Floor Statements

Madam President, I rise today to honor Judge Stephen

Limbaugh, Sr., of Cape Girardeau, MO, for his distinguished career as a lawyer and U.S. district judge.

Before his well-earned retirement in 2008, Judge Limbaugh's career was marked by a devotion to interpreting the law with discipline and fairness while working for the public good of Missourians and Americans. Following a tour of duty in the U.S. Navy from 1945 to 1946, Judge Limbaugh earned his bachelor's degree from Southeast Missouri State University in 1950 and went on to receive his J.D. from the University of Missouri School of Law in 1951. He joined his father at the Limbaugh Firm, where he maintained a general private practice from 1951 to 1983. During that period, Judge Limbaugh was an active member of the American Bar Association and was elected president of the Missouri Bar in 1982.

Then in 1983, President Ronald Reagan appointed Judge Limbaugh to the Federal bench where he served simultaneously as a judge for the United States District Courts of the Eastern and Western Districts of Missouri. Throughout his 25 years on the bench, he oversaw cases spanning areas like free speech, trade, and medical research. He retired in 2008, but continues to practice law at his family's firm.

Judge Stephen Limbaugh is truly a ``Champion of Missouri.'' Throughout his time on the Federal bench and in private practice, he has been an upstanding attorney, using his expertise and knowledge for our judicial system. He is a credit to the Limbaugh family's storied history in public service and the law. I heartily congratulate him on his honorable career in law and wish him the best as he continues to serve the people of Missouri.

Madam President, I rise today to honor Bishop Ron Webb of Poplar Bluff, for his selfless care and leadership within his community and his determination to bridge the gap between community leaders and law enforcement.

Bishop Webb has been a devoted leader in ministry for nearly 35 years, sharing the hope of his faith with everyone he encounters. The touchstone of his ministry has always been to empower the pastors in his region to be confident both inside and outside of their congregations, reaching those outside the church's walls. Bishop Webb demonstrated this mission clearly in 2017 at the Bridging the Gap Service hosted by his church, Mt. Calvary Powerhouse Church. This service gathered together local law enforcement and members of the Poplar Bluff community to encourage peaceful dialogue to share ideas on how to resolve strained relationships in their community.

This has inspired Bishop Webb to step into leadership positions for various organizations in southeast Missouri such as S.E.M.O. Christian Restoration Center, Covenant Ministries, and Heartland Family Center. These organizations are focused on providing individuals a second chance, addressing unmet needs in the community, and acting as a safe haven for families in crisis. This outreach is an extension of his ministry at the church he pastors, Mt. Calvary Powerhouse Church in Poplar Bluff, MO.

Bishop Ron Webb is truly a ``Champion of Missouri.'' He has tirelessly sought to build bridges between members of his community and has filled the gap so that the needs of Missouri families are met. I admire the leadership Bishop Webb has displayed and how his deeply rooted faith has stirred him to care for his community in such an impactful way. I wish him, his wife Georgia and his children the best in their continued ministry to the people of Poplar Bluff, MO.

Mr. President, I rise today to commemorate the life of Ted Drewes, Jr., of St. Louis, MO, who passed away on August 28, 2024.

For decades, Ted Drewes, Jr., was the face of the iconic frozen custard business established by his father and namesake. Ted took the family business to new heights, serving concretes, sundaes, and shakes to St. Louis locals and visitors at his stores on South Grand and Chippewa. For decades, Ted Drewes has sold approximately 150,000 gallons of custard per year. Under his leadership, Ted Drewes Frozen Custard became an iconic St. Louis institution. He expanded the Chippewa location on Route 66 to accommodate more customers, and he started selling Christmas trees during winter in the parking lot.

The name Ted Drewes is known across our country for delicious ice cream. For St. Louisans, however, it is much more than just an ice cream stand. Ted Drewes built a business where memories are made. Often, the lines of customers run down the block. Whether the lines are filled with Cardinals fans getting a treat on their way home from a game or young people wearing suits and dresses after a school dance, the crowds that flock to his business are a testament to the one-of-a- kind gathering place he created.

Ted Drewes is a St. Louis institution as much as the Cardinals or the Gateway Arch. After a long and fulfilling life, Ted leaves behind a loving family and generations of satisfied customers. His signature phrase--``It really is good, guys . . . and gals!''--as well as the great man who served generations of customers will be remembered in St. Louis for many years to come.

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

Mr. President, I rise today in support of a very, very important piece of bipartisan legislation that, frankly, is personal to me. It is something that I believe is not only necessary but is common sense, and it is something that all of us can get behind and support wholeheartedly, and that is my bipartisan Ensuring Nationwide Access to a Better Life Experience Act, otherwise known as the ENABLE Act.

As I noted before, this fight is personal for me. In my maiden speech nearly a year ago, I detailed that my call to enter public service was primarily because of my son Stephen. My wife Jaime and I noticed a birthmark on Stephen's leg when he was just a few months old, and I joke about how we thought so little of this initially that my wife trusted me to take Stephen to the doctor. We took him there, and it was discovered that he had more of these and that he had something called tuberous sclerosis, which is a rare genetic condition where tumors form on various organs, including his brain. So Stephen has been affected by that pretty severely. He is nonverbal. He is on the autism spectrum and has epilepsy.

So we have had this journey with our son Stephen, including a 4-hour seizure, and through that process and that journey with my son, went through what I have referred to as a discernment process where--trying to decide what I wanted to do. I knew there was something more that I wanted to do, and for me, that calling was public service, so I decided to run for office.

That is nearly 20 years ago now, but that journey that began with Stephen 20 years ago certainly affects how I view the world and the things that I passionately get behind, and this happens to be one of those.

So here we are. That focus has led to legislation--not just my time in Missouri but now here in the Senate--and to be a voice, to be a voice for individuals with disabilities.

ABLE accounts were created by Congress and signed by the President nearly 10 years ago. So one of the focuses that I have is to give those with disabilities a voice and achieving a better life experience with those accounts. These accounts were created in 2014 to allow individuals with disabilities and their families to save and invest for their future through tax-free savings accounts without losing any eligibility for Federal programs like Medicaid and supplemental security.

This has long been a priority since I entered the political arena. While serving in the Missouri State Senate, I helped lead a successful effort to authorize Missouri's ABLE account program. During my time as State treasurer, before I was attorney general, I was proud to launch and champion the MO ABLE Program, helping Missourians with disabilities save and invest for their future. I know firsthand how beneficial these programs have been, considering my son Stephen was account No. 1 in the Missouri ABLE Program.

There are over 162,000 of these ABLE accounts nationwide since the program's inception back in 2014. Thanks to these life-changing accounts, people with disabilities are empowered to secure employment and actively participate in society, to be their own person. These accounts empower individuals with disabilities.

Unfortunately, there are three ABLE provisions that are set to expire in 2025. The sunsetting of these important provisions would create unnecessary barriers for individuals with disabilities to save for their future needs while also likely ensuring further utilization of Federal safety net programs. Sunsetting these programs would keep individuals with disabilities out of the workforce unnecessarily.

Recently, I introduced the ENABLE Act, which would permanently enshrine these provisions into law, providing certainty to those individuals and their families. These provisions are not only nonpartisan, but they have also played an outsized role in the lives of those this program serves.

Again, this simply allows individuals with disabilities to save the money they earn at their jobs. All people deserve access to save and to be financially secure, and this legislation would protect this access for the future.

This bill is exactly why I entered public office in the first place-- to fight

for those who needed a voice. It is a commonsense, bipartisan solution that provides an easy fix for those who depend on ABLE accounts.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, before I get into my remarks, I would just like to say a few words on this 23rd anniversary of the September 11 attacks.

Twenty-three years ago, America and the world changed forever. We will never forget those who lost their lives, including the first responders who rushed into danger that day to save many lives. At a time when first responders are running into buildings and people are running out, we appreciate their sacrifice and their service.

May God bless and continue to bless this beautiful Nation and all that she stands for, now and forever.

Madam President, this August, I made a point to meet with and hear from Missourians across the State. These conversations are always valuable in my work here in Washington. They certainly influence the decisions and the votes cast right here on the Senate floor.

I was proud to host a roundtable with industry leaders in geospatial technologies and unveil my plan to attract more talent to St. Louis and transform the gateway city into the defense tech capital of the United States. Our roundtable included representatives from a wide array of companies, universities, geospatial agencies--among them, NGA, TGI, Scale AI, and many others.

Geospatial technologies are critical to so many different industries, both civilian and military. Their application to defense technologies and GPS mapping cannot be overstated.

St. Louis is already home to the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, which is building a new campus and working to revitalize North St. Louis, private investment through the Taylor Geospatial Institute, and other private and public geospatial and artificial intelligence assets. There is no reason St. Louis can't become the defense tech hub of our country, and that is why I am working to continue accomplishing that exact goal.

I was in Jefferson City to hear directly from advocates of those living with disabilities--stakeholders including the Missouri Developmental Disabilities Council, Special Olympics Missouri, and many other groups and individuals--on how we as lawmakers can better advocate for those with disabilities here in Washington.

This community has played an important role in my life over the years. I ran for office to help people like my son, Stephen, who has special needs. I earned political office to improve the lives of Missourians in our State, and that especially includes our most vulnerable citizens, whom I will never stop fighting for here in the U.S. Senate.

I also visited and toured Ranken Jordan Pediatric Bridge Hospital and their state-of-the-art facility, discussing all the advancements they were making in care services for children in the broader St. Louis community. This incredible facility is accomplishing great things for children and their families as they make the transition from the hospital to their homes.

I also spoke with the Sustainable Ozarks Partnership in Waynesville, MO, on the incredible work they do at Fort Leonard Wood and the surrounding community and not just for Missouri in that regard but for our country. Home to over 5,000 Active military members, many of whom collectively train nearly 80,000 servicemembers and civilians each year, Fort Leonard Wood is a proud military community that is absolutely vital to our Nation's military training, architecture, and our national security.

It is because of these great warriors that we remain a bright, shining beacon to the world of freedom and we can live and thrive in the greatest country there ever was. Places like Fort Leonard Wood has served as a critical role of training the next generation of American soldiers as they confront newer threats and never-ending threats abroad, among those, the Chinese Communist Party, North Korea, and Iran, because without strong leadership here at home, these hostile regimes will

continue to undermine and test America's limits, making all of us less safe.

It is incumbent upon those here today that we continue the important work of ensuring that our soldiers have the support and resources necessary to continue keeping America safe.

Summer wouldn't be the same without the Missouri State Fair, a great opportunity to meet with and listen to Missourians from across our State. There was truly a lot of fun and food in Sedalia. I get asked that question: What is your favorite thing about the State fair? It has got to be the food, from the Cattlemen's Beef House to the Pork Palace and everywhere in between that has things like fried Oreos and everything else you can imagine that is fried. We were also proud to host our inaugural ``Pork Steaks and Policy'' at the State fair.

Safe to say, it was a success. A lot of food was eaten. But more importantly, we had a lot of great conversations, hearing directly from farmers and ranchers across Missouri on how I can continue to advocate for them here in the Senate.

Of course, there were also some fun moments from August, including visiting with Coach Eli Drinkwitz, the head football coach at Mizzou, the No. 6-ranked Mizzou Tigers, and the campus's new athletic director, Laird Veatch, and touring their new facilities.

Lastly, I was proud to join a group of bipartisan Senators on a congressional delegation to Asia, particularly Japan and South Korea, to better understand how the United States could continue to work with our partners in the Indo-Pacific, particularly as China continues to become an increasing threat to those countries and our country.

Meeting with leaders in Japan and South Korea gave us all a frontline view of what is needed in the region and how the United States, and especially Missouri, can continue to be a strong ally in the Indo- Pacific.

When I asked Missourians for their vote not even 2 years ago, I promised that I would fight for them. The most important part of my job will always be serving the people of my State. It was great to be back home in August, and I look forward to taking those conversations I had with Missourians and addressing their concerns right here in Washington.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, before I get started on this, I thank my colleague from Tennessee.

I also want to note to my friend from Illinois that we are not doing anything else on this floor. We are certainly not moving an appropriations process. We could be doing appropriations bills in September, but Chuck Schumer doesn't want to do any of that. So all we are doing is nominations. If you feel so strongly about these individuals, go through the process.

Also, it is curious to mention precedent being raised here in this. I, in my first term here in the Senate, just witnessed for the first time in American history--first time ever--an Articles of Impeachment coming over to this Chamber, and we didn't have a trial. So forgive me if I don't want to be lectured about precedence. There is a process to get this done. We will never have an opportunity to have a trial on Mayorkas like we should have had.

But I digress. My objection here today is not specific to the qualifications of the individuals who have been nominated. My objection instead is to the fact that we live in a time right now--and as a lawyer, this is deeply saddening--where the Department of Justice and other government Agencies are being politicized and weaponized. This is angering the American people, and it should.

American history has no shortage of important moments marked by statesmen making difficult decisions which balance the outrages of the moment with the long-term stability of our Republic.

Throughout this last year, many of us have denounced here the weaponization of the Justice Department by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. What many in the political establishment don't care to acknowledge is that this is resonating even more with American working folks who believe that there is a two-tiered system of justice in our country, and it is being unlawfully applied.

From Hillary Clinton's ``mishandling'' of classified information to President Joe Biden doing the same, the American public has watched certain people be immune from consequences for their actions.

Biden-Harris are attempting to throw their political opponent, Donald Trump, in jail for the rest of his life. It is wrong. They are trying to interfere with this election, and that is why we stand here on the floor today.

So if you are not part of the exclusive club or if you dare to fight back against its monopoly on power, you are held to a different standard. Those brave enough to fight the system are not only expected to play by the rules but also subject to capricious, legal, and inconsistent lawfare--banana republic stuff. If this were happening in another country, our State Department would be warning us about it. It is happening right here under our noses.

These political attacks undermine the American people's faith in their government--a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. We all are one people, and we must only have one standard of which we are judged in our courts. We must immediately halt our creep toward tyranny.

So until the Justice Department resumes its focus on applying equal justice under the law instead of engaging in partisan lawfare against President Trump, I will join my colleagues here today.

I withhold my objection to allow the senior Senator from Alabama to speak.

Madam President, I rise today to recognize the new welcoming gathering place the Teddy &

Friends Inclusive Playground at Queeny Park has been for the community in St. Louis County.

Playgrounds should be fun places where children of all abilities can safety play and exercise their creativity and independence. A local nonprofit called Unlimited Play realized the need for inclusive and accessible playgrounds for children with a range of special needs. As a result, multiple families in the St. Louis area collaborated to design a playground that would accommodate children of all abilities. Some of the features of this new park include shorter steps for safety, accessible surfacing, wheelchair accessibility to the top of structures, fencing, zip lines, and more enclosed areas for safety.

This initiative has inspired other improvements throughout Queeny Park, such as updating outdated infrastructure, building more accessible bathrooms, and adding new walkways. It is important that playgrounds are accessible to all children, encourage play, and bring families and communities together. I hope the Teddy & Friends Inclusive Playground in Queeny Park will be a vibrant center that brings the people of St. Louis County together, as well as model for other parks nationwide.

Mr. President, as though with the voice of God, I have been recognized. And I rise to address what just happened here. Senator Schumer's failed attempt to resurrect a failed immigration bill in a bipartisan beatdown.

But, first, let me recite some numbers: In fiscal year 2021, there were 387,000 known ``got-aways.'' In fiscal year 2022, there were 606,131 known ``got-aways.'' In fiscal year 2023, there were 670,000 known ``got-aways.''

Because of Joe Biden's disastrous border policies, there are nearly 10 million people who have crossed our border illegally, dispersed throughout the United States--many of whom we have no idea who they are, where they are from; some given court dates. We hope they return sometime in the 2030s.

Thousands and thousands of Chinese nationals have illegally crossed our border since Joe Biden took office. The DEA has stated that the most ruthless Mexican cartels now operate in all 50 States. The American people are more at risk now from a terror attack than they have been since 9/11.

How did we get here? The answer is pretty simple: Joe Biden reversed nearly every successful Trump-era policy that was working to secure our border. We had a 45-year low in illegal immigration at the end of 2020.

That has all changed. His administration reversed the ``Remain-in- Mexico'' policy. His administration attempted to sell border wall materials that had been sitting and rusting at an extreme discount. He paused deportations. He took nearly a hundred actions in his first hundred days to weaken our border security and signal to the cartels that our border was open for their business, a deadly business.

I said from the beginning that Joe Biden has all the authority he needs to shut the border down right now. He could have shut down the border as illegal immigration numbers shattered record after record; but he didn't. And he won't. And now the American people are seeing the absolute carnage caused by Joe Biden's policies.

Democrats are attempting to give Joe Biden cover by wasting our time on this vote that we just saw that went down on a vote for a bill that had already failed. Why? I think some people actually believe in open borders. They have no real problem with this. They believe that borders are arbitrary lines on a map. But the risk for Americans are real.

And what happened on this floor--I try to draw some analogy. Seinfeld was a great show--great show--and it was famously cast as a show about nothing. This week was a show about nothing: no vehicles, no amendments on anything substantive that could help the American people--just this kabuki theater that we just witnessed.

My criticisms of that bill--that we won't hear now, thankfully--are the same as they were in February. This bill would have changed the jurisdiction from immigration law related cases from Texas to Washington, DC.

This ``break glass'' emergency authority is a disaster. This bill would

have only potentially shut down the border if there were 5,000 illegal crossings per day. That is over a million people per year. Somehow we would normalize the idea that a million people can come here illegally before we would take this seriously. That would be a step backwards in our law.

The law currently is--and it has been across Republican and Democratic administrations--that if you come here, you are apprehended, and you are sent back, unless there is some special reason for you to stay, like asylum. And 9 out of 10 of those claims are, typically, bogus.

But what else did this bill do? It created more asylum agents to create an express lane in a path for citizenship at the border, outside of the normal judicial process we have where it is an adversarial hearing. Those wouldn't exist anymore under this bill.

And, most importantly, this bill gave the architect of the border invasion, Joe Biden, unilateral authority to terminate the bill's meaningless trigger I just mentioned.

This bill failed for a reason. Now it has failed twice for a reason. It took us backwards. But I think it is very important for us to remember that we have an executive branch right now that isn't interested in executing the law. Joe Biden has every authority under the Sun to close this border; he just doesn't want to.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I rise in support of my resolution that would overturn a rule from the Department of the Treasury that affects the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund.

Treasury's attempted sleight of hand to keep the COVID spending spigot on is an insult to Congress and those who believe in our Constitution as well as a complete misuse of taxpayer dollars.

As we vote today, we as a body must ask ourselves a couple of simple questions:

First, are we going to allow funds meant for COVID recovery to be spent after the so-called ``emergency'' ended or are we finally able to install fiscal responsibility as our national debt spirals further out of control?

Second, are we willing to defend the article I branch from an overreaching Agency of bureaucrats who want to claim more and more power for themselves?

The spending in this program--which is hardly the point right now, actually, with this extension of the time, but it is worth noting--has been wasteful on many occasions.

When Congress provided $350 billion for the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund, I don't think one could have imagined that the fund would have been used for golf courses and swimming pools and tennis courts--maybe to some. It also became a slush fund to incentivize illegal immigration, $340 million for cash payments to illegal immigrants in Washington State, $3.6 million in Illinois to help illegal immigrants apply for citizenship, and $2 million in DC to help turn the District of Columbia into a ``proud sanctuary city.''

Regardless of whether you supported the spending or not, this fund had a specific purpose. This fund was designated to aid State governments and local governments with revenue shortfalls tied to the COVID-19 pandemic.

When Congress created this fund, Congress provided a clear restriction. In statute, Congress required that all costs incurred with money from this fund must be incurred by December 31, 2024. That is the statute. That is congressional language.

In short, recipients had over 3 years to obligate this funding or the funding would be returned to the Federal Treasury. Most States and localities understood the requirements.

As of March of 2023--over a year ago--all States had obligated at least 60 percent of their funding while localities had obligated over 54 percent. Yet, lo and behold, while most people in this body were celebrating Thanksgiving with our families, the Treasury Department tried to pull a fast one on the American people. The Treasury Department decided it knew better than this body and better than Congress, and the Department rewrote the law to fit its own needs and special interests.

Even though the statute said all costs must be incurred by the end of this calendar year, the Treasury Department decided that States could still use these COVID recovery dollars way past 2024.

This is infuriating on a bunch of different levels. First, the administration ended the public health emergency for the pandemic on May 11, 2023.

Now, most Americans had moved on well beyond that, but even this administration acknowledged over a year ago that it was over.

It is also crazy because even though this administration said COVID ended about a year ago, bureaucrats at the Treasury Department decided we should just keep spending money anyway--spending billions into 2025 and 2026--to recover from COVID. Just think about that for a second.

But beyond this, beyond there being no rational reason to continue the spending for COVID recovery, this rule does not even keep the spigot on in order to directly benefit our constituents. This is bureaucrats giving a helping hand and a paycheck to--you guessed it-- other bureaucrats.

Earlier this week, Secretary Yellen attempted to assert that if this rule is overturned--and I heard this from my colleague--then infrastructure projects would grind to a halt. That is false. That is not true. This administration, once again, is using fearmongering as a reckless tactic for a radical agenda.

Let's be honest with the American people and look at the text of this rule. Under this new Treasury rule, the funding is limited to administrative and legal costs, such as compliance costs and internal control requirements. This rule ensures that funding does not go to bridges or broadband but to bureaucrats.

And this rule has real cost. This rule, if it continues, will cost taxpayers at least $13 billion, if not more. That boils down to about $1,200 for each and every American family. And around here, as I have learned, $13 billion doesn't seem like a lot of money to people. But we are $34 trillion in debt. We are spending nearly the same amount on interest payments on that debt as we do our national defense.

This fiscal recklessness is unsustainable. The actions like this from the Treasury rule are a prime reason why we are $34 trillion in debt. Our constituents demand that we actually hold the line, that we stop spending beyond our means, especially when the

rules encourage spending that is wasteful.

I ask my colleagues to join me today in supporting this resolution. COVID is over. Our national debt is out of control. Inflation is sky- high. It is time to reinstate fiscal responsibility here in the U.S. Senate.

I yield the floor, Mr. President, and I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, just to respond briefly, it may not have been his priority list, but it is worth pointing out that, again, some priorities of these dollars--like $340 million cash payments to illegal immigrants--have been spent from this fund. But be that as it may, if the concern from my colleague is that these projects for lead pipe replacement and schools--if they have been obligated, nothing is going to change with that. I want to make that very clear. In fact, those obligations are still extended through 2024, as the statute called for.

What this is all about is one simple fact: Do we think that Treasury can rewrite the law to extend these bureaucratic payments that, by the way, are part of the submissions that these State and locals have made for legal fees, other compliance costs. That is all in these submissions. This is to get overtime for 2 more years to spend approximately $13 billion. And again, that is $1,200 out of the budgets of American families across this country.

So we have an opportunity to restore some fiscal sanity, to stand up for the Article I branch. Whether you agree with that law or not, it said those obligations had to be incurred before the end of 2024. We are not changing that. We are just saying Treasury doesn't get to do an end run around Congress and again have $13 billion more go out the door to lawyers and to bureaucrats.

With that, I yield the floor and ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the scheduled rollcall vote take place immediately.

Mr. President, I rise today to recognize 50 years of steady economic development, volunteerism, and stewardship from the Table Rock Lake Area Chamber of Commerce in Missouri.

Formed in 1974 as the Kimberling City Chamber of Commerce, the group has adapted and changed to accommodate the needs and interest of its community. In the 1990s, the chamber launched an initiative to protect the waters of Table Rock Lake, which spawned a part of the organization known today as H2Ozarks. Now, the chamber has embarked on a 5-year economic development initiative called Launch Stone County and has recently moved to a new location in Branson West to provide additional services to the business community.

The chamber has remained committed to promoting tourism of Stone County and the Ozarks, working to preserve the beauty of Table Rock Lake for future generations to enjoy. I am proud that such a vibrant community of small businesses exists and thrives in Missouri and hope Table Rock Lake continues to be a celebrated tourist destination for years to come.

Madam President, today I rise in recognition of three great people: Trey Filter of Wichita, KS, Casey Filter of Wichita, KS, and Paul Contreras of Bellevue, NE. On February 14 of this year, the Kansas City Chiefs secured a Super Bowl victory for the second year in a row. And just like the parade from a year ago, Chiefs fans of all stripes descended onto Kansas City's Union Station to celebrate this great achievement. As this parade came and went and celebration boiled down, gunfire tragically rang out. Reports say these shots were followed by cries of ``Get him, get him,'' and ``Stop that guy, tackle him.''

Enter Trey Filter and Paul Contreras. In that moment, neither hesitated to risk their safety. Trey bravely launched himself at the alleged shooter, swiftly bringing him down to the ground. Despite the suspect's attempts to flee, Contreras swiftly followed suit, subduing the suspect with Trey until help arrived. Trey's wife Casey secured the firearm, ensuring it posed no further threat until law enforcement arrived on the scene.

There were 22 people left with gunshot wounds, and one sadly died. The youngest victim was only 8 years old. Tragedies such as these, especially when conducted in a celebratory setting, speak to how precious life is and how brave it was that the Filters and Paul were willing to risk their lives for those around them.

Trey Filter, Casey Filter, and Paul Contreras are champions of Missouri. Heroes are remembered by the actions that define their best qualities, and the actions to step in and protect their community from an armed assailant is as heroic as it is selfless. I am proud to recognize their contribution to the Missouri community.

Madam President, I rise today to honor Brett Forbes of Bonne Terre, MO, for his inspirational participation on Team USA's Paralympics powerlifting team.

Brett, an 18-year-old from St. Francois County, was born with spina bifida, but has never let his condition keep him from playing sports. Brett's siblings also share his love for athletics; his older brother Drew is an NFL offensive lineman for the Cleveland Browns, and his older sister Holly plays professional basketball overseas in Australia.

Since Brett was 6 years old he excelled at wheelchair basketball and committed to training to be a powerlifter. His hard work earned him the opportunity to compete on behalf of Team USA at the World Para Powerlifting American Open in St. Louis, MO. His performance was underscored by his 341-pound lift that broke the American rookie record. Brett did not even realize he was competing for the record, but told reporters that he was simply doing what he trained for. Brett was awarded gold and bronze medals, but his greatest achievement has been his moving story and lesson to all athletes to work hard in order to reach your goals.

Brett Forbes is truly a champion of Missouri. He demonstrates a resilient work ethic that encourages all of us to cultivate the skills and talents we possess to reach new heights. I am proud to recognize his work on the U.S. Paralympics powerlifting team and commend his parents for encouraging his and all of their children's athletic endeavors. Brett is a wonderful representative for Missouri and, more broadly, the United States on the world stage. I wish him continued success and am excited to see all this young man will accomplish in the future.

Madam President, I rise today to recognize and honor a model citizen, Erin Gooch. Erin's dedication to her family and community has earned her the title ``Champion of Missouri.''

Inspired by her son Teddy and his difficulties accessing certain features with local playgrounds due to dwarfism, Erin set off on a mission to transform a local derelict park into a place that all children may enjoy regardless of ability. Alongside Unlimited Play, an organization that helps to plan, design, and build fully accessible playgrounds, Erin has fundraised over $3 million for the Teddy & Friends Inclusive Playground. The new playground in Queeny Park will have specially made swings, ladders, and ramps so that kids of all ages and abilities may safely enjoy every part.

With this effort, Erin has become a community pillar. She serves as an exemplary individual, one who is willing to go above and beyond in service of others. Erin is passionate about educating others about people with different disabilities and helping other parents navigate the complexities of the medical and therapy world for their children. She is a dedicated mother of two kids--Chloe and Teddy--and wife to Craig Gooch.

Erin is truly a champion of Missouri.