Floor Statements

Mr. President, I rise today to recognize the 160th anniversary of the Buffalo Soldier regiments and to honor the extraordinary legacy of service, courage, and sacrifice of the Black soldiers who helped shape the U.S. Army and our Nation.

On July 28, 1866, Congress authorized the creation of six all-Black Army regiments as part of the Army's post-Civil War reorganization. These units--the 9th and 10th Cavalry Regiments and the 38th, 39th, 40th, and 41st Infantry Regiments, later consolidated into the 24th and 25th Infantry Regiments--became known as the Buffalo Soldiers. Today, July 28, is observed as Buffalo Soldiers Day.

For nearly nine decades, the Buffalo Soldiers served with distinction despite enduring discrimination and segregation within the very military and country they swore to defend. They fought in the Indian Wars, the Spanish-American War, the Philippine-American War, the Mexican Expedition, World Wars I and II, and the Korean war. Beyond combat, they built roads and telegraph lines, escorted mail and wagon trains, protected communities across the American West, and served as some of our Nation's first park rangers in Yosemite, Sequoia, and General Grant National Parks, where they fought wildfires and protected America's public lands.

Their exemplary service helped lay the foundation for a more inclusive Armed Forces. In 1948, President Harry S. Truman signed Executive Order 9981, beginning the desegregation of the Armed Forces and marking a pivotal step toward equality in military service.

For Arizona, this history carries special significance. Fort Huachuca served as a home station for the 9th and 10th Cavalry Regiments. The 10th Cavalry became the post's garrison regiment in 1913, participated in General John J. Pershing's Mexican Expedition, guarded the southern border during World War I, and served in and around Nogales, where the regiment maintained a squadron-sized camp and patrolled the surrounding border region. The 25th Infantry Regiment later assumed the garrison mission. During World War II, more than 30,000 Black soldiers passed through Fort Huachuca before deploying in service to our Nation. Their service is woven into Arizona's history and remains a lasting source of pride for our State.

As a Navy combat veteran, I know the strength of our military has always come from those willing to serve. The Buffalo Soldiers proved that through decades of dedicated service under some of the most difficult circumstances. Their story reminds us that some of the Americans who sacrificed the most for our country were too often denied the very freedoms and opportunities they fought to defend. Honoring their service means recognizing both their extraordinary military accomplishments and the barriers they overcame in service to our Nation.

I also recognize the descendants, veterans, historians, educators, and community leaders who continue preserving and sharing this important history so that future generations understand the lasting contributions of the Buffalo Soldiers.

On this 160th anniversary, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring the Buffalo Soldiers, remembering their sacrifices, and celebrating their enduring impact on our military and our Nation.

Mr. President, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of James Hong Shee, a respected Arizona community leader whose decades of civic engagement, business leadership, and public advocacy helped strengthen communities across our State.

Born into a Chinese and Spanish American family, Jim developed a lifelong appreciation for Arizona's cultural diversity and the importance of building connections among people from different backgrounds. His family operated the Peking Cafe, a longtime Phoenix restaurant that became a gathering place for residents from throughout the community.

Jim dedicated much of his life to expanding economic opportunity and civic participation in Arizona. In 1993, he founded the Arizona Asian Chamber of Commerce, helping establish an organization that has supported Asian-owned businesses and strengthened Arizona's economy for more than three decades. He also founded the Phoenix Asian-Hispanic Alliance, recognizing the importance of collaboration among Arizona's diverse communities.

Throughout his career, Jim worked to ensure that Arizona's Asian American community had a stronger voice in public affairs. A respected leader and advocate, he encouraged greater participation in business, community organizations, and public service. During periods of significant debate over immigration and civil rights issues in Arizona, he spoke out against policies he believed would divide communities and worked to foster constructive dialogue.

Jim's contributions extended beyond the organizations he founded. He worked with civic, business, and community leaders across Arizona to promote greater understanding and cooperation among the State's diverse communities. His commitment to building relationships across communities earned him the respect of leaders and residents throughout Arizona.

Arizona is stronger because of Jim's leadership, advocacy, and commitment to public service. His work expanded opportunities for others and fostered

connections across communities that will endure for generations.

My thoughts are with Jim's wife Marian, his family, friends, and all those mourning his loss. We honor Jim Shee's life of service and celebrate the lasting impact he had on Arizona and its people.

Mr. President, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of Robert ``Bobby'' Edward Douglas, an Olympian, coach, mentor, and one of the most respected figures in American wrestling.

Born in Bellaire, OH, on March 27, 1942, Bobby Douglas overcame significant adversity early in life and developed the resilience and determination that would define both his athletic and coaching career. Throughout his career, he demonstrated exceptional leadership, discipline, and dedication to the athletes and communities he served.

Coach Douglas was one of the first Black wrestlers to represent the United States at the Olympic Games, competing in the 1964 Tokyo Olympics at a time when opportunities for Black athletes in many sports remained limited. He later served as captain of the 1968 U.S. Olympic wrestling team and earned silver and bronze medals at the World Championships, establishing himself as one of the top wrestlers of his era.

In 1973, Coach Douglas became the first Black head coach of a major college wrestling program when he was hired at the University of California, Santa Barbara. In 1975, he came to Arizona where he helped build Arizona State University into a national wrestling powerhouse and led the Sun Devils to the program's first and only NCAA wrestling national championship in 1988. During his 17 seasons leading the program, ASU produced 59 All-Americans, three NCAA individual champions, Olympians, and generations of student-athletes who carried forward the lessons he taught both on and off the mat. During his time at ASU, Coach Douglas was named Pac-12 Coach of the Year eight times.

Coach Douglas later spent 14 seasons as head coach at Iowa State University, where he accumulated 198 victories and coached 3 teams to runner-up finishes at the NCAA Championships. In 2000, he was named the National Wrestling Coaches Association National Coach of the Year.

His contributions extended far beyond collegiate wrestling. Coach Douglas served for many years as a dedicated coach for USA Wrestling and later served as head coach of the 1992 U.S. Olympic wrestling team, which earned six medals at the Barcelona Olympic Games. He also served as head coach for the U.S. World Championship teams in 1989 and 1991.

Over the course of his career, Coach Douglas became one of only 4 collegiate wrestling coaches to win more than 400 dual matches, finishing with 427 career victories. In 1987, he was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member and later earned induction into the Arizona State University Hall of Fame, the Iowa State Hall of Fame, the Glen Brand Wrestling Hall of Fame, the NAIA Hall of Fame, and the West Liberty Hall of Fame.

Coach Douglas passed away on February 23, 2026, at the age of 83. His passing is a tremendous loss for Arizona, Arizona State University, and the generations of athletes and families whose lives he impacted throughout his career.

Former wrestlers and colleagues consistently described Coach Douglas as disciplined and deeply committed to the success of his athletes. He emphasized accountability, hard work, and

integrity, and he remained dedicated to mentoring young wrestlers long after his collegiate coaching career ended through camps, clinics, and community programs in Arizona and across the country.

Arizona is stronger because of Coach Douglas' leadership, mentorship, and commitment to young people. His legacy will continue to be felt through the athletes, coaches, and families he inspired throughout his remarkable life.

My thoughts are with his wife Jackie Davis Douglas; his son Bobby Douglas, Jr.; his former athletes and colleagues; and all those mourning his loss. We honor Coach Bobby Douglas' lifetime of achievement and celebrate the lasting impact he had on Arizona and our Nation.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that it be in order for Senator Sanders to make motions to discharge S.J. Res. 32 and S.J. Res. 138 from the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Senate debate the motions to discharge concurrently; further, that the following Senators be permitted to speak on the motions to discharge, and upon the use or yielding back of time, the Senate vote on the motions to discharge in the order in which the motions were made: Sanders for up to 20 minutes, Van Hollen for up to 10 minutes, Merkley for up to 5 minutes, Kaine for up to 5 minutes, Markey for up to 5 minutes, and Risch for up to 5 minutes.

Mr. President, later today, we are going to take a vote on the delivery of bulldozers and 1,000-pound bombs to Israel. First, let me say that I cannot and will not abandon Israel. Israel is one of our closest partners. They have a right to defend themselves, and I will always support Israel's right to exist as a successful and prosperous nation.

As the Israeli people face the threat of missile and rocket attacks from Iran and its proxies, that support continues to be important today. Supporting a partner doesn't mean that we don't ask tough questions, and it doesn't mean that we always agree.

Our support for our allies must always be about what makes us stronger and safer, and we can look at what is happening in the region right now and understand that this is not business as usual, and it is not making us safer.

The United States and Israel are fighting a war against Iran without a clear strategy or goal. I have been clear that I oppose this war in Iran and the reckless decisions being made by Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Trump.

Under Prime Minister Netanyahu's government, we have seen an expanded war in Lebanon that is putting innocent Lebanese civilians at risk and ongoing violence against Palestinians and their homes being demolished in the West Bank. All of this--all of this--has undermined the path forward for peace.

That matters when we are making decisions about sending these weapons, including bulldozers, that could be used to level more homes and put a two-state solution further at risk.

I flew 39 combat missions in Operation Desert Storm. I have been trusted with the grave responsibility of using deadly force against our enemies. It is not something I take lightly. Neither is the responsibility we have here.

That is the lens I have looked at these two votes through. We are in a moment where we have to ask ourselves: Does this bring us closer to peace and security?

So, today, I have decided to vote yes on these resolutions to stop these transfers. Our partnership matters for Israel and for the United States. I have been clear about that, and I will continue to be.

Israel must maintain the capabilities and means to protect its people. I am confident they can do that today and will be able to do so in the future with our partnership, and I will always support that.

We have to work together toward a future where the Jewish State of Israel is secure and where there is a durable peace in the region.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, like every American, over the past few weeks, I have watched the videos of Americans being shoved and beaten and pepper-sprayed and shot and killed by Federal immigration agents.

Over the weekend, Americans watched what happened to Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, a U.S. citizen, an ICU nurse at the VA who took care of veterans. He was shot and killed by Federal agents for no good reason. His family lost someone they loved, and it all happened in the blink of an eye.

Before that, it was Renee Good. Renee was a mother and a wife. She was shot and killed in her car, and her family will never see her again.

Two Americans are dead at the hands of their government. That should demand the highest levels of accountability. It is that simple. Instead, this administration has lied to the American people. They have slandered these Americans as terrorists. They have told us not to believe what we see with our own eyes.

They blamed Alex Pretti because he was in lawful possession of a firearm. They have tried to block the investigations into what happened. We also know that these are not isolated incidents.

Just the other day, ICE conducted a series of workplace raids at a sports bar in Phoenix, places where families go to just have some wings and watch a game.

The agents wore masks and tactical gear, and I watched a video of ICE officers doing a driveby, spraying a woman in the face who was just standing on the sidewalk.

They sprayed her with mace. She was not doing anything wrong. They violated her constitutional rights. These are the actions of a rogue Agency that is storming cities, violating the constitutional rights of Americans, and creating volatile situations where tragedies happen.

This is not making Americans safer. It is clearly doing the opposite thing, and it has to stop. I am the son of two police officers. From a very young age, I learned that law enforcement should exist to serve and protect people.

We can enforce our laws without this chaos. We can enforce our laws without Federal agents killing people--killing people in the streets of American cities.

We should demand that, as Senators, as Republicans and Democrats, as Americans. We should all demand better. And we should use our power to make that happen. That is why I will not vote for the Department of Homeland Security budget this week, because that Agency needs an overhaul from the top down and the bottom up.

That is why the head of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, and the guy who everybody knows is actually making the decisions and calling the shots and running the show, Stephen Miller--both of them should be out of jobs because they have lost the trust of the American people.

And that is why I introduced the Stop Excessive Force in Immigration Act to rein in and stop this abuse of power. This bill sets limits on the use of force and the use of firearms by immigration agents.

It restricts the use of tear gas, flash-bang grenades, and pepper balls. It requires body cameras to be used, and it restricts the use of face masks. It requires accountability and transparency so that when somebody is hurt or killed, the American people will get some answers. This is pretty basic stuff. It should be what all Americans expect from law enforcement, and it should be something that both Republicans and Democrats alike can support, because I believe that we are better than this. I believe we can keep communities safe without this chaos. But that depends on all of us stepping up right now, at this moment, before another American ends up dead in the streets.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, 16 years after the Supreme Court's disastrous Citizens United decision, families across Arizona are paying more for groceries, rent, gas, and healthcare. And they are wondering why the people they elect to represent them always seem to have time for the priorities of billionaires and big corporations but not enough time for them.

That question did not come out of nowhere; it came from lived experience. Hard-working Americans are doing everything right. They are working longer hours. They are budgeting carefully. They are raising their families. And they are just trying to stay afloat, but they are still falling behind. That is why we are here today.

In 2010, the Supreme Court handed down a decision that put a ``for sale'' sign on our democracy. The Citizens United ruling opened the door for corporations and billionaires to spend unlimited amounts of money to influence our elections, often without the public ever knowing who is behind it.

The Court decided that spending money on elections is the same thing as political speech and that corporations should have the same political

rights as individual Americans. Does that make any sense?

The results of this were somewhat predictable, and it wasn't limited to a courtroom. It changed how this place, the U.S. Senate, works. The loudest voices in Washington became billionaires and not everyday Americans.

It led to the rise of super PACs and dark money groups. These groups come out of nowhere, and they spend millions and millions of dollars attacking one candidate or cause or supporting another. They organize around what benefits them financially, and they pour massive, massive amounts of money into securing a specific outcome that benefits them. They aren't subject to the same transparency or accountability of the campaign that a candidate runs.

It created a system where power shifts away from everyday Americans and towards the people who can write the big, giant checks. That shows up in the policies politicians fight for and the ones they block. It is no surprise.

Right now, under Donald Trump and Republicans in Washington, we are seeing this dynamic play out very clearly.

Last year, Republicans passed a bill to hand out massive tax breaks to billionaires and giant corporations, paid for by throwing 300,000 Arizonans off of their healthcare and slashing food assistance for families who need it.

He has stacked his Cabinet with billionaire friends who are completely out of touch with everyday, working Americans who are often living paycheck to paycheck.

Early in his term, he tapped an unqualified person, Elon Musk--the wealthiest man in the world--who spent more money than anybody else to get Donald Trump elected. He hired him to oversee an effort to recklessly fire thousands of hard-working Federal employees and shut down entire Agencies, undermining our national security.

Americans are living through a serious cost-of-living crisis right now. Families are struggling with rising expenses for healthcare, for housing, for utilities, for groceries, just about everything. What I hear from my constituents is that they want relief. They want their government to help bring down costs and help make their lives more affordable, but time and again, the policies that would do exactly that stall or they just die right here in this Chamber and down the road at the White House.

Sixteen years after Citizens United, this is not about relitigating a court case; it is about recognizing how deeply money and politics affect people's lives and about drawing a clear line between a political system that serves billionaires and one that serves people.

Americans see this clearly. They are demanding transparency. They are demanding accountability. They are demanding a government that answers to voters, not to the billionaires and not to the special interests.

That is why from day one I have approached this job differently. I have never taken a dime of corporate PAC money, and I never will, and I have introduced legislation to ban corporate PACs.

I publish my schedule online so that everybody can see what I am working on, who I am meeting with, and how I am spending my time in this job, and I have introduced legislation to require all Senators to do the same exact thing.

I have also led on legislation to ban Members of Congress from trading stocks. Let me be clear. Nobody should be able to use this job to profit personally. It is horrendous, and it is a huge problem. One of the first things I did after being elected was move all of my assets and those of my wife Gabby Giffords to a qualified blind trust--the best standard identified by Senate ethics--and I think all Members of Congress need to do that.

These are not radical ideas; they are about restoring trust and making sure that this place works for people who don't have lobbyists, who don't have super PACs, who can't write a seven-figure check.

These shouldn't be radical demands. They are basic expectations. And here is why this matters so much right now. As long as big money and billionaires dominate our politics, it will continue to block progress on the issues that people care about most: lowering skyrocketing healthcare costs, making housing more affordable, increasing competition so families aren't left paying more every single month. Those fights all run straight through the influence of corporate money. It is very clear.

So let me be clear. Money is not speech. I mean, who came up with that? And corporations are not people.

So this moment isn't just about looking backward at a Court decision. That is not what we are getting at. It is about deciding what kind of Congress we want to be moving forward. Do we accept a system where access is bought and outcomes are shaped by the wealthiest members in our society or do we set a higher bar and say that democracy should work for the people who vote, not the people who spend millions of dollars of their own money in elections? That is the choice right in front of us.

I am proud to be joined by my colleagues today, as we mark 16 years since the Citizens United ruling, to make clear that the damage from that decision is real, and it is ongoing, and it is standing in the way of progress on the issues that people care most about.

This conversation should not end here. It should continue with action, with accountability, and with a commitment to put people back at the center of our democracy.

Thank you, Mr. President.

With that, I want to welcome my good friend and colleague the Senator from Rhode Island, Sheldon Whitehouse.

Madam President, I didn't expect that I would ever find myself here, as a U.S. Senator, having filed a lawsuit against a Secretary of Defense.

When I graduated from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in 1986 and was commissioned into the U.S. Navy as an ensign, I swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic. I have upheld that oath every single day since.

I upheld it on the second night of Operation Desert Storm, when a Russian-made SA-6 surface-to-air missile locked onto my airplane when I was on a mission to bomb an airfield in southern Iraq. I made a last- ditch maneuver. The missile exploded above us, and I delivered the bombs on target.

I upheld my oath as a test pilot, logging hundreds of flight hours, pushing aircraft to the limits, to make sure that our pilots had the best aircraft and systems to use in combat.

And I upheld my oath when my service took me to NASA, where I went into space four times, where I was honored to command two space shuttle missions, and where I was also the first astronaut on the scene in East Texas after Space Shuttle Columbia exploded during reentry, and I had to recover the bodies of my friends and astronaut classmates.

And I have upheld my oath here in the U.S. Senate, a place I never expected to find myself in because my wife Gabby was always the elected official in our family. If she had never been shot in the head, she would be here in this Chamber and not me. But I love this country, and I felt that I had an obligation to continue my public service in a way that I never expected. And so I have upheld my oath in this job too because I take seriously my duty to protect the Constitution for all Americans.

I just never expected that I would have to protect the rule of law against a Secretary of Defense. Pete Hegseth is now coming after what I earned through my 25 years of military service, in violation of my rights as an American and as a retired veteran and as a U.S. Senator, whose job it is to hold this and any administration accountable. He doesn't like what I said, and so he is trying to censure and demote me.

And let's talk for just a second about what it is that I said that he decided to censure me over, according to his letter: first, that I simply restated the law--that servicemembers must refuse illegal orders. Somehow, restating the law is now against the law, according to Pete Hegseth.

This isn't new. It is something every recruit is taught. It is something that Pete Hegseth himself has said repeatedly, including, specifically, about this President and Commander in Chief, Donald Trump.

Second, that I criticized him for firing admirals and generals and that this administration is surrounding themselves with a bunch of yes- men.

Let me repeat it here right now: It is bad for our national security that Pete Hegseth fired admirals and generals because of who they are. And a bunch of yes-men--well, that is bad for any organization.

Lastly, he is censuring me because I have raised concerns about his actions and military operations. Well, that is my job. I have every right to say these things--as an American, as a retired servicemember, and as a U.S. Senator, and especially as a member of the Armed Services Committee whose duty it is to provide oversight over the Department of Defense.

Pete Hegseth's unconstitutional crusade against me sends a chilling message to every retired member of the military. If you speak out and say something that the President and Secretary of Defense don't like, you will be censured, threatened with demotion, or even prosecuted.

Every servicemember knows that military rank is earned; it is not given. It is earned through the risks you take, the sacrifices you and your family make, the leadership you display, and the respect you earn from the superiors who recommend you for promotion. After my 25 years of service, I earned my rank as a captain in the U.S. Navy.

Now, Pete Hegseth wants even our longest serving military veterans to live with the constant threat that they could be deprived of their rank and retirement pay, years or even decades after they leave the military, just because he or another Secretary of Defense or a President doesn't like what they have said.

If Pete Hegseth succeeds in silencing me, then he and every other Secretary of Defense who comes after him will have license to punish any retired veteran of any political persuasion for the things that they say. And by that logic, a 100-year-old World War II veteran could be hauled in and censured or court-martialed because he says something that Pete Hegseth disagrees with.

That is wrong. It is not the way things work in the United States of America, and I will not stand for it because our freedom of speech, the separation of powers, and due process are not just words on a page. They are core principles of our democracy. When we say we have an obligation to protect and defend the Constitution, this is exactly what we are all talking about. It is this--because that oath that I spoke about earlier, it should sound very familiar to other folks in this room because it is the same one that every Member of the U.S. Senate has taken.

For 250 years, we have been the greatest democracy the world has ever seen because patriotic Americans have been willing to stand up for not just their own rights but for the rights of all of our fellow citizens. That continued resolve is what will decide if our democracy lasts another 250 years.

That is why, today, I filed a lawsuit against the Secretary of Defense to protect my rights, the rights of retired veterans, and the rights of all Americans. I have never backed down from a fight for our country, and I am not going to back down from this one.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, exactly 5 years ago today, I, as well, was in this Chamber, listening to my colleagues debate something that never should have been in question--the validity of the electoral votes from my State of Arizona. We had just returned from the House Chamber, where we were supposed to be carrying out one of the most basic responsibilities of our democracy, and that is certifying the results of a free and fair election. Then, with no evidence and no shame, Republican Members of Congress challenged Arizona's votes. They were trying to discard the will of voters in my State because they just didn't like the outcome.

I was sitting right here in this seat, next to my friend Cory Booker. We knew it wasn't a typical day. We had seen the large protests gathering outside the Capitol, and we knew the President was holding a rally and repeating his lies that, by the way, he still continues to repeat today--his lies that the election was stolen from him. But here in the Senate we were just doing our jobs in following the Constitution and participating in the peaceful transfer of power. Then things started to change. Information came in pieces, and we could hear noise building outside the building. It became clear very quickly that something was wrong.

Vice President Pence was sitting where the Presiding Officer is sitting, and he was quickly ushered out of the room. It happened very fast. Staff began to come in from outside the Chamber while a Senator was still speaking. I was sitting right here, speaking to an intern who was shaking uncontrollably with fear. It was unusual and concerning, but we still did not understand the scale of what was happening beyond these walls.

(Mr. CURTIS assumed the Chair.)

At 1:56 p.m., my brother, Scott, texted me two words: ``chaos outside''--no explanation, no context.

I texted him back: ``What is going on out there?''

He asked whether I was safe and where my car was parked.

Then the messages kept coming from my brother: ``Protesters climbing the walls of the Capitol. Protesters fighting with police inside.''

He used the word ``protesters.'' We would all come to later learn that maybe ``rioters'' or ``insurrectionists'' would have been more accurate.

I have to say, I could not believe what my brother was saying. So I asked him to clarify. I said, ``At the Capitol?'' because after everything I have seen in my life, the idea that a mob could breach the U.S. Capitol was something I never thought I would ever witness in our country.

This situation was escalating very fast. Capitol Police made the call to evacuate, and we trusted them with our safety. Only later did we fully understand how close this came to something far worse. We didn't know that our colleague, the man who formerly had the Presiding Officer's seat in the Senate, Mitt Romney, was literally running for his life. He was a target because he had the courage--he had the courage--to speak the truth about the results of an election.

We didn't know that, at that very moment, Capitol Police officers were being pinned in doors, being beaten with flagpoles, and being attacked with bear spray. We didn't know that Officer Eugene Goodman was making a split-second decision to lead a group of the rioters away from the doors of this very Chamber, and we had seen that video from Igor Bobic of the Huffington Post that he had taken of that chase at great risk to his own personal safety.

I am going to read you a quote here:

The doors that lead into the Senate . . . are made of

nothing but glass, mostly glass. So they're easily

breachable. And if those doors had been breached, more than

likely there would have been gunfire at that point.

This is a quote. These are the words of Inspector Thomas Lloyd of the U.S. Capitol Police, as reported in a new book by Mary Jalonick of the Associated Press. Gunfire--in this room--to protect Senators from getting hurt or worse. That is how close we were. Let's call it what it was. This was an insurrection--an insurrection aimed at stopping the peaceful transfer of power, an insurrection aimed at overturning a free and fair election.

Five years ago on January 6, this did not happen spontaneously. It did not happen by accident. It happened because the current President of the United States and former President Donald Trump refused to accept that he had lost. So when people minimize January 6 or try to rewrite what happened, I cannot accept that, and neither should any of us.

No one has done more than Donald Trump. He has used the powers of his office to hand out pardons--pardons to let people off who attacked police officers. I am the son of two cops. He pardoned over 1,000 individuals. Many of them attacked cops in and around this building. It is insulting to me and to law enforcement officers across our Nation.

These pardons, by the way, they do not just erase sentences; they send a message. And the message is: It is OK for you to commit violent acts as long as they are to support Donald Trump.

And in the years since these pardons, we have now seen exactly who these people are. Christopher Moynihan, who breached the Capitol 5 years ago today and came into this very room, he later threatened to kill House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

John Banuelos, who fired a gun during the insurrection, was later arrested for kidnapping in the Presiding Officer's State of Utah.

Edward Kelley is serving a prison term through 2061 for developing a plan to murder law enforcement officers while he was being investigated for his role on January 6.

And many more have gone on to commit new and violent crimes.

These are the people that Donald Trump pardoned. We know who Donald Trump is. We know he won't take responsibility for this. I am under no illusion. We also know that he is not the man to unite our country, and I do not expect him to change.

We also can't expect these challenges to our democracy to be solved by somebody else or just go away with time. So we have to start being honest about what happened and clear about who caused it, which I think is why we are here today--because this insurrection didn't happen far away. An election wasn't almost overturned on another continent. Police officers weren't beaten in a foreign capital, and guns weren't drawn in some other senate somewhere else.

It all happened right here. It happened in the United States of America. It happened in this room. And fortunately, it failed here. But don't forget why this failed. This failed because of patriotic police officers. It failed because the will of the American people was stronger than an angry mob and stronger than Donald Trump.

But now the question is: If this happens again, will this fail? Democracy is not self-executing. It depends on leaders who tell the truth, respect the will of the people and the rule of law, and put the Constitution ahead of their own ambition. And it depends on every American being involved and holding their elected leaders accountable.

If we do that, if all of us do that, I know that our democracy can remain strong. We can get through this.

This year, we celebrate 250 years of American democracy. What a remarkable achievement. There is nothing our country can't do when we work together. I know that the future of this country and our democracy is bright, but all of us--every single one of us in this Chamber on both sides of the aisle--have to remain committed to it.

Mr. President, I know you are, and so many of us are as well.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, for more than a month, I have been here in DC fighting to keep healthcare costs from spiking for my constituents, and for more than a month, I have been hearing from people I represent about what their healthcare costs now and what it will cost if these tax credits are allowed to expire--people like Leslie from Buckeye, who is a diabetic and whose premium is about to go from $600 a month to $1,000 per month; and people like Jessica from Yuma. She and her husband currently pay $560 per month for them and their three kids. That is going to go to $3,100 per month if these tax credits are not extended.

And for more than a month, I have been waiting for the President or Republican leadership in the Senate to sit down with us and try to figure this out, or even show that they care about the millions of Americans in our States who are in the same boat, people like Leslie and Jessica.

Now, that hasn't happened. The President, as far as I can tell, has spent about 1 hour in the Oval Office with congressional leadership on this issue--1 hour in 37 days. He has spent more time talking about his ballroom and on two overseas trips and at a costume party at Mar-a- Lago, and of course, on the golf course.

The House of Representatives has been on a 7-week paid vacation. They are not even pretending to care about these rising healthcare costs; and the Senate, not much better. Week after week, the leadership of the Senate breaks for a long weekend, all while Americans are suffering. And they are suffering even more because Donald Trump is using them as pawns in this fight.

He is still trying to illegally withhold SNAP benefits from hungry Americans, including children, to use as leverage. Donald Trump's official position on the government shutdown is that he will let hard- working Americans go hungry until we give in to his demands to let healthcare premiums go up dramatically for millions of Americans.

Now, is that the position of my Republican colleagues? I keep hearing from many of you that you want to do something about this, but you say you can't negotiate, not now.

So let's just lay it out here. We need to extend government funding to reopen the government, but we also need to extend these tax credits so millions of Americans can actually afford their healthcare.

So let's do both--no gimmicks, no changes. Let's reopen the government, but we can do that knowing that Jessica and Leslie and a whole bunch of other people that we represent can take their kid to a doctor and fill their prescriptions for another year.

There is no reason why we can't agree on this. If you want to reopen the government and you want to help keep health insurance premiums from spiking, then let's do it. But if you say no, if you say you can't vote for something like this, well, let's just be honest about it. Tell the Jessicas and Leslies in your State that they are not going to be able to afford their healthcare anymore. Tell them that Donald

Trump thinks that they should go to a food bank for groceries so they can have something to eat.

Now, I also think we need to be perfectly clear about why we are here and how we got here. All of this--all of this--we have discussed over the last month is because Donald Trump and Republicans in the House and Senate wanted to give a big, giant tax cut to the wealthiest Americans--a $4 trillion giveaway.

And, again, we want a deal. We can choose to fix this so Jessica and Leslie and millions of others can afford to have basic healthcare.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I am going to yield to the other Senator from Arizona here briefly and come back to me in a second.

Mr. President, every American is supposed to have two Senators and a Representative fighting for them here in Washington. All of us should care about that, whether it is our constituent or someone else's.

Now it has been 44 days since Southern Arizonans elected Adelita Grijalva in a landslide to represent them in Washington. Yet 800,000 Arizonans, including me and my wife Gabby and my daughter, still do not have a voice in the U.S. House of Representatives because of political games being played by Speaker Johnson.

My office has seen an increase in calls and casework from the district because they don't have a congressional office that they can turn to.

This is unprecedented.

I have heard Speaker Johnson's excuses. None of them make any sense. He has said that he swore in two Republican representatives from Florida because it was a special circumstance, their family was here. Well, Adelita Grijalva can get her family here on a moment's notice. He also said on another occasion that she deserves the pomp and circumstance of the way they normally swear people in. Well, I have spoken to her about that. She does not care about pomp and circumstance.

The people of Arizona did their part. They voted, and their representative, Adelita Grijalva, has been certified; the election has been certified; and they should not have to wait another day to have someone representing them in the House.

So we have a message for Speaker Johnson: Do your job. This isn't complicated. It is the basic stuff of being the Speaker of the House. It is the basic thing in our democracy, and it should not be impacted by politics. I would like to think that every Senator here, whether a Democrat or a Republican, would agree with that.

I yield the floor.

Will the Senator yield for a question?

Senator Merkley, I appreciate everything you are doing to highlight the many ways that this President has been undermining the Constitution and the rule of law.

We have now experienced about 9\1/2\ months of this Presidency, and I am going to ask you a question about one thing in particular, and it is about the U.S. military and the leadership of the U.S. military.

But I want to kind of set the stage here a little bit. The United States has the most lethal military in the history of the world. The President presiding right now has experienced that as a U.S. Navy SEAL, I myself as a pilot flying off of an aircraft carrier in the first gulf war. No nation--at least today--matches the combat capability, the professionalism, the effectiveness of the U.S. Navy, Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, and now Space Force. And I will include the Coast Guard, too, because we like to count the Coast Guard, especially when they partnered with us on things that really mattered to the United States.

You know, one of those that I would like to discuss, where we should see more involvement from the Coast Guard, is what we are currently seeing in the Caribbean with regards to drug trafficking, which is a problem and presents a clear and present danger to the citizens of this country, and it is something we need to do more about.

I was on one of the cable shows last night, talking about this specific issue. So to date, there have been 6 or 7 strikes in the Caribbean that have killed 32 people, and, you know, some of those were trafficking drugs.

Those routes, by the way, Senator Merkley, are used generally to traffic cocaine and marijuana through the Caribbean, to Caribbean islands and on to Europe. They are not the routes that traffic fentanyl to the United States.

And over the last 6 weeks or so, we have conducted kinetic strikes against these boats without what I recognize as the legal authority to do so. It is not something I have seen in my experience in the U.S. Navy--I spent 25 years in the U.S. Navy--that I have seen during my career. I am now retired. But during my career, I never saw a President command the Department of Defense to do things that I felt were outside the boundaries of what we would consider illegal action against people.

We have traditionally done this with the U.S. Coast Guard, sometimes in conjunction with the U.S. Navy. We are in a partnership. They do what we would call law enforcement. And members of the Coast Guard come aboard Navy ships. We interdict drugs that are coming through the Caribbean or, more often, on the pacific side, on the western side of Mexico, up into California, and we interdict those drugs, and then we prosecute those individuals.

And, in my view, I think the administration has not made a case to the U.S. Congress and to the American people as to why this is a legal action.

A couple of weeks ago, when we were being briefed on this, I felt that they were pretty much tying themselves into a knot in trying to inform us on why this is allowed under the law.

Now, here is one of the things I really worry about. I worry about these young sailors or naval aviators or drone operators that are the trigger pullers, the guys who are dropping the small-diameter bombs from airplanes. It could be an F-18 or an F-35 or some other weapons system or folks that are operating an MQ-9 drone.

If you are the guy that is pulling the trigger in a combat operation, you typically expect that the people above you have done all the due diligence necessary to make sure that you are not going to be in some kind of legal jeopardy. And I really worry about that today.

There might be some young Navy lieutenant out there or Marine Corps captain or Air Force, for all I know, a MQ-9 operator, that might someday find out that they have done something that is not consistent with the law, and they are now in legal jeopardy. And that is a big problem.

I never saw that during my 25 years in the U.S. Navy. The two ships I sunk in the Persian Gulf, not for one second did I feel like I was getting some bad information from the battle group or from anybody above in the chain of command, whether it was General Schwarzkopf or Colin Powell or the President of the United States, George Herbert Walker Bush. It was not a concern of ours. It is a concern today.

And I can tell you, as I watch this from my vantage point on the Intelligence Committee and on the Armed Services Committee, there are members of our military that are now in some sort of potential future legal jeopardy. And it is because we have a President that I believe doesn't do his homework, doesn't follow norms, and possibly is making decisions that are not legal.

(Mr. BANKS assumed the Chair.)

We have seen the politicalization of the U.S. military over the last 9 months. That really disturbs me--the speech in Quantico where the Secretary of Defense dragged in hundreds of our senior leadership from all over the world, admirals and generals and senior enlisted staff who have very important jobs, who are working every single day to make sure that our Nation and our allies are safe and secure and have to make some really complicated decisions every day about the posture of force, how to equip them, make sure they are ready to fight--and the Secretary of Defense, for some reason, decides that he needed to give a TED talk about gym clothes and PT and other stuff that has no bearing on whether or not we are a capable military.

I don't know why he feels this way. But in my experience, from the time I first put on the uniform in 1986 to the time I took it off in 2011 and then beyond since I have been retired from the U.S. Navy, our effectiveness has never been diminished. Our innovation and our professionalism and our ability to train well is something that really makes us stand out.

I have experience with some of our allies, but I also have a little bit of experience with our adversaries. While I was at NASA flying the Space Shuttle over a decade--first flight in 2001 to my last in 2011-- every one of my missions I had a lot of interactions with Russian cosmonauts. Most of these Russian cosmonauts--not all of them but most--were members of the Russian Air Force, pilots, some of them test pilots.

I flew with these guys. They weren't the best pilots in the world, I have to admit. I was shocked the first time I flew with a guy who I will not share his last name. His first name was Vladimir. But I was really shocked that this guy who was a MiG-25 pilot could not fly formation in an airplane, something so fundamental and basic to a military pilot, that they did not train enough to be capable enough to do something that was so fundamental to be an effective fighter pilot.

And then after--that was early in my NASA career. Later, as I started flying to space with these guys, I realized that Russians and the Russian military, in particular--because that is where my experience was with these military guys--they were motivated by different things. It explains a lot of what I see out of Russia today.

Now, as Americans, whether you are in the U.S. Navy, whether you are a naval aviator or in the Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, Space Force, even in U.S. industry and in organizations in the United States, and I don't think this is unique to us, but everybody doesn't share this value: Americans are

usually most motivated by mission success. We care about the mission first. We care about the mission before ourselves. We care about the mission more than anything. I think it is true for American companies, too, that they have a set of goals, and they have a plan and they are going to execute the plan.

It is not true of our Russian adversaries. It took me a while to learn this, but I found that they were motivated primarily by a couple of things: One was the appearance that they were in charge. That mattered to them more than anything else, that I look like I am in charge of whatever this operation is, not mission success. The second thing would be who could I blame? If things go wrong, where to place the blame. And the third thing, which was really interesting, was what can I steal from my employer. That, to me, was three principles I saw in my Russian cosmonaut colleagues.

They talked about the stealing. I wasn't sure they were actually stealing anything from the Russian space agency or not, but they talked about it as something that is fundamental to their system and their economy.

I bring this up because I often feel that we are unique as a service, as a fighting force in the world. Our allies--some of them are really, really good. But there is nothing that I found in my experience in my career--I am 61 years old--that is as professional as U.S. servicemembers and as motivated by mission and doing the right thing and making moral and ethical choices. And that is all at risk.

In Senator Merkley's State, in Portland, they are sending armed uniformed soldiers to do what we traditionally feel is police work-- intimidating the population, using tear gas against U.S. citizens for no reason. By the way, National Guard and Active-Duty servicemembers are not trained for this mission.

In my 25 years in the Navy, I never once did anything that you would consider to be close to police work. I would know. I am the son of two cops, so I would get a sense for what that was. It never happened. And unless you are a military policeman, it doesn't happen for infantrymen, for special ops or submariners, and certainly not for Active-Duty infantry.

So at this time in our history, I am really worried about legal jeopardy that our young servicemembers have been put in. But I am also worried about, does this fundamentally change the nature of the U.S. military, which has been, in my view, a force for good around the world, where we come to the defense of our allies and we do it in a way that garners a tremendous amount of respect, I think, even from our adversaries. I think that is all at risk.

So I wanted to ask Senator Merkley: You have been here 16 years now in the U.S. Senate. You have tremendous experience at this. My understanding is, you have a very close relationship with the people you represent in Oregon. How worried are you about the changes that could happen to the U.S. military?

And also, I am interested in what are you hearing from your constituents about this. They have been the focus and have been highlighted by this administration, not just this year but in Donald Trump's first Presidency as well.

I yield back to the Senator from Oregon.

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

Mr. President, in just a few weeks, millions of Americans will start the process of picking new health insurance plans, and I believe a number of them are going to see the cost of their health insurance double. This is, unfortunately, not a mistake. It is the price of Washington failing them. And it is not just a number on a bill. It is the first sign for these families that their lives are going to be much harder.

We are now 8 days into a government shutdown, but, make no mistake, this debate isn't about something happening here in this building. It is about the price Americans pay for their healthcare--because if we don't work together to extend the Affordable Care Act's premium tax credits, millions of families will see their health insurance costs skyrocket overnight.

Last year alone, 309,000 Arizonans used these tax credits, saving them an average of more than $400 per month. Many of them would need to pay hundreds of dollars more per month. Some will see their costs more than double.

That is money that a lot of families simply do not have. That means cutting groceries, skipping a car payment, or saying no to the next time that their kid asks to join a school activity, like a Little League team.

For a lot of folks, it will mean losing coverage altogether because they just cannot afford it. So, now, these families are going to be one accident or one illness away from financial ruin.

This uncertainty could also mean that insurers exit the marketplace, leaving people with limited coverage options.

These are not hypotheticals. Over the last week, I have spent time on the phone with Arizonans who have reached out to my office to share what these tax credits mean for them and what also happens when they go away. I want to share a few stories from these folks, who are already bracing for the worst--because if anyone here is still wondering what this debate is about, this is it.

So I talked to a guy named Rusty, from Tucson. He is a cancer survivor. He runs his own small business in Tucson. He also takes care of his mother, who is in memory care. He told me:

I've been using the Marketplace for years. Last year, I

paid $277 a month for my plan. I've now been told my premiums

could jump to between $450 and $600 a month.

That will not be sustainable short term or long term.

The premium tax credit has made it affordable for those of

us who need health insurance but can't go out to the general

market.

I have to have health insurance--

He said--

but [there's] really no way I can afford what is about to

happen.

Rusty is not asking for anything extraordinary. He is asking to keep what is already working for him: the ability to afford care while he works hard and contributes to his community.

Robin, who is 60 years old, lives in Northern Arizona and is trying to save for retirement. She said--and this is a quote from Robin:

These subsidies have been crucial in making health

insurance affordable. I am struggling to pay for my living

expenses as is.

My work has not been enough to provide me with a full-time

salary, and although I do have some other form of income, it

is still not enough for me to live on should my healthcare

subsidy disappear.

I feel like many of us, middle class Americans--

This is Robin--

who are caught up in a trap of helplessness because we do not

qualify for other benefits, and yet we do not make enough in

order to sustain a healthy quality of life, considering how

everything that we need to live on has increased in price.

The expiration of these subsidies could lead to significant

increases in healthcare costs and potentially make it

difficult to maintain coverage.

Now, Robin doesn't qualify for Medicaid, but she does work hard. She just wants to be able to afford health insurance until she reaches Medicare eligibility. And Robin said she is not looking for a handout; she is looking for a hand up.

Cricket, who is 63, is a realtor from Phoenix. She is self-employed and not yet eligible for Medicare. So for the past 8 years, she has relied on the Affordable Care Act for her health coverage. And if the tax credits go away, her coverage will become unaffordable. She told me--this is a quote from Cricket:

Without it, I would have faced bankruptcy.

If premiums rise or these subsidies go away, I could lose

my home and everything I've worked for.

Health care shouldn't be a privilege, it's a right.

Daylene--this next story should remind all of us of what is at stake in this fight. Daylene, from Casa Grande, was diagnosed with congestive heart failure 20 years ago, when she turned 40. Doctors told her that she might live 1 or 2 years. She said, because of these credits, she has been able to afford her insurance and medication that literally keeps her heart beating. She wrote to us:

My monthly cardiac drug costs alone would be over $2,000

without my insurance from ACA.

She continued to tell me that these credits gave her more than healthcare. It gave her freedom to leave an abusive marriage because, before that, she relied on her husband to afford her healthcare.

That is what this is about. When people can't afford healthcare, they stay in situations they shouldn't stay in just to keep their coverage: a job they don't want; a city they do not want to live in, maybe farther from family; and, in the worst case, an abusive relationship-- because they need affordable coverage.

Survival, dignity, and freedom--that is what we are talking about here when we talk about affordable health insurance and care.

In Arizona, people like Rusty and Cricket and Daylene and Robin, they do not have lobbyists. What they have is faith that when they write their Senator, someone will listen. I am not just listening, I am fighting for them and thousands more across my State who are in the same exact position.

These are hard-working people. They are doing everything right. They are not asking for special treatment. They are small business owners who have to purchase their own plans. They are older Americans who aren't yet eligible for Medicare and folks who live in rural Arizona and don't get healthcare through an employer.

There are hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of these people across the country. They are asking for all of us here in this body to work as hard for them as they do for their families. And what makes this so frustrating is how simple the solution is. We can vote today to extend these tax credits and reopen the government. But so far, Donald Trump and my Republican colleagues would rather use people's healthcare as leverage than sit down and work with us to protect it.

Arizonans are counting on us to do what is right, not for political points but for people's lives. That is our job, and I am here ready to work on this with my Democrat and Republican colleagues across the aisle in this Chamber and in the House of Representatives and in the White House. So let's get this done.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, we are just a day away from a government shutdown because President Trump and Republicans would rather shut down the government than work with us to keep healthcare premiums from spiking for American families. We are watching the same pattern repeat itself again in Washington: partisan politics and dysfunction hurting hard-working families.

This fight is about healthcare. It is about what happens to families in Arizona if tax credits that reduce their healthcare premiums expire. It is about costs going up for people who are already feeling squeezed by inflation and Trump's tariffs driving up the prices of everything from groceries to back-to-school supplies.

And it is not complicated. If these tax credits expire, working families in my State will see their monthly premiums spike when they go to sign up for a new plan in just a few weeks. I have heard from Arizonans who are now saving hundreds of dollars every month because of these credits. Ending them would be a gut punch. For some, it would mean losing their coverage altogether.

It is pretty simple. We should extend them, and that is what we are proposing. Let's not forget who holds the cards: Donald Trump and my Republican colleagues. They are the ones saying no--not just to Democrats, not just to us, but to families in Arizona and across the country.

But instead of working with us to lower costs and avoid a shutdown, Donald Trump has refused to even sit down and talk about it for weeks until just today, barely 24 hours before the deadline. He would rather watch the country inch closer to a shutdown than to try to figure out solutions.

It is going to be everyday Americans who pay the price, your constituents and mine. In Arizona, more than 379,000 people have reduced premiums through these tax credits. It lowers their premium by an average of about $475 every single month. So if those tax credits are allowed to expire, that means their healthcare premiums for next year go up as much as 55 percent. That is hundreds of dollars every single month.

And that blows a huge hole in the family budget. It means canceled family trips. It means not being able to sign your kid up to a sports league. It means taking on more shifts just to cover this added cost. And for a lot of folks, what this means is they will not be able to afford health insurance at all.

The estimate is that more than 109,000 people in Arizona alone would be unable to afford coverage. In the richest country in the history of the world, there is no reason why somebody who is working full time shouldn't be able to afford basic health insurance. No one should be one accident or one unexpected illness away from financial ruin. No one should be unable to take their kid to a doctor when they get sick.

But here we are because of Donald Trump and Republicans. This would hurt even harder in rural Arizona and small towns--places like Cochise, Apache, Navajo, and Santa Cruz Counties where there are fewer large employers who offer health benefits. But these are counties with higher poverty rates. It will hurt families across Arizona who finally-- finally--got access to care and now they are being told that it may disappear.

It doesn't have to be this way. There is still time to extend the premium tax credits and protect families from higher costs while keeping the Federal Government open and serving Americans.

Mr. President, we can do this. We just have to be willing to sit down and work to figure it out. I know I am.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I rise today to welcome His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to Washington, DC. He is the spiritual leader of Orthodox Christianity, the second largest Christian Church in the world, with more than 250 million members worldwide and over 1 million here in the United States.

His All-Holiness is the 269th successor of the Apostle Andrew and the longest serving Ecumenical Patriarch in history. He is recognized across the globe for his leadership in promoting peace, advancing religious freedom, and speaking out on environmental stewardship. He has been honored with the Congressional Gold Medal and will receive the Templeton Prize during this visit.

In Arizona, the Greek Orthodox community is an important part of our State's civic and cultural life. Parishes across the State serve as places of worship, education, and service, and they host traditions that strengthen families and connect generations. Their contributions are an important part of Arizona's diversity and character.

I am proud to join Orthodox Christians in Arizona and across the country in welcoming His All-Holiness to the United States and to Congress. His visit is a point of pride for many Arizonans and a reminder of the shared values of faith, service, and community that strengthen our country.