Floor Statements

I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, today, I speak to urge my colleagues to confirm John Eisenberg as the next Assistant Attorney General for the National Security Division at the Department of Justice.

With more than two decades of government service, there is no question that Mr. Eisenberg has the experience, the know-how, and the qualifications needed to fulfill the duties and responsibilities of this important position.

In addition to his wide-ranging and impressive resume, I should note that Mr. Eisenberg also worked at the Department of Justice when the National Security Division was created in the first place. In fact, he was part of the very team that envisioned the Division's role in using our law to help protect our Nation against national security threats.

So I believe Mr. Eisenberg will bring an invaluable breadth of experience and depth of knowledge to this role that would advance America's national security.

Mr. Eisenberg is a family man, a patriot, and an exemplary American. I commend President Trump for nominating him to the position of Assistant Attorney General for the National Security Division.

I thank Mr. Eisenberg for his willingness to answer the call to serve once again.

I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of his confirmation.

I yield the floor.

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, I know of no further debate on the nominee.

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, today, I urge my colleagues to confirm Warren Stephens to be our next U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom. President Trump could not have chosen a more qualified or well-suited person to lead the special relationship between our two nations.

Warren Stephens is a family man, a businessman, a philanthropist, and a patriot who is a pillar of his community and his family-owned financial firm, Stephens Inc.

Founded on a handshake by his father Jack and his uncle Witt, Warren become president and CEO of Stephens when he was only 29 years old. In the four decades since, Warren has built a global presence for Stephens, including in London, where he has spent a considerable amount of time.

Warren's signature style of cordial, interpersonal, and dedicated leadership won him friends across America and the Atlantic, and, of course, in our home State of Arkansas.

For many years, Warren and his wife Harriet have also served our Arkansas community with their time, talents, and generosity. They led a major, multiyear fundraising campaign that transformed the Arkansas Arts Center into the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts. Because of their tireless efforts and dynamic vision, the museum is now a place for neighbors, friends, and families to gather, learn, and enjoy amazing works of art.

Warren is also an active advocate for young generations of American students and athletes. Warren generously supports numerous universities and schools, including his alma mater, Washington and Lee, and the Episcopal Collegiate School in Little Rock.

Additionally, he is the chairman and founder of the Jackson T. Stephens Cup, which showcases collegiate golfers from NCAA Division I schools, historically Black colleges and universities, and the U.S. service academies on the Nation's preeminent golf courses.

I have had the privilege to know Warren and his family for a long time, and I can tell you that Warren has always wanted to serve his country. After decades of serving others in our Arkansas community, Warren now has answered the call to serve our country as the next U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom.

He is the right person to lead our strong, special relationship with the United Kingdom. I am pleased to support his nomination, and I urge all of my colleagues to confirm Warren so he can get to work on this critical job.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum calls with respect to the Stephens and Barrack nominations be waived.

Mr. President, today, I urge my Senate colleagues to confirm Gov. Mike Huckabee's nomination to be the next U.S. Ambassador to Israel.

I have had the privilege of knowing Mike, his wife Janet, and his children John Mark, David, and Sarah, for many years.

Mike's exemplary character, steadfast faith, and lifetime of servant leadership make him the right choice to represent the President in Israel, particularly at this critical moment.

A friend, patriot, and fellow Arkansan, Mike graduated from Ouachita Baptist University with a degree in religion before attending Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

As minister at Immanuel Baptist Church in Pine Bluff and, later, pastor at Beech Street Baptist Church in Texarkana, Mike led congregations toward Christ-centered lives of faith, service, and charity. Throughout his time in ministry and, later, as president of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention, Mike encouraged others to grow in their faith by dedicating himself to spreading the good news of the Gospel to all.

For some unknown and largely inexplicable reason, Mike left the pulpit and entered politics. Mysterious are the ways of the Lord indeed.

As Governor of Arkansas for more than a decade, Mike led the Natural State toward a stronger, more prosperous future by building coalitions and gathering support from both sides of the aisle. Governor Huckabee cut taxes, created jobs, improved infrastructure, reformed education, and improved healthcare for all Arkansans. Mike was a solution- oriented, pragmatic leader who left a lasting legacy for generations of Arkansans and their families. Word on the street is he even

played some small part in inspiring our current Governor into public service.

Now as the U.S. Ambassador to Israel, Mike will lead and strengthen our important diplomatic relationship with Israel with courage and conviction.

Upon selecting Mike for this critical role, President Trump said:

Mike will work tirelessly to bring peace in the Middle

East.

I couldn't agree more.

Mike has been a lifelong friend of Israel's and an ardent supporter and defender of Israel's right to exist.

In 1973, Mike made his first trip to Israel as a recent high school graduate. The experience of visiting the Biblical sites at the center of history had such a profound impact on 17-year-old Mike Huckabee that he would go on to lead tens of thousands of people on similarly life- changing visits. Over the course of approximately 100 trips since 1981, Mike developed deep friendships with the people of Israel--Jewish, Muslim, and Christian alike.

Mike spent his career leading fellow Christians on journeys of faith, Arkansans toward a brighter future, and pilgrims on voyages of discovery. I am confident that he will lead the United States' relationship with Israel on a path toward peace and prosperity for both of our peoples.

I urge my Senate colleagues to support his nomination and approve his nomination swiftly.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, reserving the right to object because I do object to this effort and will object to future efforts to change the TikTok law.

Let's remember how we got here. TikTok is a Chinese communist spy app and a tool of Chinese communist propaganda. That is why Congress passed an overwhelmingly bipartisan law mandating that TikTok's parent company sell it if TikTok is to continue operating in America.

Why did Congress pass this law? Because TikTok is not just another social media platform. TikTok addicts our kids, harvests their data, exposes them to pedophiles, and promotes harmful and manipulative content, including vile, anti-Semitic videos.

TikTok also silences, censors, and suppresses content that exposes communist China for what it really is--a monstrous tyranny. The truth about China's genocide against the Tibet and Uighur people, the massacre at Tiananmen Square, the crackdown on Hong Kong, the origins of COVID, and more are all disappeared behind the veil of TikTok's algorithm.

What TikTok doesn't say is only part of the problem. What it does say is deadly.

The Chinese version of TikTok tells kids to study hard, eat their vegetables, and revere their dictator, Xi Jinping. But the American version of TikTok exposes our kids to videos that glamorize and glorify violence, obscenity, eating disorders, drug use, and even suicide.

TikTok's lethal algorithm has, without question, cost the lives of too many Americans. That is why TikTok is so dangerous, and that is why Congress insisted that TikTok cut ties entirely with communist China.

President Trump is trying to implement the law that Congress passed, and many American businesses and investors are, apparently, interested in buying TikTok.

I applaud patriotic Americans who want to buy this app and cut all ties with the Chinese communists. But reports have surfaced that some businesses and investors want a bad deal that would violate the law by letting communist China continue to influence the TikTok algorithm. Even worse, these potential buyers may ask Congress to somehow indemnify them for violating the law or immunize them for TikTok's past crimes against and injuries to the American people, especially young Americans.

Let me say bluntly to any American who wants to invest in some half- ass TikTok deal: Congress will never protect you from going into business with communist China.

So American businesses and investors who want to dip their beaks in the golden TikTok fountain should think twice before giving their money and their good name to Chinese communists. If the TikTok deal maintains any operational relationship with China, you will be stuck with the consequences. Caveat emptor.

So I do oppose this effort to change the law, and I will oppose, in the future, other efforts to change the law that Congress already passed. Let's allow President Trump to negotiate and see if communist China is willing to make a deal. If not, then the law is the law.

Now I will yield to my colleague from Nebraska.

Colleagues, there are a lot of problems in the world: male pattern baldness, lactose intolerance, flat feet. There is a time and place to address those problems, but it is not tonight, and it is not on this bill. Just like it is not the time and place to address Signal either.

I know the Democrats are angry about how the Trump administration talked about killing terrorists in Yemen. I think we should be angry about how the Biden administration refused to kill terrorists in Yemen. That is especially true since Avril Haines and other Biden administration officials used Signal to discuss sensitive matters.

So I suggest we simply commend the President for taking long-overdue action while we keep our eyes tonight on the problems we can solve by cutting taxes, securing our border, unleashing American energy, and rebuilding our military. That is what it will take to keep America safe and prosperous, not debating extraneous issues better left for another time.

I urge my colleagues to oppose the amendment and to pass this budget.

I ask for the yeas and nays.

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

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that there be up to 20 minutes of debate under the control of Senator Paul for debate only.

Yes.

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

Mr. President, here we go again. In just a little over 24 hours, Federal funding will run out, and the government will shut down.

Let me state for the record that my Republican colleagues and I are ready to get on with matters and ready to fund the government for the rest of this year. We all know that the faster we move it over the finish line, the faster our Federal Government can get to work on behalf of the American people and implement the agenda that the American people elected us to get done.

But after our Democratic friends had a nice long lunch on Capitol Hill yesterday, Senator Schumer took the floor to announce that their caucus would not support funding the government because, as he put it, ``Republicans chose a partisan path.'' But here is what Senator Schumer is really saying: Democrats would rather shut down the government than pass the funding bill just to shift blame to Republicans for our current funding predicament. Democrats are going to shut down the government to protect the government.

In the next 24 hours, even, Democrats are planning to use the very same filibuster they have opposed and tried to abolish to shut down the government. In the last administration, former Vice President Kamala Harris said that Joe Biden and the Democrats are ``kinda done with those archaic Senate rules.'' But here they are using those archaic Senate rules to shut down the government.

There is nothing that could explain such a drastic change of heart among my Democratic colleagues other than rank hypocrisy. Democrats are quick to criticize Republican efforts to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse in our bureaucracies on behalf of hard-working American taxpayers. Yet in the same breath, Democrats are fighting to withhold the paychecks of air traffic controllers, our troops, Federal custodial staff. They can't be serious. The level of hypocrisy displayed by the minority leader and my Democratic colleagues is appalling to the office they hold and the constituents they serve. A government shutdown, of course, doesn't just affect the Federal workforce. For instance, food inspectors will be forced to stop their work, interrupting our food supply chains. It is as if the Democrats are trying to finish Joe Biden's job of driving up prices in the grocery store.

Let me remind everyone of why we are on the verge of a government shutdown. Just a few months ago, Senator Schumer and my Democratic colleagues held the majority here. During that time, Republicans joined with Democrats to vote 11 out of 12 government funding bills from committee--11 out of 12. Six of them were unanimous. The other five passed with overwhelming bipartisan support. That would seem to be a great accomplishment in a too-often-divided Washington--11 out of 12 bills, 6 unanimous, 5 with overwhelming bipartisan support.

But even though we had all those spending bills ready to go last summer on a bipartisan basis, then-Majority Leader Schumer failed to bring a single bill to the floor from August to the end of last year. Not a single bill. Even though--let me say it again--11 out of 12 passed out of committee; six were unanimous; and the other five were overwhelmingly bipartisan. Not a single one.

Senator Schumer had 224 days to bring those bills to the floor for a vote--224 days. What did we do, instead? He chose to prioritize election-year stunts trying to distract voters from Joe Biden's disastrous border crisis. He had a vote on mandating government-funded fertility treatments for biological men--more important than funding the government.

We also confirmed a whole host of unqualified Biden nominees you have never heard of for jobs you didn't know existed, not to mention a whole host of unqualified judges in States with two Democrat Senators who couldn't have gotten confirmed for the first 4 years and were only jammed through in a lameduck session, when we also could have been passing those spending bills to fund the government so we wouldn't be in this position.

Senator Schumer claims to care about the livelihoods of Federal workers, but as leader, he seemed more preoccupied with putting on a big political show. Yet here is Senator Schumer claiming that Republican partisanship is the reason for shutting down the government. Spare me.

It continued this year. Since Republicans took over, he blocked negotiations that would have made this funding bill a bipartisan effort from the start. Senator Collins, the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee and Tom Cole, chair of the House Appropriations Committee, made multiple, multiple offers to their Democratic counterparts to negotiate on a bipartisan basis government funding bills, just like we did last summer. But, no. Senator Schumer blocked it time and time again until just a few days ago.

Yet now, supposedly, the clock has run out. He wants another 30 days--another 30 days--when he had 224 days last year to do this, when we had over 60 days this year to negotiate on a bipartisan basis.

The time for those negotiations has regrettably passed. It is time to finish last year's business and move on to this year's business.

Democrats have one last chance to join Republicans and support a simple

yearlong funding bill. Republicans encourage our Democratic colleagues to join this effort to keep the government funded for the American people we all serve.

Shutting our government down, as many of my Democratic colleagues are apparently considering, is not just some political stunt. There are real and consequential national security risks if they choose to go through with this reckless scheme.

A government shutdown will disrupt military training and could force us to cancel planned exercises with our allies and partners. These are the very same alliances Democrats claim to care so much about supporting and preserving. Furthermore, a shutdown would disrupt ongoing work to modernize our nuclear forces, which is already behind schedule. Any further delay would make this bad situation even worse.

And the potential Schumer shutdown will hurt military preparedness by slowing recruiting, create uncertainty in our defense supply chains, and impact our ability to produce badly needed munitions. This is not the message of strength we want to send to the allies we stand beside and the enemies we stand against.

To my Democratic colleagues who still believe that shutting down the government is the principled choice that you need to--again, it is hard for me to explain their position--shut down the government to protect the government, let me ask you, simply: What does voting no accomplish? Six months ago, Senator Schumer said:

If the government shuts down, it will be average Americans

who suffer most.

That was Senator Schumer. What has happened in the last 6 months? Nothing, as far as I could tell, except who the American people elected to lead the government.

So if this Schumer shutdown stunt is just a threat to get Republicans to agree to a fake short-term extension that brings us right back to where we are now, again, what is the point?

The Democrats' hypocritical arguments reveal, once again, they are not serious about putting their duty to the American people above partnership, pettiness and pride.

I invite them all to justify the Schumer shutdown to the parents who must postpone a trip to a national park with their children after months of saving and planning; or to explain your reasoning for the Schumer shutdown to the veteran who has already taken a day off work to sign up for healthcare at his regional benefits office only to find it closed; or to defend the Schumer shutdown to the Federal employee who puts all of her groceries on a credit card to make sure there is enough money left at the end of the month to cover her rent.

My friends, we have two choices before us, and they are quite simple: either keep the government open and working for the people or shut it down. To do what exactly? I don't know. I think we can all agree that the American people deserve better than a government that is a day late and a couple billion dollars short. So I encourage my Democratic colleagues to vote with us to simply fund the government. Let's not have a Schumer shutdown.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I have six requests for committees to meet during today's session of the Senate. They have the approval of the Majority and Minority Leaders.

Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following committees are authorized to meet during today's session of the Senate:

committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs

The Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs is authorized to meet in executive session during the session of the Senate on Thursday, March 13, 2025, to consider legislation.

committee on environment and public works

The Committe on Environment and Public Works is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, March 13, 2025, at 1:45 p.m., to conduct a business meeting.

committee on finance

The Committee on Finance is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, March 13, 2025, at 4:15 p.m., to consider a nomination.

committee on foreign relations

The Committee on Foreign Relations is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, March 13, 2025, at 10:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations.

committee on health, education, labor and pensions

The Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions is authorized to meet during the session of the

Senate on Thursday, March 13, 2025, at 9:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations.

committee on the judiciary

The Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, March 13, 2025, at 9:15 a.m., to conduct an executive business meeting.