Floor Statements

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, next year, if Congress fails to act, a typical family will face a $1,700 tax hike. A typical family in South Dakota will face a $2,500 tax hike. Republicans are determined to make sure that doesn't happen.

Later this week, we will consider our reconciliation bill that will prevent that tax hike by extending the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. I say ``extend,'' but we are doing a lot more than just extending the 2017 tax cuts. We are making them permanent. In some cases, we are even improving on them.

Our 2017 tax relief legislation lowered tax rates for every income group. It doubled the child tax credit. It nearly doubled the standard deduction. The bill we are voting on this week will make all of that permanent, and it will go even further when it comes to the child tax credit, increasing it to $2,200 per child and linking it to inflation-- again, permanently.

We are not stopping there. Our bill suspends taxes on tips, boosting the income of millions of Americans who earn tip income. It suspends taxes on overtime pay for millions of American workers, meaning police officers, firefighters, nurses, and others will be able to keep more of what they earn when they spend long hours away from their families. And an increased standard deduction for seniors will allow them to reduce their tax burden even further. The American people have better uses for their hard-earned money than sending it to Uncle Sam. And this bill will permanently ensure Americans can keep more of what they earn.

The other legacy of the 2017 tax cuts is how they boosted our economy by lifting the tax burden on America's job creators. We lowered tax rates for owners of small- and medium-sized businesses, farms and ranches. We made it easier for them to recover the cost of investing in their businesses, which, in turn, freed up cash for them to invest in their operations and their workers. These and other major reforms helped kick-start our economy.

And in the wake of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, our economy grew at a substantially better rate than projected. Real wages increased. Unemployment fell to a 50-year low. The poverty rate fell to the lowest level ever recorded. Business investment increased. Everywhere you looked, there was positive economic news.

Mr. President, we were able to make some of the business tax reforms permanent in 2017. And now we have an opportunity to make the rest of these pro-growth policies permanent. That includes lower rates for small- and medium-sized businesses, the job-creating 199A small business deduction, and full expensing for new equipment and for domestic research and development.

Once again, we are going beyond just making the 2017 tax relief permanent. We are setting our country up for a brighter future by further advancing a pro-opportunity, pro-growth Tax Code.

Our bill includes full expensing for new factories and factory improvements so we can expect to see more growth and more jobs for American workers and more goods made in America. It raises the death tax threshold to $15 million and links it to inflation permanently, which will spare countless family farms, ranches, and small businesses from a potentially devastating tax and the headaches and expense of planning for it.

And an entire generation of Americans will be able to access new investment accounts when they reach adulthood that can be used toward their education, to start a business, to buy their first home, and to get a running start on the American dream.

Mr. President, this is a good bill. It is going to be great for our country. The Council of Economic Advisers, which accurately predicted the economic growth and higher wages in the wake of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, released its forecast of the Senate bill this morning. It contains a lot of good news, starting with as much as 4.9 percent higher GDP in the next few years. That means more jobs. It means bigger paychecks, as much as $10,000 per year for a typical family. It means more opportunity. Believe it or not, it means more revenue, revenue that we bring in in the right way--by growing our economy--not by raising taxes. In fact, the same forecasters who got the effects of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act right are estimating as much as $6 trillion in deficit reduction stemming from the bill's pro-growth policies.

Mr. President, we are well on our way to getting this bill passed this week, which means we are well on our way to a stronger and more prosperous America. That means Americans keeping more of their hard- earned money; it means American businesses growing and investing in our country and our workers; and it means a thriving economy like we had before the pandemic.

Republicans are ready to deliver.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, today I recognize Veblen, SD. The town of Veblen will be celebrating its quasquicentennial July 18-20, 2025. Veblen will host quasquicentennial events, which include a parade, vendor show, street dance, class reunions, fireworks, and much more.

Veblen is located in Marshall County, nestled in the beautiful rolling hills of the Coteau des Prairies in northeastern South Dakota. The Veblen area has long been known as a community surrounded by the natural beauty of the breathtaking Glacial Lakes Region. Home to more than 300 people and multiple businesses, Veblen is known for its rich historical heritage and robust rural spirit. Since its beginning 125 years ago, the community of Veblen continues to serve as a strong example of South Dakota values and traditions.

I offer my congratulations to the citizens of Veblen on its quasquicentennial and wish them continued prosperity in the years to come.

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

Madam President, today marks the third anniversary of the Supreme Court's Dobbs decision, overturning Roe v. Wade and returning the question of abortion to the people and their elected representatives.

Three years on, there is much to celebrate. New protections for unborn Americans now exist in many States, and there are babies alive today who would not be here without Dobbs.

But today is also a reminder of how much work there is still to be done. Other States have enacted aggressively pro-abortion laws, and the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute reports that there were over a million abortions in the United States in 2024. So we still have a lot of work to do to reach a day when every--every--American, born and unborn, enjoys the full protection of the law.

I am sure my Democrat colleagues have plans to commemorate the Dobbs anniversary, not as a day that opened the door to protections for human rights but as a day that opened the door to restrictions on Democrats' most cherished ``freedom,'' and that is the freedom to kill unborn human beings.

I have to say, it is a pretty grim indictment of the moral health of a party when one of its signature issues is promoting the right to kill the youngest and most vulnerable Americans.

As I said, there is still a lot of work to be done, but I am confident that we can get there. I look forward to the day when the life of every American, born and unborn, is protected and when being small and vulnerable does not mean that your human rights are any less respected.

Madam President, we are rapidly approaching floor consideration of our reconciliation bill and the opportunity to make a historic investment in our Nation's security. I think it is difficult to overstate the opportunity that we have here with this bill. With just a single piece of legislation, we have a chance to undo a lot of damage and put our country on a safer footing going forward.

I often say that if we don't get national security right, the rest is conversation. Everything else we do in government--and our very existence as a nation, I might add--depends on getting our security right. But the disturbing fact is that we have let our readiness slip-- to a very troubling level in some instances.

With China beginning to outpace the United States in key defense capabilities and manufacturing, it is especially critical that we act now to prevent the United States from falling behind on the national security front.

Enter our reconciliation bill. While it is no substitute for robust, yearly defense funding, the legislation takes a major step forward in upgrading and updating our national security posture. It invests in shipbuilding, missile defense, defense manufacturing capacity, critical munitions, drones and counter-drone technology, an expanded Air Force fighter fleet, nuclear modernization, U.S. infrastructure in the Pacific, and more.

The past few years have provided an ample reminder that we live in a dangerous world. With this bill, we can put our military--and, thus, our national security--in a much better place going forward, substantially improving our ability to deter and defeat threats.

Madam President, the national defense provisions of our bill alone would make a notable and critically important piece of legislation. But our bill doesn't just make a substantial investment in our national defense. It also makes a generational investment in our border security, which is another key part of protecting our Nation.

Criminals, terrorists, and other dangerous individuals can take advantage of unsecured borders to make their way into our country and take up residence unseen. Iran's recent warning about terrorist sleeper cells in the United States is a timely reminder that there are a lot of hostile nations out there that would like to harm the United States. In the absence of the ability to strike the U.S. mainland via military methods, what better way to harm our country than by smuggling dangerous individuals through our borders to carry out a task. It is a very real danger.

So border security is a key part of national security, and our reconciliation bill makes a generational investment in border security: funding for barriers and technology to secure the border, funding for more Border Patrol agents, funding for more Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to deport dangerous individuals who have already made their way into the United States. It is all there and more. As with the national defense components, the border security components of this bill would be an impressive piece of legislation by themselves, but we have an amazing opportunity to do them both.

And they are paired with still another security investment, this one in our energy security. Energy security doesn't always get the same attention as border security and national defense, but it, too, plays a key role in keeping our Nation secure. As European countries discovered, to their cost, after Russia invaded Ukraine, relying on energy from hostile countries or unstable regions of the world is not a winning proposition. The best way to keep a country--and an economy-- secure is to have a secure, stable, and abundant domestic energy supply. The United States is fortunate to have abundant domestic energy resources, but the Biden administration set us up for a future of limited domestic production by sharply curtailing access to those resources. Our bill will undo a lot of that damage and free up energy resources for responsible domestic production.

We have an incredible opportunity with this legislation, a seldom- seen chance to make a real difference to our national security--from military to border, to energy. I am grateful to all those who have worked so hard to develop these portions of the bill, and I look forward to passing this legislation in the very near future.

I yield the floor.

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

Madam President, before I begin my remarks this afternoon, I want to speak briefly about Iran.

For decades, the regime in Iran and its terrorist proxies have sought to sow chaos and violence throughout the Middle East. They threatened ``Death to America'' and to wipe Israel off the map. All the while, the mullahs have pursued a nuclear enrichment program that goes well beyond what is required for peaceful energy purposes.

Madam President, Iran can never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon. This has been the position of President Trump and Members of this body for years.

Since his reelection, President Trump made clear that a peaceful resolution was possible if Iran agreed to give up its nuclear weapons ambitions. Iran's leaders refused.

As a result, on Saturday, the President ordered precise and limited

strikes to go after Iran's nuclear program, consistent with this long- held national security imperative. I am grateful for the professionalism of all of our servicemembers in carrying out this important mission.

Just a few hours ago, Iran launched an attack against our servicemembers in Qatar and Iraq. President Trump has been clear that he is not afraid to hold Iran accountable for any retaliation, and Iran risks going down a dangerous road with these attacks.

Nevertheless, I am glad that the initial reports indicate that no Americans were killed in these strikes. If Iran is considering any further attacks against U.S. forces or interests, it should think long and hard about the consequences.

I look forward to hearing from the administration during tomorrow's all-Senators briefing.

Madam President, we are getting closer to passing a bill that will help make America stronger and more prosperous--a bill that will ensure that working families can keep more of their hard-earned money; that will help small businesses grow and create jobs, strengthen America's farms and ranches, rebuild our military, secure our border, and, of course, unleash American energy. This bill is great news for our entire country, for Americans from every place and walk of life.

But, today, I want to talk about how this bill will help make my home State of South Dakota stronger and more prosperous. That starts with making tax relief permanent.

In 2017, the Republican-led Tax Cuts and Jobs Act meant lower tax bills for South Dakotans. That bill lowered tax rates for every income bracket, doubled the child tax credit, and nearly doubled the standard deduction. But those tax policies are set to expire this year, if Congress doesn't act, which would mean an average South Dakotan would see a $2,500 tax hike next year.

We are not going to let that happen. Our bill will extend the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act's lower tax rates. It will extend the doubled child tax credit. It will extend the nearly doubled standard deduction.

But not just extend them; make them permanent so that no hard-working American has to worry about a looming tax hike again, a few years down the road.

I said we are going to make the $2,000 child tax credit permanent, but we are actually going to go further by increasing the tax credit by another $200. Under the Republicans' bill, the child tax credit will now be $2,200 per child, permanently.

We are also delivering on a number of the President's campaign promises that will provide further relief to hard-working Americans. Under our bill, seniors will be able to reduce their taxes further with a $6,000 boost to their standard deduction. Police officers, firefighters, and hourly workers won't have to pay tax on their overtime pay. Waitresses and busboys will benefit with no tax on tips. And the next generation will be able to access new investment accounts, as adults, that they can use for their education, to buy their first home, to start a business--in short, to get a running start on their American dream.

I could go on, but the bottom line is this: a bigger bottom line for hard-working Americans for the long term, more money in their paychecks, more opportunity, and a brighter future ahead.

Madam President, the 2017 tax reform also helped grow our economy by lifting the tax burden on American businesses. Small businesses, farms, and ranches all benefited from lower tax rates and investment incentives. Tax reform freed up cash that business owners could use to invest in their operations and their workers. And South Dakotans saw those benefits on Main Street and on the farms and ranches that are the lifeblood of our State.

Now Republicans are poised to make many of those reforms permanent. That includes investment incentives, like full expensing for new equipment and for domestic research and development.

It includes the job-creating 199A small business deduction.

It includes raising the death tax exemption to $15 million and linking it to inflation, meaning countless family farms, ranches, and small businesses will be spared the threat of this fundamentally flawed tax and the headaches that come with trying to plan for it.

And, speaking of farms and ranches, in addition to providing farmers and ranchers with tax relief, our bill updates the farm safety net to address some of the challenges farmers and ranchers have been facing.

It increases reference prices for every covered commodity, and it makes these prices more responsive to market conditions in the coming years. It increases crop insurance coverage and affordability, including for farmers just starting out. It supports livestock producers by making existing programs more responsive to drought and by funding the prevention of animal diseases that can devastate livestock. It invests in critical conservation programs, including programs that support South Dakota's wild bird populations, and it supports a bright future for agriculture by funding grants for research at agriculture research institutions and promoting trade for commodities in foreign markets.

America's farmers and ranchers have faced some serious challenges in recent years--some of the toughest, in fact, in recent memory. I am proud that we are addressing their needs in this bill, and I can assure America's ag producers that their priorities will continue to be a priority here in Washington.

There is a lot more I could say about this bill and how it will help South Dakota and our entire country, but before I close, I want to focus on how it will make America more secure.

It makes a downpayment on strengthening our military by investing in the equipment our men and women in uniform need to keep America safe amid today's threats and tomorrow's. That includes expediting the production of the new B-21 long-range strategic bomber, the future backbone of the Air Force's bomber fleet. In the coming years, the B-21 will operate from several locations, including South Dakota's Ellsworth Air Force Base, and it is emblematic of the type of investments this bill is making in our military's future.

This bill also makes a significant investment in our border security, including finishing the border wall.

And, last but not least, it unleashes American energy. It reverses course from the Biden administration's hostility to responsible conventional energy production, and it will help guarantee a secure, stable, and affordable energy supply for American families and businesses and for our national security.

A safer, stronger, and more prosperous America is within reach. We have made a lot of progress on this bill, and it is almost time to vote. I am looking forward to finishing our work and getting these policies in place for the benefit of South Dakota and of our entire country.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, today I recognize Elena Burgwald, an intern in my Washington, DC, office, for all of the hard work she has done for me, my staff, and the State of South Dakota over the past several weeks.

Elena is a graduate of O'Gorman High School in Sioux Falls, SD. Currently, she is attending the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in Lincoln, NE, where she is pursuing a degree in criminal justice. She is a hard worker who has been dedicated to getting the most out of her internship experience.

I extend my sincere thanks and appreciation to Elena for all of the fine work she has done and wish her continued success in the years to come.

Mr. President, today I recognize Maddie Cross, an intern in my Rapid City, SD, office, for all of the hard work she has done for me, my staff, and the State of South Dakota over the past several weeks.

Maddie is a graduate of Spearfish High School in Spearfish, SD. Currently, she is attending the University of South Dakota in Vermillion, SD, where she is majoring in political science and minoring in business administration. She is a hard worker who has been dedicated to getting the most out of her internship experience.

I extend my sincere thanks and appreciation to Maddie for all of the fine work she has done and wish her continued success in the years to come.

Mr. President, today I recognize Elliot Hendrix, an intern in my Washington, DC, office, for all of the hard work he has done for me, my staff, and the State of South Dakota over the past several weeks.

Elliot is a graduate of Stevens High School in Rapid City, SD. Currently, he is attending Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, where he is pursuing a degree in agricultural science. He is a hard worker who has been dedicated to getting the most out of his internship experience.

I extend my sincere thanks and appreciation to Elliot for all of the fine work he has done and wish him continued success in the years to come.

Mr. President, today I recognize Taylor Quinn, an intern in my Washington, DC, office, for all of the hard work he has done for me, my staff, and the State of South Dakota over the past several weeks.

Taylor is a graduate of Lincoln High School in Sioux Falls, SD. Currently, he is attending Augustana University in Sioux Falls, SD, where he is pursuing degrees in government and economics. He is a hard worker who has been dedicated to getting the most out of his internship experience.

I extend my sincere thanks and appreciation to Taylor for all of the fine work he has done and wish him continued success in the years to come.

Mr. President, today I recognize Kaden Schmidt, an intern in my Washington, DC, office, for all of the hard work he has done for me, my staff, and the State of South Dakota over the past several weeks.

Kaden is a graduate of Washington High School in Sioux Falls, SD. Currently, he is attending Iowa State University in Ames, IA, where he is pursuing a degree in aerospace engineering. He is a hard worker who has been dedicated to getting the most out of his internship experience.

I extend my sincere thanks and appreciation to Kaden for all of the fine work he has done and wish him continued success in the years to come.