthcare or technology. These issues don't get the most attention around the U.S. Senate, but they still impact millions of Americans. Family farmers and independent producers deserve fair prices for their products. Seniors deserve affordable prescription drugs. Children deserve to be safe from predatory behavior on dominant tech platforms. All of these are antitrust issues.

Attorney General Bondi told me during her confirmation process that she shares my interest in these issues and that she would work with me and the Antitrust Division to address these issues. There is no better person to help her in this project than Gail Slater. Ms. Slater has the right qualifications for this job.

She spent several years practicing antitrust law in private practice before spending a decade at the Federal Trade Commission, handling antitrust investigations and litigation. In these roles, she learned the nuts and bolts of antitrust enforcement.

Ms. Slater also understands antitrust and economics from a policy perspective. She served in President Trump's first administration on the National Economic Council, and she served now-Vice President Vance as his economic policy adviser and as a member of his Senate staff. So Ms. Slater has numerous accomplishments in the antitrust space.

I am not the only one who thinks Ms. Slater is the right person for the job. She has received letters of support from nine previous heads of the Justice Department's Antitrust Division. These men and women were appointed by Presidents of both political parties.

They wrote:

Ms. Slater has the experience, intelligence, judgment, and

leadership skills necessary to serve as an excellent

Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division.

Another bipartisan coalition letter commands her ``unique ability to collaborate on a bipartisan basis with stakeholders across the political spectrum, building coalitions toward common goals.''

And it might surprise you that the International Brotherhood of Teamsters announced that they support her nomination.

In a rare sign of unity on the Judiciary Committee I share, where we don't get a lot of unity, Ms. Slater was advanced out of committee by 20 yes votes to 2 negative votes. I hope for a similarly strong bipartisan vote here on the floor.

The Antitrust Division will flourish under Ms. Slater's strong leadership, and I am proud to support her. She is ready to serve our country, and we need to get her confirmed quickly.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, for my colleagues who are protectionists, I think that when it comes to the issue of trade, we need less of Peter Navarro and more of Adam Smith. I think the certainty that comes with trade policy will benefit our economy the most.

Hopefully, we don't have a government shutdown this week. I want my colleagues to remember that it costs money to shut down the government. It costs money to open the government up. There is even some money being wasted this week as bureaucrats plan for a possible shutdown.

The government is supposed to be a service to the American people, and you can't serve the American people if government is not functioning.

Mr. President, today I want to honor an outstanding Iowan who devoted his life in service to our home State and to America. This weekend, my good friend of nearly 70 years was laid to rest with full military honors, after passing away on February 16, at age 99 years young.

Evan L. Hultman was better known by his nickname. He was called ``Curly'' for his thick crop of curly blond hair. Throughout his career in the military, law, and politics, Curly never met a stranger. And he never let a blade of grass grow underneath his feet.

A stand-out athlete, Curly helped lead his high school football team to victory at the state championship in 1941. He was a multisport varsity athlete at East High School in Waterloo. In the ninth grade, he met the love of his life Betty Ann Hook.

Following graduation from high school in 1943, Curly enlisted in the U.S. Army during World War II. He married his high school sweetheart on October 14, 1944, before Curly served in the South Pacific in the 19th Infantry Division.

A member of the ``greatest generation,'' Curly served our country in uniform with honor and distinction. He remained in the Army Reserve for more than a half-century following Active Duty. In 1980, he attained the rank of major general.

After the war, Curly attended the University of Iowa, earning his bachelor's and law degrees. From there, he delved head first into civic and political life. After winning election as Black Hawk County Attorney, Curly was elected Iowa Attorney General. This is around the time our paths crossed on the campaign trail in the Cedar Valley and when I started serving in the State legislature in Des Moines.

A lifelong Republican, Curly was our party's nominee for Governor in 1964. He lost a hard-fought race to Harold Hughes, who went on to join this body in the 91st Congress. From 1969 to 1977, Curly served as U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Iowa, under Presidents Nixon and Ford. During my first term in the U.S. Senate, President Reagan reappointed Curly as U.S. Attorney, and I was pleased to help steer his nomination through the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Following his three tours of duty as U.S. Attorney, Curly served as executive director of the Reserve Officers Association and the International Confederation of Reserve Officers, an organization of reserve officers in the NATO alliance. In this capacity, Curly helped forge lasting peace and security for former Warsaw Pact nations and some former Soviet republics. During his tenure, NATO expanded from 13 to 30 member-nations. Curly was named the organization's honorary president for life.

Curly's distinguished record of public and military service was recognized with the Army's Distinguished Service Medal from President Reagan and the Distinguished Public Service Medal from the U.S. Secretary of Defense in 1994. His leadership for peace and freedom also were recognized around the globe, including from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Sweden, and Denmark.

Closer to home, Curly was a treasured, invaluable civic leader in the Cedar Valley. He helped raise funds for Honor Flights and many other veterans programs, including money for the Sullivan Brothers Iowa Veterans Museum, for which he had a leading role in its design, construction, and fundraising. Curly was known to break into song and dance to raise money for local veterans causes.

For decades, Curly was a mainstay on the campaign trail, from the Iowa caucuses, statewide and local elections. He got bit by the political bug early, attending his first grassroots event at an early age for the reelection of President Herbert Hoover. And just last year, in sub-zero temperatures, Curly attended his precinct caucus at the Columbus Catholic High School gymnasium in Waterloo.

This Iowa Hawkeye turned statesman was larger than life and made life better for those around him. He stood on principle and leaves a lasting legacy as a peacemaker and patriot and his love for America. His greatest duty and devotion were reserved for his family and high school sweetheart Betty, his wife of 73 years. Barbara and I send our sincerest condolences to his entire family, especially his three children Stevan, Susan, and Heidi.

Godspeed, Curly. May you rest in eternal peace alongside your beloved Betty.

Mr. President, my message today is to the administration and particularly to President Trump, who is very forcefully enforcing the immigration laws that were not enforced in the last administration, a message about bringing justice to some people who have been harmed by the previous administration.

On January 20, President Trump's first day in office, he signed the Executive order that is called Securing Our Borders Executive Order. His Executive order properly instructs the Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security to ``fulfill the requirements of the DNA Fingerprint Act of 2005.'' That is music to my ears because I have been involved in that issue in regard to the kids who have been lost in this system of immigration that the previous administration has not been able to follow. As I said, that is music to my ears.

For years, my oversight has sounded the alarm on the Customs and Border Protection and the Department of Homeland Security's failure to fully implement the 2005 DNA Fingerprint Act.

I have a lot of whistleblowers come to me on different subjects. Three whistleblowers--Mark Jones, Mike Taylor, and Fred Wynn--disclosed to their superiors that the Department of Homeland Security wasn't following the 2005 law. In other words, they were not taking DNA from the people whom they were supposed to be keeping track of. Specifically, these whistleblowers disclosed that the government wasn't collecting the DNA from individuals encountered at the southern border like the law requires.

As you might expect, because it happens to so many whistleblowers, instead of being thanked for pointing out this failure, the Department of Homeland Security and Customs and Border Protection officials retaliated against these whistleblowers. That is why you hear me say so often that whistleblowers are a very--I would like to say they love their country. They want to see their government just simply enforce the law. Then we find out, as I am going to show you, how they are treated like a skunk at a picnic.

Mr. Jones and Mr. Taylor had their law enforcement credentials removed. After 30 years of Federal service, Mr. Taylor lost his law enforcement retirement benefits. All three were subject to harassment.

The Office of Special Counsel has the power to investigate and did investigate and substantiated their whistleblower disclosures and that retaliation occurred.

President Trump and this administration, moving so forcefully to see that the laws are enforced, ought to appreciate whistleblowers who are telling the truth about the government not carrying out the law. In this case, I am asking President Trump to immediately remedy the situation of these whistleblowers.

Last year, how I became acquainted with a lot of this--at least the details of it--I hosted an oversight roundtable with these whistleblowers. The roundtable exposed that the Department of Homeland Security and Customs and Border Protection failed to take the DNA of the individuals charged with the tragic murder of Rachel Morin despite having three opportunities to

take those fingerprints. Had the Biden-Harris Department of Homeland Security and Customs and Border Protection done their job, there is a chance that Ms. Morin would be alive today.

This Executive action couldn't come soon enough. That is why I am pleading with President Trump or his staff to follow up and make sure that justice is brought to these three whistleblowers. Then the President is going to see that the law is enforced. I don't have any doubt about the President seeing that this law is carried out in the future because full compliance with the law will make our border stronger and our citizens safer.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Mr. President, last week, I led my colleagues in reporting

a bill that is entitled the ``HALT Fentanyl Act.'' This bill was reported out of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

This is a battle-tested bipartisan bill that passed the House of Representatives with a supermajority of votes, including 98 Democrats voting in favor of the bill. If you have been involved with this issue over the last 3 or 4 or 5 years, you would know that bipartisan fentanyl legislation has been hard to come by. But I am pleased to see that this bill has seven Democratic cosponsors here in the Senate and had nearly half the Democrats in my committee vote in favor of it.

I want to thank all my Democratic colleagues for working with us on such a vital piece of legislation. I think you all know the statistics: About 70,000 of the 100,000 people that die of drug overdose are dying because of fentanyl.

The HALT Fentanyl Act does three things. First, it makes permanent the class scheduling of fentanyl-related substances. This is the same classwide scheduling that occurred during the first Trump administration and has been continued nine times by Congress on a short-term basis. This legislation would eliminate that from time-to- time scheduling of fentanyl analogs, and that is why permanent legislation is so important.

Second, the bill confirms the sentencing penalties the Federal courts have long applied to fentanyl-related substances. And thirdly, the bill creates a streamline registration process for studying schedule I controlled substances.

Classwide scheduling has been a successful policy. It has been a success in stopping the creation of fentanyl-related substances that would have otherwise killed countless Americans.

If you don't believe me, I would like to have you listen to Dr. Tim Westlake. Dr. Westlake is the inventor of the classwide scheduling system the DEA adopted. He came before my committee and testified:

[T]hese efforts have resulted in shutting down the creation

and flow and very existence of new fentanyl related

substances into the [United States]. It's why Congress must

act to finally make permanent this temporary policy.

I began by saying that bipartisan fentanyl legislation has been very hard to come by. I am proud to lead the HALT Fentanyl Act with Senators Heinrich and Cassidy. That is one Democrat and one Republican.

Our bill has the support of the leading law enforcement organizations. These 12 organizations have called on us here in the Congress to ``advance this critical legislation without delay or modification.''

Our bill also has the support of an organization called Facing Fentanyl. That is a coalition supported by over 200 family groups impacted by fentanyl. They ``stand in full support of the HALT Fentanyl Act as it is currently written, without amendments.''

I have also received over 100 individual letters from parents who have lost their children to fentanyl poisoning.

Our bill also has the support of the medical community.

The HALT Fentanyl Act is truly a bipartisan compromise, bringing together stakeholders and Members from across the spectrum.

During the last 4 years, Senate Democrats couldn't be bothered to bring this bill or any other permanent legislation to schedule fentanyl to the floor for a vote, and that was the situation even after HALT passed the House with 74 Democrats voting in favor and even with the Biden administration's coming out in support of the bill--all taking place in the last Congress.

So the time has surely come. This is long overdue legislation, and I urge my colleagues to move to and support this bill. If we can't come together to pass this battle-tested bipartisan legislation, then we will have failed the American people and made the environment for even more people to die of drug overdoses and fentanyl poisoning. We owe it to the hundreds of thousands of families who have lost loved ones to this very poison. We owe it to our constituents. It is time that we found the will to act, and now is that time to act.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.