Issues Facing America

Floor Speech

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Ms. ERNST. Mr. President, I would like to thank my colleagues for joining me on the floor today. It is clear that America is facing two separate, very different paths.

Last Thursday, the Democrats in this Chamber blocked much needed assistance to families and small businesses struggling to make ends meet amidst the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and they did it for one reason only--politics. Our friends across the aisle didn't want to provide $15 billion in childcare, more than $250 billion of additional Paycheck Protection Program loans for small businesses, $105 billion for schools, and $20 billion for farmers.

While this aid is vital to my fellow Iowans, it would have helped families and communities all across the Nation, in red and blue States. There is no denying that the damage being caused by this pandemic is real. Businesses are being shut down, schools are being closed, and lives are being lost. Yet this toll is apparently not enough for the other side to set politics aside, even momentarily, to come together and help our fellow citizens with their daily struggles.

This senseless obstruction is leaving Iowa families to fend for themselves when they most need a helping hand. In so many ways, this represents the distinct difference between the two political parties at this very moment.

While Senate Republicans are leading efforts to get America back up and running and guarantee opportunities for everyone, Democrats are embracing obstruction and anarchy.

Following the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police, my friend Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina introduced legislation to tackle police reform in a meaningful way. The bill he proposed would have enacted long overdue policies, such as finally making lynching a Federal crime, ending the use of police choke holds, expanding the use of body cameras by law enforcement, and increasing other forms of transparency and accountability.

Yet despite the impassioned pleas of Americans across the country demanding justice for George Floyd and other African-Americans who have died in police custody, Democrats blocked the Senate from even debating Senator Scott's thoughtful police reform bill this past summer.

Shouldn't we all be able to agree, regardless of our party affiliation, that Congress needs to take action to guarantee that no American should fear walking on the streets, especially in their own neighborhood? That guarantee should include people of color and peaceful protesters, as well as our law enforcement officers doing their jobs.

As a consequence of the Democrats' obstruction, the streets in some of America's great cities have descended into a state of chaos and lawlessness, immersed in violence and vandalism, arson and murder.

When taxpayers turn to their elected leaders--whether for assistance to provide for their families during a pandemic, for protection from unfair policing practices, or for simple safety when walking down the street--the Democrats have responded with silence and inaction.

Even when I attempted to call up a bill to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act--a bill that is very personal to me and that also had bipartisan support--the Democrats objected to that bill as well. And the same was true for my commonsense bill, Sarah's Law, which would hold illegal immigrants who harm or murder an American citizen accountable.

It is no wonder that folks across this country are so frustrated with Washington and fed up with politicians. Folks, just one friendly reminder: Our country's direction will soon be decided by her people. America must now choose between two paths to take into the future, and that choice could not be starker.

At a time when we need leadership and reassurance, the Democrats are instead offering obstruction, lockdowns, and anarchy. Our friends across the aisle are actually promising--folks, they are promising--to increase taxes on hardworking Americans and even promising to defund the police. That is right, folks. You get to pay more taxes in exchange for less safety and security. That doesn't sound like a good deal to me.

Speaking of bad bargains, you can expect the Democrats to pass their Green New Deal if they are given the chance. This radical environmental plan would destroy our very way of life in Iowa.

The roadmap offered by Republicans is much brighter, to say the least: reopening America safely; real reforms to end excessive use of force by police without putting the safety of everyone at risk by defunding the police; building upon the successful pro-growth policies that created the greatest economy and historically low unemployment rates for every demographic; and bringing the jobs that were exported under the previous administration back to America and ending our dependency on foreign nations like Red China.

Folks, with our country and the world facing one of the greatest health and economic emergencies in history, we simply cannot risk our recovery on the radical designs of the Democrats. Let's pursue the path towards a renewed United States of America that guarantees safety and greater opportunities for every citizen to pursue the American dream.

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