Floor Statements

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate resume legislative session and be in a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Foreign Relations be discharged and the Senate now proceed to S. Res. 72.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding rule XXII, and at a time to be determined by the majority leader, in consultation with the Democratic leader, on Friday, March 14, the Senate resume consideration of Calendar No. 18, S. 331; further, that all postcloture time on the bill be expired and the Grassley amendment No. 1237 be withdrawn; further, that the bill be read a third time and the Senate vote on passage of the bill; finally, that if passed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 10 a.m., Friday, March 14, 2025; that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed, and notwithstanding rule XXII, the Senate proceed to executive session and resume consideration of Calendar No. 35; further, that at 10:45 a.m., the Senate vote on cloture on the Feinberg nomination and if cloture is invoked, the postcloture time expire at 1:15 p.m. and the Senate vote on confirmation of the Feinberg nomination; further, that the Senate resume consideration of Calendar No. 18, S. 331, as under the previous order; and following disposition of the bill, the Senate vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to Calendar No. 26, H.R. 1968; finally, that if any nominations are confirmed during Friday's session, the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

Madam President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask that it stand adjourned under the previous order.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to Calendar No. 26, H.R. 1968.

Mr. President, yesterday, I came to the floor to discuss the terrible human cost of fentanyl: the lives lost, the families changed, the futures destroyed. In 2022, we lost 295 people a day to drug overdoses, the vast majority of them opioids and, specifically, fentanyl. Twenty-two teenagers died each week that same year from drug overdoses. That is like losing an entire high school classroom every week.

The majority of drug overdoses in this country are from fentanyl, and a lot of illegal fentanyl comes across our southern border in the form of fentanyl analogs, which are versions of fentanyl created with slight chemical variations in an attempt to dodge law enforcement. So getting this crisis under control requires targeting that flow of drugs.

That starts, of course, with securing our southern border so the cartels can't hide behind a flood of illegal immigration and so that the Border Patrol is free to focus on cross-border crime.

In just a few short weeks, President Trump has made major progress on this front, dramatically slowing illegal crossings and taking significant steps to halt the flow of fentanyl across our borders.

Now it is Congress's turn. The bill before us today, the HALT Fentanyl Act, would permanently classify fentanyl analogs--the fentanyl that cartels are making--as schedule I substances. In other words, fentanyl analogs would be permanently listed as the deadliest type of drug, and that would ensure that law enforcement agencies have the greatest flexibility to combat the scourge of fentanyl and hold accountable those who trade in destroying lives.

During his first term, President Trump temporarily classified fentanyl analogs as schedule I substances. And because it is so important, Congress has extended that classification several times. Now, it is time to make it permanent.

I was very pleased that we had a robust bipartisan vote, last week, on moving to this bill, and I hope that same bipartisanship is reflected in the final vote. There could hardly be a more commonsense piece of legislation, and every Member of this body should be able to agree that fentanyl analogs, which have been responsible for so many overdose deaths, should be classified as schedule I drugs.

The fentanyl crisis affects every corner of society and every State in the Union, and my State of South Dakota is no exception. Last year, in Sioux Falls, police seized enough fentanyl to kill 2.5 million people--2.5 million--and that was in just one South Dakota city.

I am grateful to Senators Cassidy, Grassley, and Heinrich for introducing this legislation and to other Senators, like Senator Johnson and Senator Graham, whose work has drawn attention to the fentanyl crisis. I hope that, in the next few days, Senators of both parties will unite to pass the HALT Fentanyl Act and ensure that law enforcement has critical tools to combat this crisis, protect our cities, and protect our children.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Madam President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Madam President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 35.

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

Madam President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

What is the pending business?

Madam President, I send a cloture motion to the desk for the motion to proceed.

Madam President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 36.

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