Floor Statements

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Madam President, I come to the floor today to pay tribute to the life and service of LCpl Rylee McCollum. He was from Bondurant, WY.

On Thursday, August 26, the United States lost 13 men and women in uniform: 11 marines, an Army soldier, and a Navy corpsman. They were killed by a terrorist attack in Kabul, Afghanistan. At least 20 additional marines were wounded. It was the deadliest day for our Nation's military in more than a decade.

One of those fallen heroes was LCpl Rylee McCollum. He was just 20 years old. Rylee McCollum's life demonstrated the best of our Nation. His dad Jim told me that Rylee was full-blooded red, white, and blue-- and from the very beginning.

Rylee's dad Jim wanted to serve in the military, but he couldn't because of a medical issue. Well, his son Rylee grew up with that same great desire to serve our Nation. Rylee's family said he wanted to be a marine from the very beginning. His sister Royce said that he ran around in his diapers and cowboy boots with his rifle.

He attended Jackson Hole High School. He graduated from Summit Innovations High School in Wyoming. And he made a real name for himself all around the State as a champion wrestler.

Now, he had the kind of talents and abilities with which he could have done anything and everything. He wanted to serve America. He joined the Marines literally as soon as he could. He signed up on his 18th birthday. His plan was to serve in uniform and then come home to Wyoming. His goal was to teach history and coach wrestling.

On August 26, on his first deployment, he stood guard at the Hamid Karzai Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan. He protected the airport as Americans and our allies escaped to safety. His mission saved thousands of lives. While Rylee was protecting others, he was killed by a terrorist bomb.

Now, Rylee had just been married in February. His wife Gigi was expecting their first child, and he was excited to become a father. His child will never know Rylee. Yet his child will always know that Rylee McCollum, her father, was a hero.

On Friday, I stood side by side with Rylee's family and his pregnant wife Gigi at the airport in Jackson, WY, as Rylee's flag-draped casket was brought home for his very last trip to Wyoming. And today I got a text from Gigi with this magnificent picture. The text came within the last hour or so, and we were able to do a blowup of the text picture: Naval Hospital, Camp Pendleton, WY, welcomes baby girl Levi Rylee Rose, 8 pounds, 10 ounces, September 13--today--at 2 a.m. There is the baby, and there is the cutout of her father, Rylee McCollum.

Madam President, people in Wyoming and all across America have shown their love and respect and appreciation and admiration for Rylee and his family. People have already donated close to a million dollars to help Gigi and the baby. They donated these funds through a GoFundMe page on the internet, and it is a testament to the gratitude of the American people for the life and service of Rylee McCollum.

After Rylee's passing, a family friend in Jackson named Regi Stone told a story on Facebook. The story is about a conversation he once had with Rylee and with Regi's son Eli. Eli also serves in uniform. Regi says Eli and Rylee once said: If anything ever happened to us, just know we were doing what we loved.

What Rylee McCollum loved was protecting others. What Rylee McCollum loved was service. What Rylee McCollum loved was America.

And as Jim McCollum told me, he said: Rylee is standing guard tonight at the gates of Heaven.

Madam President, Rylee McCollum is an American hero. His name will always be held in honor throughout Wyoming. For the half-million people of our State, we all think of Rylee and Gigi and now the baby as part of our family.

May God comfort his family, and may God continue to bless this great

country for which Rylee McCollum gave his life.

Madam President, I call up my amendment No. 3055 and ask that it be reported by number.

Madam President, I am offering this amendment to spare the Country from the so-called Green New Deal. The Green New Deal is not about protecting the environment. It is about making Big Government even bigger.

This socialist scheme would destroy jobs. It will reduce the quality of life for the American people. Millions and millions of Americans will suffer. It would worsen already high inflation. It will drive a stake through the economy and eventually bankrupt the Nation.

Senate Democrats have made it clear that they want to use this reckless tax-and-spending spree to implement the Green New Deal. Just last night, Senator Markey of Massachusetts made this statement, he said: ``Without question, the Green New Deal is in the DNA of this budget resolution.''

Let me repeat. He said: ``Without question, the Green New Deal is in the DNA of this budget resolution.''

Instead of raising the costs of energy, we should be working to lower the costs of alternative technologies and

fuels through innovation, not taxation and resolution.

I would encourage a ``yes'' vote on the Barrasso amendment and reject the job-killing Green New Deal.

I ask for the yeas and nays.

Madam President, I rise to oppose the Carper amendment.

Let's be clear. We all want to address climate change, period. Now, this amendment does much more than that. Just because you say you want to address climate change does not mean every policy that you propose is a good idea. There can be disagreement. And I disagree strongly with the Green New Deal policies in this $4.2 trillion bill that wastes taxpayer dollars. It costs hundreds of jobs, and it hurts our economy.

Our economy should be a priority here. It should be the priority. We can protect the environment without punishing the economy, and this bill and amendment fail that test.

I yield the floor.

Vote on Amendment No. 3330

Madam President. I come to the floor today to comment on statements made by the majority leader earlier today on this Senate floor, and he made those after President Biden, this morning, signed another expensive Executive order relating to climate change.

The President at the time said it was his goal of making half of all new cars emission-free in less than a decade. In practice, that means making half of all new cars electric.

Well, after the President signed his Executive order, the majority leader came to the floor, and he talked about his own plans to give more of American taxpayer dollars to the manufacturers and purchasers of electric vehicles.

He said:

[W]e hope to add large parts of the plan.

Well, where does he want to add it? Well, he wants to add it to the reckless Democrat tax-and-spending plan.

The American taxpayers are already giving billions and billions of taxpayer dollars to electric vehicle manufacturers and owners. Electric vehicle makers have been given free tax dollars for 30 years. The truth is, electric car buyers don't need more taxpayer money. They have plenty of their own.

Today, the market for electric vehicles is very well established. There are more than a million electric vehicles on the road today. They are being made by everyone: General Motors, Mercedes-Benz, U.S. manufacturers, foreign manufacturers. They are being made all around the world.

In fact, the U.S. Energy Information Administration projects that sales of light-duty electric vehicles is going to reach 4 million by the year 2025. Electric vehicle makers are doing just fine.

They are also receiving free money from just about every State. So who benefits from these taxpayer handouts to electric vehicle makers and users?

Well, customers are usually wealthy. They don't need more money.

Now, seniors on fixed incomes, certainly in Wyoming, are not trading in their cars for expensive electric vehicles. Middle-class families who are trying to make ends meet are dealing with inflation that is hitting them every day under the Biden economy. They are not going out to buy expensive new electric vehicles. Seniors and middle-class families are hurting right now because of inflation hitting them when they buy gas, when they buy groceries, when they buy other goods. And this is, of course, triggered by massive Democrat spending, including the borrowing and spending that has occurred under the last coronavirus--the so-called coronavirus relief bill.

So Democrats aren't looking out for them under the proposal. Oh, no.

Nearly 80 percent of tax credits for electric vehicles go to households that earned at least $100,000 a year. Let me repeat that. Nearly 80 percent of the tax credits for electric vehicles go to households that have earned over $100,000 a year, not to mention the fact that these drivers don't pay for the use and the abuse that occurs to the roads from them driving on the roads. The rest of us do. Anybody who puts gasoline in their car pays the gas tax. It goes to the highway trust fund. It goes to repair damage done to the roads.

We are in a debate over infrastructure. Electric vehicles, no gas tax--that is the ordinary source of funding to do repair of our roads and our highways.

Now, even though a Tesla puts as much wear and tear on the road as a Ford Focus, the Tesla driver pays next to nothing to fix the roads. They contribute nothing to the highway trust fund--one more Democrat giveaway to the rich.

Electric vehicle owners don't need our tax dollars. They have enough. They should pay fair share for the use and abuse that they do to the roads on which they drive.

That is why I have introduced legislation called the ELITE Act. It stands for End Lavish Incentives to Electric Vehicles. We need to make sure to end these incentives to electric vehicles. The bill would end the billion-dollar giveaways to electric vehicle makers.

According to the Manhattan Institute, my bill would actually save taxpayers $20 billion. At a time when middle-class families are hurting from inflation caused by Democrat spending, it is unconscionable that Democrats want to raise taxes to give more handouts to the rich. It is certainly bad economics, and it is bad news for hard-working American taxpayers.

Rather than increasing the giveaways, we should be bringing them to an end. We should stop this wasteful waste of taxpayer dollars. Any waste of taxpayer dollars is wrong, and this is certainly a case where taxpayer dollars are not necessary to be spent.

Thank you.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I come to the floor today because I note the Democrats being so eager to move to their reckless tax-and-spending spree, and it is something I absolutely oppose. If we pass a bill of that magnitude, the American people will be paying more in taxes, will be paying more in the cost of living, and it will continue to impact the American people in a very negative way.

Right now, the Senate is debating a separate bill, an infrastructure bill, and, in fact, the bills are not completely separate. It would be nice if they were, but they are not. The reason they are not separate is because Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the House, has made it abundantly clear that any bipartisan infrastructure bill that is passed here in this Senate won't see the light of day in the House of Representatives unless and until, as she has said, the Senate also sends her a multitrillion-dollar reckless tax-and-spending bill. According to one nonpartisan group, that bill could cost up to $5.5 trillion over the next 10 years.

Now, Nancy Pelosi has said time and time again that there will not be one penny for roads, not one penny for bridges, not one penny for airports or ports until she gets the reckless tax-and-spending bill that she is demanding. It wasn't a negotiation; it was a hijacking. And Nancy Pelosi isn't just a hijacker; she is also an arsonist. What she is proposing is going to pour jet fuel on the fire of inflation that is currently ravaging the country.

The flame was lit months ago when Democrats borrowed $2 trillion under the name of COVID relief. But just look at the economic projections before the bill became law. Some people failed to predict the inflation. The Federal Reserve failed to predict it. The White House budget office said: Oh, no, we won't get inflation. The Congressional Budget Office said no. There were Democratic economists, though, who warned that it would happen, and Republicans pointed out clearly that it was going to happen, and that is what has happened now. Democrats refused to listen. They borrowed and spent an additional $2 trillion, and inflation has gone up every month since.

Core inflation is now the fastest and highest it has been in 40 years. Who are the victims of this? Well, they are people who are on fixed incomes; they are seniors; they are working families trying to get by. Now it costs $25 more every time you fill up your vehicle with gasoline. If you fill up a truck in Wyoming, it could be even more than

that compared to the fill-ups of Inauguration Day. If you go to the grocery store now, it is about $25 more for the weekly trip to the grocery store. So you are talking $25 extra a week in gas, $25 extra a week in groceries; $50 extra a week, which comes to $2,500 annually for a hard-working family in America because of the inflation Joe Biden and the Democrats have brought upon us.

Of course, this kind of inflation slows our economic recovery. I just found out last week that economic growth is significantly below what economists had predicted it should be at this point. It does seem the Democrats still haven't learned basic economics. Now they want to make the same mistake all over again, even at a higher level. They want to borrow and spend trillions more.

Last week, we found out that the previous Democratic bill gave $800 million to prisoners behind bars. Now, Tom Cotton and I came to this floor, and we tried to stop the Democrats from giving our taxpayer dollars to prisoners currently behind bars. We specifically warned it would happen as stimulus checks were sent out around the country. We tried to stop this as part of the Democratic spending bill, but all 50 Democrats, every one of them supported direct checks to prisoners behind bars. The senior Senator from Illinois came to the floor and gave a speech defending it. He implied it would be racist not to give free money to people behind bars

Every one of the 50 Democrats put $800 million of American taxpayer dollars on the credit card and sent checks to prisoners behind bars. This means more debt and more inflation for law-abiding citizens in exchange for money to criminals. It tells the American people all we need to know about the priorities of the Democratic Party.

Now Democrats want another round of payoffs. This payoff is even more expensive than the last one. Democrats are promising payoffs to all their favorite groups: climate activists, leftwing professors, trial lawyers, and union bosses. This bill, this reckless tax-and-spending bill, includes one liberal priority after another.

Even as we face the worst border crisis in the last two decades, Democrats are now promising amnesty and citizenship and voting rights for millions of illegal immigrants. Once they get amnesty, then they can get all the other Democratic payoffs as well. This is going to lead to an additional tidal wave of illegal immigration, and all of this has a price tag, and someone has to pay.

Democrats tell nice stories, and Republicans do the math. This bill is so expensive, the Democrats will have to go after every working family in America in order to pay for it. One way or another, every working American will end up paying for this. There is not some rich person who is going to be able to pay for all of this. There aren't enough rich people on Earth to pay for this level of spending.

Democrats are going to go after the majority of the people in this country, and, of course, that is the middle class. That is exactly what they intend to do with this bill because this bill is going to raise taxes on family farms and ranches.

According to the accounting firm Ernst and Young, this bill, this spending bill that Nancy Pelosi is demanding go from the Senate to the House before any infrastructure bill is passed, would eliminate 80,000 jobs over 10 years. The bill would raise taxes on small businesses, which are already struggling to stay open because of Democratic policies. Anyone who sells their home will pay thousands and thousands more in taxes.

Now, this is also going to include a carbon import tax, which will drive up prices even higher.

The bill would be a socialist takeover of our economy--more taxes, more spending, more debt, more government eating into people's paychecks and eating into their savings. There is not a single Republican in the House or in the Senate who is going to support this reckless tax-and-spending spree.

We need to stop this freight train to socialism. We don't have a taxing problem in this country; we have a spending problem. Inflation is already high enough. We know what the cause is. We know it is the cause of the excessive Democratic spending, and this is going to make it worse. Families across this country are struggling right now to make ends meet. Family businesses are struggling to stay open. It is time to stop this reckless tax-and-spending spree.

I yield the floor.

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

Mr. President, I come to the floor today to talk about where our country is in the fight against coronavirus.

The simple message on the coronavirus is this: Vaccines work. The single most important thing you want to do to protect yourself and to protect your family is to get vaccinated. That is the only message we ought to be sending out.

I am a doctor. I have been vaccinated. My wife has been vaccinated. Our kids have been vaccinated. There is overwhelming evidence that vaccines are highly effective against serious illness.

Yet we are talking about this issue today because of the chaos and the confusion that have come about due to messaging coming out of the White House and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That is why, with limited floor time during this important debate on spending, I come to the floor today to discuss this specific issue.

President Biden and the CDC ought to be found guilty of medical malpractice for the comments that they have been making. Back in May, the Centers for Disease Control said, and the President repeated it at the White House, that if you have been vaccinated, if you have been fully vaccinated, you don't need to wear a mask either indoors or outdoors. Now they are saying that even if you have been fully vaccinated, you need to wear a mask again indoors.

At a time when we are trying to encourage people to get vaccinated, I ask, how is this going to help someone who hasn't been vaccinated, encourage them to get vaccinated if you are telling them that even if you get vaccinated, you still have to wear a mask?

This flip-flopping in policy is why Americans, I think, are very worried and concerned and somewhat anxious about the activities of this administration. They are wondering: What comes next--flip-flop on masks? Is this administration going to flip-flop on lockdowns, on shutdowns, on closing schools?

People say: Oh no, don't worry about that.

Well, Mr. President, let me tell you, just this past weekend, Randi Weingarten--she is the head of one of America's biggest teachers unions, the American Federation of Teachers--she refused to commit to in-person learning this fall, this coming school year.

The president of America's biggest teachers union refused to commit to in-person learning this fall. So the American people have every right to be concerned and anxious and angry with the communications coming out of this administration and the directives this week. Parents are angry that kids have already lost too much.

And think about this: Now Nancy Pelosi is requiring fully vaccinated Members of the House of Representatives to wear masks or they will be charged a fine. She has even threatened--threatened--to tell the Capitol Police to arrest staff members--fully vaccinated staff members--who aren't wearing masks. These are people who have been vaccinated.

At the same time, the Biden administration is throwing our southern border wide open to 180,000 illegal immigrants a month, with almost every disease known to man. We are talking about people who are undocumented and unvaccinated.

When I went to the border earlier this spring, our border agents told me that they had arrested people from 50 different countries. Of course, these people are all coming from places where vaccination rates are much lower than they are in our country.

Since the start of the pandemic, more than 8,000 Border Patrol officers have tested positive for coronavirus. Thirty-two of these agents have died. When I visited the border, roughly 1 in 10 of the unaccompanied children in custody had tested positive, and they were intermingled with others who had tested positive and those not tested

positive. They were all crammed in like sardines, and the testing occurred only when they were getting ready to be released and then sent all around America, spreading the coronavirus wherever they went.

And it is interesting to listen to Democrats in the national media and on the Hill who want to blame Republicans for any vaccine hesitancy that is out there. Well, let me set the record straight on that.

Republican elected officials have gone out of our way to encourage vaccinations. It is the responsible thing to do. I have traveled from one vaccination site to another all around the State of Wyoming; made public service announcements with other doctors and doctors who are members of the Doctors Caucus in Congress, in the House and the Senate; made public service announcements; put them out on videos and sent them around the country.

The truth is that there are a large number of Democrats who are still unvaccinated. Forty percent--forty percent--as of today, of New York City public school employees have not been vaccinated, and it is ready for the school year to start. And yet we don't have a commitment from the head of the teachers union to have in-person learning this year. Forty percent of the public hospital workers in New York City are unvaccinated. Forty-one percent of Chicago residents are not vaccinated. If you take a look, city by city--Democrat-run cities--a high percentage of people are not vaccinated, and yet President Biden and the Senate majority leader continue to point fingers.

It does seem to me that Democrats have utterly failed to communicate a clear message to get the American people vaccinated. In fact, I think Democrat politicians have been a big part of the problem from the beginning.

Early on, when the vaccine was currently being developed, people were hoping for a vaccine. We saw the Vice Presidential debate--57 million people watching--and then, at the time, Vice Presidential candidate, at the time Senator Harris, now Vice President Harris, said she would not get a vaccine developed under the Trump administration.

She said: ``If Donald Trump tells us we should take it, I'm not going to take it.''

Before Democrats point the finger at Republicans, they should get their own cities vaccinated.

There is much more to talk about.

There have been many mistakes made by this administration and Democrats over the last 6 months, but it is no coincidence that, over the last 3 months, we have seen a historic drop in national optimism. A majority of the country says America is now on the wrong track. Just one in three Americans is satisfied with the way things are going in this country. Fully, only one in five Americans has switched from optimistic about our future to pessimistic about our future in just 3 months.

Fully, one in five Americans flipped on their thoughts on the direction of the country, and it is easy to see why. They see inflation eating away at their paychecks. They see Democrats piling up debt on our kids and grandkids. They see their taxes are about to go up again. They see an open southern border. They see rising crime in Democrat cities. And independent voters are running away from Democrats as fast as they can.

It is time for Democrats to get the message. We want to get the virus behind us. The answer is not open borders. The answer is not more flip- flops, and it is not more mandates on the American people.

It is time for the Democrats to stop pointing fingers. The school year returns in just a matter of weeks. Every school in America must be open. It is time for Democrats to follow the science. No more flip- flops, no more mandates, no more lockdowns--no more excuses

Nomination of David Chipman

Madam President, I come to the floor, at this point, to oppose the nomination of David Chipman as Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

David Chipman is an anti-gun extremist who would politicize one of the world's greatest law enforcement Agencies, the ATF. If confirmed, he would be the most radically anti-gun Director in ATF history.

David Chipman's views are completely out of touch with those of the American people. He opposed the Supreme Court case that struck down Washington, DC's ban on handguns, the Heller case. He was party to a legal brief in the case which said the Second Amendment, he said, only protects militias. He supports bringing back the 1994 assault weapons ban, which President Biden often brags that he wrote. Congress let that ban expire because there was never any proof that it brought down crime.

During his hearing with the Judiciary Committee, Senator Cotton specifically asked Mr. Chipman to define what an ``assault weapon'' is.

Mr. Chipman said: ``An assault weapon would be whatever Congress defines it as.''

Senator Cotton went on to ask Mr. Chipman for his own definition of an ``assault weapon.''

He said: ``Any semi-automatic rifle capable of accepting a detachable magazine above a 22.''

Well, as Senator Cotton rightly pointed out, this would ban most sporting rifles in America. If David Chipman made our gun laws, most sporting rifles would be banned. States could ban handguns. Private gun sales would be illegal.

These views are completely out of touch with the views of more than 100 million Americans who are law-abiding gun owners.

Worst of all, David Chipman does not have the character and integrity to lead the ATF. He has repeatedly mocked gun owners and impugned people's motives for owning a gun.

David Chipman said: Gun ownership ``is a way you can act patriotic without having to'' serve in the military.

He said: ``I [would] compare gun ownership . . . to the same reason Americans might want a muscle car.''

This is not why people buy guns. The American people buy guns to protect themselves and to keep their families safe.

The American people are buying guns by the millions right now because they are afraid of Democrats' gun control policies, and they are afraid of crime in Democrat cities.

Last year, Democrats cut $1 billion in police funding across America, and as a result, we saw the largest increase in murder in 60 years. In response, the American people bought more than 20 million guns, including 8 million guns by first-time gun owners--first-time gun owners--because they realized they weren't able to be protected when those are trying to defund the police. Gun ownership is still going up because the Democrats are still defunding police, and Democrat cities are in chaos.

We don't need an ATF Director who mocks nearly half of the country.

Recently, we found out another serious concern about Mr. Chipman's character. According to media reports, multiple ATF agents say David Chipman was accused of making racist comments about African Americans. I won't repeat them here. The comments are of great concern. According to the reports, the racist comments were reported to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and a complaint was filed against him.

Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee have called for another hearing in light of this new information that has come out. I commend my colleagues for their due diligence.

Yet I don't think another hearing is necessary. What is necessary is for President Biden to withdraw this nomination. There are plenty of qualified Democrats out there who could be nominated to do this job.

The men and women of the ATF deserve a leader with integrity and with respect for the Second Amendment to our Constitution. More than 100 million legal gun owners in this country deserve it, too.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Madam President, I rise today in recognition of the 100th anniversary of the formation of Teton County, WY.

On Sunday, August 29, 2021, Teton County will come together in honor of this milestone with a 100th anniversary picnic celebration. The day will include barbequed food, lawn games, live music performances, children's activities, and exhibits of Teton County's historical photos and artifacts. This event provides an exceptional opportunity to demonstrate and celebrate Teton County's strong, remarkable character.

Teton County was established by an act of the Wyoming Legislature and signed into law by Governor Robert D. Carey on February 18, 1921. The area was initially part of neighboring Lincoln County. Residents grew weary of travelling over 200 miles to the Lincoln County seat: Kemmerer, WY. Travel was often impossible in the winter as snowy roads were closed, leaving the residents of now Teton County completely isolated.

One of the chief proponents of the effort to carve out Teton County was Wyoming legislator W.C. Deloney. In January 1920, Representative Deloney introduced a bill in the legislature establishing an independent county he then called ``Jackson Hole County.'' To select the county seat, a vote was held between the communities of Jackson and Kelly. Though Jackson seems like the logical seat today, the landscape was very different in 1920. Of 826 votes cast, Jackson won by only 22 votes.

The first three Jackson Hole County Commissioners, T.R. Wilson of Alta; W.P. Redmond of Kelly; and Peter Christofferson--P.C.--Hansen of Jackson were appointed. This was the beginning of a legacy of civic service for the Hansen family. P.C. Hansen was the father of U.S. Senator Cliff P. Hansen and the great-grandfather of Wyoming Governor Matt Mead.

Today, Teton County boasts four communities, Jackson being the largest with more than 10,500 residents led by Mayor Hailey Morton Levinson. The tight-knit communities of Wilson, Moran, Alta, Kelly, and Teton Village bring the county's population to over 23,400. Five county commissioners, Chairwoman Natalia D. Macker, Vice-Chair Luther Propst, Mark Newcomb, Greg Epstein, and Mark Barron represent Teton County.

The story of Teton County echoes the stories of communities across Wyoming, carving out their homes in the American West. Even today, Teton County is 97 percent public land, including the Bridger-Teton National Forest, Grand Teton National Park, and most of Yellowstone National Park.

From its beginnings, tourism was an important business in the region. The first homesteaders in the 1880s hosted and outfitted the earliest tourists. Today, the wilderness attracts tourists from all over the world for numerous activities like camping, sightseeing, hiking, hunting, and snow-skiing, to name only a few. Three significant ski areas, Snow King Mountain Resort, Teton Village, and Grand Targhee Resort ensure the tourism industry stays vibrant in the winter.

The National Elk Refuge in Teton County is a winter-safe haven for upwards of 8,000 elk. The refuge, part of the National Wildlife Refuge System, provides critical habitat for a number of species, including elk, bison, pronghorn, swans, eagles, and trout.

It is my honor to commemorate this historic milestone for Teton County. Their centennial celebration is a tribute to generations of determination and commitment. My wife Bobbi and the people of Wyoming join me in our appreciation of the people of Teton County. We thank them for opening their communities to our great State, the Nation, and the world. We extend our congratulations as we look forward to the next 100 years.

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

Madam President, I come to the floor today to address the amendment on which we will be voting in the next 15 or 20 minutes. It is the Barrasso amendment to No. 2137. It has to do with building codes in the bill that is on the floor tonight for our discussion and debate, the bipartisan infrastructure bill.

There is money in this bill that is being debated today for building codes, and this amendment is quite simple. It is a consumer protection amendment, and it just says no money--no money in this bill--can be used to bar natural gas hookups to your home. You can't block commercial use, residential use, and new constructions. So no money in the bill can be used to restrict or prohibit the direct use of natural gas in residential and commercial buildings in support of it--space heating, water heating or cooking, and for other purposes. And you can't also use money to compel the adoption of modern building energy codes. Those are local decisions that are made.

Why I come to the floor to speak specifically about that is that people all around the country are very concerned about what is in this bill and how it is going to affect them at home and how they live and their pocketbooks. No matter where you are from, people are saying: How is this going to impact me?

People who are living under the times of this massive inflation that they are hitting--they are paying more for groceries, they are paying more for gasoline, and now they are looking at, if they come out with building codes that block natural gas hookups, what is that going to do to the cost of energy to heat their home, to cook, and all of those sorts of things?

And for people who are not necessarily tuned into this who may be Members of this body but who don't think about how so many of the decisions here impact hard-working American families, I come to a story that was in this morning's Wall Street Journal. The headline is ``Natural-Gas Phaseouts Are Facing Resistance.'' And there is a reason they are facing resistance. They are facing resistance because people do not want to have to pay more money for energy to heat their homes, to cook, and all of those things.

And the article points out that Massachusetts is emerging as a key battleground in this U.S. fight over whether to phase out natural gas for home cooking and heating, with fears of unknown costs. That is what people are concerned about--unknown costs and unfamiliar technologies fueling much of the opposition as the country is being encouraged to go all electric.

So what we are seeing is that more towns around Boston are debating measures to block or limit the use of gas in new construction, and they talk about climate change as a reason for that. Well, builders and realtors will tell you that construction costs go up and the cost of heating and cooking go up if you are not allowed to use natural gas in the construction. As a matter of fact, a study by a subsidiary of the National Association of Home Builders, published this year, estimated that building all-electric homes in the colder climates of Denver, CO, the Rocky Mountain West, and Minneapolis--as part of their study, they say it may cost at least $11,000 more to build those than it would if you could allow them to be built for the use of gas.

So they are saying: Wait a second. Before you drive up the cost of buying a new home, before you drive up the cost of cooking and heating your home, let's let people make some decisions for themselves. They don't need Washington telling us what we need to do and what we can do.

Major cities right now, including San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, and New York, have enacted or proposed measures to ban or discourage the use of natural gas in new homes and in buildings. This is 2 years after Berkeley, one of the most liberal bastions of the country, passed the first such prohibition in the United States.

And, as you can imagine, when these things are coming out of California, a State with the highest electricity costs in the country, a State with ongoing blackouts because of their lack of energy effectiveness and efficiency and all of the mandates related to energy and sky-high prices, the efforts have sparked a backlash--no surprise-- prompting some States to make gas bans illegal.

So I am coming to the floor with this amendment to point out that, as we are working on bipartisan legislation and there is money in the bill for building codes, no money can be used to prohibit natural gas hookups to homes, commercial construction, residential, and new construction, because consumers have to have a say in this.

It shouldn't be government saying: We know better than you do. We will spend your money. We will make decisions about how you get to spend your hard-earned money.

And it is coming from the State of Wyoming where a significant production of natural gas is affordable, reliable, available, and people want to use it. They want to use it because they know the value to them and their families and their way of life. They don't want Washington coming in and saying: No, you can't do it because we know better than you do.

And I hear a lot about that at home in Wyoming--people saying to Washington: You don't know better than we do. We don't need you telling us.

The bill doesn't say that it is going to tell them. We just want to make sure that by adopting this amendment, the building codes do not bar the use of natural gas hookups to your home.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

I yield back all time.

Vote on Amendment No. 2180

I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, at the 109th Wyoming State Fair, Senator Lummis and I will have the pleasure of introducing Keith and Linda Hamilton as 2021 inductees to the Wyoming Agriculture Hall of Fame.

Growing up as the fourth generation on the Hamilton Ranch, Keith's agricultural involvement holds deep roots in working to advance agricultural leadership and conserve natural resources important to the western lifestyle. In 1975, Keith joined the Wyoming Farm Bureau and began taking on leadership positions in 1981 as the Big Horn County Farm Bureau vice president. In 1988, Keith joined the Wyoming Farm Bureau Federation board of directors and represented Big Horn, Fremont, Hot Springs, Park, and Washakie Counties as the northwest district director until 2010.

In addition to serving the agricultural community through the Wyoming Farm Bureau, Keith has been very active in serving on public lands boards, wildlife working groups, and livestock organizations. Keith has given his time to the Big Horn Basin Sage Grouse Working Group, the Big Horn County Predator Management Board, and is the past chairman of the Wyoming State Grazing Board. Through his work, the wildlife of Wyoming is left more abundant for future generations.

As Mark Anderson, current chairman of the Wyoming State Grazing Board observed, ``Keith is currently our valued representative on the Wyoming Board of Directors to the National Public Lands Council and he is the type of person I would like to have as a neighbor.''

The Hamilton Ranch and Keith would not be as successful as it is today were it not for his wife, Linda. Linda has a servant's heart and has dedicated her time and efforts to many events and organizations within the Hyattville community. She served as a founding member of Wyoming Agriculture in the Classroom as well as on their board of directors. She has also served on the board of directors for Northwest College alumni, the Hyattville Methodist Church, and the Wyoming Association of Conservation District. Linda held the important role as a spokesperson for conservation districts in both State government and the legislature. Linda leads with a selfless volunteerism, a community- based spirit, and an outstanding work ethic.

In addition to their involvement in civic activities, Keith and Linda Hamilton's love and dedication for agriculture show both in their dedication to organizations, as well as in the improvement of operations on their ranch. The Hamilton Ranch was recognized as the 1998 Environmental Stewardship Award winner, as well as a Wyoming Centennial Ranch in 2015. Both of these reflect the nature of Keith and Linda as leaders in agriculture.

The Hamiltons were one of four operations to initially enroll in the Wyoming Stewardship Program in 1982. This program opened the door for the Hamiltons to work closely with agencies such as Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Wyoming Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service, and Natural Resources Conservation Service on improving ranch operations. The Hamilton Ranch continues their involvement with these agencies today, leading the way for agricultural innovation and collaboration in Wyoming.

Keith and Linda are longtime members of the Wyoming Wool Growers Association, Wyoming Stock Growers Association, and past members of the Mountain States Lamb Co-op.

With the Hamilton family's unwavering commitment to our State, it is with great honor to induct them into the Wyoming Agriculture Hall of Fame. Keith and Linda Hamilton represent the best of Wyoming courage, optimism, and the Western Code. They have represented Wyoming's interests with dedication and distinction for many years. My wife, Bobbi, joins me in congratulating Keith and Linda Hamilton as 2021 inductees into the Wyoming Agriculture Hall of Fame.

Madam President, I come to the floor today to oppose Democrats' reckless tax-and-spending spree.

If Democrats pass the bill, every American will end up paying more, and clearly pay more in taxes, also pay more for the costs that people are seeing today at home--goods, gas, groceries. These prices all continue to go up.

First, let's talk about taxes. This bill would be the largest tax increase in the history of the United States--actually, in the last half century.

The bill raises taxes on small businesses, and that means higher prices on everyone and also fewer jobs.

The bill raises taxes on farmers and ranchers, who will have a harder time in terms of passing down the family farm or ranch to their kids or grandkids.

The bill raises taxes on savings and investments. So seniors will either have to work longer or retire with less.

It includes trillions of dollars in tax increases, yet Democrats seem to be pandering to their elite donors. They made sure to include special exemptions for rich people in blue States and for the owners of electric vehicles.

Now a study from the University of California Berkeley--clearly not a conservative university--they say that 9 out of 10 electric vehicle subsidies go to the rich--go to the rich. Nine out of ten, according to Berkeley, go to the rich.

Democrats also would give tax breaks for people making up to $400,000 a year for all sorts of things, including sending their kids to summer camp.

Is that what the Democrats want to vote for: Tax breaks for people making up to $400,000 a year to send their kids to summer camp?

Well, the contrast with Republicans could not be clearer. Where Democrats

are making more handouts for their friends, Republicans actually simplified the Tax Code. Where Democrats' increases are going to eliminate jobs, our tax cuts increased job growth, increased employment, lowered unemployment, raised wages.

The 2017 tax cut was an across-the-board tax cut. It helped businesses and working families, and the result was the best economy in my lifetime.

In the months after the tax cuts, nearly 200 companies--200 companies--announced raises for their employees.

Six million American workers received either a bonus or a raise or an increased retirement contribution--6 million Americans after we passed that law.

Now, before the pandemic, unemployment was at a 50-year low. Wages were growing at the fastest pace in a decade, and the biggest wage gains were for people at the bottom of the economic ladder.

On average, American household income rose by more than $4,000 a year. Well, this is more than the increase over the entire 8 years of the Obama-Biden administration.

We had the lowest poverty rate in a half a century. Child poverty was down; income inequality went down. The top 1 percent's share of taxes went up, so the richer folks were actually paying more in taxes.

After Republicans cut taxes, we saw the lowest unemployment rates ever recorded for African Americans, for Hispanic Americans, and for Asian Americans.

When we began to reopen the economy last year, it was the fastest recovery in American history. That was because we had such a strong economy before the pandemic.

What a contrast to what we have with the Democrats over the last 6 months. Since Democrats took control of Washington, we have seen the fastest rise in core inflation in 40 years--the fastest rise in core inflation in 40 years.

And we have also seen the most unfilled jobs in Americans history. The American people are already paying more at the grocery store, paying more at the gas station; now the American people are bracing for the fact that they are going to pay a lot more on tax day as well

Yet just as bad as the Democrats' tax increases, on top of that, we see reckless spending. Democrats tell us the bill costs $3.5 trillion. This is nearly the cost of what America spent in World War II. Yet the bill is actually much more expensive than $3.5 trillion, because Democrats continue to use accounting gimmicks to hide the real cost of the legislation.

Last week, a nonpartisan group released a study showing the real cost is likely $5.5 trillion. This is on top of the $6 trillion we have already spent on coronavirus relief. Five and a half trillion dollars is larger than the entire economy of Japan, which is the third largest economy in the world.

This is clearly a recipe for inflation. So now Democrats are waving around a report from a single discredited economist who says: Oh, don't worry about inflation.

Well, the people in my home State of Wyoming are worried about inflation because they are living it.

Now, this same economist has been wrong over and over and over again in his career. He predicted a recession under President Trump. Instead, we saw the best economy of our lifetime. He wasn't even close. His work was an influence on President Obama's stimulus plan, which gave us the slowest recovery in 70 years.

So hard to know why the Democrats would want to even turn to this person other than he is saying what they want him to say.

Who are you going to believe? Him or your own two eyes?

And the people of Wyoming believe their own two eyes when they go and fill up with gas or they go to the grocery store or other stores and see their paycheck being eaten away.

Now, Democrats now tell us they can spend their way out of inflation. Spend their way out of inflation?

This isn't just wishful thinking. This is radical. It is extreme. It is dangerous. It is scary. Our economy doesn't need a dime of stimulus. We don't even need stimulus. We didn't need it 4 months ago, when Democrats borrowed and spent an additional $2 trillion.

Prices are going up because Democrats spent too much already. The money supply hasn't gone up this fast since World War II.

One Democrat Senator, this weekend, said inflation is happening because of money we have already spent.

Well, if this is true, then why would we want to add fuel to the fire and spend more? Why would we want to do that?

Democrats are printing more money without creating more goods and services. So if you print more money without creating more goods and services, this is almost a textbook definition of inflation.

The two bills coming to the floor now would bring Democrats' total for the year to $8 trillion in additional government spending.

According to an estimate from the Manhattan Institute, this is enough to give every American household $60,000; or it is enough to cut income taxes by one-third.

Instead, Democrats are preparing more payoffs for their friends and donors. This bill is a full giveaway to union bosses, trial lawyers, leftwing professors. It includes taxpayer funding for full-time professional climate activists. It includes corporate welfare for connected companies.

This tax-and-spending spree is utterly reckless. Not one Republican will vote for this bill. This means all it takes is one Democrat in the Senate or a handful in the House to stop this freight train to socialism. All it takes is one Democrat concerned about our future, willing to say: We shouldn't weigh down our children with debt or our economy with massive tax increases.

President Biden and the Democrat party are in charge of this runaway train. Each and every Democrat is going to be held responsible for the consequences. This includes more inflation, more worker shortages, more debt, and more dependency.

Look, Democrats did enough damage with their last spending spree. This new spending spree is much worse.

Unlike their last spending spree, this bill includes massive tax increases. It is one more reason why the American people are already speaking out against this reckless tax-and-spending spree.

People across the country and certainly home in Wyoming are fed up, and the poll numbers are showing it. Seventy-four percent of Americans--we are talking Republicans, Democrats, Independents--74 percent of Americans are concerned this spending spree will accelerate inflation; 78 percent are rightly concerned about their own wages going up at a time when--with their own taxes going up at a time when their wages have been getting eaten into by inflation.

The people are going to remember how you vote on this bill. They are going to remember it. They remember it every time they go to the gas station, every time they go to the grocery store, and they are clearly going to remember it when they go to vote.

So election day will come, people will make their votes as citizens, and they will realize what the Democrats have done with this reckless tax-and-spending spree and how it has impacted them as they are paying more in taxes, having a greater national debt, and inflation eating away at their paycheck.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I rise today in celebration of Rocky and Lisa Eades, the 2021 honorees of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Wyoming.

Since 1978, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Wyoming has made a positive difference in the lives of children. Their mission is to inspire all youth, especially those who need them the most. They strive to help young people reach their full potential as productive, responsible, and caring citizens. The programs, leagues, and activities serve the children in our community by cultivating academic success, healthy lifestyles, and good character and citizenship.

On September 8, 2021, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Wyoming will host their 23rd annual awards and recognition breakfast. At this breakfast,

the organization honors members of the community who have made a significant difference in the lives of others. It is an inspiring celebration.

This year's honorees are Rocky and Lisa Eades. They are an ideal choice because of their tremendous role in helping families. Their story of generosity and compassion is inspiring.

Rocky and Lisa cofounded the Jason's Friends Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Casper, WY. Jason's Friends provides financial and moral support to families with children fighting cancer. The couple took on this charge after experiencing firsthand the hardships associated with childhood cancer. Their 8-year-old son Jason was diagnosed with a brain stem tumor in January 1995.

Rocky and Lisa dedicated their all to Jason's recovery. They upended their lives, traveling to Denver and New York for care and treatment. Jason's brave fight ended in November 1995. To honor Jason's life and help Wyoming families in similar situations, they founded Jason's Friends Foundation in 1996.

Jason's Friends has crafted an inspiring legacy, providing over $5.8 million in financial assistance to families dealing with the added stress and financial burden of a child with cancer. Currently, 145 families are enrolled in the program. The foundation helps cover nonmedical expenses such as travel and household bills. Their work allows families to fully commit to their fight against cancer.

The Bowl for Jason's Friends fundraiser, in its 23rd year, is a highly anticipated event, drawing in the entire community. The foundation also hosts Camp Courage, a no-cost summer camp for childhood cancer patients and their families.

Family is the highest priority for the Eades. In addition to Jason and the countless families they have helped throughout Wyoming, they have two grown daughters, Brooke and Skylar. Lisa serves as the volunteer president/CEO of Jason's Friends, cochairs the Wyoming Cancer Coalition, serves on the Wyoming Department of Health's Institutional Review Board, and was appointed by then Governor Mead to the Wyoming Palliative Care Advisory Council. Rocky is the president of Eades Construction in Casper and has built hundreds of custom homes in Natrona County.

Rocky and Lisa live a life of heart and perseverance. They are the first to offer a helping hand to those experiencing tremendous challenges. The Code of the West charges us to live each day with courage. Not only do Rocky and Lisa embody this principle, they give everyone around them the courage needed to do the same. Casper and Wyoming are fortunate to have them.

It is with great honor that I recognize these outstanding members of our Wyoming community. My wife Bobbi joins me in extending our congratulations to Rocky and Lisa Eades upon their selection for this special award.

Mr. President, I come to the floor today to pay tribute to our friend and former colleague, Senator Mike Enzi.

Senator Lummis and I are here, and we are very grateful for the kind comments of the minority leader, Senator McConnell; majority leader, Senator Schumer; and the President pro tempore of the Senate, Senator Leahy.

Mike Enzi was my colleague. He was my mentor. He was my friend. Today, my wife Bobbi and I, along with all of the people in the State of Wyoming and all of his friends and admirers here in the U.S. Senate--we are joined on the floor by many of his former staffers, many of whom still work here--all of us mourn his passing.

For nearly a quarter of a century, Mike Enzi represented the people of Wyoming in this very body in the U.S. Senate. In so many ways, as we served as a team when Cynthia Lummis was in the House and Mike and I were in the Senate, he was our trusted trail boss for our entire congressional delegation.

He served with intelligence, with dignity, and with grace. He never wavered. His commitment was to God, to his family, to country, to Wyoming.

It was an incredible honor and a great privilege for my wife Bobbi and for me to serve the people of Wyoming alongside Mike Enzi and his wife Diana.

Mike was born in the middle of World War II. He was in Washington State at the time because that is where his father was stationed. After the war, the family moved back to Thermopolis, WY--my wife's hometown-- and to Sheridan, WY.

As all of us know, Mike was an Eagle Scout, so were his son Brad and his grandson Trey. They followed in his footsteps. Later in life, he was awarded the Distinguished Eagle Scout.

He went on and studied accounting. He earned a business degree, and he focused on marketing. He was pretty good at it. He served in the Wyoming Air National Guard, and he was 6 years a tech sergeant.

In 1969, Mike and Diana were married. One week later, they moved to Gillette and opened a small business known as NZ Shoes--Enzi, like his name, but the letter ``N'' and letter ``Z'' Shoes. The little business wasn't that little for long. He opened a second store in Sheridan, then Miles City, MT.

Mike ran for mayor of Gillette, served two 4-year terms. He often called being mayor the toughest job in politics, and Mike performed flawlessly. With the help of his business skills, Gillette went into an economic boom. He served 10 years in the Wyoming Legislature as both a State representative and a State senator.

When he came here to the Senate, Mike became a leading voice--a leading voice on budgets, on taxes, and on healthcare issues. In 2015, he became the first accountant to ever chair the Budget Committee. He brought to Washington the valuable lessons that he had learned in the Wyoming Legislature, and he put them to use right here

He would say: Like American families, Wyoming has to balance its budget every year, live within our means, and so should America.

Under Mike's leadership, Congress passed three consecutive balanced budget regulations. During his time as chairman, Congress also passed the largest tax cuts and reforms in a generation. And those tax cuts gave us the best economy of our lifetimes.

Mike also chaired the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee in the Senate. As chairman, he spearheaded the most significant pension reform in 30 years. Mike's legacy in the U.S. Senate also included improving mine safety, helping in the AIDS epidemic in Africa, passing mental health parity.

His highest priority, of course, was always helping the people of Wyoming. Over his 24 years in office, Mike and his capable staff helped the people of Wyoming through more than 15,000 pieces of casework. They helped veterans get the benefits that they had earned. They helped seniors get Social Security. They helped people become naturalized citizens.

When he announced his retirement, he said:

I am an advocate for Gillette and Campbell County and

Wyoming.

He said:

Everyone lives at the local level. No one lives at the

Federal level, or even the State level.

He said:

Diana and I are your Chamber of Commerce and your economic

development people for every town and county in Wyoming all

the time.

Mike started several annual events in Wyoming to boost Wyoming. One was the Inventors Conference; another, the Procurement Conference; and then Wyoming Works tour.

In 2009, Mike and I started Wyoming Wednesdays. This is when people from around Wyoming come to Washington, and we get together--our delegation--for coffee, for donuts, and for fellowship. We are proud to continue the tradition today.

Above all, Mike was a moral leader in the Senate. He taught Sunday school for decades and he learned from the best. Mike's first Sunday school teacher was in Thermopolis, WY, and his teacher was my wife Bobbi's mother, Jerry Brown. Mike Enzi was her star pupil. She actually gave Mike his first Bible.

Well, that benefited all of us because, decades later, Mike Enzi became a leader of our bipartisan Senate prayer breakfast. As a member of that group, I saw firsthand how Republican and Democrat Senators looked to Mike Enzi for moral and ethical guidance. He was a guiding light.

On my first day in the Senate, Mike gave me this book. It is called ``One Quiet Moment,'' and it is a daily prayer devotion. This is how he inscribed it in 2007. He said:

John, here's a book that has helped me through 11 years of

the Senate. It's amazing how often the message of the day

relates to what's going on in my life.

He said:

These messages provide strength.

Mike Enzi--June 26, 2007.

So the message of the day provides strength. Let us turn to July 27, today. The message is from Philippians. The message is three words: ``I press on.'' The message of today: ``I press on.''

It goes down to the bottom, and it says:

My steps forward today may be small, but at least they are

steps off dead center. Keep me moving, Lord!

It is Mike's message through this book for us to press on. As I said, Mike Enzi was a moral compass for many of us, and he always pointed True North.

He was a friend and a mentor to me, to so many Senators on both sides of the aisle over 24 years. He knew how to find common ground and bring people together better than any.

It was rare for an Enzi bill to receive fewer than 80 votes. This was by design. Mike called it his 80-20 rule. He learned in the Wyoming State Legislature. At the beginning of each year, each member of his committee made a list of their priorities. Most years there was bipartisan agreement on 80 percent of the priorities. Mike Enzi would then focus on that 80 percent on which they agreed, and he would leave out the 20 percent on which they disagreed. As a result of this approach, Mike Enzi wrote more than 80 bills which were signed into law by four different Presidents in the United States, two Republicans and two Democrats. I was proud to cosponsor many of those bills with him here in the Senate.

Yet for all of Mike's achievements in business and in government, we will miss him most as a friend. Following his retirement, Mike did an interview with Wyoming Public Broadcasting. He said there wasn't much he would miss about Washington, DC. He said it was the people whom he would miss the most.

Mike had a dedicated, hard-working, and loyal staff. Some of them returned to Wyoming, others still serve in this body today, and a number have joined us on the floor. Mike gave much of the credit for his success to these folks. I know they are all feeling a huge loss today.

Mike used to say there aren't many things better than being a Senator from Wyoming, but he used to joke that two of them are fly fishing and being a grandfather. Mike had a great

love of nature, which is easy when you live in Wyoming. Mike was an accomplished and avid fly fisherman. In fact, in August of 2015, he achieved every fly fisherman's dream. He completed something known as Wyoming's Cutt-Slam. This is a Wyoming Game and Fish Department program, which increases appreciation for our native cutthroat trout.

Yet Mike would tell you the achievement that he was most proud of, of course, is family. He is survived by his wife Diana; his children Amy, Emily, and Brad; and his grandchildren Megan, Allison, Trey, and Lilly.

When he retired earlier this year, Mike said: ``None of this would have happened without Diana. The best thing that ever happened to me,'' he said, is when she said she would marry him.

Diana is a wonderful person. She used to host an annual Christmas cookie party here in the Senate. She did it to say thank you to all of those whom she called the real workers: the janitors, the cleaning crew, the electricians, the police officers, the food service workers, and her staff. Every year, Diana and her friends baked hundreds of dozens of cookies. My wife Bobbi often joined in the cooking of literally thousands of cookies of all varieties and all made with loving care. It was so popular around here that people used to walk up to Diana and Mike in the hallway and ask: When is the party?

It had been a tremendous privilege for my wife Bobbi and me to serve for 13 years with Mike and Diana, representing Wyoming in the U.S. Senate. The people of Wyoming will always be extremely grateful-- grateful for his decades of faithful, tireless service.

May God bless the memory of Mike Enzi. May God comfort his family during this extremely trying time. And may God continue to bless the State of Wyoming.

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

I ask unanimous consent to be able to use a prop during my remarks.

Madam President, I come to the floor today to strongly oppose the nomination of Tracy Stone-Manning.

I want to focus my remarks now on the misleading and false statements that Tracy Stone-Manning has made to the Senate and how they just don't align with the facts.

On her committee questionnaire, which is a sworn affidavit that every nominee fills out, the committee clearly asks: Have you ever been investigated?

Tracy Stone-Manning said she had not.

On the same document, she also stated that she testified for a grand jury about an alleged tree spiking. Well, these statements are not true, and Ms. Stone-Manning knows it.

Tree spiking involves hammering a metal spike, like this one, into the trunk of a tree. Ecoterrorists use spikes like this. This is something they do to prevent loggers from harvesting trees. If a saw blade hits that spike, it destroys the saw, and metal shrapnel flies in every direction. The results can be catastrophic.

The trees in the Clearwater National Forest were spiked in 1989. Individuals were found guilty of this crime, and a local sawmill was damaged as a result of the spikes. Some of the trees standing today are still spiked and can still do damage to loggers and firefighters. These are serious dangers and damages that can occur to people still today.

If there is a forest fire in the Clearwater National Forest, a smoke jumper may need to cut down trees to slow the spread of the fire. If that person hits a spike with a chain saw, it could kill or maim the firefighter. Worse still, Tracy Stone-Manning knew who the ecoterrorists were, and she could have turned them in at the start.

In 1989, she edited, typed, and sent this vile, threatening letter to the men and women of the U.S. Forest Service. She did it on behalf of the tree spikers. The letter included lines like:

You bastards go in there anyway and a lot of people could

get hurt.

She went on:

I would be more than willing to pay you a dollar for the

sale, but you would have to find me first, and that could be

your WORST nightmare.

Tracy Stone-Manning has said since the incident that she mailed this disturbing, threatening letter to warn people of the danger of the spiked trees. But she didn't go to the authorities. No, she did not. She did not go to the police. No, not at all. She took extraordinary steps to ensure that she and the tree spikers would never get caught.

If she had gone to the police, the Forest Service would have been much better able to identify the spiked trees. Instead, she covered up for the criminals for years. All the while, these trees remain spiked and remain incredibly dangerous.

Ms. Stone-Manning told our committee that she was never investigated. Well, that was a lie. Following the tree spiking in 1989, she was subpoenaed by investigators to provide hair samples, fingerprints, writing samples, and other physical evidence.

These are criminal investigators. Press articles at the time confirm this fact, as do the court documents obtained by the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. This is further verified by the letter that our committee received by the lead criminal investigator for the U.S. Forest Service, Mr. Michael Merkley. We received this letter after she had testified in front of the Senate committee a few months ago.

He wrote:

. . . the grand jury issued subpoenas for hair samples,

handwriting exemplars, and fingerprints. These subpoenas were

served on persons suspected of having knowledge of the

incident, including Ms. Tracy Stone-Manning.

But don't take his word for it. Let's listen to the words of Tracy Stone-Manning herself. In a 1990 article about law enforcement's investigation at the University of Montana, she complained about how the investigation made her feel.

She said:

It was degrading. It changed my awareness of the power of

the government.

Through this entire period, she did not tell the truth to the investigators. Remember, she knew who spiked the trees. She sent a threatening letter to them. She never went to the police, and she never identified the ecoterrorists. She also didn't cooperate.

The lead investigator says in his letter that the committee has received since the time she testified to the committee a few months ago--he said:

Through this initial investigation in 1989, Ms. Stone-

Manning was extremely difficult to work with; in fact she was

the nastiest of suspects. . . . she was vulgar, antagonistic,

and extremely anti-government.

He goes on to say she refused to comply with the investigation until she learned she would be arrested if she did not.

But the investigation of Tracy Stone-Manning did not end in 1989 with the subpoenas. In December of 1992, after years of her covering up for the ecoterrorists, she was identified as the one who sent the threatening letter. A woman connected with the group came forward and gave her name to investigators.

Mr. Merkley writes, again, in this letter we received since Stone- Manning

has testified in her committee hearing in the Senate--he writes:

[A]s a result of Ms. Lilburn's testimony, the grand jury

sent Tracy Stone-Manning a target letter, which meant she was

going to be indicted on criminal charges for her active

participation in planning these crimes.

Her lawyer then negotiated an immunity deal. She would testify against the individuals who spiked the trees. And she knew she could have been charged.

In an interview published in a 1983 article in ``The Missoulian,'' Stone-Manning said that she could have been charged with conspiracy if not for the immunity deal.

Remember, she told the Senate she had never been investigated. She was subpoenaed for physical evidence. She was investigated. She didn't cooperate with investigators. She complained to the press about being investigated, and she covered up for the ecoterrorists for years until she was caught. But that wasn't her only lie. On our committee's questionnaire for the record, I asked her:

Did you have personal knowledge of, participate in, or in

any way directly or indirectly support activities associated

with the spiking of trees in any forest during your lifetime?

In any forest during your lifetime?

She responded:

No.

Everyone knows that is a lie. She sent their letter. She knew who they were. She supported their activities. The lead investigator's letter makes clear she knew the plan to spike the trees in the Idaho forest in advance.

He wasn't the only one--this lead criminal investigator wasn't the only one to say she knew so in advance. One of the convicted tree spikers, one of the people who went to jail in this episode, he told E&E News--again, since the hearing and since the letter has come out, just in the last couple weeks, the convicted tree spiker says: ``She knew about it far in advance, a couple of months before we headed out.''

He continued: ``She had agreed to mail the letter well in advance.''

To be clear, after Tracy Stone-Manning had her confirmation hearing here in the Senate earlier this year, two people with direct knowledge came forward. One was the cop--the criminal investigator who investigated the crime. The other was the criminal who was convicted. Both the cop and the criminal say she lied.

Ms. Stone-Manning helped plan the tree spiking. She knew about it in advance. She sent a threatening letter to the Forest Service. She was investigated. She collaborated with ecoterrorists. She lied to the Senate.

Lying to the U.S. Senate has consequences. In this case, her actions and her lies should cost her this nomination.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I come to the floor this afternoon because we have heard a lot here today about Tracy Stone-Manning, her nomination to head the Bureau of Land Management, and how completely disqualified she is for that post.

As you have heard, it is a critically important Agency, especially for those of us in Western States. It manages almost one-eighth of the entire land mass of the United States. In my home State of Wyoming, the Bureau of Land Management oversees 18 million acres. If you came to the Energy Committee, and as I told my friend and colleague Joe Manchin, that is more territory than the entire State of his home State of West Virginia; and in the case of the Presiding Officer, more than the size of your State by a lot.

It is not just my State. This Agency oversees 12 million acres of public land in Arizona, 48 million acres of land in Nevada, and 8 million in Montana. It is like that all across the West. Included in the land that it manages is almost 65 million acres of Federal forests.

The Bureau is also responsible for hundreds of millions of acres of mineral land below the surface. It is critical to America's energy independence. There is a lot of energy that is under those lands.

Tracy Stone-Manning has no business leading this agency--none whatsoever. She helped plan a tree spiking in one of our country's National Forests. She sent a threatening letter to the U.S. Forest Service about it. She did not cooperate with Federal investigators, blocked the investigation, only testified when she received immunity, and lied to our committee about it.

There is bipartisan concern about this nomination. I will tell you Bob Abbey, who was President Obama's Director of Bureau of Land Management, said that her actions ``should disqualify'' her. This is President Obama's nominee to run that Bureau. Because Bob Abbey understands the job and knows her involvement with tree spiking, it should eliminate her from any consideration.

So Steve Ellis, who was the Deputy Director of the Bureau of Land Management during the Obama administration, and he was the highest ranking career official at the Agency, he raised concerns about Stone- Manning as well. This is what he said. He said:

Much of the focus seems to be whether this is a Democrat or

Republican thing, but [he said] the lens that I look at this

through is as a 38-year career person in both agencies, and

that letter she wrote went to my Forest Service colleagues on

the Clearwater.

He makes a very important point. How can the men and women of the Bureau of Land Management, people who have devoted their lives to work for this Agency, how can they respect President Biden's nominee, Tracy Stone-Manning, when they know she threatened their colleagues at the U.S. Forest Service?

Conservation organizations have begun to pull their support as well. The Dallas Safari Club and the Houston Safari Club, which each represent thousands of outdoorsmen and -women have both now reversed their support and now publicly oppose her nomination now that they have learned this additional information.

Radical ideas are nothing new for Tracy Stone-Manning. Around the time of the criminal tree spiking, she wrote her graduate thesis. In her thesis, she argued that Americans need to have fewer children because children are a threat to the environment. She even made ads to promote these ideas. These are ideas you hear in Communist China, not from a nominee to be the Director of the Bureau of Land Management.

Now, some Democrats have defended Tracy Stone-Manning by saying this tree spiking was decades ago. Her radical views have not changed, I will assure you, Mr. President, because right now many States in the West are burning from raging, dangerous wildfires.

Management of these fires has become a constant conservation--or conversation at the Energy and Natural Resources Committee and on the Senate floor, and we actually discussed it this morning in the Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

Tracy Stone-Manning has current views on this one as well. Her husband, Richard Manning, wrote in Harpers that firefighters should let homes built in forests burn. He wrote:

There's a rude and satisfying justice [satisfying justice]

in burning down the house of someone who builds in the

forest.

Now, Tracy Stone-Manning is not responsible for the views of her husband. But last September, as wildfires burned last year--and we had hearings on those--she actually endorsed her husband's views on letting it burn and letting the houses burn. In a tweet, she called her husband's comments a clarion call. It wasn't 30 years ago. It is about 10 months ago. Tracy Stone-Manning endorsed her husband's call to action that homes in the forest should be allowed to burn.

There are currently wildfires burning in Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, California, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. All of these States have BLM lands. This year's largest fire, the Bootleg fire, has burned over 400,000 acres, 7 homes, and more than 40 other buildings. Thousands of homes are still threatened.

This year, around 2 million acres have burned so far in the Western States. Last year alone, wildfires burned and damaged over 17,000 structures.

And what do they call it--what does her husband call it, and what does she tweet about? ``Satisfying justice in burning down the house.''

How can Senate Democrats vote to confirm a nominee who has advocated to let the homes of their own constituents burn?

These views are disturbing and dangerous. President Biden has made the threat of domestic terrorism a focus of his administration. His own National Security Council recently released a strategy to address domestic terrorism. It specifically includes the threat of domestic environmental terrorists. But he has nominated someone who admitted to conspiring with terrorists.

Every Senator needs to consider carefully if they want their name associated with Tracy Stone-Manning. All 10 Republicans on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee have asked President Biden to withdraw the nomination. We all voted against her nomination last week during a committee business meeting.

She conspired with ecoterrorists. She lied to the Senate. She still holds radically reprehensible views.

Tracy Stone-Manning should never be the Director of the Bureau of Land Management. The Senate must reject her nomination. I strongly oppose her nomination and urge each and every Member to do the same.

I yield the floor.