Floor Statements

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the rollcall vote begin now.

Madam President, I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to waive the mandatory quorum call with respect to the Glass nomination.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Madam President, I rise today to honor an esteemed, great Montana leader: Dr. Waded Cruzado.

Dr. Cruzado has served as the beloved president of Montana State University, my alma mater, since 2010. In fact, three of our four children graduated from Montana State during her tenure as president.

For over 15 years, she has been a tireless leader, pushing MSU to new heights both academically and in athletics. Her passion for the success of her students has transformed not only the MSU campus but our great State of Montana as well. The impact of Dr. Cruzado's leadership is felt and seen by students, faculty, and community members all across Montana. Frankly, the results speak for themselves.

MSU is now one of the top public universities in the entire country. As a fellow Bobcat myself from 1984, I couldn't be more proud. In fact, under her leadership, we saw recordbreaking accomplishments at Montana State University.

Student enrollment increased by 26 percent to over 17,000 students, making MSU the largest university in Montana. Importantly, the student retention rate grew to 75 percent. That is the highest it has been in 30 years. Graduation rates increased to the highest they have been in more than 20 years.

When you look at the annual research expenditures, Montana State's has increased by 162 percent, making MSU the leading research institution in our great State. The school was recognized by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education and the American Council on Education as one of the most productive research institutions in the United States.

Dr. Cruzado has also been instrumental in transforming the Bobcat athletic department. As president--truly, I have watched the Bobcats since I was a little boy in Bozeman--the Bobcats have soared to new heights.

Our football team has made it to two NCAA FCS championships, and they have won five Big Sky Conference championships.

The men's and women's basketball teams both earned multiple trips to NCAA tournaments and together have won five Big Sky Conference championships.

Let's talk about women's rodeo. MSU has won 3 national team titles, and they have made 12 consecutive top-10 finishes in the NCAA skiing championships.

Clearly, Dr. Cruzado has helped lead MSU into a truly new era of academic, cultural, and athletic excellence--in fact, even to the Moon--with their program there on campus.

Now after more than a decade of service to our State, it is my honor to recognize her hard work and her dedication as she begins the next chapter of her career as president of the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities. Her work and her bold leadership will be forever remembered, and she truly has left a lasting legacy on MSU--its students, its staff, all the Bobcat fans, and myself.

Waded, I wish you well, and I look forward to rooting for your continued success.

As she knows and I know, once a Bobcat, always a Bobcat.

So on behalf of Montana, Dr. Cruzado, thank you, and as you always say and I always say, ``Go Cats.''

Madam President, today I have the distinct honor of recognizing Robert Weber of Park County on his 100th birthday.

Robert was born in Hobson, MT, and he and his brother moved to Paradise Valley when they were young. As a young man, he answered the call to serve our great Nation during World War II, becoming a gunner aboard a B-29 Superfortress bomber and flying missions over Japan.

After the war, he returned to Montana to build a life in Paradise Valley, raising sheep and cattle on a property neighboring his brother's. He is passionate about the outdoors and was quite the hunter in his day. Robert is a family man and devoted to his daughter Cathy, grandchildren, and now great-grandchildren.

It is my distinct honor to recognize Robert Weber for his dedication to his family and country and to mark the momentous occasion of his 100th birthday. Robert's legacy of service and hard work will continue to inspire generations to come. I wish you a very happy birthday, Robert, you make Montana proud.

Mr. President, I ask my colleagues to oppose this amendment.

Reserve funds can accomplish nothing beyond political messaging, are unnecessary, and, frankly, distract or delay the budgeting process.

This amendment would, in no way, impact the great firefighters who fight our Nation's fires out West. These firefighters deserve recognition. They deserve fair pay. In fact, we have the bill that does that, the Wildland Firefighter Paycheck Protection Act. It is bipartisan. It permanently addresses securing increases in their wages. If we want to support our wildland firefighters, let's pass this bill and get it on President Trump's desk.

Republicans are committed to protecting our environment and our public lands without suffocating the U.S. economy. I urge my colleagues to do the same and oppose this amendment.

Vote on Amendment No. 316

Mr. President, today I have the distinct honor of recognizing 4-year-old Trevick Udelhoven of Fergus County as Montanan of the Month for his courage that is larger than life as he battles a life-threatening seizure disorder.

Trevick is your typical Montana cowboy, who loves spending time on the farm, being outdoors and cheering on his beloved Montana State University Bobcats. Sadly, he has recently had to put a pause on farm life to receive care from the Seattle Children's Hospital to receive treatment for his Febrile Infection-Related Epilepsy Syndrome, also known as FIRES. This diagnosis is an extremely rare neurological condition that can affect even the healthiest of adults and children.

Despite the obstacles he has faced, Trevick continues to demonstrate his grit and determination every step of the way. While he suffered brain damage as a result of his seizures, Trevick is working hard in physical, occupational, and speech therapy sessions to regain his strength and abilities. This type of perseverance deserves to be celebrated and cheered for, just as Trevick has always cheered on his Bobcats.

Between Trevick's courage and his incredible support system--his parents Dillon and Lexi and four siblings--he is bound for great things and serves as an inspiration to all. My prayer is that God would continue to bless and heal this little cowboy so that he can get back to the Treasure State.

It is my distinct honor to recognize Trevick Udelhoven for his strength and bravery, in and out of the hospital. Know that Montana is rooting you on, just as you cheered for the Bobcats all season. Keep fighting, Trevick; you make Montana proud.

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

Madam President, with only days left in the 118th Congress, I come to the floor to fight on behalf of my rural Montana communities. S. 4444, the Crow Revenue Act, is a win for Montana, and it is one that cannot wait any longer.

The bill is pretty simple. It swaps minerals between the Crow Tribe, the Federal Government, and the Hope family and ensures that both the Crow Tribe and Musselshell County will continue to receive much-needed revenue from mineral development.

Let me be clear: If this bill does not pass and is not signed into law this year, there will be dramatic consequences for Montana communities. If we don't act before the end of the year, there will be 100 high-paying mining jobs lost in Roundup, MT. And unlike the show ``Yellowstone,'' where it looks like everybody has helicopters and fancy barns and fancy houses, this part of our State--and most of Montana--fights every day to make ends meet.

And, by the way, these 100 jobs that will be lost is after 700 jobs were lost at the Stillwater mine in Columbus, MT, a few months ago. We can't afford another layoff of hard-working miners.

Furthermore, both Musselshell County and the Crow Tribe will see cuts in their revenues, leading to fewer services for their communities.

The Crow Revenue Act is a long-term fix to a real problem that is happening in my State. It has the strong support of community leaders, county commissioners, the Governor, other locally elected officials, and, very importantly, the Crow Tribe.

I ask my colleagues to stand with me and support our rural and our Tribal communities.

Madam President, notwithstanding rule XXII, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Indian Affairs be discharged from further consideration of S. 4444 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration; further, that the Daines substitute amendment at the desk be considered and agreed to; that the bill, as amended, be considered read a third time and passed; and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Madam President, today I have the distinct honor of recognizing Montana Highway Patrol State Trooper Wade Palmer of Ravalli County as Montanan of the Month for his bravery and sacrifice made in the line of duty.

Trooper Palmer's dedication to his fellow Montanans is nothing short of remarkable. Born and raised in Missoula, Wade grew up in a large family with a passion for helping others. From a young age, he felt a call to law enforcement, driven by the desire to serve and protect his community. Over the course of his career with the Montana Highway Patrol, Wade displayed unwavering bravery and commitment, earning numerous accolades, including two Medals of Valor, the VFW Trooper of the Year award, and the Governor's Award for Excellence in Performance.

Sadly, on March 15, 2019, Wade was ambushed and critically injured in the line of duty. Ever since that horrific event, Wade remains focused on his family--his wife Lindsey and their daughters Mia and Cierra--as he continues on his journey to recovery. Despite the hardships he has faced and wounds he bears, both visible and invisible, Wade's resilience and determination inspire us all. The countless men and women who serve on the frontlines each day to serve and protect are the best among us, and they deserve our thanks. May we always remain committed to supporting and honoring our first responders.

It is my distinct honor to recognize Wade Palmer for his selfless service to the Treasure State. May God bestow blessings upon you and your family as you continue healing. You make Montana proud.

Madam President, I rise today to talk about the need to right a wrong. The National Football League and the Washington Commanders must do more to honor the Commanders' Native American heritage, as powerfully symbolized by the team's former iconic logo, and they must commit to never ever again censor it or degrade it.

Here is the story. This is a photograph from the 1960s of Blackie Wetzel and Senator Robert F. Kennedy. Blackie Wetzel was a member of the Blackfeet Nation in Montana and served his people and the country in many roles throughout his life, including chairman of the Blackfeet Tribe and president of the National Congress of American Indians.

In 1971, Blackie met with George Herbert Allen, who was then the head coach and the general manager of Washington's premiere professional sports franchise, the Washington Redskins. Knowing that Coach Allen admired and supported Native Americans, Blackie Wetzel encouraged him to replace the team's ``R'' logo with something that represented Indian Country. Blackie brought Coach Allen pictures of prominent Native American figures, including Blackfeet Chief Two Guns White Calf, who is pictured here on this poster board beside me.

On behalf of the team, Coach Allen adopted the now legendary logo that became the symbol of this storied franchise and among one of the most popular in league history.

Make no mistake, this logo was inspired, it was envisioned by Blackie Wetzel as a tribute to Native Americans.

By the way, it is not a character. It is a depiction of pride and of strength, a depiction of courage, of honor. In fact, as Blackie Wetzel said in 2002:

It made us all so proud to have an Indian on a big-time

team.

And, I will tell you, support from the Wetzel family, the White Calf family, and the Blackfeet Nation remains as strong as ever today.

In fact, the Blackfeet Nation recently expressed their ``wholehearted support'' for the logo and urged the NFL and the Commanders to restore it to a place of ``prominence and honor.''

In fact, I will never forget Don Wetzel when he came to me 3 years ago--in fact, 3 years ago this very week--to share his father's remarkable legacy and to tell me directly the logo still mattered to him and to his family even after the team stopped using it.

Now, for context, the contributions of our Nation's Native American Tribes to our country's culture and heritage is beyond dispute. And this includes their service in the Armed Forces.

Do you realize that Native Americans serve our country in uniform at the highest percentage of any ethnic group? They are warriors for our country. And we honor them, and we honor all veterans this week.

Any franchise should be proud to be associated with Native American heritage. But, unfortunately, in February of this year, the NFL deliberately censored the logo on its official X account, as you can see here. They did this when honoring previous Super Bowl winners, and the Commanders are selling a shirt even today that does the same.

You might ask what I mean by ``censoring the logo.'' Well, in the case of the NFL, they photoshopped graphics to cover up the logo on the team's helmet, as you can see here. This is John Riggins. It is a picture of one of the great legends of Washington, DC.

And in the case of a shirt that was honoring Darrell Green, the logo is completely removed from the helmet, as if it were some sort of obscene image.

Now, this blatant censorship is outrageous, and it is offensive, not to mention hypocritical. Players wore the very same shirt in pregame warmups with one major difference. You will see here that the logo is proudly displayed, as it should be. We can see the logo. So why couldn't fans share the same enthusiasm by purchasing a shirt with a legendary player and a legendary logo?

And I have got to tell you, the censorship of honorable Native imagery certainly does not promote diversity, equity, or inclusion.

And let me be clear. Anyone who has been following this issue for the past few months knows this: I am not calling for the return of the former team name.

Let me say that again, because there are folks who twist this. I am not calling for the return of the former team name, which had become increasingly controversial, especially in Indian Country. But unlike the former name, the logo was rarely a subject of controversy; and, in fact, it was never alleged to be disparaging during the trademark disputes against the team that spanned many years.

And while some individuals might object to teams featuring any Tribal imagery, however honorable and realistic, there is no doubt in my mind that the overwhelming majority of fans in Indian Country and beyond believe that Washington's former logo is honorable, and it is a point of pride.

Look no further than the Blackfeet Nation's chairman of the Tribal council writing this letter supporting the logo. It was dated September 23, 2024. It was therefore wrong and simply unnecessary for the NFL and the team's former ownership to discard the logo and abandon its nearly 90-year connection to Indian Country.

Now, the good news is that the new Commanders owners have taken some positive steps since the May committee hearing on legislation related to RFK Stadium here in Washington. I applaud them for honoring Wetzel with a permanent memorial at Northwest Stadium. And I am told that censoring the logo on the Darrell Green shirt was an oversight, and it won't happen again when other Washington legends are featured on shirts in the future.

It is also my undersigning that the Commanders are continuing to have good-faith conversations with the Wetzel family on potentially allowing a new foundation, to be created, to use the iconic logo to draw attention to critical issues facing Indian Country.

I sincerely hope these conversations result in the team taking additional action to honor the Blackfeet Nation's contributions to the team's history and, frankly, the rich Native American

heritage surrounding our Nation's Capital.

I also strongly encourage the NFL to allow sales of vintage merchandise featuring the Native American logo where market demand exists. And if the Commanders want to occasionally wear the throwback uniform with the classic helmet, the NFL should fully support it.

Can you imagine the Cowboys star once again lined up, helmet to helmet, with the Blackfeet chief?

Now, I know enough about marketing and public relations to realize the NFL needs assistance and assurances that its corporate sponsors and media partners won't protest and create a stir were such sales to resume. So I would like to publicly call on the NFL's sponsors to hear the support of the Blackfeet Nation, to hear the support of the Wetzel family, and to hear the thunderous support of fans across the country for honoring the logo, for allowing NFL-sanctioned merchandise sales featuring it, and for supporting Indian Country along the way.

Corporate sponsors, I urge you to let the NFL know you recognize the Native American logo was never the problem and that you believe it should be celebrated, not censored moving forward.

I am not the first Senator to come to this floor to draw attention to Washington's football franchise or to make demands in the context of extending the lease for RFK Stadium. Senator Harry Reid and Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell, among others, used this platform to demand that the team change its name.

Well, today on behalf of the Blackfeet Nation of Montana--and, no doubt, with the support of millions of football fans across the country--I come to the Senate floor to say our culture overcorrected in 2020. The NFL overcorrected. The team's previous ownership overcorrected. Sponsors overcorrected. And we are still seeing shocking displays of censorship of an honorable logo as a result.

But now can be the day of righting that wrong. As we celebrate Native American Heritage Month this November, what better time to do it than now? What better time to restore one of the NFL's greatest logos ever to the--as the Blackfeet Tribe wrote in their letter--``place of prominence and honor'' as hoped for and called for by the Blackfeet Nation of Montana.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, today I have the distinct honor of recognizing U.S. Marine Corps MGySgt Jay Cota for his heroism and 30 years of dedicated service to our Nation.

Cota, who lives in Musselshell County, first began his career in the Marine Corps in 1979 when he graduated boot camp, eager and willing for what lay ahead. His first duty station was in Kaneohe Bay, HI, and just a few months later, he engaged in two western Pacific deployments which took him to many ports from the Philippines, Hong Kong, Thailand, Africa, Australia, Guam, Sri Lanka, and beyond.

Cota was then transferred to Fargo, ND, in 1982, where he gave the ASVAB test to recruits as he worked to build up the manpower within the Marine Corps. Three years later, he was assigned to Camp Lejeune, NC, where he oversaw classified materials. In 1989, Cota was headed to his next assignment, splitting time between Rochester, MN, and Fargo, ND, continuing his work to recruit new applicants. In

1993, he went on to be stationed at Camp Courtney in Okinawa, Japan, serving as administrative chief, and in 1996, he transferred to Belton, MO, where he helped marines reenlist and transition back to civilian life.

Most notable were Cota's duties that he assumed in 1999 when he was tasked with ensuring color guards for any fallen marine, past or present, in the entire midwest. In 2002, he transferred to 29 Palms, CA, where he led 200 marines and was promoted to the highest enlisted Marine Corps rank, master gunnery sergeant, having received his pin from his mother. Cota was transferred to his final duty station in 2005 to Marine Forces Pacific near Pearl Harbor, HI, until he eventually retired in 2009.

On and off the battlefield, Cota stood boldly on his convictions, and he proudly proclaims his faith in Jesus and his love for his wife Janice, who always supported him and took care of the homefront in his absence. The words in Psalm 145:18 ring true, ``The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.''

It is my distinct honor to recognize U.S. Marine Corps MGySgt Jay Cota for his distinguished 30-year record of putting service to others over himself. Montana is lucky to call you one of its own. Thank you for your service, Jay, from a grateful U.S. Senator. You make Montana proud.

Mr. President, today I have the distinct honor of recognizing U.S. Air Force CMSgt Joseph ``Kim'' Kuzara for 36 years of military service to the United States of America.

Kuzara, who calls Roundup, MT, home, first began his military career when he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force in 1966 during the buildup of the Vietnam war. He was promptly stationed to Strategic Air Command's 11th Strategic Aerospace Wing headquarters at Altus Air Force Base in Oklahoma. Kuzara would spend 4 years of Active-Duty service assessing wing training activities and ensuring readiness for wartime missions. He flew on several airborne alert missions that typically lasted 24 hours and also required him to necessitate aerial refueling of the bombers.

During the Vietnam war, Kuzara's time flying on missions resulted in his vertebrae in his lower back being crushed. Ready to take a step back from the bloodshed he witnessed and even photographed as part of his duties, Kuzara returned home to Roundup after discharging from Active Duty. He then joined the Air National Guard unit stationed at the Great Falls International Airport and quickly moved up the ranks as a technical sergeant and was extended the invitation to join the Montana Adjutant General's staff.

Kuzara's time with the ``State Staff,'' as the Montana Adjutant General's team is generally referred to, meant overseeing all Army and Air National Guard units throughout the State and any efforts they may be involved with. From fighting wildfires, providing support at State facilities during strikes and shortages, assisting homeland security efforts, organizing and narrating airshows, to providing key assistance with an equipment conversion that earned him the Army Commendation Medal, Kuzara served his State and country every chance he got. He was eventually promoted to master and then chief master sergeant, a fitting tribute to his unrelenting dedication to service.

While Kuzara's storied military career is certainly one of valor that deserves our Nation's thanks, he remains a humble man who feels that his brothers and sisters who did not return home from battle are the ones who deserve America's gratitude. Kim, from a grateful U.S. Senator, I want to offer my sincerest thanks. Thank you for taking the oath to serve, your willingness to bear the weight of constant readiness, and your commitment to paying the ultimate sacrifice if duty required. Your service to the United States helped protect our Nation's peace and resolve, and I pray that God blesses you.

It is my distinct honor to recognize U.S. Air Force CMSgt Joseph ``Kim'' Kuzara for his selfless service to our country. You make Montana proud.

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

Mr. President, it has been my privilege to represent the people of Montana in Congress now for more than a decade. I have seen Congress wrestle and struggle with many challenges during my time here. I have heard my constituents voice concerns--and deservedly so--about many of them. But, by far, one of the worst habits that Congress has is its failure to follow its own budget process. In fact, it is not an understatement to say that the budget process has completely collapsed in both Chambers. And I hear about this back home, and rightfully so.

Wherever I go in Montana, folks tell me they are tired of the dysfunction here in Congress and especially its lack of fiscal discipline. For a body that was elected to represent the will of the people, we are doing the exact opposite. This is simply not what our constituents sent us here to do.

Too many families in our country are living paycheck to paycheck and working sometimes multiple jobs to make ends meet. And, most importantly, they are sacrificing to do so.

When they elect their representatives, they expect good, responsible governing. They expect Congress to operate more like they do when it comes to budgeting and spending and living within their means. Yet, year in and year out, Congress does anything but.

Let me read you the tale of the tape. The last time Congress enacted all 12 appropriations--that is, you could say, passing the budget. That is all the appropriations bills. The last time they met the goal of getting it done by September 30, the end of the fiscal year of the Federal Government, was 1997. That was nearly three decades ago.

And it is not like we wake up on the 1st of January every year and wonder: When are they going to schedule September 30? When is September 30 going to fall this year?

It is not like they surprise us, and we say: Oh, my word, it is September 30.

It is no surprise--27 consecutive years.

Even sadder is how Congress has ignored the Budget Act. The Budget Control Act became law in 1974. This law put into place the modern budget process. It was enacted, ironically, to give Congress more control over Federal spending and the budget process. Theoretically, this would give our constituents a stronger say in how their tax dollars are spent.

But what has Congress done with that authority? Since the Budget Control Act became law, 50 years ago, Congress has been out of control--though the Budget Control Act was passed 50 years ago. Congress rarely even passes a budget resolution anymore, which is supposed to start the budget process every spring.

This resolution is supposed to provide a roadmap for how we approach the appropriations process. Without this roadmap, Congress inevitably finds itself in a spending train wreck, and our constituents, by default, have little say in how their tax dollars are spent. That is exactly what has happened year after year after year--27 consecutive years, in fact.

In the past 50 years since the Budget Control Act was passed, Congress has only enacted all 12 appropriations on time 4 times: 1977, 1989, 1995, and then 1997. Again, back to 1997, we will now have a 27- year consecutive losing streak as we will go past September 30 without having appropriations passed. This year, Senate Democratic leadership hasn't brought a single appropriations bill to the floor, and we are just 12 days from the beginning of the new fiscal year.

Continuing resolutions that fund the government at current levels are now the norm. In fact, between 1977 and last year, Congress passed 200 continuing resolutions--200--and, thus, the threat of a government shutdown is always looming.

All this forces Congress to fund the government through what we call Omnibus appropriations. And for those watching back home, that means, instead of giving each appropriator and appropriations bill a hearing and the scrutiny it deserves, most of the spending bills are all lumped together into one or two giant bills, often thousands of pages long each.

No one has time to read the entire bill before we pass it. So it is usually chock full of wasteful spending on pet projects that we inserted, literally, in the dead of night. Since 1982, Congress has passed 36 Omnibus appropriation bills. That is just short of one per year. Since that time, Omnibus appropriations bills have served as a legislative vehicle for more than half of the Federal Government's appropriations.

In short, our broken budget process has created an incredible amount of uncertainty. In fact, the only thing that is certain in the whole mess is that this broken process has exacerbated the Federal Government's out-of-control spending.

There is no way to run a household this way or a small business--not to mention the government--and the American people know it.

So why is all this important? As I mentioned, Congress doesn't have a revenue problem. It is not a revenue problem. Look at our deficits and our debt. This is not a revenue problem. It is a spending problem, no matter how you look at it.

Our failed budget process is not only the cause for the fiscal disaster, it is also playing a very significant role. The last time the government had a budget surplus was 23 years ago, back in 2001. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office says that the budget deficit for this year will be around $2 trillion. That is unprecedented. In fact, the deficit over the next decade will now total a staggering $22 trillion. That is the deficit added on top of the current debt. Even more frightening is the fact that Medicare will be broke by 2031 and Social Security, by 2034. By 2035, CBO estimates that debt held by the public will top $50 trillion and be the equivalent of 122 percent of our GDP.

These are staggering numbers. We can't ignore this crisis. To start the long process of fixing it, we need to start with serious reforms in the budget process.

The people of Montana know I am not a creature of Washington, nor, frankly, do I care to be. I am not a career politician. I did not work my way up through the ranks of State legislatures. My experience is in the private sector.

Anyone who has been in Montana knows that while Montana is the most beautiful State in our country, the strength of our great State lies with its people. They are hard-working folks. They believe in an honest day's work for an honest day's pay. They never hesitate to share a good dose of common sense--something that I find severely lacking here in Washington, DC.

Montana common sense combined with my private sector background taught me a number of principles I think we can apply to our budget process.

For starters, let's hold Members accountable, and performance needs to be scrutinized. When structural failure persists, it has to be addressed. For that reason, if Members of Congress can't pass all 12 appropriations bills on time, suspend their pay. Don't shut down the government; shut down the pay of Members of Congress. In fact, shut down their pay, shut down their travel, force them to stay here in Washington, and believe me, this will get resolved rather quickly. Because we all know, if you don't do your job, you don't deserve to be paid, especially when the American people are the folks paying us. That would put an end to government shutdowns.

Let's be honest. Shutting down the government only punishes the American people and increases costs. It is exactly the wrong thing we need to do. But put the pain on Congress, and that will start to change things around here in a hurry.

Second, Congress should address all spending, including discretionary and nondiscretionary programs. Think about it. Discretionary spending is utterly dysfunctional, and there are virtually no forcing mechanisms to require Congress to actually deal with the autopilot spending that accounts for nearly 70 percent of Federal spending. Avoiding the tough challenge of the mandatory spending means our national debt will just continue to soar to new, incomprehensible heights, and that puts our kids and our grandchildren on the hook. This will require bipartisan cooperation to save these programs for future generations.

Speaking of bipartisanship, the reforms we make must work whether we have unified government or divided government. Right now, it is about impossible to pass a bicameral budget during divided government. This just leads to the unwanted, behind-closed-doors mad dash as the expiration date of the latest continuing resolution approaches, which leads to my final and maybe my most important point.

Any reforms to our broken budget process must be bipartisan. There are always going to be disagreements around how taxpayer dollars should be spent, but we should be able to agree on a workable, durable process to make those decisions. To that end, we need to build on the good work of my late friend and former colleague, the late Senator Mike Enzi from Wyoming.

During more than two decades serving in the Senate, Mike worked tirelessly on this issue. Many of his proposals deserve a strong look if Congress is ever to find a solution. I believe two deserve particular attention. The first would reorient the budget resolution to a 2-year cycle. That would allow Congress more time to not only develop but also enforce the budget. I also believe Senator Enzi's proposal to create a new special reconciliation process that could only be used for reducing the deficit also warrants consideration.

There are many others. I know a number of my colleagues have weighed in on this issue as well. I welcome their ideas.

The question I pose today to Members on both sides of the aisle is, When are we going to get serious about addressing this calamity? How many more times are we going to kick the can down the road? How many more shutdowns? How high must our deficits and debt climb before we say enough is enough?

Mr. President, I humbly submit today that we did reach that point, actually, long ago. It is past time to bring the common sense of Montanans to bear on the Nation's budget process. Now is the time for serious budget reform.

Mr. President, today I have the distinct honor of recognizing James Fauth of Phillips County for his record-breaking chinook salmon he caught while boating on Fort Peck Lake.

Fauth, a retired power company lineman from Malta, took his 25-year- old pontoon boat out for a leisure day of fishing alongside his wife Nancy and friends Tony and Emily Simonsen. After several hours of patience and perseverance, Fauth noticed his spinning rod come to life off a downrigger and jumped into action. He figured it was a salmon because he had been tracking them deep on his sonar and the fish was putting up a fight. The rod's original 20-pound line had never been replaced, so Fauth was hopeful it wouldn't break. After approximately 5 minutes of back-and-forth battling with the fish on the other end, Fauth was overjoyed when his $29 Wal-Mart rod and reel proved to get the job done as he landed the chinook in the boat.

The enormous salmon, weighing an astounding 32.62 pounds and measuring 38 inches long with a 28-inch girth, broke the previously held State record set by Greg Haug in 2020 with a 32.05 pound salmon, also taken from Fort Peck Lake. The area is no stranger to impressive catches, but Fauth's recent trophy stands out for obvious reasons. The story of Fauth's historic catch will live on in history, and residents of River's Bend Assisted Living in Malta will soon get a special up- close look at the record breaking salmon, as Fauth has chosen to donate it to the facility so residents can enjoy it. What makes this story all the more special is that the assisted living facility is owned by Tony and Emily Simonsen, who got to bear witness to the historic catch on the Fauth family pontoon.

It is my distinct honor to recognize James Fauth for his once-in-a- lifetime catch that earned him the title as Montana's new State record salmon angler. This historic catch is a celebration of the Treasure State's natural resources

and a nod to our shared Montana way of life rooted in our passion for the great outdoors. Way to go, James; your story will forever be tied to one of the greatest catches ever made on Fort Peck Lake. You make Montana proud.

Mr. President, today I have the distinct honor of recognizing Jenifer Powell of Ravalli County for her dedication to sharing Montana's rich and vibrant history with her seventh grade students in the Bitterroot Valley.

Powell has taught at Corvallis Middle School for 5 years, and it is clear the impact she made in that time is profound. Her innovative teaching methods covering Montana's history brings the past to life in her classroom. At the end of the school year, Jenifer's students walk away from her class with a comprehensive and enthusiastic perspective on the culture and heritage that shaped the Treasure State into the Last Best Place.

Recently named the Centennial Bell Montana History Teacher of the Year, Jenifer and her class of seventh graders will ring the Centennial Bell in the State Capitol in Helena on November 8, 2024, at 10:29 a.m., paying homage to the exact date and time that Montana became a State in 1889. Having its statehood for 135 years, Montana has a wealth of history to uncover, and I am glad to see Jenifer's commitment to preserving each piece of our State's unique cultural tapestry in a way that is accessible and exciting to some of our youngest Montanans.

It is my distinct honor to recognize Jenifer Powell for her passion for education and her work to inspire Montana's youth to learn more about the formation of the State they call home. I am confident Jenifer has sparked a lifelong curiosity for Montana history among her students.

Keep up the great work, Jenifer; you make Montana proud.