John Barrasso

Mr. BARRASSO

Mr. BARRASSO. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the following amendments be the next amendments in order: Hawley No. 4794; Markey No. 5001; Paul No. 5378; Merkley No. 5235; and Kaine No. 5282.

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Grassley).

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Grassley).

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Grassley).

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Grassley).

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Grassley).

Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, the Republicans are committed to a safe and secure America. That is what this debate is about tonight. All night long, Democrats have ignored this very important issue. Democrats would rather protect illegal immigrant criminals than protect law-abiding American citizens. They want to defund ICE. They want to defund the Border Patrol. They want to go back to the days of 10 million illegal immigrants flooding into our country--the criminals, drug dealers, gang members--all of it. The Republicans are getting law enforcement the resources they need to keep our communities safe. Point of Order Mr. President, under the provisions of section 305(b)(2) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, I raise a point of order that the amendment offered is not germane.

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Grassley).

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Grassley).

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Grassley).

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Grassley).

Mr. BARRASSO

Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. BARRASSO

Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, the U.S. Border Patrol and our Immigration and Customs Enforcement have a complex and essential role in the lives of all Americans. They have a big mission. They arrest drug traffickers, they arrest terror suspects, they arrest human traffickers, they save exploited children, and they secure our border. This work is absolutely critical to our Nation's security. Not long ago, Democrats actually agreed with all of those things I said. In 2019, Senator Schumer, the minority leader--this is what he said to NBC News. He said: ICE does some functions that are very much needed. They don't seem to think that anymore. Now Senator Schumer is leading the charge to abolish ICE, and he wants to defund the Border Patrol. That is because today Democrats care more about protecting illegal immigrant criminals than protecting law-abiding American citizens. For more than 2 months, Republicans have negotiated in good faith to fully fund critical law enforcement Agencies in this country. We are done negotiating. We are moving forward alone. Republicans are going to fund ICE and Border Patrol without a single Democrat vote. We are not going to concede a single one of their demands, and these are demands made by radical Senate Democrats. The Senate is going to consider a budget resolution this week. The resolution is targeted, and it is focused. Here is what it does: First, it fully funds and fully supports the men and women of ICE and Border Patrol. Second, it funds them for the next 3 years. Third, it gives them more resources than ever before. ICE receives more money to protect our communities. Border Patrol receives more money to secure our borders. Increased funding means more law enforcement. It means more illegal immigrants will be deported as criminals. It means more investigations into drug cartels and human traffickers. It means that our communities will be safer. It is just common sense. Consider the commonsense policy changes that Republicans offered and Democrats refused to accept: $20 million to buy body cameras for agents to wear; Democrats voted no. More oversight of ICE spending; Democrats voted no. More money for deescalation training; Democrats voted no. The Department of Homeland Security now has a new leader. It is Markwayne Mullin--we know him--from the great State of Oklahoma. At his confirmation hearing, now-Secretary Mullin committed to working with Democrats on commonsense reforms to immigration enforcement. Almost every Democrat still voted against his confirmation. Why? Not because they don't like him personally but because Democrats don't want to reform ICE. They want to abolish ICE. That is the difference. They want to abolish our Border Patrol. They want to defund law enforcement in America. Here is what Democrats are still demanding: Senate Democrats want to ban ICE agents from wearing masks. Masks help protect agents and their families from being doxed by gangs of radical thugs. We know that open border groups are publishing the names and home addresses of agents online. These dangerous actions are one more reason that attacks on ICE agents have been rising dramatically. These open border Democrats have a long-term goal. Their goal is to make life so miserable and so frightening for the families of ICE and Border Patrol agents that these highly trained professionals quit their jobs. The Democrats' long-term goal is to undermine the hiring of new agents and shut them down completely. So, today, Republicans are moving forward to fund law enforcement. To my Democratic colleagues, you have lost your war on law enforcement. You have failed to turn America into one big sanctuary country, as you have turned so many cities into sanctuary cities all across the country. You have failed to take America backward to the days of open borders by the Democrats, when more than 10 million illegal immigrants flooded into our country on the Democrats' watch. Under Republican leadership, zero illegal immigrants have been released into our country now in almost a year. Republicans want ICE and Border Patrol to be able to do their job. Republicans want law enforcement to be funded. We want American citizens and American communities to be safe. Americans deserve safety and security. This week, Republicans are delivering it. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. BARRASSO

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Grassley).

Mr. BARRASSO

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Montana (Mr. Daines), the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Grassley), the Senator from Alaska (Ms. Murkowski), the Senator from Idaho (Mr. Risch), and the Senator from Montana (Mr. Sheehy).

Mr. BARRASSO

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Hawley).

Mr. BARRASSO

Mr. BARRASSO. I yield the floor.

Mr. BARRASSO

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Hawley), the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Moran), and the Senator from Alabama (Mr. Tuberville).

Mr. BARRASSO

Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I come to the floor to express the beliefs of so many Americans, and that is that illegal immigrants should never be given a driver's license in the United States of America. It is just common sense. These are people who are here illegally. So, today, I am introducing legislation to stop States from issuing driver's licenses to illegal immigrants, and that includes regular licenses as well as commercial driver's licenses. Every U.S. Senator needs to say where they stand on this critical issue. It is time to make it clear that giving State-issued licenses to illegal immigrants is not in the best interest of our Nation's safety or our Nation's security. In February, President Trump called on Congress to ban States from issuing driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. My legislation does just that, and then it goes further. The bill I am introducing today--the No Licenses for Illegal Drivers or Truckers Act--requires States to verify that every person who applies for a driver's license--every single one--including, certainly, a commercial driver's license, is in this country legally. It is not just for driver's licenses. It also should be for a government ID. States that refuse are going to be forced to forfeit 10 percent of the Federal transportation funding that they receive from the Federal Government, and that is a lot of money for many States, especially for some of these big, blue States. The funds that we withhold will go to the States that actually follow the law. So let's put it in plain terms what this means. California: If in California Governor Gavin Newsom continues to issue driver's licenses to illegal immigrants--and they are doing it right now--California would surrender 10 percent of the money that they get from the Federal Government for highways. They are getting $5.8 billion, so they would surrender $580 million, which would go to States like mine and the Presiding Officer's that comply with the law. Look, this is a serious and a significant amount of money, and it is a significant penalty. I believe it is worth it in order to keep the American people safe. Astonishingly, there are 19 States in this Nation--and the District of Columbia--that currently provide driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. No proof of citizenship is needed. In some of those States, such as Oregon, it is even worse than that because they have laws in place called motor voter laws. So what is a motor voter law? Well, it means that, when an illegal immigrant is given a driver's license, the State then automatically registers them to vote. I mean, think about that. As an illegal immigrant, you get a driver's license, and then they register you to vote. Then the Democrats say, oh, they don't try to get illegal immigrants to vote. They make it automatic in the State of Oregon. We know that in Oregon hundreds of illegal immigrants have been registered to vote because of this policy, which is irresponsible, and they know it. They don't seem to care. This, to me, raises serious questions about election integrity. Allowing illegal immigrants to obtain driver's licenses make our roads less safe, and it also makes our elections less secure. The No Licenses for Illegal Drivers or Truckers Act is part of the larger Republican drive to keep our Nation safe. The last administration threw open our borders to illegal immigrants. More than 10 million illegal immigrants flooded into our Nation. Under President Trump and Republicans, the border is now secure, and law enforcement has been restored. In the last 11 months, absolutely zero--zero--illegal immigrants have been released into this country. President Trump and Republicans stopped this dangerous policy of catch-and-release--catch illegal immigrants and release them into the country. Never again. Republicans are building on this success, and we are going to fully fund and fully support the men and women of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement and the U.S. Border Patrol. Now, some Democrats wrongly believe that giving official government IDs to illegal immigrants makes America safer. They are wrong, and they know they are wrong. They ignore every lesson that we have learned from previous deadly crashes. Remember Dalilah Coleman? She was a 5-year-old girl who nearly died in a car accident caused by an illegal immigrant truckdriver. President Trump told her story right here in Congress during his State of the Union. Dalilah's story is sadly becoming all too common. Just days after President Trump celebrated her remarkable, miraculous recovery during the State of the Union Address, there was another deadly crash in Indiana this time. An illegal immigrant truckdriver caused it. Four American citizens were killed. Well, what about the driver? The driver entered this country because of the policies of Joe Biden and the Democrats. He received a commercial driver's license because of the radical policies of the Democrat Governor of Pennsylvania Josh Shapiro. This should never have happened, and my bill is written to make sure tragedies like this one will never happen again. My bill gives States a simple choice: protect American citizens or lose Federal funding. We know that there are illegal immigrants holding commercial driver's licenses all across the United States, and there is no guarantee that all of them--or any of them--meet the same training and safety standards that are required of American truckdrivers. This should concern all of us. Many States run by Democrats would rather protect illegal immigrant criminals than protect law-abiding citizens. In my home State of Wyoming, we do things differently than what comes out of Washington and so many of these Democrat-run States. We do not issue driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. Furthermore, if an illegal immigrant is arrested driving in Wyoming with a license from another State, it is a crime punishable by up to 6 months in jail. So let me tell you about Wyoming. Since last October, officers in Laramie County have arrested 40--40--illegal immigrants driving commercial vehicles. Officers in Sweetwater County have arrested 14 more. Officers in Crook County arrested more still. None of these were issued in Wyoming, but these are truckdrivers going across the country, carrying cargo. They have been stopped because they provide danger. All of these illegal immigrants were turned over to ICE and removed. That is how the system ought to work. Every State in America should follow Wyoming's lead. The Senate has a duty to protect American citizens. I have a responsibility to protect the people of Wyoming. I believe the Senate should pass the No Licenses for Illegal Drivers and Truckers Act. I would like to thank my colleagues Senator Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Senator John Cornyn of Texas for joining me and cosponsoring the legislation. We need to stop States from issuing driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. We need to keep America safe. It is time for this Senate to stand up for law-abiding American citizens, not illegal immigrants. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. BARRASSO

Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I come to the floor to express the beliefs of so many Americans, and that is that illegal immigrants should never be given a driver's license in the United States of America. It is just common sense. These are people who are here illegally. So, today, I am introducing legislation to stop States from issuing driver's licenses to illegal immigrants, and that includes regular licenses as well as commercial driver's licenses. Every U.S. Senator needs to say where they stand on this critical issue. It is time to make it clear that giving State-issued licenses to illegal immigrants is not in the best interest of our Nation's safety or our Nation's security. In February, President Trump called on Congress to ban States from issuing driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. My legislation does just that, and then it goes further. The bill I am introducing today--the No Licenses for Illegal Drivers or Truckers Act--requires States to verify that every person who applies for a driver's license--every single one--including, certainly, a commercial driver's license, is in this country legally. It is not just for driver's licenses. It also should be for a government ID. States that refuse are going to be forced to forfeit 10 percent of the Federal transportation funding that they receive from the Federal Government, and that is a lot of money for many States, especially for some of these big, blue States. The funds that we withhold will go to the States that actually follow the law. So let's put it in plain terms what this means. California: If in California Governor Gavin Newsom continues to issue driver's licenses to illegal immigrants--and they are doing it right now--California would surrender 10 percent of the money that they get from the Federal Government for highways. They are getting $5.8 billion, so they would surrender $580 million, which would go to States like mine and the Presiding Officer's that comply with the law. Look, this is a serious and a significant amount of money, and it is a significant penalty. I believe it is worth it in order to keep the American people safe. Astonishingly, there are 19 States in this Nation--and the District of Columbia--that currently provide driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. No proof of citizenship is needed. In some of those States, such as Oregon, it is even worse than that because they have laws in place called motor voter laws. So what is a motor voter law? Well, it means that, when an illegal immigrant is given a driver's license, the State then automatically registers them to vote. I mean, think about that. As an illegal immigrant, you get a driver's license, and then they register you to vote. Then the Democrats say, oh, they don't try to get illegal immigrants to vote. They make it automatic in the State of Oregon. We know that in Oregon hundreds of illegal immigrants have been registered to vote because of this policy, which is irresponsible, and they know it. They don't seem to care. This, to me, raises serious questions about election integrity. Allowing illegal immigrants to obtain driver's licenses make our roads less safe, and it also makes our elections less secure. The No Licenses for Illegal Drivers or Truckers Act is part of the larger Republican drive to keep our Nation safe. The last administration threw open our borders to illegal immigrants. More than 10 million illegal immigrants flooded into our Nation. Under President Trump and Republicans, the border is now secure, and law enforcement has been restored. In the last 11 months, absolutely zero--zero--illegal immigrants have been released into this country. President Trump and Republicans stopped this dangerous policy of catch-and-release--catch illegal immigrants and release them into the country. Never again. Republicans are building on this success, and we are going to fully fund and fully support the men and women of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement and the U.S. Border Patrol. Now, some Democrats wrongly believe that giving official government IDs to illegal immigrants makes America safer. They are wrong, and they know they are wrong. They ignore every lesson that we have learned from previous deadly crashes. Remember Dalilah Coleman? She was a 5-year-old girl who nearly died in a car accident caused by an illegal immigrant truckdriver. President Trump told her story right here in Congress during his State of the Union. Dalilah's story is sadly becoming all too common. Just days after President Trump celebrated her remarkable, miraculous recovery during the State of the Union Address, there was another deadly crash in Indiana this time. An illegal immigrant truckdriver caused it. Four American citizens were killed. Well, what about the driver? The driver entered this country because of the policies of Joe Biden and the Democrats. He received a commercial driver's license because of the radical policies of the Democrat Governor of Pennsylvania Josh Shapiro. This should never have happened, and my bill is written to make sure tragedies like this one will never happen again. My bill gives States a simple choice: protect American citizens or lose Federal funding. We know that there are illegal immigrants holding commercial driver's licenses all across the United States, and there is no guarantee that all of them--or any of them--meet the same training and safety standards that are required of American truckdrivers. This should concern all of us. Many States run by Democrats would rather protect illegal immigrant criminals than protect law-abiding citizens. In my home State of Wyoming, we do things differently than what comes out of Washington and so many of these Democrat-run States. We do not issue driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. Furthermore, if an illegal immigrant is arrested driving in Wyoming with a license from another State, it is a crime punishable by up to 6 months in jail. So let me tell you about Wyoming. Since last October, officers in Laramie County have arrested 40--40--illegal immigrants driving commercial vehicles. Officers in Sweetwater County have arrested 14 more. Officers in Crook County arrested more still. None of these were issued in Wyoming, but these are truckdrivers going across the country, carrying cargo. They have been stopped because they provide danger. All of these illegal immigrants were turned over to ICE and removed. That is how the system ought to work. Every State in America should follow Wyoming's lead. The Senate has a duty to protect American citizens. I have a responsibility to protect the people of Wyoming. I believe the Senate should pass the No Licenses for Illegal Drivers and Truckers Act. I would like to thank my colleagues Senator Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Senator John Cornyn of Texas for joining me and cosponsoring the legislation. We need to stop States from issuing driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. We need to keep America safe. It is time for this Senate to stand up for law-abiding American citizens, not illegal immigrants. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. BARRASSO

Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I have two requests for committees to meet during today's session of the Senate. They have the approval of the Majority and Minority Leaders. Pursuant to rule XXVI, paragraph 5(a), of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the following committees are authorized to meet during today's session of the Senate: committee on foreign relations The Committee on Foreign Relations is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, April 16, 2026, at 10:30 a.m., to conduct a hearing on nominations. committee on health, education, labor, and pensions The Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions is authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, April 16, 2026, at 10:00 a.m., to conduct a hearing.

Mr. BARRASSO

Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, today is April 15. Americans all across the country know that it is tax day in America. We just heard the minority leader come to the floor, and it sounds like he is almost despondent that this year the American people are able to get higher tax refunds than in the past. Because of what we have been able to do and pass, people are keeping more of their hard-earned money. For people that are filing their taxes for the first time under this new tax law, the Working Families Tax Cuts, they are seeing that they are keeping more. And this is what we promised: to put more money in people's pockets. I hear about it at home in Wyoming. I was home, traveling in the State, and recently spoke to a group of veterans. They were meeting with their families in Dubois, WY. We had a ``welcome home'' for our veterans. I was also in Sundance, WY; Gillette, WY; Laramie, WY. I visited with students. I was in Lusk, WY, as well as Newcastle. I sat down with farmers, ranchers, and small business owners. Across the board, we talked about new opportunities that they are experiencing as a result of the law, since Republicans cut taxes dramatically, and how that appears to them in their daily lives and what it means to them and their families. And those families in Wyoming aren't alone. Americans all across the country are seeing smaller tax bills and larger tax refunds. So the Internal Revenue Service has released data today on the tax refunds. The average refund this year is over $3,400 per family. Now that is nearly $250 per month in people's pockets. That is much higher than it was last year. These are the refunds that people are getting. And yet, when I hear the Senator from New York, he referred to the amount of money that people are getting back in their refunds, and I think he said the word ``dud.'' Maybe to him that is a dud. Maybe to him, in New York City, that is a dud. For working families in Wyoming, $250 a month means a lot of money in their pockets. When they go to the gas station, the grocery store, when they plan what they want to do over the summer--all of those things--this is real money in the pockets of Wyoming families and American families. And the best we can hear from the minority leader is, it is a dud. That is not what I am hearing around my home State. It is probably not what you are hearing in your home State of Oklahoma. People understand that money in their pockets matters to them, and it matters to their families, even if the Democrats don't believe that or the minority leader doesn't see it the way we see it. But in so many ways, he doesn't--because we think it is important for people to keep more of their hard-earned money, and it is a direct result of the bill that we passed, the Working Families Tax Cut law. So what have the Democrats said to do about that? Well, they tried to do the opposite last year. They wanted to pass a $4 trillion tax increase on the American people--not $4,000, not $4 million, not $4 billion--$4 trillion of increased taxes. That is where they were headed. They weren't just heading that way. They voted for that. They voted for the largest tax increase in American history. And Senator Schumer, today, talked about a poll. And what did he say? He said Americans think they are paying too much in taxes right now. Can you imagine what they would have been saying if they were paying what they are paying now plus 4 trillion additional dollars in taxes? Why in the world would, then, the minority leader come to the floor and put together a group and lead the charge to raise taxes by $4 trillion, if he comes to the floor and talks about the fact that Americans think they are paying too much in taxes? I think we are paying too much in taxes. I want to cut more taxes. That is what the people of Wyoming want. That is what Americans want. That is certainly what Republicans want. So it was just interesting to hear the minority leader talk about these refund checks that are putting more money in people's pockets and saying: Well, it is a dud. It is not a dud for the people of Wyoming. They are encouraged by what we are doing, and they want us to do even more. And we need to do more. The Democrats talk about a $4 trillion tax increase. That is raising taxes on families, on workers, on small businesses, all across the board. Well, Republicans permanently lowered taxes, and we did it for hard-working families and small businesses. You know, in doing so, we made it easier for all Americans--whether they are working, whether retired--to keep more money in their pockets. More than 53 million Americans have benefited from at least one of the new Republican tax cuts. That is a lot of people. So if you are a senior and receive a Social Security check, you are benefiting for the first time from our ``no taxes on Social Security'' pledge. This is a new $6,000 deduction for seniors. Mr. President, 30 million seniors have already benefited, and everybody doesn't even have their taxes in yet. The deadline is tonight at midnight. Well, if you are a mother or a father with children, you are benefiting from the expanded child tax credits. That is $2,200 per child, per year. Millions of parents have enrolled their children in Trump Accounts. That is a big deal. For parents with newborn children, the savings accounts get $1,000 deposited into them straight from the U.S. Treasury. It happens immediately when your child is born. And I am happy to report that there are groups of individuals around the country who are matching those contributions in the Trump Accounts and adding more in individual States or to young people born in different locations--all of this in an effort to get these young people off on a good start. In Wyoming and across the country, more than 6 million Americans are benefitting from the ``no tax on tips'' provision in the Working Families Tax Cut law. These are our waiters, our barbers, our bartenders, the tour guides. They have claimed an average deduction of over $7,000 on the no tax on tips. More than 25 million Americans have benefited from no tax on overtime. They are the firefighters, the police officers, the nurses, the linemen, the coal miners in Wyoming and in your home State. They have claimed an average deduction of over $3,000 on overtime. So hard-working Americans are being rewarded--rewarded for working more--working more. Think about that. That is not what the Democrats are proposing. What we did was put incentives in for people working more, to keep more of what they earn. Democrats are looking to take more for the government. We are looking to find ways to let people keep what they earn. So the extra money goes right into their bank accounts, not to the bureaucrats in Washington or the Democrats that want to take that money to spend it. That is why they wanted to raise taxes by $4 trillion. They wanted to tax more so they could spend more. It is all wrong. The Working Families Tax Cut law protects 2 million family-owned farms and ranches in my State and in the Presiding Officer's from the dreaded death tax. The small business owners in our communities talk about that when I walk Main Street, and I saw it in Newcastle, WY, 2 weeks ago. Instead of being forced to sell their land or their small businesses to pay taxes to Washington so Democrats can spend more, families in Wyoming are now able to plan for their futures for generations to come. The Working Families Tax Cut law also allows businesses to immediately deduct up to $2.5 million in new equipment. That means more jobs, more growth, more people in the workplace. It means more opportunities for farmers, for ranchers, and for Main Street America. Because of lower taxes and more opportunities, workers across our Nation are seeing bigger paychecks--another thing that the Senate minority leader referred to as a ``dud'' earlier today. Real wages are up this year. This is significant progress. The only people who seem to be upset about lower taxes, bigger refunds, and higher wages are the elected Democrats in this body, who voted for a $4 trillion tax increase, and the minority leader, who led the charge. Democrats want to raise taxes on the American people. They believe that the money you earn isn't yours. They want it so they can spend it. Democrats believe that the money you earn belongs to the government. That is why the Democrat Party is known as the party of high taxes. It is not just here in the U.S. Senate; it is in the States and the big cities that are run by Democrats across the country. This year, in the State of Virginia, a Democrat Governor was elected and sworn into office. So Democrats in Virginia now control the house, the senate, and the Governor's mansion--a big flip in Virginia. Since they took over in January, Democrats have introduced 50--50--new tax increases. That is the Democrat mindset: Raise taxes. Get power. Raise taxes. Democrats want to raise taxes on barbershops, on nail salons, on dry cleaners, and gymnasiums. They are proposing new taxes on firearms and on ammunition in Virginia. That is what has happened now that Virginia has elected Democrats. Democrats like to use the word ``affordability.'' Apparently, the Democrats' idea of affordability is higher taxes paid by working families so they can spend more money on liberal social programs. That is where we are in America today. Republicans know the best way to make America affordable is with good jobs, growing paychecks, lower taxes, and that is exactly what we are seeing here today, on April 15, as people file their taxes and see the larger refunds this year--refunds of over $3,400, over $250 a month. The American people know the money belongs to them, not to Washington. They have earned it. They should keep more of it. Republicans trust people at home to know best what they want to do with that money--what they want to spend, what they want to save, what they want to invest. So this tax day, I come to the floor to say the American people have more money in their pockets because Republicans--all of us--have passed the Working Families Tax Cut law. Republicans are going to continue to fight for an America where families get to keep more of what they earn and make the decisions about how to spend it. I yield the floor.

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from West Virginia (Mr. Justice).

Mr. BARRASSO

Mr. BARRASSO. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from Wyoming (Ms. Lummis).