Floor Statements

I announce that the Senator from Illinois (Ms. Duckworth), the Senator from Washington (Mrs. Murray), and the Senator from Vermont (Mr. Sanders) are necessarily absent.

Madam President, this has been an amazing week in the U.S. Senate, and I have served here for over 25 years. Just 2 days ago, our colleague Cory Booker, from the State of New Jersey, ended a filibuster on the floor after 25 hours--broke the record, longest speech in the history of the Senate. And an impassioned speech it was. I was happy to be here for a major part of it.

There was a big celebration on our side of the aisle. The Galleries were filled in a way I have never seen before, cheering Cory Booker for his achievement. It is a moment all of us who are lucky enough to serve in the Senate will remember the rest of our lives. But I remember another moment that affected more people than this miraculous feat by Cory Booker.

It was July 28 of 2017. It was 2:30 in the morning. I was seated at this desk, and a historic vote was about to take place. The vote was whether or not we would keep the Affordable Care Act--or ObamaCare, as it was known then--extending health insurance to millions of Americans, some of whom had never had it.

At the time, President Trump was in office, and he and the majority of the Republicans were determined to eliminate the Affordable Care Act, to eliminate the insurance that millions of American families depended on to protect their kids and themselves.

It was the closest possible vote. In the end, at least three Republican Senators voted to save the Affordable Care Act, but the one key vote and the one I remember was John McCain's. John McCain, an extraordinary man, served this country in ways that we could hardly ask anyone else to serve: a prisoner of war for over 5 years during Vietnam, came battling back, and was elected to the U.S. Senate from Arizona.

And he was a real maverick. You never knew where John was going to end up, but you always wanted to end up with him, if you could, because it was always a spirited contest, and he usually won it.

And this vote was dragged out for a long period of time--2:30 in the morning, for goodness' sake. And somebody said: John McCain is the last person to vote, but he has been called off the Senate floor to go into a room behind and take a telephone call from Donald Trump.

Donald Trump, President, in his first term, was asking John McCain to cast the deciding vote to eliminate the Affordable Care Act, health insurance coverage for millions of Americans.

Madam President, I sat here, and I watched as John McCain came in from that phone call. And no one knew what he was going to do. Really, no one knew. John was the kind of person, you could never quite be sure.

And he walked in the well near the table where the Republicans gather for votes, and he stood there. And he barely raised his left arm-- because it was broken while he was a prisoner of war--just enough to get his thumb up and go ``no.'' No. That was it.

John McCain, with that ``no'' vote, saved the Affordable Care Act, and millions of Americans' health insurance was protected.

This was during Trump's first administration, and he had other priorities, and they certainly didn't include ObamaCare. He wanted to eliminate it. John McCain's courage came through that night. He broke with his party because he knew what was at stake. He knew that, for millions of Americans, there was no alternative when it came to health insurance--it was the Affordable Care Act or nothing--and he had the guts to vote no.

Oh, he was pilloried and criticized by the Republican faithful from one end of the country to the other, but those of us who believe he did the right thing will never forget that moment of courage.

In a strange way, today--Thursday, April 3, 2025--we are returning to that moment in history. The Republicans under President Trump, in his second term, want to perpetuate his tax cut that he gave primarily to the wealthiest people in America and add to it at the expense of healthcare for America.

When we talk about healthcare in America, one of the programs that is so critical is called Medicaid. In days gone by, Medicaid was a rarely used health insurance plan for the poorest and disabled people in America, but it has changed. It has become much different. And let me tell you why that is an interesting context for where we stand now.

Many Americans from coast to coast followed the stock market today. The reaction of the stock market to the Trump tariff tax and the chaos that has been created since he announced we were going into a trade war with virtually every nation on Earth--they watched carefully as the stock market reacted to it today.

The Dow Jones Average, which is supposed to be an indicator of the state of the economy, lost 4 percent of its value today. I don't know what that means for most people, but I know that most people watch it because it involves their own retirement plans: IRAs and 401(k)s and other plans that they have based on the value of stock. There has to be a sinking feeling--I am sure there is--in many households and families across America to see so much of the value that they have saved up for a lifetime disappear in one day reacting to the Trump tariff tax and what it meant across the country.

And here we come this evening, the same day as this Dow Jones plunge of 4 percent, to discuss--what?--healthcare, again, under President Trump. And this time it is connected to retirement and savings and the future of a lot of families.

Let me tell you a story about one. I am going to try to mask the details because I don't want anyone to reflect on the actual person. But he is a friend of mine, and he is a professional in Illinois, a wonderful guy, a community leader. And he had a beautiful family--he still does, for that matter--but his wife developed Alzheimer's. This lovely woman reached the point where she had to be put into a care facility to take care of her day-to-day. It breaks my heart to even think about it, but it was a fact. He didn't see it coming. There is no way he could have.

But, for years now, she has survived physically while mentally she has deteriorated to the point where she cannot communicate with him or others. It is an expensive undertaking, that type of care facility. He can afford it, but many people can't.

So what do they do? What happens when your mother or grandmother, when someone you dearly love in your family, reaches a point where they need this kind of care? Well, you do what you can, the best you can, with your own savings and your own resources. But, ultimately, the major source of funding for people who are in these facilities is Medicaid.

If you cut the Medicaid reimbursement, it limits the opportunity for these people to get good, professional care--people you love, people who it has broken your heart because of their illness, but you want to give them the very best in the parting years of their lives.

So when you cut Medicaid, which is going to be proposed by this Republican budget resolution, it is at the expense of families' peace of mind and resources they have saved for their own future, their own retirement.

That isn't the only one. In the State of Illinois, half of the children who are born in the State are paid for by the Medicaid system. What happens if you cut back on Medicaid reimbursement in those cases? It means less prenatal care; the likelihood, I am sorry to say, that kids, some, will be born with problems that could have been avoided and, more seriously, whether or not these children will even survive birth. That is what Medicaid is all about.

We are talking about cutting health coverage for those in care facilities, as well as those in hospitals or giving birth.

Why? Why would the Republicans even suggest that we cut this just like they did years ago when John McCain cast that deciding vote? Why under a Trump Presidency do they go after healthcare first? Why is that their target?

They believe that the vulnerable people who receive this kind of healthcare assistance won't be able to fight back--and they are desperate to raise more revenue for what purpose? To give tax cuts to the wealthiest people in the America.

For goodness' sakes, Elon Musk does not need a tax cut. He is a multi-multibillionaire, the wealthiest man in the world. Why in the world would he cut back on any kind of healthcare for Americans to give a man in that station in life a tax break? That is what it is all about. But there is more to the story.

I am honored to represent Illinois. I love the whole State. It is where I was born. And I am honored to represent the great city of Chicago. Oh, it is controversial. There are some people in downstate Illinois that say they ought to go off and be their own State, retire them. I am not one of those people. I am proud of the fact that Chicago is part of our State.

But my roots are in downstate Illinois, born in St. Louis, raising my family in Springfield. I have lived in and represented the smaller communities downstate in the rural areas. That is how I got to Congress in the first place, and that is how I stayed in the U.S. Senate.

What are these cuts Republicans are proposing in Medicaid going to do to rural and downstate Illinois and other rural and downstate areas around the Nation? The reality is very clear: Fewer resources to hospitals in sparsely populated areas mean that many of those hospitals will not survive. Today, more than half of those hospitals are hanging by a thread, operating in the red. To cut Medicaid reimbursement to those hospitals is literally going to close their doors and turn out their lights.

How important is a little hospital in a community downstate? It is the economic engine. It is the hub of life for the economy of that area. Take away that hospital, and it not only endangers the people living around it, it also means a lot of jobs are lost, too, and businesses that the people frequent often are going to be threatened as well.

So why would we cut Medicaid reimbursement and close these downstate hospitals, giving a tax break to the wealthiest people in America? It makes no sense. Where are our priorities? Where is our humanity to even consider that?

I don't understand on the other side of the aisle how Republican Senators--many of whom represent smalltown America, too, and really care in their hearts about it--can stand by and let this happen. The net result of this is going to be the quality of life threatened by the people who live in those areas.

I want to tell you a story about a community I visited 2 weeks ago-- two communities. One was Taylorville, IL. And I asked the hospital administrator in Taylorville, which is about 30 miles from Springfield, to come and invite other hospital administrators from the area and tell me what the Medicaid cuts proposed by the Republicans to give tax breaks to the wealthy will mean to these hospitals. To a person, they said the same thing: They may survive, but it is a big question.

And what difference will it make? Well, in some of these hospitals, it means that, instead of 30 minutes' drive to the hospital to deliver the baby, it will be an hour and 30 minutes. I can still remember our first babies in my family. The thought of being in the car for an hour and a half with my wife in labor would scare me to death. That would be the reality for people, and alternatives are just not available.

Why in the world would it reach a point where we would cut that kind of coverage, that kind of protection, that peace of mind to give tax breaks to the wealthiest people? It makes no sense.

Medicaid and the CHIP program cover nearly 40 million children, half of all the kids in America. Medicaid provides health coverage for 60 percent of seniors in nursing homes, the ones I mentioned earlier, and it is the largest funder of addiction and mental health treatment.

I will tell you, I know the cases pretty well of people who are desperate for addiction treatment. They realize that they are addicted. They realize they have a problem, and they are anxious to get started and cleaning their lives up. Medicaid is the source of funding for that kind of counsel, and to cut back on that is to really sentence these people to a lifetime of fear and, sadly, cost many of their lives.

In Illinois, 3.4 million people are enrolled in Medicaid, 1.5 million children. Under the Republican plans to slash Medicaid, 775,000 adults in Illinois who gained health insurance thanks to the Affordable Care Act, the same one that John McCain saved in the first Trump Presidency, would lose their coverage almost overnight. How would you like to be in a situation where you don't have health insurance at a critical moment?

I know. I was there. I was a student at Georgetown Law School. I got married in my second year. God sent us a beautiful little baby girl right away. We were so happy. And then a few weeks after she was born, we learned she had a serious congenital heart defect. I was a law student. I didn't have much income, and I had no health insurance. So my wife and I took our baby girl over to Children's Hospital here in Washington, DC.

We sit in the charity ward, and we waited until our name was called. And we saw a doctor who I prayed to God would be able to save our baby's life. I never felt more helpless in my life than I did at that moment, to have this little girl come into this world and her father couldn't provide health insurance.

Luckily, she survived. Great people did great favors for our family that I will never forget. I have never forgotten when there is a health crisis or health issue that is debated on this floor.

All of us want good health insurance, and to cut the programs for no reason other than to give tax breaks to the wealthiest people makes no sense whatsoever. It is not sensible. It is not thoughtful. It is not humane. That is what this debate is all about.

Are we going to protect health insurance for Americans so that they have some peace of mind that they have access to good care, or are we going to cut them off, and tell them they are on their own, whether it is mental health counseling, addiction counseling, or the birth of a child, or basic healthcare? That is what is at stake here. That is what is at stake.

So I would plead with my colleagues--and I know that it is unlikely. I have seen the votes. I know the party discipline. I have seen it on my side of the aisle. I am sure it is on the other side of the aisle. I am praying to God there is going to be one or two John McCains who are going to step forward and lift their hand enough to vote and save health insurance for Americans across the board. I know some people would be unhappy; in fact, some may threaten to defeat you politically because of it.

But I am sure that after John voted no to save the Affordable Care Act despite President Trump's telephone call in his first term, John had the satisfaction of knowing that, for millions of Americans, he was the man and his

vote was the vote that made the difference. It might have denied some tax breaks for some wealthy people, but for others, it gave them peace of mind. John was just enough of a maverick to be willing and able to do it. He will be fondly remembered in history as a result of it.

Madam President, I am going to close by saying that this is an issue that is near and dear to my heart, and I think a lot of other people too. They have gone through experiences much like my own. I know they realize that we have few moments of opportunity of service in the Senate to really make a difference in the lives of American families, to give hope to people who have given up because of a mother who is in a nursing home or because of a child with an illness.

I received letters. Sophia, a single mom from Palatine, IL--17 years of age, she gave birth to a baby boy. Her son was born with many medical complications. He had to undergo two surgeries in his first day of life. Can you imagine?

By the age of 4, he had undergone eight separate surgical procedures to address ongoing medical challenges. How did Sophia of Palatine afford the lifesaving care for her son? He was covered by Medicaid.

She wrote to my office. She said:

I don't want Medicaid. My son needs [Medicaid]. I could not

be able to afford the thousands of dollars of medical care

[to keep him alive without it].

Amber from Springfield, IL, told my office in no uncertain terms: You cut Medicaid, you endanger my sick child's life.

That is what it is. It is a life and death issue. It is not how many dollars you have leftover when you file your taxes. It is a life and death issue that we are debating.

I want to thank those who have spoken this evening already--Senator Schumer and Senator Merkley--for their leadership on this issue. I plead with my colleagues on the other side of the aisle: Please, there has got to be someone over there who will step up and have a McCain moment that will save healthcare for millions of Americans, and I am praying that it happens.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, when people ask me to describe my politics, I sometimes say that I try my best to follow the Gospel of St. Paul. By that, I mean I try to follow the examples of two good and wise men who showed me that politics, at its best, can solve real problems and advance our common good.

The first of these two Pauls was Senator Paul Douglas, the brilliant economist and World War II hero who served in this Senate--in the same seat I now hold--and gave me my start in government when he hired me as a college intern to work in his Washington, DC, office.

The other Paul was Senator Paul Simon, my greatest political teacher and dear friend. When he retired, he encouraged me to run to succeed him in this body. Paul Simon was the most decent public servant I have ever known--a man of uncommon integrity, vision, and accomplishment who was gifted with a capacious intellectual curiosity. And he was helped by a staff of men and women who shared his compassion and tireless work habits.

Donna Eastman was one of those helpers. She was also my friend. And I was sad to learn that she passed away this past Saturday. She worked for Paul Simon for the 18 years he served in this body. And when he retired in 1996, it was my good luck that Donna agreed to join my staff. She ran my southern Illinois district office in Marion until she retired in 2008.

Donna loved helping people and making their lives better, like so many of the dedicated Federal employees who are being fired illegally today. No case was too hard for Donna. She knew how to cut through redtape and how to calm people who were frustrated, frightened, or angry. She treated every person with dignity and respect.

If you were lucky enough to meet Donna Eastman, you would not forget her. She was tall--5 feet, 11 inches--with a firm handshake, a warm smile, and an infectious laugh. She was quick-witted, caring, generous, and genuine. She also was a woman of many interests and seemingly inexhaustible energy.

She was active in her women's club, her church, and in the civic and political life of her community. She was a gifted ``best of show'' painter of portraits and still lifes and an award-winning gardener with a magnificent flower garden. For a few years, when she was a young mother, she wrote a humorous column for her local paper, the Goreville Gazette.

And those were just her hobbies. In addition to her public service work, Donna's primary occupation was co-owner with her husband Barry of Eastman's Orchard in Goreville, an 80-acre farm that produced some of the most delicious peaches and apples anywhere. Their secret was to wait until the fruit was perfectly ripe before picking it and selling it quickly to loyal customers. You couldn't miss the orchard's big red barn as you drove down Route 37.

Donna and Barry knew each other their entire lives. They were a year apart in school. When Donna was a junior in high school, she was prom queen, and Barry was her escort. Three years later, they were married.

Like Donna, Barry relishes new challenges, like grafting together two different trees to produce a better-tasting, heartier fruit. In the early 1970s, he ran successfully for sheriff of Johnson County.

Donna Kelley Eastman came from good, strong stock. When she was a young teen, she watched her mother Juanita swing a hammer as she helped Donna's grandfather build the Kelley family home.

Donna's father Bill Kelley was a person of many interests and accomplishments, like Donna. He was a World War II veteran and, at various times, an Illinois State trooper, long-distance truck driver, gas station owner, and board member of the local bank.

Her parents taught Donna to be tenacious, work hard, and pursue her passions. They also taught her to be generous to others in need.

The Kelleys were committed Democrats, and in 1960, Donna and her parents were all dazzled by John F. Kennedy. Her parents were awed by his charisma. Donna was captivated almost equally by JFK's idealism and Jackie's elegance. She decided that she wanted to be part of Camelot; she wanted to work for a common cause and a greater good. And she spent the rest of her life doing just that.

Donna Kelley Eastman believed that a wise and compassionate government could help people live better lives and that she had a personal responsibility to help make that happen.

She loved being in her garden and orchard in the springtime and witnessing the promise of another new beginning. She loved her country and community and, most of all, her family.

Loretta and I offer our deep condolences to Barry, Donna's beloved husband of 62 years; their children Teresa, Matthew, and Melanie; and their families, including Donna and Barry's six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren; to Donna's sister Pam; and to her countless friends. We will all miss her. I couldn't have asked for a better ambassador.

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, 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, since taking office 72 days ago, the Trump administration has created chaos in our economy. The President, if you will remember, campaigned on lowering prices for American families. Unfortunately, his policies and actions have done the opposite.

Many families are worse off today than when he was sworn in. In February, egg prices, which has become a political standard bearer, hit a new alltime high in the United States. Just last week, a typical U.S. homeowner's monthly mortgage payment also reached an alltime high. And now Donald Trump's ill-conceived, foolish trade war with one of our top allies is the latest example of this continued pain for Americans' wallets.

On February 1, the President announced he was imposing a 10-percent tariff on energy imports from Canada as well as a 25-percent tariff on all other goods. Unsurprisingly, Canada answered and announced retaliatory tariffs. Just like that, a trade war with our second largest trading partner and closest ally is underway.

So how did the President justify such an unprecedented, counterproductive, and harmful move? He cited the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to declare an emergency at our northern border, stating that fentanyl and undocumented migration constituted a national emergency in our relationship with Canada that justified the use of tariffs.

The only problem: The justification just doesn't hold water. This International Emergency Economic Powers Act is intended for use in extraordinary cases related to foreign threats, such as placing sanctions on dictators. Trump's Executive order declared a so-called emergency at our Canadian border and tied it to Canada's failure to prevent illicit drugs from being trafficked across the border, but Canada is openly willing to address this shared challenge and has cooperated with the United States.

Let me be clear. Preventing the trafficking of fentanyl is a bipartisan priority. The fact remains that less than 1 percent of fentanyl intercepted at the U.S. border comes from Canada--less than 1 percent--and Canada made it clear long ago they are willing to work with us to reduce that amount.

The President's use of IEEPA to attempt to justify these tariffs is a shoddy excuse to ram through an unpopular agenda and bully yet another close ally of the United States.

The President is manufacturing a fake emergency as a guise to enact billions of dollars in taxes on American consumers to fund massive tax cuts for his billionaire buddies. That is unacceptable.

The consequences of this trade war will be painful and avoidable. Everyday Americans will feel it. If fully enacted,

Trump's trade war will cause price hikes on nearly all basic goods. A new mother buying formula for her baby, parents buying groceries, a young person saving up for a car--every American is going to feel it. This tariff policy of President Trump's is going to be painful for American families.

The impact on farmers, workers, consumers, and businesses across my State of Illinois, sadly, is going to be devastating. Canada is Illinois's largest export market. Illinois exports to Canada totaled $20 billion in 2023. Illinois ranks fifth among 50 U.S. States in exports to Canada and first in imports. States across the Nation are going to feel a similar impact.

So it is no surprise that the vast majority of Americans cannot understand what the President is trying to do when it comes to our relationship with a good friend, a trusted ally, and historic partner, Canada.

President Trump recently said he ``couldn't care less'' if carmakers hike prices in response to tariffs--``couldn't care less.'' He is pushing forward with his plan that economists, experts, and even the White House itself admits is going to be painful for American families.

The last election was all about the cost of living. This is going to raise the cost of living for families across the United States, this tariff war. How does unnecessarily tanking our economy, alienating our allies, and taking money out of the wallets of Americans make us great again?

Right now, we should be focused on commonsense ways to lower prices and fight inflation. We should be taking genuine steps to slow the flow of fentanyl across our borders, which Canada has made it clear they want to cooperate with us in achieving. We should be working with and not fighting against our closest allies like Canada. These tariffs do none of that.

That is why I am supporting Senator Tim Kaine's resolution to block the President's abuse of emergency powers. I know Senate Democrats will stand up for American consumers. Can a few Republican colleagues join us or will they continue to let Donald Trump and Elon Musk enrich billionaires at the expense of hard-working American families?

I announce that the Senator from Washington (Mrs. Murray) is necessarily absent.

I announce that the Senator from Washington (Mrs. Murray) is necessarily absent.

Mr. President, on another matter, there are few more devastating words to hear than: ``You have cancer.''

The unfortunate truth is that millions around the world are faced with that reality every year. The statistics are devastating. Cancer kills 10 million people each year and is a leading cause of death globally.

The good news? Medical research has led to breakthrough advancements that are helping in the fight against cancer, with new treatments and cures being developed each year.

If some of the most painful words someone can hear are: ``You have cancer,'' then some of the most hopeful words are: ``You have promising treatment options.''

Thanks to research from the National Institutes of Health and other global medical research organizations, the scientific community is making ground-breaking advances in cancer treatment.

For example, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have used NIH funding to develop a new system to predict a person's likelihood of developing lung cancer up to 6 years in advance, using a low-dose CT scan.

Researchers at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine used NIH funding to develop a test that identifies 95 percent of early pancreatic cancers, one of the deadliest cancers because it is rarely caught early.

Medical research worldwide has also led to the development of personalized cancer vaccines, discoveries about the genetic causes of cancer, and the creation of drugs to cut breast cancer risk and treat cervical cancer.

This lifesaving research is creating hope for millions across the world at a time when the estimated number of new cancer cases and deaths is only predicted to rise.

But the Trump administration is directly threatening the very research that provides the foundation for new discoveries, treatments, and cures.

Since the President took office and ceded power to his unelected billionaire buddy Elon Musk, they have attempted sweeping cuts and illegal caps on medical research funding.

Already, because of these efforts, NIH has been forced to hold back more than $1 billion in Federal grant funding for researchers. Imagine that. The President cutting funding to help find cures for cancer.

As if that weren't bad enough, Elon Musk and RFK, Jr., Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, have taken their chainsaws to the medical research workforce, cutting more than 1,000 jobs from NIH and threatening thousands more.

Just yesterday, NIH employees reported to work, not knowing if they still had jobs or not. How does dismantling our Nation's premier medical research agency make our Nation better? Or healthier?

When you freeze NIH's work, limit its resources, fire its experts, or cut its budget, you are hamstringing the world's leading medical research agency from doing what it does best: saving lives.

We are at a very dangerous precipice. If this attack on medical research is allowed to continue, we will lose an entire generation of researchers, medical breakthroughs will be delayed, and the words ``you have cancer'' will be heard by far more people who will have far less hope in a treatment or cure.

Mr. President, at this point, Congress is in the midst of an important duty: crafting a budget resolution. The resolution is a framework that will guide Federal spending over the next 10 years and ensure that the United States can fulfill its financial commitments and its priorities.

But under the direction of President Trump, congressional Republicans are using this moment as an opportunity to make cuts that hurt working families and repurpose the savings to pay for tax breaks for the wealthiest people in America.

And what is the most egregious example of this? The Republican plan to slash health coverage for millions of Americans who rely on Medicaid.

House Republicans have proposed $880 billion in cuts to the Medicaid Program in order to pay for Trump's tax cuts for billionaires, and Senate Republicans have similarly put this program in the crosshairs. Why? Not because they want to lower healthcare costs to improve our healthcare system but because they want to use Medicaid cuts as a source of revenue for tax breaks for billionaires.

The richest man on Earth, Elon Musk, can dance around a stage with a chain saw, cheering cuts to basic healthcare programs, but let me explain to you what that really means for working families. Medicaid covers 30 million children in America, nearly half of all our kids, 60 percent of seniors in nursing homes, and it is the largest funder of addiction and mental health treatment.

Let's zero down on that statement: Thirty million kids, half of all the kids in America, rely on Medicaid for basic health coverage. And if you have a parent or a grandparent in a nursing home or assisted living, 60 percent of them rely on Medicaid to pay for it. What happens to the family of the parent or grandparent if Medicaid isn't there? Bet you know the answer. The family

has to pay for it or mom can't go where you think the best care is offered. That is what Medicaid is all about, 60 percent of folks in nursing homes, and it is the largest funder of addiction and mental health treatment.

How many times have we said that we are so enlightened these days, unlike previous years, that we talk honestly about mental illness and dealing with it? My family, like most families, had a history of mental illness, but it was a deepest and darkest secret. Now we are open about it, and thank goodness we are because it is an illness--it is not a curse--and an illness that can be treated if you can pay for it.

Medicaid pays for more mental health counseling than any other source. And when it comes to narcotics addiction, we talk about fentanyl, we talk about heroin, all these different narcotics, and God forbid, any family has to face that, but if they do, where do they turn for counseling?

It turns out, the biggest source of counseling from narcotics addiction is paid for by Medicaid. So if you cut down the coverage of Medicaid, you reduce the likelihood of good professional care for people who are suffering from mental illness, addiction, or other serious medical problems.

In Illinois, 3.4 million people are enrolled in Medicaid, including 1.5 million children. Under Republican plans to dramatically cut the Medicaid Program, 775,000 adults who gained health insurance coverage under the Affordable Care Act would lose coverage almost overnight.

When I think back to things that I have been part of as a U.S. Senator from Illinois, I am particularly gratified to remember when we passed the Affordable Care Act. Too many Americans at that time had no health insurance coverage.

I found myself stuck in that situation as a law student here in Georgetown many, many years ago. My wife and I were blessed with a little baby girl that was born with a serious health problem, and we had no health insurance.

So where did I go? I went over to the Children's Hospital in this town with my wife and baby and waited in what they called the charity ward for the opportunity to see some doctor--any doctor--that might be able to treat my little girl.

I never felt more worthless as a parent without health insurance with a sick little child. It is a terrible feeling. I have never forgotten it to this day. I wouldn't wish it on anybody.

And I certainly wouldn't take health insurance away from somebody who couldn't afford it otherwise in order to give a bigger tax cut to a wealthier person. I want to help working families, that is for sure, but tax cuts for Elon Musk--come on, he doesn't need it. He wouldn't even notice it. What we ought to be focusing on is that family and their needs.

And for other children, elderly, and disabled Illinoisans who depend on Medicaid may no longer be able to access lifesaving medical treatment with the cutbacks that are being proposed.

The Republicans are ignoring another obvious point. Medicaid is the absolute lifeline for children's hospitals and rural hospitals in their communities.

You pick a State, in Illinois, 60 percent of our 102 counties are classified as rural, smalltown America. Rural hospitals are the backbone of communities in downstate Illinois. Rural hospitals anchor the local economy. They often are the largest employer in town, in the county, sometimes. And they are critical access points for healthcare.

If you suffer a farm accident or face a complication with a birth in your family, you can't afford to drive that extra hour or two to find the nearest hospital.

That is why I worked for years to improve access to healthcare in rural areas, working to strengthen rural hospitals and recruit more doctors, dentists, and nurses. But rural hospitals in Illinois and across this country could be at risk of closure if Republicans put Medicaid on the chopping block.

Last week, I had a series of press conferences back in my State. I first went to Taylorville, in Central Illinois, and then down to Cahokia Heights, near the St. Louis area, and met with hospital administrators who told the story: They didn't know whether they could keep the doors open if the cutbacks proposed by the House Republicans go through. It will be a cutback that they feel personally.

Already, half of rural hospitals in America operate in the red. They are not getting by with current reimbursement, and with even less, fewer hospitals will be available. For many rural hospitals, Medicaid covers a large percentage of their patients and accounts for a large portion of the hospital's budget.

For HSHS St. Francis Hospital in Litchfield, IL, Medicaid pays for 53 percent of all hospitalizations. For OSF St. Clare Hospital in Princeton, IL, Medicaid pays for 45 percent of all hospitalizations. It is 22 percent for Jersey Community Hospital in Jerseyville, IL. And the list goes on and on.

And it isn't just rural, smalltown areas affected by these Medicaid cuts. It also goes to the inner city. Hospitals struggling to survive won't be able to.

So do you see the picture here? Cuts to Medicaid put rural hospitals and inner-city hospitals in danger. And if rural hospitals close because of Republican budget cuts, communities will suffer, and families will suffer. Children seeking cancer treatments won't be able to access local care when they need it. Pregnant women will have to drive further to deliver their babies. And your grandparent will have to wait months to get in to see that diabetes specialist.

Of course, Americans of all political affiliations rely on Medicaid, and, increasingly, Republican Members of Congress are recognizing how unpopular it is going to be to cut Medicaid to pay for tax breaks for the wealthy.

Senator Tommy Tuberville of Alabama acknowledged in an interview that cutting Medicaid would ``decimate'' his home State of Alabama, where three out of five kids are on Medicaid. He then said that Congress has to find a way around cutting it.

Senator Roger Marshall of Kansas similarly expressed his support for Medicaid, saying that, rather than cutting it, ``we will try to strengthen Medicaid for the future of all those who need it the most, the most vulnerable.'' And Senator Marshall, of course, is a medical doctor.

Slashing lifesaving healthcare will hurt Americans in blue and red States. I hope my Republican colleagues will not cave in to the President's pressure and legislate away the health and well-being of the people they represent. If Republicans push forward with their cruel and unpopular funding plan, working families will lose, and a handful of billionaires will win. It is simple and devastating math.

It is not too late. As we consider the budget resolution, as soon as this week, Congress has the ability to do the right thing and protect Medicaid from cuts in our Federal budget.

The numbers in Congress make the difference. In the U.S. Senate, of 100 Members, there are 53 Republicans and 47 Democrats. When it comes to these budget decisions, three Republicans moving over to vote with Democrats to save Medicaid can save and keep open these hospitals I have talked about, can give these kids access to healthcare, can help families pay for mom's and their grandmother's nursing care, can make sure that we have counseling for mental health and addiction.

Three Republicans--that is all it takes. We hope that they will listen to the people they represent, carefully.

I have. I think it is clear.

Medicaid is a popular program. Over 80 percent of the American people reject the idea that we should cut Medicaid--over 80 percent. That goes way beyond any single party. They understand that this gets down to the basics.

How would you like to be sitting in that waiting room with no health insurance, at a hospital far from your home, hoping that your child is going to survive?

Stick with the families of this country. The billionaires will take care of themselves.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

I announce that the Senator from Delaware (Mr. Coons), the Senator from Colorado (Mr. Hickenlooper), the Senator from Michigan (Mr. Peters), and the Senator from Michigan (Ms. Slotkin) 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, 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.