Floor Statements

Mr. President, before he became President, a member of Congress, or even a lawyer, Abraham Lincoln was a postal worker. From 1833 to 1836, Lincoln served as the postmaster of New Salem, IL. He walked for miles delivering letters to Illinoisans, and he developed a habit of storing them in his now-famous stovepipe hat. As he traversed the prairies of Sangamon County, he learned about the State that would eventually be known as the Land of Lincoln. Although postmaster was just one of the many jobs Lincoln had during his days in New Salem, it was his first taste of civil service and his introduction to the people of Sangamon County.

But Abraham Lincoln is not the only person whose life has been shaped by the Post Office. For 250 years, the U.S. Post Office has provided essential services that connect Americans, support commerce, and strengthen the foundations of our democracy. Founded during the Second Continental Congress, even before the Declaration of Independence was signed, the Post Office played an indispensable role in the success of our young democracy. Not only was the Post Office crucial in facilitating communication between American revolutionaries, it also strengthened the ties between the 13 Original Colonies, allowing our country to develop into one cohesive Nation. After the Colonies won independence, the Post Office continued to grow, ensuring Americans anywhere could have access to the information necessary to participate in the democratic process.

But as the Post Office grew, there was one glaring gap in its services. People living in rural areas would need to venture to the nearest Post Office to access their mail, which could be located miles away. While Americans living in more populous locations had access to free home delivery for decades, rural Americans were still walking for miles to retrieve their post at the end of the 19th century. In 1896, the U.S. Post Office decided to try a new service in two counties in West Virgina, free rural home delivery. In less than a decade, this experiment was adopted nationwide, and today, millions of rural Americans count on home delivery.

This commitment to equitable, universal delivery is one that is near and dear to my heart as a Senator from Illinois. Across Illinois, especially downstate, we have many rural counties and towns that struggle to attract the attention of for-profit shipping corporations. For these communities, USPS is often the only option to receive mail and send packages. That is what separates USPS from the rest of America's shipping industry. USPS is not a company; it is a public service. Its employees are public servants. The role USPS plays in connecting Americans is one that is vital for my home State and for many others across the country.

Today, USPS delivers more mail than any other company in the world. There are more than 30,000 Post Offices that serve 169 million homes across the United States. Americans rely on the United States Postal Service to deliver their medications, Social Security checks, and other important correspondence, along with birthday cards from Grandma. The post remains a lifeline for small businesses, who often cannot afford to use large for-profit shipping corporations, as well as for rural Americans. And USPS continues to support our democracy by helping Americans send and receive their mail-in ballots for local, State, and national elections.

On October 9, the Senate passed S. Res. 337, a resolution recognizing the 250th anniversary of the Postal Service of the United States and commending its indispensable role in the success of our Nation. But any recognition of the USPS would be incomplete without acknowledging America's incredible postal workers. Continuing in the tradition of President Lincoln, postal workers ensure that through rain or snow, heatwaves and arctic blasts, Americans receive their essential mail. As we celebrate the U.S. Post Office's anniversary, I want to extend my sincere gratitude to postal workers and letter carriers, both past and present, for their essential service to Illinois and the Nation.

While much has changed since the founding of the U.S. Post Office, its role as an essential pillar of our democracy and community remains the same. Congratulations to this 250-year-old public institution, and here is to many more years of service.

Mr. President, many of us bring life experiences to the Senate Chamber, and it shapes our judgment on critical issues.

When I was first married, my wife and I were blessed with a beautiful little baby girl. I was going to law school here in Washington, DC. It turns out that our little girl had a serious, serious medical problem.

The difficulty I faced was the fact that I had no health insurance. I was a law student, and I ended up going to Children's Hospital here in Washington, DC, with my wife and our little baby girl and sitting in the charity ward, which basically was there for people who couldn't pay their medical bills and had no health insurance. We waited for the door to open and for our family name to be called out to meet, for the first time, the doctor who was going to treat my little girl.

I never felt more helpless in my life, as a father, to have that baby with that medical problem and to have no health insurance. I am sure that colored my judgment the rest of my life and my service of over 40 years in Congress.

I have always voted to give families a better chance of having health insurance. Having lived without it, I value it so much. It has been a major part of my feelings about healthcare and about the role of Congress.

And so then, 15 years ago, when President Obama, my former colleague from Illinois, was President of the United States and set out to achieve something that had never been done in the United States--to dramatically expand the coverage of health insurance to families that otherwise wouldn't qualify under the existing law or couldn't afford it--I worked hard to pass that bill. It took us a long time and a lot of effort.

I was whip of the Senate Democrats at that point, and I used to go to Harry Reid's office several times a day to talk about the next step in passing the Affordable Care Act.

The day finally came. I won't dwell on the minutia or the details of how we reached, but we did it. Unfortunately, throughout that process, we never--never--had one Republican vote of support, ever. We were fortunate to have 60 Democrats at the right moment politically to pass a bill in the U.S. Senate.

I was sorry that the Republicans didn't join us in this effort. They could have made a better bill out of it--I am sure of it--if they had joined us, but they decided not to.

And so, for the last 15 years, the Affordable Care Act has offered to millions of Americans health insurance coverage, which was unthinkable before it passed.

Let me give you a couple of examples.

There was a time when health insurance plans in the United States, before the Affordable Care Act, didn't cover mental health issues or addiction issues. You think to yourself, well, those are serious issues. They affect people's health. Why wouldn't they cover it? Because they are expensive, and they didn't want to.

But two Senators came out on the floor here--one a Democrat, Paul Wellstone of Minnesota, and the other a Republican, Pete Domenici of New Mexico--and pushed to include as a requirement, in all health insurance plans, that they cover mental illness.

I supported that. My family, like most families, has a story to tell when it comes to mental illness, and I viewed it as an issue of health, not an issue of a curse that a person has to try to outlive. So we included it. Thank goodness we did. Not only did mental illness have health insurance coverage, but

the addiction problem did as well. Just at the time, we entered into the opioid addiction, which swamped the United States and needed this kind of response in Congress. That was one thing.

The second thing, before the Affordable Care Act, if you had any history of any illness, coverage would be excluded for that illness when you got your health insurance plan. So most plans were worthless for people who came into the market looking for healthcare coverage if they had any history whatsoever. That was eliminated, and I am glad it was.

We also extended health insurance coverage for children of families to age 26. The belief was simple: When your child, your son or your daughter, graduates college and starts looking for a job, they may not have luck at the outset. They may not have a full-time job when they finally do find employment. And they probably, in those days, had no health insurance offered to them as part-time employees. So we let young people stay under their family health insurance plan until they reached the age of 26.

Those are the types of things that have been decried by many Republicans as socialism, too much government, too much regulation. But it meant that the health insurance market was actually worth something to families who otherwise were excluded from it or found it too expensive.

As I said, we passed that major legislation 15 years ago--roughly 15 years ago--at a time when not a single Republican would support it.

Now we are back into a period--and I listened closely to the Republican leader this morning--where we are asking: What are we going to do moving forward?

Here is the problem: For those people who had limited income, health insurance was beyond their reach. And so we offered a tax break--a tax credit--for people to help pay their health insurance premiums. Otherwise, they were too expensive. That health insurance tax credit helped millions of American families afford health insurance, and we moved forward.

But there came a time when the Republicans had a chance, with their own majority, to address the Affordable Care Act, and they started eliminating that health insurance credit.

As a consequence, many families--24 million, we believe, nationwide-- face the prospect that their health insurance premiums are going to be too high and increase dramatically, beyond their reach in family income.

And that is exactly what is happening. Families across America who qualify for the Affordable Care Act health insurance tax credit are learning that their health insurance premiums are going up dramatically. I receive letters and contacts from people in Illinois, which I will put in the record in just a moment here.

But Senator Thune, who is a friend and the Republican leader of the Senate, came to the floor this morning and pointed to two areas he thinks needed to be changed in the Affordable Care Act. One is whether your income level should be taken into consideration for the tax credit, and I believe it should and he does, too, I think. I don't want to put words in his mouth, but that is what I understood him to say this morning. Secondly, that there are zero premium policies that are being taken advantage of by some unethical people.

I think those are two legitimate areas of debate. I want to offer, as a Democratic Senator, my good offices and personal effort to try to fix those two problems if it means we can come together and restore tax credits for families that otherwise cannot afford their health insurance premiums. We are going to have a chance to do it.

And it was Senator Thune who created that chance. He said the Democrats could offer a basic bill to improve the system, which I am sure we will. And I hope that the Republicans may offer amendments to it or may have their own approach that we can debate leading into it. The problem is, we have precious little time. It is supposed to be done before December 12, and that is only a few days away. Some of these changes are significant. We ought to take a little time to make sure we get them right.

I am just saying, as an offer--and I hope the American people follow this closely--this Democrat, and I am sure others as well on my side of the aisle, will sit down with Senator Thune to try to address the problems that he raised this morning. They are legitimate concerns. We may see them a little differently, but let's discuss it.

Let's do something we hardly ever do in the U.S. Senate anymore: Let's legislate. Let's do it on a bipartisan basis. They don't have 60 votes on their side of the aisle, nor do we. But if we come together, we can muster 60 votes for a good change and say to millions of Americans with health insurance premiums they can't afford that there is a way out of this.

Let us extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits with some changes, as suggested, but do it for a period of time that is reasonable and gives people peace of mind. If we are concerned about the cost of living and family budgets, for goodness' sake, it starts with healthcare. Health insurance premiums can be so high, people have no choice.

Mr. President, I would like to address another issue on a different topic. For more than 3 months, Chicago has endured President Trump's Operation Midway Blitz. It is a cruel campaign that swept up innocent citizens, legal American residents, and immigrants who pose absolutely no threat to public safety.

Remember why the President wanted to send troops and more resources to the Department of Homeland Security into the city of Chicago? Because he was going after ``the worst of the worst.'' He was going after terrorists, murderers, rapists, the criminally insane who somehow got into this country, and he was going to make it safer by going after them. What has actually happened? The Trump administration justified their actions by saying that they were going after ``the worst of the worst,'' but what happened was just the opposite.

Federal agents, under President Trump, have used excessive force in Chicago while patrolling our streets, including deploying pepper balls and tear gas into crowds, using zip ties to contain women and children, and physically tackling peaceful protesters to the ground. If you think I am making this up, virtually everything I just said is verified by video.

In a hearing challenging the treatment of press and protesters by Federal immigration agents, U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis said the ``use of force shocks the conscience'' and ``this conduct shows no sign of stopping,'' said the Federal judge. In contrast to this judge's observation, Border Patrol Chief Greg Bovino boasted in his deposition, almost mockingly, that ``all uses of force have been more than exemplary.'' I will just tell you, Mr. Bovino, look at the videotape.

To rein in the lawlessness, Judge Ellis issued a preliminary injunction restricting the agents' use of chemical agents against protesters. Outside of a Lutheran church in Albany Park several weeks ago, after an 11 o'clock service broke up, the parishioners were leaving the church. The ICE agents were waiting on the sidewalk and dropped a tear gas canister in front of the church. Whistles were going off and eventually ICE agents left. But do you think would-be terrorists were at that Lutheran service? I don't think so. It was harassment in that neighborhood.

Judge Ellis issued a finding, a 233-page opinion, explaining her ruling on examining specific instances of Federal immigration agents' use of excessive force. While the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has temporarily paused that injunction, which she issued while it considers the government's appeal, the court noted that Judge Ellis ``has developed voluminous . . . robust factual findings'' of wrongdoing by these agents.

And though some courts have acted as a critical guard against the President's lawlessness, those rulings don't change the fact that the Trump administration's militarized raids are dangerous political theater meant to spread fear and advance an anti-immigrant agenda.

After wreaking havoc in Illinois and now Charlotte, reports indicate the city of New Orleans is Greg Bovino's next target. I ask my Republican colleagues: What if this Midway Blitz comes to your State, your hometown? What is stopping the President from

sowing fear there, conducting lawless raids in your cities? It is up to all of us to denounce this kind of conduct.

Just incidentally, they did a survey of 600 of the people who have been arrested in Chicago in the Midway Blitz, going after ``the worst of the worst'' criminals. What percentage of those 600 do you think actually had any kind of criminal record that was serious? It was 2 percent, 16 of them--16 people out of 600.

Millions of dollars being spent to terrorize innocent people and wreck these communities and their economies, and it turns out the return rate was 2 percent. Sixteen would-be criminals were brought to justice at the expense of our community.

Mr. President, on a separate subject, in just a few weeks, the Affordable Care Act's enhanced premium tax credits are set to expire. We have precious little time to act. That means, on January 1 of next year, millions of Americans will see their health insurance costs skyrocket, and some will have to drop health insurance coverage completely because they just can't afford the premiums. Will they get sick? You bet. Will they go to the hospital? Many will. Will they get treated? Yes. Will they be able to pay their bills with their health insurance premiums? Unfortunately, not if they drop coverage.

That includes my constituent Jess, a hair stylist in Chicago who was diagnosed with breast cancer last year. Jess said that if the tax credits go away, as they are supposed to on January 1, she would be forced to pay more for healthcare and will have to make a ``lifestyle change to pay the difference,'' potentially working more shifts. She also worries about a lapse of coverage if the price increase forces her to switch plans. Any gap in coverage could jeopardize her lifesaving cancer treatment.

How would you like to have that hanging over your head? Premiums of your health insurance plan go through the roof, and you need constant coverage because of a diagnosis of breast cancer. No American family should face that.

Here is the good news though. We can make a difference here in the Senate. We can stop Americans like Jess from falling off this looming healthcare cliff. As part of the bipartisan agreement to end the longest government shutdown in American history, Leader Thune, who was on the floor this morning, gave me his word, and I accepted it, that he will hold a vote in this Chamber extending these subsidies to Jess and others who desperately need help.

Last week, reports emerged from the White House about plans to release a proposal that would extend these subsidies for 2 years. The President was supporting that. Imagine my surprise after trying to cut or repeal the Affordable Care Act more than 70 times, after he promised on the campaign trail that he had ``concepts of a plan,'' whatever the heck that is--finally, we were to see the details of the Republican healthcare agenda for America.

But congressional Republicans jumped all over the White House and told the President he couldn't do it. They threw cold water on the idea of the President cooperating with the Democrats to solve this problem. The President has been tough to pin down on this subject, and Republicans know that they have a losing hand because they have no plan.

So far, their signature accomplishment is a law that would kick 11 million Americans off Medicaid and shutter rural hospitals in my State and others.

It is my hope that the President and Republicans will come to the table and negotiate in good faith in the few days that remain in the December session. Let's do this together. Let's fix the tax credit that is available to families who struggle to pay health insurance premiums. If they don't, we will put our proposal on the floor, and the American people will see where each party stands when it comes to helping deserving American families who need a helping hand.

If our offer on the Democrat side is rejected, the American public will know, with every paycheck, with every prescription, with every hospital bill, which party stood on their side and which didn't.

The time to make a good-faith effort on a bipartisan basis is now. Just 13 days from now is the deadline to enroll or change plans before the first of the year. Before and during the shutdown, my Republican colleagues argued there was plenty of time to craft a fix before the subsidies expire. The clock is ticking, and we need to act on a bipartisan basis.

When I voted to end the government shutdown, it was controversial. But I said I would not wage a political strategy at the expense of my neighbor's paycheck or food for his family. I meant it. But I, too, cannot sit idly by while 20 million Americans go without gas or groceries in order to pay their health insurance premiums. This is a question of fundamentals: Will you be able to afford the healthcare you and your family need? Let's get this done on behalf of every American in red and blue communities alike.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, today, the Senate will vote to confirm David Alan Bragdon to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina.

I will vote in opposition to Mr. Bragdon's confirmation to a lifetime appointment on the Federal bench.

While in college, Mr. Bragdon ran a personal website, whose homepage was titled, ``DAVID BRAGDON'S RADICAL Conservative, Republican, Libertarian Home page.'' He took it upon himself to share his views on a host of issues, and these views gravely concern me. Mr. Bragdon wrote that seeking an abortion is the ``wrong decision'' and it is due to ``the woman's poor judgment.'' Even more disturbing, he said that a woman ``must face the consequenses [sic]'' if she does not use birth control. Mr. Bragdon also argued that welfare caused immorality and encouraged drugs and crime. He also contended that children of welfare recipients are more likely to drop out of school, end up in prison, and have children out of wedlock.

I recognize that nominees often write things in college that no longer reflect their views today. But when I asked Mr. Bragdon about the views he expressed on his website, he refused to disavow his prior writings.

For these reasons, I will oppose Mr. Bragdon's nomination, and I urge my colleagues to join me.

I announce that the Senator from Illinois (Ms. Duckworth) and the Senator from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fetterman) are necessarily absent.

I announce that the Senator from Illinois (Ms. Duckworth), the Senator from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fetterman), and the Senator from Arizona (Mr. Gallego) are necessarily absent.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, let me pick up where the Republican leader left off on air traffic controllers.

The biggest, busiest airport in the United States is O'Hare, when you count both passengers and cargo traffic. After the government reopened, I went to O'Hare, and I met with the air traffic controllers. I have known them for years, dating back to the first government shutdown during President Trump's first administration.

There are roughly 10,500 air traffic controllers nationwide in America. We need 14,000. What does that mean if you are understaffed by that 40 percent figure?

It means that those who are presently working work extraordinarily long hours. In fact, the normal routine at O'Hare with the air traffic controllers who manage that airport is to work 6 days out of 7, 10 hours each day. So in one of the most stressful possible jobs in America, they are working 6 days a week, 10 hours a day. The stress is overwhelming.

I told them that, with the closure of the government behind us, we have to do something, and I hope we agree on a bipartisan basis to do it quickly. We need not only more air traffic controllers, well-trained and ready to work--and that will take some time to find those people-- but we also need new technology. We waited too long. We have talked about this issue over and over again. It is time to do something.

I want to salute those air traffic controllers. They have gone through a tough weekend, with Americans traveling for Thanksgiving, and I know that many of them have worked hard to make sure we have safe air travel.

I want to echo the comments of the Republican leader. This is an issue that should not go away. It is an issue we should address.

Mr. President, I want to start by acknowledging, as well, the horrific--horrific--shooting of two National Guard members in Washington, DC, last week.

As was reported, 20-year-old SPC Sarah Beckstrom tragically passed away on Thanksgiving Day, and 24-year-old SSgt Andrew Wolfe remains in critical condition. We pray for his recovery and, as one Nation, we send our deepest condolences to the Beckstrom family.

Whether or not you agree about the delegation of National Guard troops to Chicago or Washington or any other place, that is really beside the point. We should make a note today that this is an acknowledgement of the importance of the National Guard to America's defense at home and abroad many times.

Time and again, those guardsmen and guardswomen have served our country and served them well. Living proof of that statement is my colleague in Congress, Tammy Duckworth, who was injured in a helicopter incident

over Iraq and today serves with me as my colleague in the Senate. She speaks for all of the members of the National Guard when she says they are dedicated to our Nation and our States.

There must be a full investigation into the attack on Sarah Beckstrom and SSgt Andrew Wolfe. I implore the President to lower the temperature on political rhetoric and try not to exploit this to demonize immigrants, including many who make the ultimate sacrifice for our country. Instead, the President should work with Congress on commonsense and evidence-proven strategies to reduce crime and reform our broken immigration system.

My wife and I send our deepest condolences to the Beckstrom family, and we pray that Staff Sergeant Wolfe makes a full, speedy recovery.

Mr. President, on an unrelated issue, last week, families gathered around the table to give thanks and enjoy a plate or two of turkey, mashed potatoes, casserole, cranberry sauce, and more. Except, this year, the Thanksgiving feast cost more than last year--because of what? President Trump's economic policies are driving up the prices of groceries. The President claims the opposite, but that is not a fact.

In a social media quote, President Trump said, ``Prices for a Thanksgiving Dinner is now down 25% . . . since 2024.'' ``AFFORDABILITY,'' he said, ``is a Republican Stronghold.''

Does the President of the United States actually have any conversations with families who are shopping for groceries?

Here is the truth: Costs are going through the roof because of President Trump and his MAGA policies. The American people know this. Recent polling from none other than FOX News shows that nearly two- thirds of Americans blame President Trump for higher prices--FOX News.

Listen to my constituent Tria, who wrote to me from Chicago. After experiencing the sticker shock at a South Loop grocery store, she said:

No matter if it's organic or not . . . it's still going to

be an arm and a leg for it. It's like you're spending your

soul on groceries.

Another constituent Esther said:

A loaf of bread costs us $4, and it looks like it's getting

smaller.

I know what she means. Tria and Esther are not alone in their shared frustration. Working families across the country are feeling the squeeze at the checkout counter and are having to cut back on spending for the holidays.

This struggle has been exacerbated for several reasons, one of them being the President's massive cuts to the SNAP program--used to be known as food stamps--in his Big Beautiful Bill--not so beautiful--that will reduce or eliminate food assistance for more than 22 million families. This is America. This President gives 20 million bucks to Argentina, but he can't find the money for American citizens.

Another is the administration's attacks on immigrant workers, which is fueling a labor shortage, thereby hurting farmers in Illinois and across the Nation, who are already struggling, and driving up prices on the products they grow. Even President Trump's own Labor Department agrees, saying that his war on immigrant workers is ``threatening the stability of domestic food production and prices.''

Now let's get to the bottom line here and be honest about it. The farmers in my State are great men and women, and I thank them for what they do. When it comes to the political scene, after a lifetime of dealing with them, I know that they are very courteous and kind, come to see me with regularity, give me a lot of things to seriously consider, and usually vote for the other party. I get it. They are more conservative, and they just don't see things politically the way I see them. But when you close the door and there is no press around and you ask them what is going on, they are scared to death.

They see China stopping purchases of soybeans. Why is that important? Illinois is the No. 1 soybean-producing State in the United States, and it is a major cash crop for farmers all across the country. So when China stops buying, what do we do? Unfortunately, our buyers, like China, turn to other countries, and they use those countries as sources when they used to rely on us. That worries these farmers behind closed doors, but they don't say much publicly.

They don't like tariffs. They tell me that behind closed doors too. They don't want to be open in public about their criticism of President Trump, but the tariffs are taxes that they know are going to make it difficult for them and their exporters and importers of important goods.

In addition to all of that, they need workers on the farm. It is a fact. Whether it is an orchard or a dairy farm or any other farm operation, many of them need workers on the farm, and there aren't a lot of local people volunteering for that job. The President's policies against immigrants are not only denying them the source of these workers, but they are also creating an attitude in other adjoining countries that have served us in the past that it is too dangerous to try to come and work in the United States. That is the reality.

Nationwide, for example, the costs of a lot of basics just keep going up. Orange juice is up 29 percent compared to last year. Ground beef is up 14 percent. Coffee is 26 percent more. None of these developments have occurred in a vacuum. They are a direct response to the President's chaotic tariff policies. He changes his mind every 15 minutes. Is it 10 percent? Is it 15 percent? Is it 100 percent? Wait a minute. The Premier of Ontario just ran an ad during a baseball game. Let's raise tariffs on products from Canada by 50 percent. Is that any way to run a country? Already, families in Illinois have paid more than $700 just this year, on average, because of these policies.

In a Supreme Court hearing last month on the legality of these tariffs, Justice Sotomayor said to the lawyers defending the President:

You say tariffs are not taxes, but that's exactly what they

are.

Justice Sotomayor is absolutely right.

We are paying for Donald Trump's failed economic agenda--an agenda which runs back and forth, helter-skelter, day by day. The President recognizes it too, really. That is why a few weeks ago he watered down his own economic proposal when he suspended certain tariffs on bananas, coffee, beef, and clothing. You just can't keep up with him. Why backtrack? Because he knows that the voters and consumers in America are fed up with rising costs and place it by a factor of 2 to 1 at his feet. My source again? FOX News. The President sees the writing on the wall, and he is scrambling to undo the damage he has caused, but it is too little, too late, unless he moves quickly and changes dramatically.

The damage goes beyond food prices. Thanks to this President, Americans are now confronting higher utility bills. Just ask them. On the campaign trail, the President promised to slash electricity prices in half. ``Drill, baby, drill'' will take care of everything. It ain't working. On average, Illinois households are paying more than $1,500 annually for lights and heat in their homes--up more than 15 percent from last year. Cause and effect.

Under President Biden, with the support of a Democratic Congress, we signed into law the Inflation Reduction Act. This historic law provided tax credits to help households and businesses install energy-efficient windows, insulation, HVAC, and solar panels to lower their bills. I know because I put solar panels on my home in Springfield. Our monthly electric bill was cut dramatically because of that policy decision from the Biden administration.

Earlier this year, President Trump and congressional Republicans scrapped these credits for solar energy with their so-called Big Beautiful Bill. So while utility bills go up, people who want to go to cheaper forms of sustainable energy, such as solar, are told the tax incentives are no longer there, which is just the opposite of what we should be doing. Then they went further, eliminating incentives for wind and solar projects, meaning fewer jobs and less power to the grid. It is supply and demand. Less power equals higher prices. And the consequences of these policies are already taking effect.

According to the Century Foundation, past-due utility balances have jumped 10 percent this year. They are 10 percent more than they were the year before. People can't afford to pay these utility bills.

Just like SNAP cuts, Trump's energy policies harm those who are already struggling the most. One example is his budget proposal that calls to eliminate LIHEAP--a program that helps millions of low-income Americans pay their energy bills on time.

Between the sky-high cost of rent, groceries, and utilities, Americans are being hit from all sides.

The President has recently floated $2,000 tariff rebate checks as an idea. Not only are these checks unlikely to see the light of day, but the hole he has put American families in is far greater than 2,000 bucks. The American people see right through the dumb scheme, and they know that the sole reason they are facing higher prices is because of his policies.

While Republicans ignore higher costs at their own peril, Democrats are still going to keep fighting to lower costs for the American people. We know that there is an opportunity that is going to come before the Senate in just a few days to do something about the high cost of health insurance premiums. I am hearing it back home. People understand what is happening. They are getting notices about what these premiums are going to be as of the first of the year. Some 24 million Americans are affected by the ``Big Beautiful Budget Bill'' of Donald Trump and the elimination of these tax credits.

It is time for us to do something for American families that makes a difference. Help them pay their health insurance. For goodness' sake, that should be a high priority not only for the Senate but because it is a high priority for every family.

I hope we can work on a bipartisan basis to extend these tax credits and to make sure the American people understand that both Democrats and Republicans can work together to solve this problem. I think some want to on the other side of the aisle. We should do that in the spirit of bipartisanship.

The last point I want to make is almost impossible to understand or explain. Can you imagine that the former President of Honduras--his name is Juan Orlando Hernandez--was prosecuted by the Federal Government of the United States for his involvement in the trade of narcotics? He was found guilty of having been involved and was sentenced to some 45 years in prison as a result. He once boasted as President that he would ``stuff the drugs up the gringos' noses.'' He accepted a $1 million bribe from El Chapo--one of the leaders of narcotics international--to allow cocaine shipments to pass through Honduras that were destined for the United States. This former President Hernandez had a man killed in prison to protect him.

Honduras has become a bastion of the global drug trade. This former President Hernandez orchestrated a vast trafficking conspiracy that prosecutors said raked in millions of dollars for cartels while making Honduras one of Central America's poorest, most violent, and most corrupt countries.

So they prosecuted him and found him guilty of being involved in selling narcotics through these cartels in the United States. Can you think of anyone more reprehensible than that--selling drugs to this country--and finding more victims by the day, many of them children, who become addicted to cocaine? Well, of course, it is terrible. It is so terrible that he was found guilty and sentenced to 45 years in prison.

Then what happened? Well, you won't believe it. Donald Trump pulls out his pardon pen.

[O]n Saturday, Mr. Trump said in a statement to the New

York Times that ``many friends'' had asked him to pardon Mr.

Hernandez. ``They gave him 45 years because he was the

President of the Country.''

Then Donald Trump said:

``[Y]ou could do this to any President.''

I won't go into President Trump's own criminal convictions, but I will tell you this: When this man who was President of Honduras was facilitating the sale of narcotics in America, we thought so much of the effort to prosecute him that we assigned an assistant U.S. attorney by the name of Emil Bove. Ring a bell? Emil Bove was chosen by President Trump to serve on the circuit court of the United States. He was approved by this Chamber. I was at the hearing where he was considered, and I will tell you this: He was proud of the fact that he was tough on crime--so tough that he helped prosecute Hernandez and ended up seeing him sent to jail for so many years.

Then along comes President Trump with his pardon pen, and he releases Hernandez from jail. He releases him after years and years of prosecution, evidence, and hard work in stopping this man who was facilitating the sale of narcotics in the United States.

Once he started serving the prison sentence, President Trump said that ``many friends'' had asked him to pardon Mr. Hernandez. ``They gave him 45 years,'' President Trump said, ``because he was the President of the Country--you could do this to any President.'' And he then pardoned him.

Hard to imagine, isn't it? But it isn't hard to imagine if you were here on January 6 and saw the insurrectionists come roaring through this Capitol, storm this Chamber, and drive the Senate into recess as we went to an adjoining building so that law enforcement could take over the situation. There were 149 law enforcement officers who were seriously injured, and several died as a result of that experience. It was a terrible day in the history of the United States and a terrible day in the history of this magnificent building I am honored to serve in.

What did Donald Trump do as soon as he was reelected President? He issued a full and unconditional pardon to all of the people who stormed the Capitol.

So it comes as no surprise when it comes to drug kingpins like former Honduran President Hernandez. He got his pardon pen, and he decided-- because he had heard from so many friends, the President said, he decided to pardon Mr. Hernandez and release him.

This is not an action by a President who is trying to keep America safe from narcotics. It is a strange understanding of his power that he would use this and not end up penalizing those who are responsible for the narcotics coming into the United States.

I yield the floor.

I announce that the Senator from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fetterman), the Senator from Arizona (Mr. Gallego), the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Kim), the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders), the Senator from California (Mr. Schiff), and the Senator from Georgia (Mr. Warnock) are necessarily absent.

Mr. President, you heard the speeches. We all did. Donald Trump, the President of the United States, speaking to cheering crowds at rallies, he would say, inevitably: Murderers, rapists, terrorists, the criminally insane, sexual predators that came into this country illegally, we are going to remove them.

He made that promise over and over again. Well, in Chicago, IL, we have seen what those words have led to.

For almost 3 months, Chicago, in my home State of Illinois, has been under attack by President Trump since he launched what he calls Operation Midway Blitz.

During that time, chaos and terror have reigned supreme. This operation isn't just targeting the ``worst of the worst''--the rapists, the murderers, the terrorists, the criminally insane. That is what he promised. But American citizens--legal residents of the United States-- and immigrants who have built their lives and raised their families here and pose no threat to public safety have been the actual targets.

A court forced the administration to come clean on this: Just how many of these dangerous, worst-of-the-worst criminals are you arresting, deporting in the process of Operation Midway Blitz?

The administration finally released their numbers. Six hundred people have been arrested under Operation Midway Blitz: 600 terrorists, rapists, murderers, criminally insane--except that is not the truth at all.

During Operation Midway Blitz, 16 people out of the 600 actually had a criminal history that poses a high risk to public safety--3 percent, less than 3 percent of all of those arrested. What about the rest?

These violent raids by ICE agents aren't just targeting adults; they are targeting families. I want to tell you the story.

Two weeks ago, Raphael Veraza and his 1-year-old daughter Arianna-- both citizens of the United States--were enjoying a shopping day at Sam's Club. The little girl is barely 1 year old. Who would have thought that a simple father-daughter trip to Sam's would turn into a trauma that these two people will never ever forget? But the Verazas became a target for ICE for obvious reasons: He was shopping while being Hispanic. Enough said.

Listen to what happened to this dad and his daughter because of Operation Midway Blitz of this administration. Mr. Veraza and his family said they were in their car when they heard a helicopter and cars honking. With the uptick in raids in the Chicago area, Mr. Veraza knew those sounds signaled that ICE agents were nearby. To keep his family safe, he decided to leave.

Unfortunately, before this American citizen and his 1-year-old daughter could drive away, a masked agent--masked agent--pointed a pepper spray gun through the family's open car window and fired the weapon at close range. The pepper spray hit Mr. Veraza in the face, and his daughter also breathed it in.

Because of this violent, unprovoked action from ICE agents, both Arianna and Raphael were briefly hospitalized. He told reporters after the incidents happened:

My daughter was trying to open her eyes . . . She was

struggling to breathe.

Does this incident seem like a Federal immigration agent setting out to make America safer? Does this man look like a rapist, a murderer, a terrorist, criminally insane, worst of the worst? What was his crime? Being an American citizen shopping at a local Sam's Club? His only crime was he appeared to be Hispanic.

Pepper-spraying a 1-year-old little girl and her father during a shopping trip is shameful and outrageous. If it happened to any of us on my side of the aisle or the other side of the aisle and you heard about this family, your heart would go out to them.

This man was doing nothing wrong. Yet he was treated like a common criminal because he is Hispanic.

President Trump is turning Federal immigration officers into his own secret, masked police force. I see it every day in the city of Chicago as reported. He is violating the rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution to all of us, including the right to due process and the rule of law.

Let me be clear. The President and his administration's actions are not about politics, nor about public safety. It is time for all of us in Congress, Democrats and Republicans alike, to put politics aside, speak up, and condemn this growing threat to our democracy. If it happened in your hometown, you would be outraged, and you should be. It is happening in Chicago almost every day.

Healthcare

Mr. President, on a separate topic, America is facing a healthcare crisis that is unnecessary, and it is happening under this President's watch. Congressional Republicans spent the summer slashing more than $1 trillion from the Medicaid Program. This will threaten healthcare for 11 million people and jeopardize rural hospitals all across America. Smalltown hospitals--many of them will not survive.

Despite the President's promises, prescription drugs are still unaffordable, and Big Pharma continues to rip off American patients. And now, in just 6 short weeks, more than 20 million Americans will see their health insurance premiums double or even triple.

Imagine, if you will, when you take a look at what you paid last month for health insurance, that it is going to double on January 1 or worse. Tens of millions of Americans are terrified to look at their premium notices because Republicans have refused to extend the enhanced premium tax credits that made insurance affordable. In red States and blue States, for families, small business owners, farmers, and Americans nearing retirement, the peace of mind that health coverage brings will soon be out of reach.

With these tax credits set to expire, 4 million people will lose their insurance because their premiums will become unaffordable. They will be one sickness, one accident, one diagnosis away from absolute financial ruin or worse. Housing, utility, and grocery prices have gone through the roof already. Who can also afford to see their healthcare costs for their family double or triple? But President Trump and his billionaire buddies are out of touch. They don't have a clue what it is like to live paycheck to check and what the loss of health insurance means to a family.

As U.S. Senators, we can change that. We have the power to prevent these dramatic premium increases and avoid a healthcare catastrophe, but to use that power requires both courage and compromise.

As part of the agreement to reopen the government, which I voted for, the Republican leader promised to put a bill on the floor--one chosen by the Senate Democratic side--to extend the enhanced premium tax credits. So shortly after Thanksgiving, after we have enjoyed the holiday with our families, Senators will come back to Washington and make a fateful choice for American families across the Nation: Will we sit idly by while millions of Americans lose their healthcare coverage, or do we sit down, Republicans and Democrats, and solve this problem?

Why were you sent here to the Senate? Each Senator has their own explanation. I believe I was sent here to make life better for the people who live in my State and this Nation.

Can we find common ground? Can we reach an agreement? Can we do something that really makes a difference in the lives of our constituents? If we do it, they will be absolutely mystified that what they believe to be an incompetent Congress could rise to the occasion. The answer to this question is going to be closely watched by millions of Americans.

With each monthly premium payment or skipped doctor's visit, patients will be reminded of what we here decided to do.

Wouldn't it be amazing to end this year and start a new one by doing the right thing for these people who are victims of legislative decisions?

I was on the floor of this Senate 15 years ago--it was one of the most important votes I cast, to create the Affordable Care Act. Do you remember what life was like before the Affordable Care Act? I can tell you a few highlights.

If you had a preexisting condition or even a hint of such a condition, you either couldn't get insurance or it was limited in its coverage to a ridiculous level. You also had a situation where most health insurance policies never covered mental health or addiction.

I remember what happened on the floor of the Senate when we debated this issue. Why wouldn't it be covered? Why wouldn't we take mental illness as an illness and not a curse and something that could be treatable?

Well, two Senators stood up and argued to do that. One of them was Paul Wellstone--he used to sit right back there--from Minnesota. He was a character. I loved him. We all did. He was a college professor who took a beat-up, old schoolbus and got elected to the Senate from Minnesota.

A member of his family had a mental illness, and Paul Wellstone argued that we ought to do everything we can to help them and, first and foremost, make sure basic health insurance policies must cover mental health and addiction.

He had an unlikely ally who used to sit in that seat there to my right--Pete Domenici from New Mexico. He had been in the Senate for quite a few years, a Republican Senator, highly respected. He was one of the leaders in the Senate and had a child born with a mental illness.

He teamed up with Wellstone. What an odd couple politically. They got it done, so that you couldn't buy a health insurance policy in this country that didn't cover mental illness and addiction.

They didn't know at the time--none of us did--that we were going to face an opioid crisis and that addiction problems would not be confined to poor minorities but would touch many families who thought they were well beyond the reach of that scourge.

That provision was guaranteed by the Affordable Care Act. The insurance companies did not want to include it in their policies. We forced them to do it. Now to walk away from that kind of protection is unthinkable.

There was also a provision which was basically practical. We said: If you have a family health insurance plan that covers your children, it will cover them until they reach the age of 26.

Why would we want to extend to age 26? Because during that period of time, your son or daughter will be finishing college, looking for their first job, maybe struggling to make student loan payments and trying to get off on their own, and we would give them a helping hand by allowing them to stay on mom and dad's health insurance plan. It is very simple, it is very logical, and it works. Are we going to give that away as part of the war against the Affordable Care Act? I certainly hope not.

We can make the Affordable Care Act better, that is for sure. There are things we can do to reduce the cost of healthcare in America. One of them is pretty obvious.

Ever turn on the television recently and not see an ad by a pharmaceutical company? I doubt it. Almost every minute, night and day, they are running ads trying to entice Americans to ask for expensive prescription drugs. It is one of the main drivers in the cost of healthcare going up in America.

How many countries allow the pharmaceutical companies to advertise on television like we do in the United States? Only one other country in the world allows that--New Zealand. New Zealand.

Why do pharmaceutical companies want to do that? They want to entice you to ask your doctor to prescribe a drug that may help you. It has reached a point where Americans across the board cannot only pronounce but can spell Xarelto. We have heard it so often, over and over again. To ask a doctor for that drug is not uncommon because it has been suggested to you three times a day, every day, for months.

The American Medical Association and others say this is wasteful. People should be prescribed drugs they actually need rather than those that just might help them in remote circumstances. Little things like that can make a difference.

Senator Chuck Grassley and I introduced a bill to stop direct consumer advertising on television. It actually passed the Senate a couple years ago. Let's go back and make this part of the future of healthcare in America after--after--we have restored the tax credits that families desperately need immediate help on.

There is no excuse. We are going to have a new year coming soon, just a few weeks away. Families look forward to it and the opportunity. Give them a better life for millions of Americans by giving them help with tax credits to pay for their health insurance premiums. That is the reality of where we are.

I am committed to this cause because I know that it really makes a difference. As I said before on the floor, at one point in my life, as a young father with a little daughter who had a medical issue, I had no health insurance. I felt helpless. I don't want that feeling to be spread across America because of our lack of ability to reach a compromise. We can and we must. Rising premiums affect constituents in my State, and they affect those in Texas, South Dakota, Louisiana, Florida, Kansas, and Wyoming.

I believe the basic elements of an agreement are achievable. If Republicans are serious about preventing catastrophic premium increases, let's get together and get it done as soon as we return from Thanksgiving. We don't need to hold healthcare hostage and add extreme issues on its conditions to passing. We shouldn't undermine a deal to meet political goals.

Let's do something right for the families of America. They will be just amazed that we did, as they should be.

Global issues, such as proposals by Senator Sanders of Vermont-- Medicare for All as an option to health insurance--are worth a debate. Proposals by Senator Cassidy of Louisiana to privatize health insurance are worth a debate, there is no question about it. Let us make that the second item on the agenda after--after--we provide tax credits to help families pay for these health insurance premiums.

We can't upend the entire healthcare system in America by January 1 of next year. Let's get the highest priority done right away before Christmas. We have an opportunity. We have a responsibility to help Americans afford their healthcare, and that starts with a bipartisan vote in the Senate.

I hope my Republican colleagues will not waste this opportunity, nor should the Democrats waste it either. We need to make a real and positive difference for the people in this country who are counting on us.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

I announce that the Senator from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fetterman), the Senator from Arizona (Mr. Kelly), the Senator from Minnesota (Ms. Klobuchar), and the Senator from Massachusetts (Ms. Warren) are necessarily absent.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.