Floor Statements

Madam President, our great country was founded on the idea that freedom leads to prosperity, which is better known as the American dream.

I have always said this country owes you only one thing, and that is an opportunity to succeed. This country gives you the opportunity to live the life you dream of because, with hard work, anything is possible. For a couple, the American dream may look like saving enough to buy their first home. For a small family business, it might look like opening its doors for the first time. For a first-generation college graduate, it might be walking across the stage, and for a soldier, returning from war with the hopes of starting a family. The American dream takes on many unique forms reflective of the opportunity that countless generations have strived to realize.

At the core of the American dream, you will find the American family because for centuries, the American dream has been rooted in the idea of family and freedom. Strong families are the foundation of strong communities. That is why we need to uplift the American family rather than to continue to rip it apart.

But recently, we have seen policies from the Democrats that inject politics into parenting, that insert the heavy hand of the Federal Government into the American home and stop at nothing to tell parents: We know best when it comes to raising your children.

Threats to the American family are knocking on the front doors of homes across the Nation as the left becomes focused on telling the American people what they want rather than listening to what they need. A prime example is the Democrats' socialist spending spree, designed to create a cradle-to-grave welfare system that does more to tear the American family down than to build it up. Just look at the child tax credit--a once bipartisan policy initiative that has now been weaponized to benefit some families at the expense of others. If you are a working-class, married couple with children, you drew the short end of the stick. Then there is the Democrats' Federal childcare program. It is more focused on perpetuating government dependency than giving low-income families the means to stand on their own two feet.

With these proposals in their reckless tax-and-spend spree, the Democrats are picking winners and losers, and the losers are the American family. Anti-family policies like these grow the size of the government while chipping away at American freedom. We should focus on pro-family policies that put families first, policies that make achieving the American dream a reality, not something to feel shameful about.

If you are born with two parents in this country, you hit the lottery. So many children don't have the stable family that some have; they grow up with one parent or are raised by another family member. Then there are children who grow up with no parents, thrown into the foster system. It is a shame because we know stable families can provide foundations that children need to seize the American opportunities.

As we talk about supporting the American family, I want to focus on an important issue to many families across the country; that is, adoption.

November is National Adoption Month in the United States. In the United States, over 400,000 children a year don't have a safe place to call home or a loving family to care for them. The idea that children have a safe and stable home, with a family who loves them, should be something we should all agree on.

In my career, I have traveled across the country for 40 years. People from all walks of life welcomed me into their homes. I have seen firsthand the immeasurable impact that family can have on a child's life. I have seen parents who provide stable foundations, who instill the belief that with hard work, grit, and determination, anything is possible.

Success stories can be found across my State of Alabama. In fact, in 2019, Alabama had 731 adoptions--the highest number in Alabama's history.

One of those is Katie, who was adopted through the Heart Gallery of Alabama. Katie's parents adopted her at the age of 12, after years spent in and out of foster care. Her forever family provided her with the secure foundation she needed to jump-start her future. Now, Katie just completed her first year at Yale University.

Like Katie, children in our foster care systems have endless potential but need the stability that having a family brings to unlock it. While we celebrate the heartwarming stories of families being made whole, we cannot forget about the children waiting for

their forever home. Those are the stories of kids who deserve these families and families who deserve kids.

As a Christian, I believe life begins at conception, but too often, when discussing pro-life issues, we often refer to that life as the child's time in the womb. We should, however, be focusing on the life of a child after they are born, and that philosophy should apply to children all around the world.

Many other countries don't place the same value on life as we do here in the United States. In some countries, parents may choose to abort babies who might have disabilities, and if a child is born with a disability, they are put up for adoption at much higher rates.

China is one of these countries. Right now, there are several hundred American families who have been matched with or have begun the process of adoption with children in China, but the pandemic has indefinitely halted most of the adoptions from China moving forward.

Back in May, I sent a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken asking for the State Department to have diplomatic discussions with China so these kids could go home to their new families, but here we are in November, and I have yet to receive a response from the State Department.

Over 400 children are still stuck in China, with their families unable to bring them home. Most of these children have some type of medical or special need and are currently living in Chinese orphanages.

One such child is Cherry. She is stuck in China while her forever family is waiting with open arms here in the United States. Cherry has Down syndrome and needs medical attention, which is currently being delayed.

When speaking about Cherry, her forever family said:

The sooner we can get little Cherry into our home, the

sooner we can give her all the attention, therapy, and love

to bring out her fullest potential in life.

Cora Lee has lived in an orphanage for 3\1/2\ years, ever since she was an infant. Cora Lee has a medical condition that needs to be treated or could eventually lead to blindness. Here in the United States, there are parents, siblings, aunts and uncles, and a church family who are waiting for her to come home so they can help provide help in the future.

Then there is Charlie, who recently had a fourth birthday. He has a family in Alabama who cannot wait to welcome him home. The first several years of Charlie's life have been tough. He needs specialized care that only a loving family can provide.

Given that the Biden administration just reopened our borders to so many international travelers and that one of our COVID vaccines for children age 5 through 11 has just been authorized, I believe it is past time for us to get these children home to the families who have been waiting years to love them and care for them.

Adoption is the gift that keeps on giving by providing children the opportunity to rise above difficult circumstances. We need to work together towards policies that make this gift more attainable for all who can provide a stable home. After all, family is the heartbeat of the American dream.

Madam President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Madam President, during the recent Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, I asked the Secretary of Defense what I thought was a simple question: As the leader of the Department of Defense, was he against dishonorable discharges for members of the military who decided not to get the COVID vaccine. He hemmed and hawed around, but he never answered my question. But, to me, it is simple. The answer should be that we will not dishonorably discharge those who serve honorably.

Our country is defended by the bravest men and women in the world. All raised their hands and pledged their lives to defend our Nation and our way of life. Our servicemembers stand watch while we go to work, while we spend time with our families, and while we enjoy freedoms they vow to protect.

When COVID broke out, our military was there for America. Military members were mobilized in all 50 States to serve as nurses and doctors at hospitals. They drove ambulances and set up food banks. They delivered critical supplies. They worked to keep order. But how does the President thank them for their service? With a dishonorable discharge for deciding not to take the vaccine. That is ridiculous.

Receiving a dishonorable discharge means they will lose all of their veterans' benefits and their pensions. In some States, it is on par with having a felony conviction. That means they lose their ability to vote or to carry a gun, not to mention what it does to their ability to find a new job. A dishonorable discharge is and should continue to be handed down for only the

most reprehensible conduct in the military.

Now, I am for the vaccine. I have taken it, and my family has taken it, and I continue to encourage others to talk about it and talk to their doctors about it. I also respect the chain of command. I know how important it is for soldiers to follow orders. But this vaccine is still new, and I am sure the Department of Defense can look at other ways to manage our force rather than to put a stain on the reputations of the men and women who wanted to serve and have served their country, which brings me to another point about the impact of the Biden administration's vaccine mandates.

When President Biden made his sweeping vaccine mandates, he did so with the hubris or excessive confidence that Americans would just support the policy simply because it was his competent administration that implemented them, but the mandates are shortsighted, they are ill- conceived, and they threaten our national security. Here is how.

First, it creates a false choice for our defense contractors. They are forced to choose between coming to their job and working to support our military or taking a new vaccine that they don't want. Their decision should be between their doctor and their patient.

Second, it puts the important and critical performance of our defensive industry in jeopardy. Alabama alone is home to 5,000 defense contractors. When these firms are unable to perform, our country is at risk.

Third, the guidance for compliance is changed with little or no warning. This moving of regulatory goalposts creates uncertainty and drives up compliance costs, especially for smaller firms that lack large HR departments.

So last week, I called on the Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jack Reed to schedule a hearing on this issue. I want to hear straight from the small business owners who are struggling to figure out how to comply. We need to know just how disruptions in their ability to complete their work may impact the defense supply chain.

I also want to hear from expert witnesses within the Department of Defense. We need to have a full picture of the current state of vaccine compliance.

If the Senate were to take action on a solution, it is critical that we have all the facts.

I also sent a letter to the President, urging him to reverse course on his Federal contractor mandate.

On Monday, the White House backed down from their arbitrary deadline of December 8, with the announcement of new flexibilities in their guidance. While this step is in the right direction, they haven't gone far enough.

The vaccine mandate is still a compliance burden on small contractors, no matter how flexible the White House tries to make them.

Our workforce still will be unnecessarily impacted and our national security will still be at risk.

So I would encourage the White House to focus on protecting Americans' liberties while pursuing a holistic strategy to combat

Mr. President, in 1919, President Woodrow Wilson declared November 11 as Armistice Day, marking an agreement the year prior between the Allied Nations and Germany to temporarily cease fighting during World War I.

President Wilson said:

The reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn

pride in the heroism of those who died in the country's

service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of

the thing from which it has freed us and because of the

opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with

peace and justice in the councils of the nations.

In battles before World War I and in battles since, our servicemembers and veterans have served to protect the American way of life. Every year, our country pauses on November 11 to recognize our veterans with the solemn pride and gratitude that President Wilson referenced.

We all wake up each morning and enjoy the freedoms this great country affords us because of our veterans--because it was our veterans, our men and women in uniform, who were there when their country needed them most. While their roles span multiple theaters and decades, our veterans were and continue to be united by a common mission: to protect and to defend the United States of America. This is a great responsibility they shouldered, and they deserve gratitude equal to their great sacrifice. Our veterans may say that they are just ordinary Americans doing their job. They may be ordinary, but they performed an extraordinary service to our country.

Alabama is home to nearly 400,000 veterans, and today it is my honor to recognize a few of them for their service. I have had the pleasure of meeting many veterans from my great State, and I am always inspired by their service and their sacrifice.

Their patriotism is unmatched, and their courage is unwavering, like that of CPL Edsel Bonds of Samson, AL, who experienced a shell blast to his right femur on January 28, 1966, while on a mission to intercept guerillas during the Vietnam war. The blast blew out 4 inches of his femur bone and several muscle groups. He spent most of a year recovering in the hospital from this horrific injury and never lost the love for his country.

Now, nearly 56 years later from the time of his injury, he is just as patriotic as ever. He views his service as something that was necessary for our country to remain the greatest country in the world. Corporal Bonds risked life and limb because he believed that America is worth sacrificing for.

We enjoy the blessings of living in a free nation but often discount the fact that our liberties come with a tremendous cost. Many brave men and women have paid a price that even our deepest gratitude could never, ever repay.

I think Elmer Davis, the Director of the U.S. Office of War Information during World War II, said it best:

This nation will remain the land of the free only so long

as it is home of the brave.

One-hundred-year-old SGT George Mills of Decatur, AL, showed great bravery during his time serving in World War II. The Germans surrounded his company 500 yards from the German border and launched attacks into the building where they were staying, setting it on fire. With no ammunition left to defend the enemy, Sergeant Mills and his fellow comrades were forced to surrender.

For the next 5 months, George Mills and his company were marched across Europe toward the former Czechoslovakia without food. They were starved and no doubt weary. Yet Sergeant Mills and his company persevered. They survived by eating scraps of sugar beets and rutabagas found in barns where they were held captive before they were finally liberated on April 13, 1945.

During this initial attack, Sergeant Mills, despite being injured, sprang to action to help save the lives of those in his company. He was awarded a Purple Heart for his bravery.

Another American hero is Fred Lacy of Auburn, AL. A lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army, Mr. Lacy provided valuable leadership and negotiation skills during his time in Europe, Korea, and Vietnam. He and his brigade helped defend the western half of the Korean demilitarized zone at the end of the Korean war, ensuring that there were no weaknesses in our defense for North Korea to attack. During the Vietnam war, he coordinated all U.S. activity in the Mekong Delta and assisted the Vietnamese in combating the Vietcong.

He volunteered in a leprosy orphanage in his free time while staying there. He was a natural at building relationships and resolving conflicts during his time. During a dispute between a Vietnamese and an American officer, Fred stepped in front of a gun to prevent the American officer from being shot.

He received two Bronze Stars and the Combat Infantryman Badge for his leadership and courageous efforts. When reflecting on his service, he says that it was ``a privilege to serve.'' That spirit of service is something he carries with him even after his time in the military.

Lieutenant Colonel Lacy has taught Bible classes for more than 60 years and still teaches today at Auburn United Methodist Church.

We, as citizens of this country, are privileged to have veterans like Lieutenant Colonel Lacy who have not only honorably fought for our freedom but have also proudly carried the torch of liberty across the world. They love their country, and you don't have to talk with them very long before you

understand how much of a driving force it is to them.

CPL Clyde Haynes from Vestavia Hills, AL, served in the Army Air Corps' 439th Troop Carrier Group during World War II. Mr. Haynes shared the joy of walking with children in France as they rushed out of their houses and filled the streets to celebrate their new liberation from Nazi rule. He said that he ``wished he had a picture of that.'' Even though he does not have a physical photograph, you can tell that he holds that memory near and dear to his heart.

Even though Mr. Haynes is now 100 years old, he is just as moved by that moment now as he was at that time because freedom is a powerful thing. But freedom does not come without cost. There are many servicemembers who pay the ultimate price for our freedom and never return home. There are families left behind who sit down to dinner every night with an empty seat at the table knowing that life for them will never be the same. They, too, have shouldered the cost of America's liberty and deserve our gratitude.

For our servicemembers who do return home, their struggles do not end after they reach American soil. They continue to face challenges from what they have endured while in service and from the difficult reentry into civilian life.

Most of us will never know the full weight of preserving our freedom, never have to endure sleepless nights from the harrowing memories of the battlefield, bear pain from war injuries, or miss important events with family and friends, like Ryan Charrier from Orange Beach, AL, who served as a U.S. Air Force technical sergeant in the war in Afghanistan, with the 442nd Fighter Wing. He received his first deployment when his children were just 8 and 4 years old. Sergeant Charrier said he was a bit older than his fellow fighters. He left behind young children but served with soldiers who missed births of their first children or deaths of family members.

A veteran's life is so much more than just time in service. There is also the reintegration to civilian life, which requires just as much bravery, courage, and sacrifice. Sergeant Charrier's reminder to Americans is powerful:

We as a country promised that we would never forget . . .

so I hope that every patriotic American will keep the promise

of never forgetting. Just because the war may have winded

down, doesn't mean our men and women who served the last 20

years still don't need the support of every American.

These veterans--Edsel Bonds, George Mills, Fred Lacy, Clyde Haynes, and Ryan Charrier--are heroes, just like millions of brave men and women who have selfishly sacrificed throughout the decades. Their stories should inspire all of us to show a greater love for our country and our fellow Americans.

Thirty-three years ago on Veterans Day in 1988, Ronald Reagan said:

We remember those who were called upon to give all a person

can give, and we remember those who were prepared to make

that sacrifice if it were demanded of them in the line of

duty. Most of all, we remember the devotion and gallantry

with which all of them ennobled their nation as they became

champions of a noble cause.

May we join together as a nation this Veterans Day to honor our veterans who have served this Nation and defended our freedom and values that we hold so dear. To our veterans, I say: Thank you for your sacrifice. Our Nation will be forever indebted to you.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, after being in Washington, DC, for 10 months, I have seen this town jump from one issue to another. Sadly, many of the issues we face are self-inflicted--illegal immigrants on the southern border, Americans who remain trapped in Afghanistan, and rampant inflation, just to name three.

But we face a more serious threat in this Nation, an issue larger than left or right, a threat that goes beyond conservative and liberal--China.

China seeks to shackle the United States economically, technologically, and militarily. The Communist leaders of China are employing every instrument of national power to diminish our standing and influence in the world. Last month, President Biden told world leaders during his maiden U.N. General Assembly speech that the United States ``is not seeking a cold war.'' Well, the United States may not be seeking out a new Cold War, but China is, so we shouldn't give them the shovel to bury us.

When asked this week if China's hypersonic missile testing over the summer was a surprise to U.S. officials, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki joked that the Biden administration ``welcomes stiff competition.'' Businesses that are struggling under unfair competition from China didn't laugh at the Press Secretary's joke.

Intelligence analysts who watch week after week as China hacks its way to technological superiority know the competition is cheating.

Military leaders who stand the watch for us worry that the United States public may be asleep at the wheel to this enormous threat.

In 2001, then-Senator Biden said:

The United States welcomes the emergence of a prosperous

integrated China on the global stage because we expect this

is going to be a China that plays by the rules.

President Biden, China is not playing by the rules.

The Director of National Intelligence, Avril Haines, said the following in her Annual Threat Assessment:

The Chinese Communist Party . . . will continue . . . to .

. . undercut . . . the United States, drive wedges between

Washington and its allies and partners, and foster . . .

international norms that favor the authoritarian Chinese

system.

The four-star admiral in charge of our nuclear overwatch, ADM Charles Richard, warned the country that China's growth and strategic nuclear capability was ``breathtaking.''

To those paying attention, we know that China seeks to play a very dangerous game--a game they intend to win and a game they will win unless we stand united as a nation and work together to face this growing threat.

So let's take a look at the most recent breathtaking development. China recently conducted their ninth hypersonic missile test since 2014--their ninth.

By the way, 2014 was when then-President Obama was forced to start investing in missile defense after he ended or slowed funding for several programs early in his first term.

What was important about China's most recent test, however, is that it showed off China's advanced space capabilities. Hypersonic missiles are weapons that fly at more than five times the speed of sound, 3,800 miles per hour. They don't follow a fixed trajectory; their path is flexible and maneuverable. This is what makes them so hard to defend against.

A recent congressional report on hypersonic weapons revealed that the United States will not have a defensive capability against hypersonic weapons until the mid-2020s at the earliest.

Unlike our government, which, by the way, is wasting money on civilian climate corps and bailing out poorly run liberal blue States, China spends its resources on deadliness--a new and larger navy, a modernized nuclear arsenal, advanced space assets, and artificial intelligence. Yes, China is moving ahead and investing in killing machines.

Developing hypersonics is costly. The Pentagon noted as much recently, which is ironic given how little this administration has showed it cares about throwing trillions of dollars around on other programs not related to national security. China continues to outspend us on national security. In just the last 10 years, China's defense spending has increased by $200 billion, while we, the United States of America, have decreased by $400 billion.

That brings me to a very important point. Senator Schumer needs to bring up the National Defense Authorization Act for a vote here on the Senate floor. Every year since 1960, we have passed the National Defense Authorization Act, better known as the NDAA. The NDAA is one of few bills that the House and Senate, Democrats and Republicans, work together on. That is because our military deserves it, and our national security depends on it.

One of the most important items we agreed on this year in the NDAA was that our military needs more support.

Earlier this year, President Biden sent Congress a laughable military budget. In a stunning referendum on the President's disappointing and dangerous military budget, Democrats and Republicans on the Armed Services Committee came together to increase our military budget by $25 billion.

You know, we cannot ask our military to do more with less. We cannot expect our military to defend new threats from our adversaries like China without the resources required to do the job. Republicans understand this. We have continuously fought to prioritize national security. Democrats on the Armed Services Committee also understand this. So I would like to ask

a simple question: What are we waiting for?

The best way to thank our men and women in uniform for their service is to pass this bill. The best way to ensure our armed services have resources they need to defend our country against China is to pass this bill, especially in light of the news we have seen recently about China's hypersonic missile testing.

Earlier this year, as the Senate Armed Services Committee crafted the NDAA, I fought to prioritize robust funding authorization for high- energy lasers and hypersonic missile development. This investment accelerates the country's timeline to a fully capable hypersonic missile while at the same time assisting our missile defense capabilities with tracking hypersonic, ballistic, and cruise missiles. This is an offensive and defensive approach.

China is actively trying to outpace us, and keeping pace is not enough. To do that, we need to have sustained, strategic investment in our military. That is what the NDAA provides and why we need a vote on the Senate floor. So what does it say about Leader Schumer's priorities that passing our military authorization is at the bottom of his list?

But investment in their military is not the only means by which China is seeking to get ahead. We have seen increased efforts by China to infiltrate our economy--we have seen this--to undermine our free market values, and to steal our international property.

In a recent survey, a greater number of Americans said that China is more powerful economically than the United States. This is a reversal from 2 years ago when most Americans said the United States had the economic upper hand.

When it comes to taking over the economic upper hand, China has no rules, and Chinese companies definitely do not play by ours. Our country has already seen Chinese companies, backed by the Chinese Communist Party, attempt to invest in and even take over companies. This grave national security threat will only grow if we allow China to invest in our critical industries.

Our government has a process to investigate offers made by foreign companies and governments that want to acquire or invest in America. This process is designed to protect our national security. It is handled by a government entity called the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, better known as CFIUS. But if there is a loophole, communist China will try to slip through it.

Our goal as Members of Congress should be to strengthen this vetting process. One way to do that is to add a permanent agricultural perspective to this committee, which is not on there as we speak. The COVID pandemic showed us just how important it is to have strong supply chains, especially when it comes to our food supply. Every American is supported by a safe and secure food supply. It is critical to our country's prosperity.

Not everyone thinks about food security in relation to national security, but they are linked. Global corporations have already become more involved with our domestic food supply and agricultural businesses. Recent data shows that 192,000 acres of farmland or forest in the United States of America are linked to Chinese ownership, including land used for farming, ranching, and forestry--192,000 acres here within our borders. That is why we need more transparency.

Our food supply must remain secure from foreign governments like China that have no business being in the American economy and actively trying to harm our country. That is why I introduced a bill called the Foreign Adversary Risk Management, or FARM, Act, to put more protections in place for America's agriculture industry. My bill will ensure that our agriculture industry has a permanent seat at the table of CFIUS, which reviews agriculture-related investments. As we speak, we do not have representation from the agriculture community. By adding agriculture supply chains as a covered transaction that CFIUS has to review, we can make sure food supply chains remain strong and free of damaging foreign government interference.

Like China's communist leaders, leftists in this country believe that when it comes to the economy, bureaucrats know best. They think raising the corporate rate to be higher than communist China's will strengthen our economy. Nonsense. That is like standing in a bucket and trying to lift yourself by the handle. The far-left cheers for mandates, hyperregulation, and massive taxes. They sneer at your freedoms and are triggered by the American flag and our constitutional rights. Their way is not the way to combat China; it is the way to become China.

We all know China wants to overtake the United States as a superpower. But what makes the United States a superpower is not just our economic and military might; we are a superpower for what our military is fighting to defend and to protect: our freedoms and our values and the American spirit of innovation and ingenuity, of hard work and grit. These values pose a direct threat to communist China. They are why China wants to surpass our country as the world's No. 1 superpower.

We need leadership that protects our national security and our economic security. It is the only way to combat the aggression that the Biden administration's weakness has invited.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, you know, I think Americans must look at what is happening up here in Washington, DC, and think that the Democrats look like squirrels dodging cars in traffic. This is Biden's America, one where the party in power is throwing policy spaghetti at the wall in hopes that one of their harebrained ideas will stick.

It would be almost funny if our country wasn't staring down multiple problems as a result of the Biden administration's policy failures. And it is time the Democrats faced the facts. But after 10 months of President Biden running the country, how are ordinary Americans doing?

Let's just take a look. Take the border crisis: a complete, predictable, self-inflicted disaster.

On his first day in office, President Biden made the radical decision to open our borders by undoing many successful policies put in place by the Trump administration. They were working, and we changed them. You can draw a straight line from those ill-advised policy decisions to where we are as we speak.

Two million illegal immigrants will have been apprehended by the end of this year, and those are just the ones that we caught. Oddly enough, this is one issue that the mainstream media and conservative media agree on.

Here are a few recent headlines. From CNN: ``12,000 migrants have been waiting in makeshift camps under the Del Rio bridge in Texas.'' That is from CNN.

And this from the Daily Caller: ``Migrants Illegally Crossing U.S.- Mexico Border Thank''--they thank--President ``[Biden's] Administration.''

Do those headlines sound like the southwest border is under control?

Here is another headline for you. In a remarkable about-face, the Biden administration announced that it would reimplement the Trump-era Remain in Mexico policy after doing away with it on election day. They are going to reinstate it only because of a Federal judge. It is clear President Biden could have prevented this border crisis if he had not been focused on playing politics from his first day in office.

This is Biden's America.

How about the fact that President Biden didn't listen to the best military advice his top commanders gave him when it came to withdrawing troops in Afghanistan? America's best experts--GEN Mark Milley, GEN Frank McKenzie, and GEN Scott Miller--all advised the President to keep 2,500 troops in Afghanistan to remain stable. Basically, at the end of the day, this was a State Department and President's decision.

Instead, the President's strategy turned into billions in American equipment handed over to the Taliban; our most valuable airfield, Bagram--maybe one of the most valuable in the world--abandoned in dead of the night; Americans left behind in enemy lines that are still there; and a complete abandonment of our allies in Afghanistan. What a disaster.

President Biden was more concerned about a good September 11 headline than a great strategy, more concerned about his press than saving American lives. The President's withdrawal will continue to be a stain on his legacy. Joe Biden created the worst American military foreign policy disaster in recent history, and the United States will be haunted by this decision for many years to come.

Another fact about this is Biden's America: President Biden's policies have undercut economic growth and derailed rapid recovery that was taking place under the Trump administration. And this was even during a pandemic.

Now prices are skyrocketing, businesses can't find people to work, and the United States is facing an unprecedented disruption in the supply chain. And this administration didn't know it was coming.

Incredibly, the White House and its defenders continue to say that all of these deeply concerning realities are due to the fact that President Biden has been so successful in his economic policy. They are using the ``everything is so bad because President Biden is doing so good'' argument. Where in the world are they getting that from?

This month, the President's own Chief of Staff promoted the idea that inflation is only a ``high-class problem,'' the 1 percent. Where has this guy been hiding? Try telling that to the middle-class families in Alabama who are seeing hard-earned money cover less at the grocery store and at the pump.

The fact is, prices are rising--not just for the wealthy but for everybody. Consumer prices are at the highest point in 13 years, and inflation is costing American taxpayers $175 a month. Somebody is screwed up. Again, you can draw a straight line from the President's decisions to where we are now. It is what happens when you pay people to not rejoin the workforce, force vaccine mandates on workers, stifle growth with regulations, and waste trillions and trillions of dollars as our country attempts to recover from a pandemic.

And it will only get worse with this $3.5 trillion tax-and-spend spree--not if when we raise taxes but when we raise taxes to pay for this socialist package. The American people aren't going to buy into it.

The fact is that this is Biden's America. His agenda has led to the border crisis, foreign policy disasters, and a financial strain on American families. This is Biden's America, where Democrats are focused on finger-pointing and scoring political points instead of paying attention to the cold, hard facts of their policy failures.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, I want to begin today by recognizing the service and sacrifice of our

law enforcement officers. This past weekend, Americans here in our Nation's Capital and around the country participated in National Police Weekend.

Being a law enforcement officer is one of the toughest and most dangerous jobs that there is. I think people on both sides of the aisle in this Chamber would agree with that. Law enforcement officers serve as a boundary between a functioning society and a lawless one. And, sadly, during the course of their vital duty to serve and protect our communities, some pay the ultimate price.

Alabama has lost four individuals in the line of duty to date this year: Deputy Sheriff William H. Smith, of the Baldwin County Sheriff's Office; Police Officer Marquis Dewon Moorer, of the Selma Police Department; Corrections Officer Maurice ``Reese'' Jackson, of the Robertsdale Police Department; Sergeant Nick Risner, of the Sheffield Police Department.

And our State has lost five individuals this year from COVID: Lieutenant Jeff Bain, of the DeKalb County Sheriff's Office; Police Officer Juan Manuel Gomez-Lopez, of the Pelham Police Department; Deputy Sheriff Harry ``Buddy'' Hutchinson, of the Blount County Sheriff's Office; Police Officer Brandon Ard, of the Orange Beach Police Department; Investigator Richard Wendell Humphrey, of the Baldwin County District Attorney's Office.

These nine individuals deserve our honor. They got out of bed each morning, put their uniform on, and went to work for our communities across this country.

To their friends and families, thank you for your sacrifice. It is a tough task, loving and supporting someone who goes to work each day, putting their life on the line to protect people they don't even know. They know only that they are fellow Americans.

And to every Alabamian who wears a badge and a uniform, thank you for all you do for our communities.

It is an unfortunate truth that many officers are being driven out of their profession by a wave of anti-police rhetoric on the heels of bad actors who operated outside their training. The Biden administration had jumped at every opportunity to demonize and demean the entire law enforcement profession. The President has shown that if the optics are bad enough, law enforcement will pay.

This was the case with Border Patrol agents on horseback in the Del Rio Sector in Texas just a few weeks ago. Reports of the agents whipping people turned out to be completely and utterly false.

We shouldn't be surprised. When their policies have failed and created chaos, the Biden administration has had a choice between doing what is right and making our government work better or shaming those expected to do more with less. The Biden administration has always chosen the latter. The administration routinely chooses to hide behind platitudes and broken promises instead of addressing the crises of their own making.

And because of that, the consequences of this administration's illogical and inconsistent policies will be felt by Americans for decades. If we didn't think it could get even worse, this administration's weak border policies impact every aspect of our Nation's immigration system.

But the problems go far beyond the crisis we have seen unfold over the last 9 months at the southwest border. Just last week, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas issued guidance ending worksite enforcement operations, which is the authority the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, better known as ICE, uses to crack down on businesses who employ illegal immigrants and to process illegal immigration workers for removal.

Without the threat of removing illegal workers, this new guidance creates a pull factor, or a magnet, attracting more people to the United States through illegal means. Illegal immigrants come with the knowledge that the consequences for breaking our laws under President Biden is minimal or nonexistent.

But this is a departure from what Democrats used to think. In 2005, then-Senator Barack Obama said:

We simply cannot allow people to pour into the United

States undetected, undocumented, unchecked, and circumventing

the line of people who are waiting patiently, diligently, and

lawfully to become immigrants in this country.

In 2009, Senator Chuck Schumer said:

Illegal immigration is wrong, plain and simple . . . people

who enter the United States without permission are illegal

aliens and illegal aliens should not be treated the same as

people who enter the U.S. legally.

And then, in 2006, then-Senator Joe Biden said:

Let me tell you something, folks, people are driving across

that border with tons, tons--hear me, tons--of everything

from byproducts from [drugs] to cocaine to heroin, and it's

all coming up through corrupt Mexico.

So why the change? It is politics. They are bending to the pressure from the far left to abandon enforcement of our laws in this country. And just look where it got us. How about the allegations of poor living conditions, rampant COVID-19 infection, and sexual misconduct between unaccompanied alien children and Federal contractors at Department of Health and Human Services housing facilities?

Nearly 2 weeks ago, I sent a letter to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services regarding the countless reports of mistreatment of unaccompanied minors while in Health and Human Services custody until released to a parent or legal guardian.

Because our country continues to face public health emergencies brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, President Biden kept title 42 in place at the border except for one piece. He made a huge politically driven exception: Unaccompanied children could be admitted regardless of public health emergency. This decision led to an onslaught of unaccompanied minors arriving at the border.

This administration has been so consumed by ensuring that the President receives constant good press that they rushed tens of thousands of children through processing facilities and into the hands of adults who hadn't undergone background checks. What is more is Health and Human Services failed to conduct background checks on the contractors working at the housing facilities where unaccompanied minors stay before being released to parents.

The administration repeatedly cut corners and endangered the lives of children just so they could provide pictures of empty Customs and Border Protection processing facilities to the press.

At every turn, it has been about headlines over sound policy, and it has backfired. That is absolutely no way to go.

Oh, and by the way, I have yet to receive a response from Health and Human Services Secretary Becerra on my questions. It has been weeks.

Now there are reports of yet another memo coming out of DHS, one that would protect those who acquired U.S. citizenship by fraud.

U.S. citizenship is the most valuable status that we have in this country, and it is coveted all around the world. It is the reason millions of people immigrate to the United States every year and have done so for many, many generations. They come here with the hope to capitalize on the opportunities that this country provides, the freedoms and liberties afforded to its citizens.

Allowing people to be naturalized through fraudulent methods devalues our sacred privilege. It cheapens the inherent principles of our great country. I sincerely hope the administration will not actually consider such a drastic change in policy. But based on what we have seen so far, I wouldn't be surprised.

By the end of 2021, Customs and Border Protection will have apprehended nearly 2 million people attempting to illegally cross into the United States. July and August each saw apprehensions of up to 200,000 per month.

Folks, that is astounding. That is 2 million people who decided the dangerous journey through South and Central America was worth the risk to illegally enter the United States through our southwest border, rather than to adhere to the laws and regulations we instituted for legal means of immigration.

These numbers negatively impact the U.S. job market and our economy. They put a burden on the taxpayer through increased spending of Federal benefits. These numbers overwhelm--

and I am talking ``overwhelm''--our public schools and our hospitals, which are already maxed out.

Also, wide open borders are also an issue of national security, and you can bet that the longer the border remains open, the more drugs make their way into the United States. Customs and Border Protection has seized over 10,000 pounds of fentanyl this year, more than the last 3 years combined. Imagine the amount of illicit drugs President Biden's open border policy have added to our opioid epidemic.

And while the U.S. economy continues to suffer due to the actions taken by the Biden administration in response to COVID, the cartel economy is booming.

Earlier this year, CBP estimated the cartels make about an average of $14 million per day smuggling people and drugs into the United States. The cartels are running a multibillion-dollar business along our border, and the President is just letting it happen.

Never before have we experienced illegal immigration on this scale, and it can all be tracked back to the bad policy decisions of this President.

U.S. law allows for legal immigration, as well as pathways to work within the U.S. economy. When we allow people to continuously break our laws, we should not be surprised when more people join in. We should not be surprised when our laws no longer carry weight or authority in our country.

The fact that this administration is not only disregarding current law and regulation but actively advertising ways around them is incredible. It is lawless.

President Biden, or whoever in the White House is making these decisions, should be ashamed of themselves, putting people's lives in danger. The President could stop this today if he wanted to, but reverting to the policies put in place by the Trump administration would be an admission that those policies actually worked.

We should all pray that when the consequences of these bad policies trickle down to our communities across this country, our law enforcement officers are still there to clean up President Biden's senseless mess.

I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, you know, it is no secret that I oppose President Biden's tax proposal. I think it is bad policy that would undercut growth and derail American prosperity.

But one of the worst parts of the President's plan is the provision requiring financial institutions to report their customer's transactions of $600 or greater to the IRS.

That means anytime an American pays a bill, makes a deposit, transfers funds, or makes a purchase of $600 or more, their bank, credit union, or financial institution would be forced to report that data to the IRS.

Opposition to this proposal is deep and bipartisan. I don't care if you are a

Republican, Democrat, or Independent. No one wants the IRS looking over their shoulder every time they make a financial transaction. The IRS doesn't efficiently use the data it collects now.

Why in the world would we give them more information?

If the IRS has reason to believe you are not paying all that you owe in taxes, they have the ability to audit you. They don't need any more private financial data on any of us. The bulk of the data collection they are proposing will do nothing to close the so-called tax gap. All it does is violate the liberty of every freedom-loving American who values their financial property.

The proposal would dramatically increase IRS audits of working Americans. The overwhelming majority of people the IRS would look into as a result of this policy would not have done a single thing wrong, but when the IRS starts snooping, it will cost you big money. That means hiring a high-priced attorney/accountant who will bleed you dry.

President Biden claims his proposal would only impact the rich, but middle-class families are the ones who will ultimately pay the price.

Additionally, the IRS has a history of data security failures. Just earlier this year, the confidential tax information of over a dozen well-known Americans leaked from the Agency and was published in the press. That was unacceptable and unlawful, but nothing was done to hold the IRS accountable.

But this is, unfortunately, nothing new. Under President Biden's watch, when he was Vice President, conservative groups and individuals were targeted for aggressive audits. And as recently as this year, a Texas-based charity was denied tax-exempt status because the IRS considered the charity too close to Republicans and too close to Christianity.

Folks, that is pitiful.

Providing the IRS with massive amounts of financial-transaction data will only make it easier for them to target groups or individuals they disagree with. If anything, we need to be reining in the IRS and holding officials accountable who go after taxpayers for political reasons.

The outcry from voters has been strong and swift. Some of my Democrat colleagues are feeling the heat from their constituents and are starting to walk back the President's proposal. The American people have them on the run.

Democrats in Congress are talking about only requiring transactions of only $10,000 or more to be reported to the IRS. While fewer Americans would be directly impacted by this threshold, we would still feel the broader, negative effects.

That being said, on Tuesday of this week, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the President's top economic adviser, defended the Biden plan and doubled down on the $600 IRS proposal.

Regardless of whether Democrats settle on $600 or $10,000 threshold, every American would suffer. That is because our community banks and credit unions will be overwhelmed--I mean overwhelmed--with a tidal wave of compliance data. Small banks and credit unions won't be able to afford to hire the staff that they are going to need, forcing them to close their doors in a lot of rural and minority areas.

And for Americans, including many minorities, living in rural communities across the country, these small banks and credit unions are a focal point for the community. They provide the money folks need to buy their first home or car; they fuel the economic development, provide good-paying jobs, and pump resources back into these rural communities.

If these community banks and credit unions close, it would cut off access to capital for millions of Americans in communities. They would suffer. Livelihoods would be destroyed.

That is why I, along with my colleague from Florida, Senator Rick Scott, have introduced a bill prohibiting the IRS from creating, implementing, or administering a financial reporting regime that would require financial institutions or individuals to report data or financial transactions or account balances to the IRS.

To be clear, my legislation does not touch the Bank Secrecy Act or any of the regulations either implemented or issued under that act.

My bill has been endorsed by the American Bankers Association, the Independent Community Bankers of America, the National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions, the Credit Union National Association, the Heritage Action for America, the League of Southeastern Credit Unions, and the Alabama Bankers Association. These organizations and their members know that if President Biden's proposal goes through, banking, as we know it, will end.

At this time, I would like to yield the floor to my distinguished colleague from Florida, Mr. Scott.

Mr. President.

I would like to yield the floor to my distinguished colleague from Indiana, Senator Braun.

Mr. President.

Mr. President, I want to thank Senator Braun and Senator Scott again for supporting this bill.

I am proud to partner with him in this effort to safeguard the financial privacy of American citizens.

Mr. President, as if in legislative session, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. 2953, which is at the desk. I further ask that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. President, this is a simple two-page bill that will protect every American from an invasion of privacy by Big Brother Government IRS. I am sorry to see that my Democratic colleagues oppose protecting the financial privacy of American taxpayers. That is a real shame.

I think you would be hard-pressed to find a Member of the U.S. Senate who can honestly say that a majority of their constituents support President Biden's proposal for the IRS to monitor a $600 or more transaction. I don't think you could find one.

We ought to be able to stand up together, in a bipartisan fashion, to reject this radical proposal. I am confident that the American people will continue to put pressure on their elected representatives to reject this plan. I will work with my colleagues to address legitimate concerns, though I suspect there are none, and any position is going to be purely political.

Americans across the country can count on Senator Scott and myself to keep up the fight of this important issue.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Madam President, in the winter of 2010, American intelligence picked up the chatter of Afghan fighters in Pakistan.

``Why are you back?'' asked the Taliban leaders. ``You are supposed to be fighting the Americans.''

``Yes,'' one of the fighters said, ``but the Americans run toward the bullets.''

That story captures the American fighting spirit. If you ever find yourself questioning the greatness of this country, I encourage you to go talk to one of our young servicemembers.

I am not talking about our older generals or warhorses you often see on TV or around here on Capitol Hill. They won't renew your faith in America. They may even worry you.

I am talking about the young people. It is the door kickers, the tank drivers, the trigger pullers. Some of them are still just kids. I am talking about the ones fresh out of college; ones hoping to pay for college by signing up for our great military. These young people are America's future.

They are the Americans who fought so hard for us in Afghanistan over the last 20 years, and they are the ones so disappointed today of how we abandoned our mission in Afghanistan.

Many of them did not remember the bright blue morning on September 11, 2001, when evil itself boarded four planes here on the east coast and took the lives of 2,977 of our fellow Americans in just a matter of hours.

They were just infants when President Bush demanded the Taliban hand over Osama bin Laden and shut down the terrorist training camps that littered Afghanistan. And when the Taliban refused, the United States and our most loyal ally, Great Britain, invaded Afghanistan.

We were soon joined by 46 other nations. It was the first time Article 5 of NATO had been invoked, which states: An attack on one is an attack on all.

America, in her righteous might, launched Operation Enduring Freedom and rained hell on the Taliban on October 7, 2001. We lost 12 brave American soldiers that year, but by December 17, we controlled a country few Americans could have found on the map months before.

To call Afghanistan in 2001 ``stone age'' would be an insult to the rocks on the ground. We saw diseases only found in textbooks. Eighty- five percent of the population was illiterate. No girls were allowed to attend school. Cell phones and computers were nonexistent.

We were not there to conquer. We didn't want to nation build. Our presence was needed because we wanted to keep Afghanistan from yet again becoming a training sanctuary for every would-be terrorist on Earth.

After all, the United States and our politicians of the 1990s looked the other way and failed to recognize Afghanistan as a threat. Thirty years ago, Afghanistan was a training ground for some 10 to 20,000 terrorists.

From Afghanistan, al-Qaida attacked the World Trade Center in 1993; two of our Embassies in Africa; and bombed the USS Cole, a ship that was docked.

The Clinton administration thought it could handle al-Qaida and their terrorist threat with over-the-horizon capabilities. September 11 showed us that strategy doesn't work. But, unfortunately, the Biden administration has forgotten those lessons of our past.

During World War II, my father landed at Normandy and fought the Nazis in Europe. Hitler and Germany had the will to win, but, thank God, America and our allies had more will.

From the time my dad landed at Normandy to when he reached Berlin, he earned five Bronze Stars and a Purple Heart. He was lucky. More than 400,000 other Americans would never return home. Their blood, sweat, and tears saved Europe and the free world.

Yet the work of the Greatest Generation didn't end on May 8, 1945. Americans stayed in Germany. We stayed to prosecute Nazi leadership. We stayed to build and rebuild their businesses and banks.

If you drive a BMW today, it is because America worked to change the behavior of millions of Nazis who were still living in Germany after the war. And we are, today, still in Germany.

It is the same success story in Japan and in South Korea. America's commitment to freedom and democracy didn't end when the shooting stopped. Today, Germany, Japan, and South Korea are some of our most vibrant economies and democracies across the world. Those nations are also among our closest allies.

That, ladies and gentlemen, was our hope for Afghanistan. Every American wants to see war come to an end. War is ugly. War is brutal. War robs lives and destroys property. But freedom is certainly worth fighting for.

Like World War II, our war in Afghanistan was completely justified. We took the end fight to the enemy who started it: the Taliban and al- Qaida.

Our war in Afghanistan ended in 2014. Operation Enduring Freedom transitioned to a supporting role called Operation Resolute Support.

That support trained the Afghan Army, intelligence, and police forces to fend for themselves. It allowed for greater educational opportunities for young boys and girls all throughout Afghanistan.

And as the Afghan security forces became increasingly capable, America withdrew her forces. By January 2021, we had reduced our presence to just 2,500 from a high of 98,000 in 2011.

President Trump also wanted to go to zero, but his military advisers said it would be unwise. So President Trump listened and maintained troop levels at 2,500.

President Biden claims he doesn't remember his generals telling him to keep 2,500 troops in Afghanistan. Yet the President's principal military adviser, General Mark Milley, says he

wanted to see 2,500 troops in Afghanistan. The top commander for the Middle East, General Frank McKenzie, said he wanted to see 2,500 troops remain in Afghanistan. The top, longest-serving, and most decorated commander in Afghanistan, General Scott Miller, wanted to see 2,500 troops in Afghanistan.

They clearly told President Biden that, to remain stable and protect the U.S. and our allies, Afghanistan needed a small American presence of 2,500 troops.

So when the President says he doesn't recall or he doesn't remember, is he telling the truth?

Well, I don't know. But what I do know is that President Biden didn't listen to his military advisers. He didn't listen to troops on the ground. He ignored military advice and, instead, made a political decision.

You can't run a war from Washington with an 8,000-mile-long screwdriver. If you do, you will screw it up--85 billion in equipment captured by the Taliban; valuable air bases abandoned in the middle of the night; American citizens still left behind enemy lines to this day; journalists and aid workers abandoned; innocent Afghan partners and allies left to the will of our enemy; chaos and disorder at Kabul airport; desperate Afghans falling from our aircraft, as people across our Nation and the world watched in horror; 13 American soldiers dead.

None of this should have ever happened. But now we must reckon with the worst foreign policy decision ever made. Our credibility has been eroded and respect from our allies has been destroyed.

America must return to the peace-through-strength leadership that has guided us throughout history. It has made our enemies fear us, our allies value us and what it means to have us as a partner on the world stage.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, you know, these days, information is only a few clicks away on your computer, and there is more information to be consumed than there are hours in the day. It is information overload, and it is overwhelming to sift through all the noise. But no matter the narrative being pushed, one thing remains: the facts. The facts don't lie. It is information overload.

The facts tell the story better than anyone. Facts take many forms and play out in many ways. They are the impacts of decisions made and actions taken, whether we like it or not. But it doesn't take long for anyone to see this fact: The decisions coming out of the White House have followed one overall thought, one guiding ideology. It is not a unifying ideology that protects the freedoms and liberties we hold dear as Americans. It doesn't safeguard the values of our country or promote a vision for a brighter tomorrow and a more prosperous nation for future generations. It is a Big Government, socialist ideology. It is a vision of transformation. It is a strategy of undoing everything done by the previous administration even if those policies were successful.

Since President Biden's inauguration, every executive order, every regulatory rollback, and every message of so-called unity we were once promised has been in the spirit of doing the opposite of the previous administration, with an emphasis on the ``woke'' transformation of America's founding principles. ``But not Trump'' is not a strategy. It is not a policy stance. It is a reactionary and misguided posture that has plunged our Nation into domestic and international disarray.

It is a backward approach to implementing an agenda to transform the culture and the values of America, and we are seeing the on-the-ground effects of this approach in our communities, at our borders, and abroad.

When the singular driving force of your Presidency is simply being the opposite of your predecessor, our country faces the consequences of that decision. We are facing crises that were preventable, crises that are a direct result of policy decisions. This is an uncomfortable and inconvenient fact for President Biden, and Democrats don't seem too interested in the facts about the consequences of this administration's decision, either.

So let me lay them out. Here are some facts. The Biden administration inherited a conditions-based withdrawal strategy on Afghanistan. The idea was that we will have a withdrawal of forces that kept some boots on the ground to maintain stability and limit chaos and, importantly, preserve the progress our troops had made. Instead of continuing this conditions-based approach that would protect our servicemembers, allies, and innocent civilians, President Biden came up with a new plan, one he thought would make for better headlines, rather than listening to our commanders on the ground.

President Trump's plan was to roll people out strategically and maintain our assets to prevent attacks on the United States in the future. The plan certainly did not involve leaving American citizens behind. Instead, President Biden's decision left chaos in its wake. His decision left our troops vulnerable and resulted in the death of 13-- 13--U.S. servicemembers. The average age of these servicemembers was 22 years old.

His decision has disrespected the sacrifices of more than 800,000 U.S. veterans who bravely served during the War on Terror. His decision gave the Taliban their greatest victory to date and made them one of the top 10 most well-equipped militaries in the world, funded by the hard-working taxpayers of this country. His decision abandoned innocent Americans in a country governed by radical terrorists, and it is clear that he ignored the best military advice given to him by his top commanders and ordered our troops to put down their weapons and retreat.

President Biden's decision to withdraw from Afghanistan this way gave the Taliban everything they wanted: control of the region, our own weapons, and, ultimately, a breeding ground for terrorism. The fact of the matter is, our country will be facing the consequences of President Biden's decision for decades--for decades to come.

Our country was safer for the past 20 years thanks to the bravest fighting forces in the world, our men and women in uniform. Counterterrorism is still necessary, but we just made it harder on ourselves by not having ground forces and by closing Bagram Airfield.

The myth from the White House is that our country had no choice but that we were beholden to a deal made before January 20. But the policy decisions made by President Biden emboldened the Taliban, endangered Americans, and encouraged our adversaries.

Tomorrow, the Senate Armed Services Committee will hold the first open hearing--hopefully, one of many--to review President Biden's decision and what caused our time in Afghanistan to conclude the way it did. The American people deserve facts, and I and the rest of our delegation will not rest until we have answers from the people involved.

From abroad to right here at our own southwest border, we are witnessing the disastrous effects of the Biden Presidency play out in epic proportions. The numbers do not lie.

Fact: In July and August, apprehensions at the southern border surpassed 200,000 each month. That is quadruple the amount from this time last year.

Fact: We have seen recordbreaking numbers of illegal immigrants at our southwest border from the day President Biden was inaugurated. Over 1.3 million people have been apprehended trying to illegally cross our southwest border, and that is only the ones we know of. There are hundreds of thousands more getting into our country.

And fact: All of this is a direct result of President Biden's open border policies, a reversal from those of the previous administration.

This is a prime example of the Biden administration putting politics over policy. On January 20, his first day in office, President Biden announced a suspension of the border wall construction. Now billions of taxpayer dollars are being spent to cover the cost of canceling the contracts the Federal Government entered into to build the wall. On the same day, he terminated the Migrant Protection Protocols policy.

In February, President Biden terminated the asylum cooperative agreements with the Northern Triangle countries established under President Trump. Doing away with these agreements has allowed caravans to travel thousands of miles through multiple countries to our southwest border, without any capacity support from our regional partners.

These decisions have directly contributed to the unprecedented numbers of illegal immigrant encounters we have seen, because with these decisions, President Biden signaled to the world that anyone wanting to leave their country for ours would be admitted to the United States of America.

After months of avoiding the word ``crisis'' to describe the border, President Biden recently said: ``We will get the border under control.'' To even say he will ``get the border under control'' means he acknowledges that it is not under control.

Well, I guess that is one fact that we can all come to agreement on.

The facts that Democrats seem to want to ignore most are those that deal with our economy. The separation from fact to fiction for our friends across the aisle could not be starker than when it comes to the American economy.

It is a fact that inflation is sky high--as high as it has been since 2010. Despite rising inflation and increasing prices, the President is still marching forward with his vision of Big Government--a big government welfare State, enacted through the Democrats' reckless tax- and-spend spree. He wants to create a massive welfare State paid for by staggering--and I mean staggering--tax hikes that would destroy economic growth.

And the Democrats are his captive audience. President Biden's America is one where our businesses and job creators pay for all. That is not ``pay your fair share.'' That is wealth distribution.

He is not interested in boosting the economy and helping Americans. He is interested in remaking the system with subsidies and entitlements--a welfare state to keep everyone beholden to the government--no work requirements, just complete government dependency.

Our country was founded on freedom. It was founded on opportunity-- the opportunity to work hard and to achieve the American dream. That is what this country owes you, not a handout but a hand up.

The programs laid out in the Democrats' reckless tax-and-spend spree are a transparent effort to a woke transformation of the values and culture upon which our country was built. If that wasn't bad enough, they are going to raise taxes to pay for them, picking from a menu of more than 30 new taxes.

Our businesses, small and large, create jobs and grow the economy. Increasing their taxes means they can't spend and invest in their own businesses. If they can't expand, they can't create more jobs. In fact, it is quite the opposite. Businesses will squeeze inward, cutting workers and wages.

A higher corporate tax rate isn't ``paying their fair share.'' It is destroying the blue-collar jobs that have fueled the middle class.

Why would we ever take pride in the fact that our corporate tax rate is higher than China's? When did that become a worthy goal?

I have an answer for you: It is not. But the terrible proposals to offset the cost of this bill just keep on coming.

The Biden administration wants to require financial institutions to report account balances and transactions greater than $600 made by Americans to the IRS, the Internal Revenue Service. Any transaction you make over $600 will be reported to the IRS. That is every taxpayer in this country. Today, only transactions over $10,000, which is a lot of money, are reported.

Yes, that is the same Agency with a long history of data security failures. Earlier this year, the confidential tax information of a number of prominent Americans leaked--surprisingly, leaked--from the IRS and was published in the press.

The Agency also has a history of singling out certain taxpayers for political purposes. You have a rent payment over $600, planning to buy airplane tickets over $600--how about a new hunting rifle? a wedding dress for your daughter? All of this--any transaction over $600--would be sent to the IRS under President Biden's plan. This is Big Brother Government at its worst.

We are talking about routine financial transactions that Americans make every day. The IRS has no business monitoring these--none. The IRS is intrusive enough as it is. This is something Americans of all political stripes should agree on.

Not only would the IRS be looking over Americans' shoulders, but this would place a heavy burden on community banks and credit unions that play a key role in providing financial services to rural and minority communities. These financial institutions cannot afford to monitor and report all this data to the IRS. They can't afford it. It will put many of these folks out of business, destroying mainstream American communities that rely on all of them in the process.

But don't just take my word for it. The Independent Community Bankers of America's Minority Bank Advisory Council wrote:

Our primary concern is that the proposal would undermine

the critical relationship of trust we foster within the

communities we serve--communities prone to distrust of

institutions and government agencies. We fear

that invasive and indiscriminate account reporting would

undermine the policy priority of bringing more people into

the banking system and may drive many of those in the system

to leave.

I couldn't have said it better.

This is one of the most outrageous proposals coming from this administration--and there have been a lot of them over the last 9 months. This is like a shakedown squad coming around to try to get every single cent from you that they can.

So, today, I introduced a bill called the Protecting Financial Privacy Act that would proactively prohibit this. My bill prohibits any Federal Agency from creating, implementing, or administering a financial account information reporting regime that would require financial institutions or individuals to report data on financial transactions or account balances to the IRS in excess of what is already required by the Bank Secrecy Act. The last thing Americans want or need is Big Brother looking over their shoulders.

The President wants to run from the facts. He would rather hide behind them and point fingers. The facts, for him, don't fit. But it is time for the President to wake up. It is time to stop blaming President Trump for disasters that are clearly his own making. It is time to stop an entitlement state of our country that Americans don't want. It is time for the President to face the facts and listen to the American people. He cannot be allowed to deflect responsibility and attempt to distract the American people from crises that were predictable and preventable, especially when the facts couldn't be clearer.

Madam President, our country is facing several crises as we speak. We are facing a border crisis with recordbreaking numbers of illegal immigrants pouring into our country daily, weekly, and monthly. We are facing a political and humanitarian crisis in the aftermath of a chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan resulting from a fatally flawed political decision.

And we are still facing a public health crisis with the resurgence of COVID putting a strain on our healthcare system and our entire economy.

And despite the finger-pointing that President Biden has tried to do, we are seeing the real impact of his failed policies.

Every one of these crises, from the border to Afghanistan, to COVID, require our attention immediately. But you haven't heard much more than a peep from our colleagues on the left.

Instead, they are focused on jamming through a $3.5 trillion spending bill. You know, even if you spent $5 million per day, every single day of the year, it would still take almost 2,000 years to spend $3.5 trillion. Think about that. Five million a day, 365 days a year, would take 2,000 years to spend $3.5 trillion.

So they are either completely tone deaf on the left or they are playing a game of hide the ball in an attempt to divert attention from these very real problems that are facing our country today.

You might find yourself asking, rightfully so: How will this package help the crisis our Nation is facing now, today? Will it help secure the border? Will it bring home Americans who were abandoned in Afghanistan? Will it encourage folks to talk to their doctor about getting the vaccine?

The answer across the board is a definite no. This reckless tax-and- spending spree will not do any of the above things.

What it will do is add to inflation, which is already at the highest point dating back to at least 2010.

With recordbreaking inflation and American families feeling the squeeze, it is long past time for Congress to pass some fiscal restraint. American families across this country have to. They have to have restraint, so why wouldn't we have to have it?

But the real kicker, as if spending $3.5 trillion is not enough, is what they want to spend it on. If you think the pricetag is shocking, wait until you hear what programs are going to be funded with your taxpayer dollars.

Tucked into this legislation is a laundry list of progressive initiatives to expand Medicare, fund climate programs, and provide universal preschool and free college, all while inflation is going sky high.

With this bill, Democrats are painting a vision--their vision for what they think America should be, not what it is, and that is a socialist, welfare state with handout programs from cradle to grave, with not one work incentive included.

And remember, this bill only needs 50 votes, and because of that, they are trying to tack on everything that they know can't pass at a 60-vote threshold. That includes the illegal immigrants, which we have talked about. They were actually considering this in the middle of a border crisis, which is as illogical as it is radical. It shows you just how radical this thing is--so radical that they tried to stick a policy provision into a budget bill, which, thank goodness, got struck down this weekend.

The Democrats are also adding in parts of this disastrous PRO Act, including a provision to overturn 85 years of precedent enabling lawsuits from civil penalties. This would allow unions to bleed businesses dry. It would cause many companies to close up shop and move operations overseas.

It is truly the kitchen-sink approach to try to bypass any Republican weigh-in on these important issues on behalf of the America that we all represent.

And if you think these policies are bad, the taxes are worse. Democrats are looking at a litany of taxes to throw at Americans to cover some of the costs of the far-left agenda.

Top on the list is an increase in the corporate tax rate from 21 percent to 26.5 percent. That is higher than communist China's corporate tax--higher than China's. President Trump's signature Tax Cuts and Jobs Act lowered this rate. As a result, we saw a surge of corporations returning to American shores, and over $1 trillion flowed back into the country after lowering this rate. A reversal of President Trump's pro-business tax policy will directly hit American businesses-- the heart of this country. That is simply something we can't afford.

Family farms--they are going to come under assault like everybody else with the increase of the capital gains tax and death tax. To make matters worse for farmers, our Democratic colleagues want to increase taxes on family farms at the time of inheritance by doing away with the longstanding step-up in basis rule.

For every family across Alabama, this tax bill would mean an average tax increase of over $500. More taxes mean paychecks don't go as far. More taxes mean small businesses will struggle to afford to keep employees on the payroll. And more taxes mean less economic freedom.

Finally, the Democrats want to increase the power of the IRS--we are all fired up about that--by requiring financial institutions to report any and all financial transactions of $600 or more made by their customers. Presently, it is $10,000. They want to drop it down to $600. They want the IRS to be able to keep tabs on how you are spending the money that you earn--not somebody else, the money that you earn.

This means that every check you write, every bill you pay, every Venmo you send, and every stock purchase you make over $600 will be reported to the IRS.

Why do they need this information? They don't even effectively use the data they collect now. It is going to put businesses, banks in a huge bind. Turning this information over to the IRS will only give the government more ability to go after taxpayers whose politics they don't like.

Remember Lois Lerner--Lois Lerner from the Obama administration. The IRS has a long history of unequal enforcement. Earlier this summer, for example, they denied tax-exempt status to a Texas charity because, according to the IRS, the organization's commitment to the Christian faith tied it too closely to the Republican Party. That is disgraceful.

Requiring financial institutions to report this data to the IRS would put a huge burden on the community banks and credit unions. Some of the smallest institutions will be forced to close their doors because the cost to comply will be too high. We can't allow that to happen. These businesses are the backbone of Main Street America and play a key role in getting capital into the hands of middle-class Americans.

This policy would also disproportionately hurt minority communities and folks living in rural areas, many of whom are already distrustful of Big Government and would be pushed out of the banking system. Democrats say they want to help these folks get financial services, but this policy would do exactly the opposite.

Our colleagues on the left want to spend to no end, and the American people are sounding the alarm. In a recent poll, 80 percent of Americans directly point to the economic policies of this administration for their financial hardships and the rising prices of everyday goods and services.

When asked about the concerns of rising prices at the grocery store as a result of this administration's poor economic policies, an administration official said: If you take out beef, pork, and poultry, the rising prices are normal.

Well, proteins like beef and poultry make up 63 percent of grocery items purchased--63 percent. So when prices rise as they are now, it directly impacts American families. There is nothing normal about that. It is unacceptable.

But it is not only the price of groceries that are rapidly rising. According to the National Retail Federation, back-to-school spending is expected to increase more than $3 billion from 2020, just in 1 year, with the average household spending upward of $800 on school supplies.

Rapidly rising prices translate to a tax on the American consumer. There is no other way to put it. Inflation is a tax, one that is already weighing heavily on the shoulders of all American families.

Don't just take my word for how bad this bill is. Even some of their own party have come out against it, asking Congress to take a strategic pause on spending billions upon billions of taxpayer dollars.

We are not even through the year yet, but this out-of-control spending will amount to at least $6.5 trillion before the year is over. You heard me right--$6.5 trillion. To put it another way, that equates to more than $50,000 for every household across the country, costing more than ObamaCare and World War II combined.

Considering that there is not an initiative in this bill that would address any of the crises facing our Nation today, it begs the question: Why are the Democrats in such a hurry to spend so much?

You know, the Federal Government cannot keep writing blank checks and expect future generations to pay the bill. It can't happen. This is real money we are talking about. This is not Monopoly money. The Federal Government cannot keep turning a blind eye to legitimate crises facing our country in order to hastily enact a partisan agenda.

It was then-Vice President Joe Biden who said: ``Show me your budget, and I'll tell you what you value.''

I would encourage the President to heed his own remarks, because this reckless tax-and-spend policy is exactly the opposite of what Americans want, need, and value.

Mr. President, sometimes we don't all agree on things here in this Chamber, but I think we can all agree that a quality education has the power to uplift and transform someone's life. It is the key to freedom and the key to opportunity.

I know this because I have seen it firsthand. I have coached and mentored hundreds of student athletes over my 40-year career. I witnessed the difference an education can make in the outcome of someone's life, how it truly creates a pathway to success.

In fact, that is one of the reasons I was inspired to be an advocate for better educational opportunities for all Americans--because investing in our children's education is investing in our country. It is like putting a downpayment on our country's future success by creating opportunity.

I have recruited hundreds and hundreds of students from across our country. I have been in their homes. I have seen how they live, and I have seen how they have grown up. Unfortunately, for many children from difficult backgrounds, a large percent coming from one- or no-parent homes, real opportunities can be hard to come by--very hard.

Regardless of what town that they lived in or what their family was like, I wanted my athletes to know that education can open many, many doors. Most of them understood and appreciated. As I have said many times before, the only thing that this country owes you as a citizen is an opportunity, and I still believe that is true.

There is a lot that goes into making the decision to go to college. Students often think first about the cost, or they could be the first in their families to attend college. My parents didn't attend college. One worked in manufacturing. The other worked on a line. They were very supportive of my decision, but I still had to figure out a lot on my own, and it is a huge decision.

But there is always the question: Is this the right place for me? Will this school provide me with a path forward for success and a productive future?

Many students across the country have turned to historically Black colleges and universities, better known as HBCUs, to answer these questions because of the pathway HBCUs provide. While they are respected for their strong traditions, HBCUs are the ultimate opportunity creators for students all across this country. Serving nearly 300,000 students annually in 21 States and territories, HBCUs have made tuition costs more affordable, costing 30 percent less, on average, than other higher education institutions. And because of that, 60 percent of the HBCU attendees are low-income, first-generation college students. HBCUs not only knock down barriers, but they build upon the inherent potential of their attendees.

I am proud that the great State of Alabama is home to 13 HBCUs, the most of any State in the Nation. These colleges are major contributors to communities across our State, producing more than 15,000 jobs annually for our local economies. And they also prepare students for the 21st-century job market.

Let me tell you a bit about some of the great things that HBCUs in my State have accomplished. Among their many contributions, Alabama HBCUs have helped to fill the continuing need for more African Americans in STEM--or science, technology, engineering, and math--professions. For companies desperate to recruit top talent for entry-level STEM roles, HBCUs offer thousands of highly qualified candidates.

As part of this effort, Alabama State University offers the Minority Science and Engineering Improvement Program. This program focuses on giving undergrad STEM students a chance at hands-on research and professional development opportunities. In fact, Alabama State University just announced a new partnership with Apple where it will become a center for coding and creativity.

In Montgomery, Trenholm State offers free STEM courses for dual enrollment students to allow high school students to get a jump start on their college careers.

But it is also important to recognize that HBCUs support low-income, first-generation college students in meeting and exceeding their postsecondary educational goals.

Alabama A&M University recently announced its new master's apprenticeship program for social work--the first of its kind by any HBCU in the country. This investment in our students

and communities will help to ensure that we will have more social workers to meet the needs of the underserved that are in our population.

Tuskegee University, home of the renowned scientist George Washington Carver and the Tuskegee Airmen, leads the country in African-American aerospace science engineer graduates--leads the country.

Oakwood University in Huntsville is one of the top universities sending minority undergraduate students to medical schools.

And, just this year, the achievements of two Stillman College students and two Talladega College students were recognized by the White House as part of the prestigious HBCU Scholars Program.

Traditional 4-year degrees aren't suited for everyone. I noticed that in my years of coaching. Everybody does not need to go to a 4-year university. And Alabama HBCUs have a strong tradition of empowering students through the vocational and technical programs that they offer.

In as little as 6 months, a student at Lawson State Community College in Birmingham can launch a career--just in 6 months. Their vocational programming provides low-cost and fast-tracked avenues for students to gain subject-matter expertise in industries like HVAC work and building construction.

Meanwhile, Gadsden State Community College is working to make a new Advanced Manufacturing Center part of its future to help prepare students for the roles that the manufacturing industry will be filling in the coming years.

Finally, we have repeatedly seen that when Alabama HBCUs collaborate with local businesses and government agencies, communities thrive, innovation occurs, and progress is made.

Shelton State's Fire College is responsible for training paid and volunteer firefighters and EMTs.

Bishop State Community College just partnered with Alabama Power to offer a 9-week electric line worker training program--only 9 weeks. The graduates of this new program will be the power restoration experts that people rely on in times of need, such as a hurricane, which we have just gone through several in the last few months in the South.

Drake State created a satellite tracking station in partnership with NASA and an amateur radio station that serves as FEMA's relay station during local weather watch activities.

And throughout its history, Miles College has had a strong relationship with the surrounding community, promoting racial equality for African Americans. During the civil rights era, President Lucius Pitts helped to negotiate race relations and supported his students' desires to participate in nonviolent protests.

Overcoming decades of adversity and opposition, HBCUs continue to be competitive educational institutions with programs for students who want higher education, career-tech training, or to position themselves for better employment opportunities. We need to honor accomplishments by the HBCUs and celebrate their significant contributions to our society.

Over the last decade, my colleague Senator Tim Scott from South Carolina has been focused on doing just that. I am thankful to have joined him the last month to introduce a resolution to formally designate the week of September 6 as National HBCU Week. Because of their work and the work of their leaders, these institutions are deserving of national recognition.

Last week, during National HBCU Week, there were many tributes about the work of these great colleges and universities, about the impact they have made in the lives of so many people across this country and the impact they have made on many, many lives.

While this week was a chance to recognize the many ways HBCUs contribute to our society, our recognition shouldn't stop at one week. We should honor their work by continuing the conversation for how we can support these institutions for years and years to come.

HBCUs have given a gift--a gift of education and an opportunity--to so many in Alabama and across our Nation. I hope my colleagues join me and Senator Scott in recognizing their tremendous, tremendous impact on a lot of young lives of people all across our country.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, 20 years ago, September 11, 2001, Americans watched in horror as two planes struck the World Trade Center in New York City. We watched as another plane slammed into the Pentagon, and yet another bound for this very city crashed in Pennsylvania.

That day was the worst attack on American soil in our history. America's death toll surpassed Pearl Harbor in December 1941. That day, children came home from school without their parents; calls from family members went unreturned; lives were changed forever.

Yet instead of tearing us apart, instead of frightening Americans off the world stage, the cowardly attacks on September 11 brought our Nation together.

But just remember, we were at war with al-Qaida prior to 9/11/2001. In the 1990s, between 10,000 and 20,000 people went to Afghanistan to train to be terrorists. Insurgencies sprang to life in Algeria, Indonesia, Philippines, Somalia, and Yemen.

The World Trade Center was bombed the first time in 1993 by Ramzi Yousef, who spent time in a terrorist camp in Afghanistan. In 1998, al- Qaida bombed two U.S. Embassies in Africa. In 2000, al-Qaida bombed a U.S. warship, the U.S.S. Cole, killing 17 Americans.

The 9/11 Commission would later write: ``The 9/11 attacks were a shock, but they should not have come as a surprise.'' That came from the Commission. But they were a surprise to most Americans because our leaders simply ignored the threat, issued a weak diplomatic scold, and promised ``over the horizon'' missiles and surveillance could solve the problem.

What solved the problem was American resolve and American might. That fighting spirit began on the bright blue morning of September 11, when a 32-year-old software salesman named Todd Beamer boarded United Airlines Flight 93.

Todd knew his plane was likely bound for another mishap or catastrophe after hearing it on the telephone just after takeoff. He knew that this plane was either headed for the Capitol or the White House. He knew what happened to the other flights because of conversations. But instead of being fearful, Todd Beamer rallied his other passengers.

The former college athlete stayed calm and prayed the Lord's Prayer. Then he and his fellow passengers unleashed hell on the hijackers of their plane. The moment Todd Beamer said ``Let's roll'' is the moment America began to fight back against radical Islamic terrorism. That is when the war started.

The whole country took up Todd's battle cry of ``Let's roll.'' Over the next 20 years, 800,000 Americans rolled into Afghanistan--800,000. Of them, 2,461 were killed in action, including the 13 brave men and women we just lost a few weeks ago; 20,961 soldiers were wounded.

Their sacrifices were great, but so were their accomplishments. With 48 partnered nations, America smashed the Taliban and sent al-Qaida running for their caves in Pakistan. We killed Osama bin Laden and crushed terrorism networks around the world.

Over the past 20 years, the death toll from terrorists inside the United States was 107 because of our brave military that took the fight to the enemy overseas. One hundred and seven souls are still far too many in this country. But the Nation has been spared another catastrophic attack, while our All-Volunteer Force stood the watch in Afghanistan.

But here on the 20th anniversary of 9/11, what should be a resounding victory and success of American values and resolve is, instead, a defeat. And it is an especially bitter defeat to Americans all across this country. It is bitter because Americans surrendered 20 years of blood, sweat, and tears to the enemy.

The Taliban now controls more of Afghanistan than they did in 2001, and

they are better armed with American guns, vehicles, and aircraft.

It is bitter because it was entirely preventable. It is bitter because those who work in national security know in their hearts that the President is wrong when he says the ``war is over.''

Mr. President, the war is not over. The war is over when your enemy accepts defeat. Our enemy, the Taliban, are not defeated; they are emboldened.

President Biden has handed them the greatest victory of their pitiful, pitiful history, a victory greater than they could have ever dreamed.

Using this victory as propaganda against the United States will be recruiting gold for the Taliban. Make no mistake, now that they have sent America running for the exits in Afghanistan, they intend to bring the terror we saw at Kabul's airport home to us right here in the United States of America.

We cannot allow that to happen because now, after our Commander in Chief decided to leave behind--let me repeat that--leave behind American taxpayer-funded equipment, the Taliban is one of the top 10 best equipped militaries in the world.

Over 44,000 military vehicles were left behind, nearly a half a million guns left behind, 33 Black Hawk helicopters left behind. All are now in the hands of our enemy. And we are fooling ourselves if we think they are not going to use this equipment against us.

Early last week, 10 of my colleagues on the Senate Armed Services Committee joined me in calling for hearings on the Biden administration's chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan.

As members of the committee that overseas our Nation's Armed Forces, we bear a particular responsibility to seek--I mean seek--true and correct answers. We asked to hear from the Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin; the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Milley; the commander of U.S. Central Command, General McKenzie; and the last commander of U.S. Forces in Afghanistan, General Miller.

These are our top military leaders who need to be asked the hard questions, and that is what I and my colleagues intend to do, starting with why did we give up the most strategic air base in the middle of Asia, Bagram Airfield? Why did we do that? It makes no sense.

We owe it to our Nation, those who served, their families, and our allies to preserve the records of how our time in Afghanistan ended. For every people we and members of the Armed Services Committee represent here in Congress, this is the biggest issue facing our military since Vietnam. Those who have given so much to this cause are demoralized and disheartened. I have talked to hundreds of them in the last couple of weeks.

Al-Qaida didn't defeat our military. The Taliban didn't defeat our military. The complexities of rebuilding a country did not beat our military. This administration in Washington, DC, defeated our troops.

Never in American history have we seen a Commander in Chief leave Americans behind enemy lines. It is unheard of, unheard of in the history of this country. I cannot think of a single fighting man or woman who would leave an American behind. It does not make sense. That is why they fight. That is why our military fight. We do not leave people behind. But they were ordered to leave by our Commander in Chief.

To those soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardsmen who served in Afghanistan, I promise you this: We will get answers from this administration.

If you are a member of the military or you have served our Nation and you have questions, I hope you will reach out to my office. I am ready to be your voice. I am ready to fight with you for your answers and accountability. I want to thank Chairman Reed and Ranking Member Inhofe for scheduling hearings so that we can do just that in the next few weeks.

On September 11, America said: ``Never forget.'' Thousands upon thousands of Americans have taken that rally cry to the enemy. To them I say: America has not forgotten. We will never forget. We will answer the fight, and we will fight for these answers.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Madam President, I call up my amendment, No. 3113, and ask that it be reported by number.

Madam President, believe it or not, people back home actually listen sometimes to what we say here.

To some local leaders across the country, the far-left rally cry of ``defund the police'' is not just DC rhetoric; they are actually acting on it.

More than 80 percent of law enforcement in America is conducted by State and local police departments--80 percent. These men and women are community heroes. We should invest in all of them. But local leaders across the country have decided the ``woke'' thing to do is cancel their city's police force.

My amendment is pretty simple. If your city council wants to defund their police, don't expect the Federal Government to make up the difference.

The American taxpayers in Alabama shouldn't have to pick up the tab for local leaders in Oregon and Minnesota who value the ``woke'' ``defund the police'' movement over their own community's safety.

I call on my colleagues to support our law enforcement by voting yes for this amendment. Opposing my amendment is a vote in support of defunding the police and against the men and women in blue.

I ask for the yeas and nays.

Madam President, when I go back to my hometown of Alabama, I usually ask the people: What is the most important to you? Every day, what is the most important to you?

And, usually, there is a consensus of three things: a good job, schools for their kids, and safe neighborhoods for their families. That is always what they talk about.

You know, the fulfillment of these basic aspirations is a foundation of a quality of life, the foundation of the American dream.

In my relatively short time up here, I have noticed people in this building often lose sight of those three basic items. We waste time bickering over things that, at the end of the day, don't much matter in the grand scheme of things. We engage in bitter partisan commentary, all in the hopes of scoring political points.

Folks back home can't relate to this because they don't have the luxury to waste time on cheap talk.

We are witnessing a nationwide surge in crime as we speak. In the last year, homicides have risen upwards of 30 percent--this is unprecedented--and doubled the largest previous increase of 13 percent since 1968.

There is always more than one factor to consider when analyzing crime trends, but the effect of some Democrats' anti-police rhetoric has been perfectly clear. Just take a look at what is happening across our country as we speak.

For the last year, we have heard some Democrats at every level talk about wanting to defund the police, take money away from them; we have too many of them. In many cities they control, Democrats succeeded in reducing policy budgets. They have been very successful. They have told police to stop doing their jobs, to stop enforcing certain laws.

I have heard Democrats say that they want to replace cops with social workers. You know, while I understand the well-intentioned desire to address the root cause of crime, instead of just focusing on the fallout, leaving our police underfunded and ill-equipped is not the solution.

If someone is attempting to break into my house, I am not calling a social worker to come perform an evaluation and to develop a treatment for the assailant. I am not doing that.

Too often, we have seen elected officials take the side of radicals burning property, looting small businesses, over the men and women who wear the badge and have sworn to serve and protect our communities. And now we are seeing the consequences all across the country.

As one report notes, in New York City, murders have increased 47 percent since 2020. Tickets and routine arrests dropped by 90 percent, but requests for police intervention went up by 50 percent. But the police won't go. They are not wanted.

Murders in Los Angeles this year are up 22 percent, and shootings are up 59 percent. But arrests in Los Angeles have dropped 37 percent since 2020, and are down even more this year.

In Chicago, murders were up 33 percent this year. Last weekend alone, 12 people were killed and 63 more were shot--the latest in a string of deadly weekends this summer. And carjackings in this city have tripled in the last year.

Why would you buy a car in Chicago?

It is going to get stolen. It makes no sense.

In Minneapolis, where cries to defund the police are loudest, murders are up 69 percent. It turns out that when protesters, activists, mainstream media, and elected officials told cops they are not wanted, it is not just the officers who heard them; criminals also were listening. And the American people are paying the price.

Also, the defund rhetoric from the left is having a severely negative effect on police morale--an ``all-time low,'' some officers say. According to an NBC survey of 200 police departments, officer retirements are up 45 percent and resignations are up 18 percent this year.

Why would anybody get up and put a uniform on in the morning with a badge on their chest and a gun on their side and go to work in this climate of crime?

We have to take our hat off to the men and women who are actually doing this and doing the best job they can.

Some police chiefs have had enough. The Chicago police superintendent said their court system continued to release the violent criminals in their jails, ``making us all less safe.''

The District of Columbia Police, right here in our hometown, said: ``[We cannot continue to] coddle violent criminals.''

Amen. But the ugly truth is there is a deliberate attempt to coddle these violent criminals, and it is bankrolled by the most radical fringe in the Democratic Party.

District attorneys are the local public officials who determine whether and how the government will prosecute criminals, from petty theft to violent crime--district attorneys. There has been a big movement to elect ultra-radical liberal district attorneys in big cities across the country. They have succeeded in Philadelphia, San Francisco, Boston, and just right across the river in Fairfax County,