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Floor Speech
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Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I come to the floor having just listened to the minority leader talk, and I read in Punchbowl News, this morning, the minority leader making a statement to Punchbowl.
He thinks the Democrats have momentum. His statement is:
Every day gets better for us.
That is what he said in an interview from his office, yesterday, when he was interviewed by the news. He said:
Every day gets better for us.
Who is us? Not better for the American people. Who does he mean by us? Not the military who is not getting paid, not the Border Patrol that is not getting paid, not the air traffic controllers who aren't getting paid. Who is us?
He is playing a game. The Washington Post talked about it, just yesterday, in that headline in their editorial page: Democrat ``leaders play a dangerous game.''
That is what we have here. And what does the minority leader say? ``Every day gets better for us.'' Who in the world is ``us''? Is it this group that has organized the shutdown? They have talked about having an orchestrated group of the far-left wing, the terrorist wing of the Democratic Party organizing and orchestrating the shutdown, planning for weeks in the minority leader's office, closely coordinated. It is hurting the American people, but the minority leader has said it is getting better for them.
Look, how can they brag about the damage that they are doing to the American people, whether it is women on the Women, Infants, and Children Program needing food; whether it is small businesses applying for loans through the Small Business Administration; our troops; our Border Patrol. But, boy, from what I see from the minority leader and where he is trying to lead this country, it is a perfect quote for the shutdown: It gets better for them every day. I will tell you, it is rubbish, and it is hurting our country.
Thirteen times we have voted to open the government, keep it open with a continuing resolution, in Joe Biden's term, and now they are not going to do it because Donald Trump is in the White House. That is what we have in this country today--a political game being played by the Democrats because they think that every day gets better for them.
This isn't right versus left; this is right versus wrong. That is what we are facing in this country today. There are 1.3 million soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines, coastguardsmen--guardians on Active Duty to protect our Nation, protect our freedoms. They are going to miss their paychecks, but Chuck Schumer says it is getting better for them.
For the brave men and women in uniform, one date looms large. It is October 15. Normally, October 15 is payday. This year, under the Schumer shutdown, where it is getting better for Schumer every day, it is going to be a day that paychecks don't arrive for every one of them.
Nine days ago, October 1, servicemembers of the ranks got their last paycheck, and it is going to be their last paycheck until the dangerous game, the political game that Schumer and the others are playing ends and government reopens. We could do it today with a vote. We are going to have an opportunity to do it.
And it is wrong. It is just wrong to do this as a game because it is getting better for them every day--or so they think.
This Friday, October 10, tomorrow, Border Patrol agents and other Federal workers will receive only half a paycheck. The Democrat leader says it is getting better for them.
Seventy-two percent of military families say their most pressing concern is missing a paycheck.
Half a million military families relocate to new duty stations each year. For them, costs can be crushing. Moving costs the families an average of $8,000 out of pocket. Normally, this is reimbursed--may not be for a while.
Chuck Schumer says it is getting better for them every day.
Under the Schumer shutdown, military families are going to be forced to stretch out the budgets, dip into savings, and take out loans. This adds to financial stress and strain.
At Fort Hood in Texas, the local food bank is seeing a 34-percent spike in demand just since the shutdown began. Military families are lining up for food, diapers, and baby formula. One employee there said the situation in Fort Hood had never happened, ever.
Maybe they are just stocking up because they know that, for the Democrats, they think it is getting better every day. That is what they are aiming for.
What in the heck are they thinking? Well, those people that have planned and organized all of this are thinking: Hey, we have a big rally coming to Washington, a ``No Kings'' rally coming up on the 18th. Getting better for them every day. Let's just hurt the military more; the Border Patrol more; the women, infants, and children more--hurt them because it is getting better for them every day.
Who is the ``us''? It is the leftwing of the Democratic Party; it is not the American people.
That is what we are focused on here. I want to focus on opening the government up for the American people. We have offered a clean continuing resolution at current funding levels, at Biden's funding levels, current levels. It reopens the government, pays our servicemembers.
Republicans want to reopen the government. We have voted to not shut down the government. We want to make sure our troops don't miss the paycheck on October 15. Not the Democrats because they think it is getting better for them.
The date on their calendar is not the 15th, which is the date on the calendar of every military member; their date is October 18. That is the date when the most radical, leftwing activists are going to descend upon Washington. They are coming to protest President Trump. And the Democrat leader and his leadership team are hoping they will actually receive cheers from that group because it is getting better for them every day. That is what they say.
This shutdown is all about politics. That is what it is all about. It has been planned and orchestrated and organized for months.
The Washington Post editorial said it best: The Democrats are playing ``a dangerous game.'' They are choosing politics over the paychecks of the American working men and women who protect our Nation. And this weakness defines today's Democratic Party. They are radical. They are extreme. They are dangerous. They are scary. They are out of touch. But they think it is getting better for those people every day.
They are holding our military hostage. Why? Because they want to impress the leftwing activists. It is indefensible.
Servicemembers now have to worry about putting food on the table so that the Democrats and Senator Schumer can try to satisfy the far-left, liberal wing of the party, who will never be satisfied until this country is destroyed. That is what they want.
It is no surprise that 55 percent of Americans say Democrats are shutting down the government just to please their radical base.
The Senate can reopen the government today, but we need a handful of Democrats to join us. Democrats voted 13 times for a clean continuing resolution under Joe Biden. They know that the Schumer shutdown--it is reckless, it is radical, and it is wrong.
Democrats don't seem to care because, according to Chuck Schumer, ``Every day gets better for us.'' As a result, the Democrats are threatening America's safety, our security, and our prosperity.
The American people don't want the government closed. Chuck Schumer does because every day gets better for him.
Two in three Americans demand Democrats accept the continuing resolution at current funding levels. It is the right thing to do. It is fair. It is reasonable. It is time Democrats listen to them. It is time to open the government so the troops can get paid.
That is what this is all about--a political game being played by the radical left. And they believe it is getting better for them each day, and Chuck Schumer--this wasn't some offhanded comment; this is exactly what he said yesterday in a sit-down interview with the press in his office. These were planned words and orchestrated to appeal to the people that he is trying to appeal to, who are not the average American who just wants to go to work, just wants to get paid a fair wage for a fair, full day's work, and defend the country.
So I know who the ``us'' is when he says ``us,'' and it is not the American people; it is not the hard-working people of your State or my State who want to get up, go to work, get the kids to school, put food on the table, and live in this greatest country of all times.
That is what we are dealing with, and that is why I came to the floor this morning, because when I heard this comment by the minority leader, I could not let it stand, and the American people deserve better. Electric Vehicle Subsidies
Mr. President, on a separate matter, I want to talk about something else.
In July, President Trump signed into law the working-families tax cut. That legislation stopped a $4 trillion tax increase, it secured our border, it unleashed American energy, and it slashed wasteful Washington spending.
I thought one of the most egregious subsidies we eliminated was the electric vehicle tax credits. Under Joe Biden, Washington provided lucrative, luxury tax credits to prop up EV sales. The Biden car bribes forced working families to subsidize vehicles that people didn't want, couldn't afford, and weren't very practical in my State.
I have fought against these costly EV handouts for years. I introduced bills to repeal them, and I was joined by my Republican colleagues. I especially want to recognize the senior Senator from Ohio, Senator Bernie Moreno.
Hard-working families should not be forced to bankroll luxury vehicles for wealthy elites. Republicans in Congress acted decisively. We terminated the EV tax credits. We deliberately chose September 30 as the end date for the subsidies. This quick termination meant significant savings for taxpayers--$200 billion in savings over the next 10 years.
But, as the saying goes, the price of liberty is eternal vigilance. In Washington, we have to follow up and fight to protect taxpayers and taxpayer dollars even when the intent of Congress is clear. That is where I really want to point out the hard work of Senator Moreno, because that is what the Republicans are doing.
In recent weeks, Senator Moreno and I read troubling news. There was a last-ditch effort to game the system in the final days before the cutoff date. We immediately wrote to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to alert him about the issue and to address the problem. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, who is chairman of the Commerce Committee, also raised his concern with the Treasury Department about the subsidies.
Major car companies responded to the letter, and they changed their policies, and I encourage all companies to follow their lead.
Republicans are going to continue to protect taxpayers and ensure these subsidies are gone for good. Here is the reality: The subsidies were never needed in the first place. Look at what has happened since Congress ended them. Tesla has actually lowered its prices. They have done it by stripping out luxury features, like vegan leather seats and ambient lighting. Hyundai slashed nearly $10,000 off of their Georgia- built model. This is precisely how fair market competition works.
Americans elected Republicans to end Washington wasteful spending. We are keeping our word.
So I am going to continue to work with my Senate colleagues and the Trump administration to keep this loophole closed, to enforce the law, and to protect hard-working taxpayers.
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