Floor Statements

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Environment and Public Works be discharged from further consideration and the Senate now proceed to S. Res. 454.

Mr. 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.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 471, which is at the desk.

Mr. 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 with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 10 a.m. on Wednesday, October 29; that following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in day, and the Senate be in a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each; that if Senator Sullivan makes a motion to proceed to S.J. Res. 80, the Senate vote on the motion at 11:30 a.m. and, if agreed to, that all time be deemed expired and the Senate vote on passage no earlier than Thursday, October 30; that following the vote on the motion to proceed to S.J. Res. 80, the Senate execute the order of October 28 in relation to Executive Calendar No. 457, Edmund G. LaCour, Jr.; further, that if Senator Kennedy makes a motion to proceed to S.J. Res. 69, the Senate vote on the motion at 2:15 p.m.

Mr. President, for the information of my colleagues, Senators should expect two votes at 11:30 a.m., one vote at 2:15 p.m., and a further vote later in the afternoon.

Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask that it stand adjourned under the previous order following the remarks of Senator Blumenthal.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to Calendar No. 168, H.R. 5371.

Mr. President, ``There is a time and a place to debate healthcare, just like there is a time and place to debate energy policy and immigration and education--but not''--not--``when the funding of the federal government, and all the lives that are impacted by it, hang in the balance.''

There is a time and a place to debate healthcare . . . but

not when the funding of the federal government, and all the

lives that are impacted by it, hang in the balance.

Those are not my words; those are the words of the junior Democrat Senator from Connecticut back in 2013.

There is a time and a place to debate healthcare . . . but

not when the funding of the federal government, and all the

lives that are impacted by it, hang in the balance.

These words were once emblematic of the Democrat position here in the Senate. Democrats once passionately opposed shutdowns--or so they said--in large part because of the impact they would have on American citizens and American workers.

Now? Well, now, government workers and every other American affected by this shutdown have become nothing more than pawns in the Democrats' political games.

On Friday, Federal workers missed their entire paychecks. The next paycheck for our troops--for our troops, Mr. President--is in jeopardy. And more than 40 million Americans could lose access to food stamps if the shutdown continues--40 million. Yet none of it seems to matter to Senate Democrats. The party that once decried the impact of shutdowns on Americans in need is now apparently content to see 40 million Americans go without food.

The senior Democrat Senator from Vermont was on TV the other day, and one of the hosts suggested that Members of Congress should refuse to take their paychecks during a shutdown. And what did the senior Democrat Senator from Vermont say? He said some Members of Congress couldn't afford to go without pay. That is right. Some Members of Congress couldn't afford to go without pay. Does he think that other Americans can?

The junior Democrat Senator from Arizona told NBC News during the beginning of the shutdown that he couldn't afford to miss his paycheck. That was his quote:

I'm not wealthy, and I have three kids. I would basically

be missing, you know, mortgage payments, rent payments, child

support. So it is not feasible, not gonna happen.

What on Earth does he think is happening to Federal workers and other Americans out of work because of the Democrat shutdown? Does he think they don't have mortgage payments, rent payments, school expenses, electric bills? If some Members of Congress can't afford to miss a paycheck, how much more is that true for the many workers making a lot less than Members of Congress pull down?

The junior Democrat Senator from Minnesota stated she would not be forgoing her pay because she is continuing to work--because she is continuing to work.

Do Democrats even hear themselves?

She does realize, right, that a lot of other people are continuing to work and have been working without pay now for 4 weeks, thanks to her actions and those of her Democrat colleagues? How many of those workers are going to miss their rent payments or mortgage payments before Democrats are satisfied?

``Shutdowns aren't victimless crimes,'' the senior Democrat from Virginia said--less than a year ago, I might add.

Mr. President, Democrats' victims are piling up, and Democrats don't look likely to spare anyone anytime soon. In fact, they are freely admitting it. The second ranking Democrat in the House of Representatives said recently:

Of course there will be families who are going to suffer. .

. . But it is one of the few leverage times we have.

``But it is one of the few leverage times we have.''

I guess the Americans currently lining up at food banks can comfort themselves with the knowledge that they are being sacrificed to advance Democrats' political goals.

If you ask Democrats the reason for the 180-degree flip in their views on shutdowns, if you challenge them to explain their hypocrisy, I suspect you wouldn't get much of an answer. I suspect that, at best, Democrats would bleat something about how this shutdown is a special case--right?

A special case--it is always a special case with the Democrats. A historic blockade of Presidential nominees--well, that was a special case. Ignore anything that you ever said about shutdowns right here on the floor of the Senate--well, this is a special case.

I will tell you what is actually special about this case. What is special about this case is the Democrats' far-left base demanded a showdown with President Trump, and Democrats have abandoned every principle that they possess relating to shutdowns to give it to their base.

While some Democrats may be privately uncomfortable about all the damage a 4-week shutdown is doing, so far, they are too scared of their base to do anything about it.

Democrats claim that this shutdown is about addressing the expiring Obamacare subsidies. That is not what this is really about. If this were really what this is about, the Democrats would be voting to reopen the government so that we could actually engage in a serious discussion about rising healthcare costs and how Obamacare has failed to address them. But they are not because, at the end of the day, Democrats don't want a solution; they want a political issue.

And if countless hard-working Americans are sacrificed in the process?

Of course, there will be families that are going to suffer.

. . . But it is one of the few leverage times we have.

Apparently, that is just fine with the Democrats here in the Senate.

Mr. President, we will be voting once again, this week, to reopen the government--to reopen the government, restore hard-working Americans' paychecks, protect nutrition programs, support critical services like air traffic control, and that list goes on and on and on. And Democrats will have a 13th chance to vote on a clean, nonpartisan funding bill that will reopen the government. All we need are five Democrats to join the three who are with us already, and we could have the government open in a matter of hours.

It is that simple. The solution is sitting right at that desk. The bill that passed the House a month ago is sitting at this desk and has been now for a month. We have repeatedly called it up and asked us to vote on it. Every time, we get 55 Senators voting for it. Everybody knows the rules. The Senate requires 60. But that bill, with five courageous Democrats stepping forward in helping us pass it, could be on the President's desk, signed into law, and this government reopens. It could happen today. It could happen this afternoon. Let's just hope that somewhere those courageous Democrats exist.

Shutdowns, even partial ones, are as devastating as they

are stupid.

That was what the senior Democrat from Virginia said just last year. So how do you justify what you are doing now?

It is up to them, Mr. President. We can do it, and we can do it today.

I yield the floor.

Recognition of the Minority Leader

Mr. President, there was a time when Democrats opposed government shutdowns. And not just opposed, Democrats were critical of holding government funding hostage to political demands.

Our Democratic colleague from Michigan said that funding the government is ``Congress' most basic responsibility.''

The senior Senator from Massachusetts, a leading Democrat, said:

The least we can do--the bare minimum that we can do--would

be to pass a ``continuing resolution'' to keep the doors open

and the lights on.

And the Democrat leader, just last year, described the ``chaos and pain and needless heartache'' that a shutdown brings to American families.

So what has changed? Why are Democrats, in 2025, suddenly comfortable shutting down the government, subjecting Americans to all that chaos, pain, and heartache that the Democrat leader described? Why did Democrats instigate the longest full government shutdown in history?

Well, they would like you to believe it is about healthcare. It is not. Republicans have been perfectly clear that we are willing to have a discussion about healthcare, just not while government funding is being held hostage--and all the Federal employees that come with that.

So if this were really about healthcare, Democrats would be voting in favor of the clean CR as the quickest way to open the government and start the discussions.

But that is not where we are, and that is because what is really driving Democrats isn't healthcare. It is not a desire for negotiations. It is politics and far-left activists who demanded a showdown with President Trump.

The real reason we are now in the longest full government shutdown in history is because Democrats are afraid of backlash from the far left if they stand down. One Democrat Senator was quoted this week saying:

``People are going to get hammered'' if they vote for the

House-passed bill to reopen the government and keep it funded

through Nov. 21.

``People are going to get hammered'' if they vote for the clean continuing resolution. That is from a Democrat Senator--hammered by outside groups, hammered by leftwing political activists.

Or take it from one of the organizers of Saturday's No Kings rally, who said:

I'm telling every elected I talk to:--

That is every elected official that I talked to--

millions will be out cheering you on, or they'll be calling

for new leadership.

Democrats are keeping the government shut down because they are scared--scared of a primary from the left, scared of losing fundraising dollars, scared that the far left will punish them if they don't appear to be fighting President Trump hard enough.

Unfortunately, Democrats' political games are having real consequences. Airport tower staffing shortages have caused thousands-- thousands--of flight delays nationwide. Medicare patients and people in rural areas are dealing with the elimination of telehealth services. Military families have turned to food banks in ``unprecedented'' numbers.

And things are about to get worse. The nutrition assistance programs that millions of Americans depend on to feed their families are in jeopardy.

And, tomorrow, Federal workers will miss a full paycheck because of the Democrat shutdown. That is right. Tomorrow, Federal workers will miss a full paycheck, thanks to Senate Democrats.

Republicans want to do something about this. We would love to pass the clean, continuing, nonpartisan resolution, which would pay everyone. It passed the House a long time ago. We have voted on it 12 times here now. They continue, with three exceptions, to block-vote against it. Twelve times now, Democrats have blocked just paying our Federal employees.

It is Federal employees all throughout the Federal workforce, which literally is millions of Americans. But it is people right here. People in this Chamber, people in this building had to stay here the night before last, all night--all night--to listen to some Democrats drone on. One Democrat Senator read the same poem four times.

They were here all night, not getting paid. Three hundred thirty- five, exactly, Federal employees, in this building, had to stay here all night, work through the night and into the next day, so they could make some campaign political speech or point, in the middle of the night, that nobody is listening to, obviously--which is why, I guess, you read the same poem four times--four different times--reading from books, while the people sitting here, doing the work, aren't getting paid.

And so, today, we are going to have a vote on Senator Ron Johnson's bill that would guarantee pay for Federal employees who are working through the shutdown. The 335 people who had to be here, the night before last, to listen to that--they would finally get paid. It is also people like air traffic controllers, TSA agents, park rangers, Federal law enforcement, ICE, Border Patrol--people putting their lives at risk to keep Americans safe.

So we will see what Democrats do. Do they think people that are working ought to get paid?

Well, to date, Democrats have rejected every opportunity they have been given to put the American people ahead of their far-left base.

As I said, they have rejected a clean CR now 12 times--a CR, continuing resolution--that would fund the government until November 21 to give us time to finish the appropriations process, a clean CR, a CR that has no partisan riders, no policy gimmicks that came over from the House, just clean, fund the government straight up. It is sitting right here at the desk of the U.S. Senate.

Five Democrats could help us pass it today. We could send it to the President; he would sign it into law; the government opens up; and all the people here and across our Federal Government would get paid.

Last week, Democrats blocked the bipartisan Defense appropriations bill that would have paid our troops. It came out of the Senate Appropriations Committee by a vote of 26 to 3, very bipartisan on the floor. It should have been. It usually is. It usually gets 80-plus votes on the floor of the Senate, but they blocked it. It would have paid our troops, the Defense appropriations bill.

So today, we are going to have another opportunity to show whether they stand on the side of hard-working Americans or remain beholden to their far-left base. We heard Democrats this week criticize Senator Johnson's bill because it would provide pay only to

workers who continue to work through the shutdown. They say they want everybody to get paid.

I have great news for them. The clean continuing resolution sitting at the desk would pay everybody--everybody. We just need five more Democrats to support it. Five more gets us to 60. It takes a supermajority in the Senate. Democrats are the only thing standing in the way of the outcome that they say they want, which is for everybody to get paid.

The clean, nonpartisan continuing resolution sits right there at the desk. President Trump is ready to sign it. The shutdown could be over in a matter of hours if just five Democrats would agree.

But, unfortunately, the shadow of the Democrats' far-left base continues to stand in the way. You don't have to take it from me. As one source familiar with Democrats' thinking told The Hill this week, ``We would have enough votes to reopen the government if people were not terrified of getting the guillotine.''

``We would have enough votes to reopen the government if Democrats were not terrified of getting the guillotine.''

We just need five more Democrats to show some courage. This was a statement made yesterday by a Democrat House Member. Sometimes people around here say the quiet part out loud--sometimes it is just subconsciously--and this is what she said. She is a Member of the Democratic leadership in the House of Representatives:

Of course there will be families that are going to suffer .

. . but it is one of the few leverage times we have.

Boy, just take that in. Take that in:

Of course there will be families that are going to suffer.

But we don't want to give up our leverage. Leverage for what?

Leverage for what?

We need five Democrats to show a little courage. Reopen the government, and let's get to work.

I yield the floor.

Recognition of the Minority Leader

Mr. President, I enter a motion to reconsider.

Mr. President, just to remind our colleagues, we have had now a series of three votes, with a couple of them on judges, but one of the votes in there was on a Senator Johnson proposal that would have paid all Federal employees who are currently working in the middle of the shutdown.

Now, I don't know how you explain--if you have any Federal employees--how you would vote against something that would make sure, in the middle of a government shutdown, that, if they continue to work, they will get paid. That is all it was--very simple, very straightforward. For the life of me, again, I think the other side is in a very bad headspace right now to vote against something like that.

If you have any Federal employees in your State--obviously, a lot of them are here or are in this area, and all of our staffs are currently not getting paid--Senator Johnson tried to correct that today by calling up a bill, which we just voted on and which, once again, Democrats here in this Chamber voted against.

Now, we have had in front of us a dozen votes now on a continuing resolution that would open up the government, and it has been sitting at the desk now for some time. The House has passed it. We need five Democrats to join us and send it to the President. He will sign it into law. The government opens up. It is clean. It is nonpartisan. It has no policy riders and no partisan gimmicks attached to it. It is a straightforward continuing resolution to fund the government until a certain time.

Senator Johnson's was even more straightforward than that, really, because it simply said, if you are a Federal employee and you are currently working today, like everybody here in this Chamber, you will get paid.

Again, I can't explain what is going on on the other side of the aisle, but they consistently come down here and vote against paying people who are working--who are working every single day--and not getting paid. So that was the vote we had just a couple of votes ago.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Executive Calendar No. 295.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Executive Calendar No. 457.

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

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the morning hour be deemed expired.

I ask unanimous consent that the Journal of proceedings be approved to date.