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Floor Speech

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Mr. HAWLEY. Mr. President, I am here on behalf of the millions of working people in this country who are out of time, who are out of luck, and who are just about out of hope. I am here on behalf of the millions of working people who have borne the worst of this pandemic, the people who got sent home back in March and April and May, when other businesses got to stay open, and when companies like Amazon and Facebook were making billions of dollars. These are the workers who lost their jobs, the workers who lost their pay, the workers who were told: Too bad for you.

These are people who right now are missing shifts at work to try to care for kids who are distance learning because of COVID, who are trying to care for a relative who may be sick. These are the people who are always asked to make it work, who are always asked to hold it together and, you know what, they do.

These are proud people, the working people of our Nation. These are strong people. These are the people who have rallied to this Nation's defense in every hour of need, in every moment of danger, who have sent their sons and daughters to go fight our wars, who have given their time and their talents and their treasure at every opportunity for this Nation.

And now they are in need. They are the backbone of this Nation, and they are in crisis. I am talking about the 8 million Americans who have fallen into poverty since this summer; 12 million families--working families--who are now behind on their rent; the 35 percent of working families in America who have had to go ask for food assistance in the last couple of months because of this pandemic. Those are the people I am talking about.

I am talking about people like Susan, who is a single mother, a working mother, from my State in Northeast Missouri, where she lives. She wrote to me the other day, and she is trying to home school her kids who are home because of COVID. She doesn't have internet because she is in a rural part of the State. She doesn't have broadband. She is trying to feed her family. She is trying to stay up with her job, but she has to miss shifts at work because she has got kids at home whom she is trying to home school and supervise. Now she has fallen behind on her rent. She told me, and these are her words:

I am not asking for handouts. I am just asking for a chance to get back on my feet.

Earlier this week, a friend of mine down in Southeast Missouri, the boot heel of Missouri, in a town called Charleston, was helping to distribute food to families in need. He said that there were 30 church groups--30--who lined up to come get food for their congregations, and over 60 families--this is a small town--there were over 60 families who stood in line, and as they were loading food into the trunks of people's cars, many of them were crying.

What these people ask for, what these Americans ask for is not for government to solve all their problems. It is not for government to give them a handout. It is a chance to get back on their feet, a chance to provide for themselves, a chance to recover when they have been asked, again, to sacrifice so much.

That is why the least this body can do is to provide direct relief to every working American who needs it. That is what we did back in March that every Senator voted for: $1,200 for every working individual, $2,400 for working couples, 500 bucks for kids and dependents. It is the least that we can do. It should be the first thing that we could do.

As these negotiations drag on and on, fixated and focused and hung up on who knows what issues, let's start with this. Let's send a message to working families that they are first, not last; that they are the most important consideration, not some afterthought. Let's send that message today.

Surely, we can agree that the working people of this country deserve relief, and if we are going to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on bailing out this, that, and the other, surely, surely, we could start with reasonable, modest relief to the working people in need in this Nation.

What I am proposing is what every Senator has supported already this year. What I am proposing is modest compared to the scope of the need. What I am proposing will give working folks in my State and across this country a shot--a shot--here before Christmas at getting back up on their feet, getting back to work, and getting back in a position to be able to provide for themselves, these folks who are the backbone of this Nation.

I am here today to ask that this body take up and pass this relief measure: $1,200 for individuals, $2,400 for couples, $500 for kids.

Mr. President, as in legislative session, I now ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of my bill 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.

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Mr. HAWLEY. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Wisconsin for his perspective, which I always appreciate, and, of course, I appreciate working with Senator Johnson on some of the issues.

On this issue, I am afraid we are just going to have to differ, and I just want to say this: Nothing could be more targeted and no relief could be more important than relief for working people. The Senator is right; this body has spent trillions of dollars this year alone on COVID relief. We are getting ready to spend, apparently, another trillion dollars more. Yet working people are told they may be last--if they get relief at all.

I don't think the American people understand that. I know people in Missouri don't understand it, and I would just urge Members of this body: Go home and try explaining that to the people of your State. Go ahead. Just try it. Try telling them why this body can bail out the banks. We bailed out the banks to such a tune that now they have money left over. Now we are going to take money back because we spent so much on Wall Street and the banks in the first part of this year. That is right.

In fact, now I understand that my Democratic colleagues don't want to shut down all of the bank money. Who knows what we might be able to do with that in the future? Oh, they are fine. They are more than fine. They are doing great. Now Wall Street is doing great. Big tech, they are doing great; the big multinational corporations, fantastic. Working people--working people are living in their cars. Working people can't go to the doctor. Working people can't pay their rent. Working people can't feed their children. They should be first, not last.

And it is no answer for this body to tell them: Go get in an unemployment line. Really? That is the response? Go get in an unemployment line.

No, the working people of this country, frankly, deserve better. They deserve to be the top priority just like they have made this country the top priority in their lives and their families.

This is not the end of this fight. I am here right now on this floor. Senator Sanders will be back in a matter of hours to ask again for the same measure. Again, I have been proud to partner with him on this effort, and I will keep working with whomever it takes for however long it takes until we get the working people of this country relief.

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