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Floor Speech

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Mr. KAINE. Madam President, I rise to talk a little bit about what I am hearing from constituents in the Commonwealth, in the last week, and then, in particular, to direct a message to Federal employees. There are about 140,000 people who live in Virginia who work for the Federal Government.

It was a week ago yesterday--Monday morning--when I was attending a fairly standard annual celebration by the Fredericksburg Chamber of Commerce and the local United Way to open up seasonal tax preparation. It is called the VITA Program: Volunteers in Tax Assistance. Organizations all around the country train volunteers to help low- and moderate-income people do their taxes, and it was just the kickoff of this 21st annual event in the Fredericksburg area to help folks. And it was an opportunity to thank volunteers and to see those early-bird tax filers who were there the first day to try to get their taxes done.

Someone came up to me and told me that they were a veteran and that they had tried to log onto the VA portal that day to get a medical appointment and were shut out of the portal. Someone else heard the person telling me that story. The Fredericksburg area, about 50 miles south of DC, is very heavily populated with veterans. Others started to share their experience.

It just so happens that we have just constructed, at the cost of $370 million, a new veterans clinic in Fredericksburg that is scheduled to open on February 28. Someone heard this discussion and said: Oh, we hear the grand opening is going to be delayed because of a Federal hiring freeze imposed by this administration.

That conversation at this otherwise good-news event started what has become a cascade of concerns that I have heard expressed by Virginians: Head Start programs not getting their monthly funding; universities that are midstream on Federal research projects being told that a funding freeze would prohibit them from drawing down dollars, thus jeopardizing the jobs of the researchers; numerous Federal employees who have been told that they are being reclassified from professional civil service to political appointee, where their future depends upon their loyalty to a person rather than their service of their fellow Americans.

I was at church on Sunday. I go to a church that has a high percentage of Congolese refugees who are here under humanitarian visas or refugee status. Many of them are worried about the possibility of deportations because they happen to live in families where there might be mixed status: some citizens, some green card holders, some refugees, others who are not documented. A Sunday school teacher at my church came up and told me that, at the Saturday religious instruction program that he holds at a nearby Catholic school, because there are a number of Latino immigrant families in that program, the attendance is down because families and kids are worried about ICE raids and deportations.

Yesterday, I had two interactions with Virginians, one with local government officials and NGO CEOs--folks running domestic violence shelters, homeless programs, free clinics, et cetera--in the Richmond area, where I live, and then a second meeting with the Virginia School Boards Association--elected school board members from all around the Commonwealth of Virginia--that was taking place in Alexandria, VA. And, in each instance, I heard again and again the story of fear, confusion: Are our funds being cut off? Can we say anything about it? We are set up in such a way that we have served underserved populations. Are we allowed to do that now?

And, finally, Madam President, this morning, I came into work and I had an email from one of the largest federally qualified health centers in Virginia, located in the Hampton Roads--1.6 million people in the southeast portion of our State; Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Hampton, Portsmouth, Chesapeake, these communities--and they said: Look, we are the healthcare safety net of first resort for a lot of low- and moderate-income people, and we have done this for years, and we receive Federal funding. In fact, Federal funding for most of our FQHCs is about 20 to 25 percent of their budget.

They tend to get paid the last day of the month. Yesterday was the 3rd of February. They indicated they had not received their January payment and, when they were reaching out to determine whether they would receive the January payment--or the February payment, for that matter--they wouldn't even be given the courtesy of an answer.

There is grave, grave concern about the numerous efforts that this administration has taken with respect to Federal employees and with respect to the funding freeze. The funding freeze that was announced last week was partially retracted by the administration. It has been partially and temporarily enjoined in now multiple court cases. But as the email from this morning indicated, organizations that should be receiving funds, if the funding freeze is in fact enjoined, are still not receiving them.

Obviously, we have got a lot of work to do to get to the bottom of this. The administration has not shared with any of us what their plans are. The analogy that I have used is it is like somebody has taken a jigsaw puzzle and dumped the pieces upside down on a table in front of me. All I am seeing is the cardboard backside. I don't have the box with the picture on it.

Every time I talk to a constituent, a Federal employee, somebody who works at a domestic violence shelter, a mayor, I can turn over a piece of the puzzle based upon what they are telling me, and as I turn it over, I can start to assemble what is in fact happening. And we need to do more to assemble it.

I just want to pledge to Virginians: I will be doing all I can to make sure you are protected.

But what I want to do now is read a letter that I have written and that I am posting today on my website and disseminating publicly, specifically to Federal workers. It is a letter that tries to honor them and give them a pep talk and also direct them to resources that they can access in case they are concerned.

And, once again, Madam President, 140,000 of these workers live in my Commonwealth.

Dear Federal Workers:

As you are all too aware, we are in a dark time. The Trump administration has made plain that it wants to kick you around--by blocking your ability to administer federal resources, censuring your free speech, locking you out of your workplaces, demonizing you in the press, and sending you ominous, and at times threatening, messages. These actions are shameful and harmful not only to you, but to Americans across the country that you serve.

But especially in the darkest of times, we must stay focused on finding our guiding lights. I hope you will let the call to service that you answered when you first swore your oaths as federal employees serve as that light.

My advice to you today is simple, even if it's not easy: Don't give up. Keep serving everyday folks.

You are here because of your expertise. You are here because of your patriotism. You are here because you know the value in dedicating your life to serving your fellow Americans.

America needs you--that has never been clearer than in the wake of [the administration's] Federal funding freeze last week. I heard from folks in every corner of Virginia about the invaluable support they receive from Federal workers like you.

Across the country, Americans are counting on you to deliver crucial services--from inspecting our food to make sure it's safe, to protecting our national security. From administering Social Security benefits, to staffing air traffic control towers, to supporting our allies around the world and keeping the influence of China, Iran, and Russia at bay.

I know it has been--and will continue to be--tough. Donald Trump and his cronies are determined to do anything they can to knock you off course. They've even dangled a phony buyout in your face. But make no mistake: that buyout is a trap. Donald Trump has no authority to offer you a resignation buyout. Don't trust a guy with a long history of stiffing contractors by taking him up on a sham deal that he won't follow through on.

You aren't alone. I'm going to be here with you, every day, working alongside you in service.

I want to share with you some specific ways in which I want to be a resource to you. On my website, kaine.senate.gov, I am collecting stories from federal workers about what you are experiencing. Under no circumstances will I publicly share any information you send me without your consent. You can also choose to submit your [information] anonymously if you prefer.

I will also be updating my webpage with information that may be helpful to you, including summaries of your rights, recourse you can seek if you believe you are being illegally terminated, and answers to other frequently asked questions my office is receiving.

Please know, that I'm going to do everything I can to stand up for you--just like you're standing up for [and serving] the American people. Thank you for [all that you do].

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