Working Families Tax Cut Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I listened to my colleague from Wyoming, my friend Senator Barrasso, talk about the benefits of the Trump policies when it comes to American families.

I don't know the situation in his home State of Wyoming, but let me tell you the situation in most States in the Union, including my home State. American families are struggling. They don't believe the Trump policies are giving them any relief from what they face on a day-to-day basis.

I wonder when the last time was that Members of the Senate filled up a tank of gasoline in their home States and realized that the dramatic increase in cost is working a real hardship, particularly on working families in lower and middle-income jobs. They are struggling to get by paycheck to paycheck, and now they have gasoline bills they never anticipated. There is no end in sight. And to talk about relief for American families and ignore the cost of gasoline is really to ignore the obvious.

The same thing is true when it comes to utility bills. In my State, utility bills are up 15 percent this year over last year. There are a lot of reasons for it, and they have been explained over and over on the floor. The bottom line is that there is no Trump policy addressing this issue--particularly no policy that really is moving us toward renewable and sustainable sources of energy for generations to come.

How about the price of groceries? The tariff policies of this administration have led to a protest by farmers across the United States. These tariff policies hurt their ability to compete in the world market. That is why the President recently went to the Midwest in the hopes of salvaging his reputation with farmers in rural communities.

For the Senator from Wyoming to come to the floor and talk about the benefits to American families is to ignore the increased costs of groceries that people put up with every day.

What the Senator didn't mention as well is that the big beautiful Trump budget bill also made some dramatic changes when it came to the cost of healthcare for American citizens. The idea of cutting $1 trillion out of the Medicaid Program over the next several years is not only going to create a hardship on people with illness, but it is also going to create a hardship on providers.

Already in my State, where many rural hospitals and inner-city hospitals struggle to keep their doors open, the notion of these cutbacks in Medicaid means not only fewer treatments for those who are sick and need medical care, but it also means, when it comes to these hospitals and clinics that are really a life-and-death proposition, their survival is in doubt.

Talking about the future for American families--the future starts with healthcare that is quality healthcare that you can afford.

Do you recall when the Republicans, in their big beautiful budget bill, decided that they were going to cut back the tax benefits for people to help pay for their health insurance premiums? How can that be of any lasting, positive value for families across America? It creates a real hardship that they have to deal with.

So I think coming to the floor and talking about tax policies in decades to come is interesting and worthy of note, but it certainly doesn't address the reality of what American families are facing in Illinois, Wyoming, and across the United States. That is the reality.

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