Rick Scott

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 1569, which was received from the House and is at the desk.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, as if in executive session, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of the following nomination, Executive Calendar No. 125.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate vote on the nomination with no intervening action or debate; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table; that the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action; that no further motions be in order; and that any statements related to the nomination be printed in the Record.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 111, S. 1275.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. I ask unanimous consent that the committee- reported amendments be agreed to and that the bill, as amended, be considered read a third time.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. I know of no further debate on the bill.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. I ask unanimous consent that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 47, H.R. 504.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. I ask unanimous consent that the committee- reported substitute amendment be agreed to; that the bill, as amended, be considered read a third time and passed; and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 286, which was submitted earlier today.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 3 p.m. on Monday, July 29; further, that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed; further, that following leader remarks, the Senate proceed to consideration of the veto messages to accompany S.J. Res 36, 37, and 38, with the time until 5:30 p.m. divided as under the previous order; finally, that notwithstanding the provisions of rule XXII, the cloture motions filed during today's session of the Senate ripen following disposition of the joint resolutions.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that it stand adjourned under the previous order.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Veterans' Affairs be discharged and that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 2196.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. I know of no further debate on the bill.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. I ask unanimous consent that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, Judge Wendy Williams Berger has honorably served the State of Florida for several years, and I proudly support her confirmation as a district judge for the Middle District of Florida today. Throughout her distinguished legal career, she has remained committed to upholding the rule of law, prosecuting criminal offenses as an Assistant State Attorney for Florida's Seventh Judicial Circuit, and subsequently presiding as a circuit court judge for that same judicial circuit. As Governor of Florida, I was honored to appoint Judge Berger to the Fifth District Court of Appeal in 2012, and I am proud to support her confirmation to the Federal bench, where she will continue her exemplary service to our State and Nation.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, today is ``Washington Waste Wednesday.'' It is a new series I launched last week to highlight all of the ways Washington wastes taxpayer dollars. Unfortunately, there are a lot of ways. My belief is that you, the American taxpayer, can spend your money better than Washington can. It is a novel concept here in DC. The way Washington spends your money is oftentimes an embarrassment. As Governor of Florida, my focus on responsible spending meant more money in the pockets of Florida families and more funding available to pay down State debt and invest in what mattered most to our families. We paid down $10 billion in State debt over my 8 years as Governor-- nearly one-third of total State debt. We cut taxes 100 times, giving more than $10 billion back to Florida families and job creators. And we have record funding for education, for the environment, and for transportation. But right now, our national debt is impossible to fathom, much less sustain. It is $22 trillion. Just let that sink in for a minute. We are already $22 trillion in the hole, but that doesn't stop the far-left Democrats from proposing more debt for this country. Medicare for All, which I like to call Medicare for None, would not only throw 150 million people off the private insurance they like, but it is projected to cost as much as $32 trillion over a decade. That is $32 trillion with a ``t.'' The problem with our healthcare system is rising costs. It just costs too much. Prescription drugs cost too much. Hospital visits cost too much. ObamaCare drove up the cost of healthcare. That is obvious. Then the government tried to hide that cost by providing Federal subsidies to the tune of $737 billion in 2019--$737 billion in 2019 and $1.3 trillion by 2029. Instead of providing subsidies and proposing more wasteful ideas, we should be focused on bringing down the cost of healthcare, which solves two problems. First, it will result in more people having healthcare coverage, and, second, it would ensure that health insurance results in actual healthcare. Reduce costs and you solve both of these problems, but solving problems is a novel concept in Washington. The Democrats in Washington just want to spend more money to solve every problem. On top of Medicare for All, the Democrats want a Green New Deal. The Green New Deal--I call it the Green Job Killer--would cost as much as $93 trillion. These two proposals alone will cost more than $100 trillion. To put that in perspective, that is more than $300,000 for every man, woman, and child in the United States--$300,000. You wouldn't run a business like this, so why are Democrats proposing to run a country this way? We are turning this Nation around. Our economy is booming, and wages are rising. We can't go along with this dangerous socialist playbook. Higher taxes, more debt, and more regulation will reverse our success and bankrupt our country. These ideas are the craziest examples of Washington waste we have seen in a long time. Thankfully, the American people will not go along with socialism. We can cut the waste and cut the spending, but we have to be thoughtful. We have to propose real solutions, just as we did in Florida, to make Washington work for all American families. I yield the floor.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

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

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, as is now obvious to everyone, ObamaCare made healthcare even more expensive. Premiums are up. Copays are up. Deductibles are way up. ObamaCare has been a disaster, and even the Democrats are admitting it. Let's all remember, ObamaCare was sold and based on a bunch of lies. You didn't get to keep your doctor, your health plan, and your premiums didn't go down. The Democrats want Medicare for All, which will absolutely ruin the Medicare system and throw 150 million people off of the employer- sponsored health insurance they like. That would be a disaster. There is something we can do and must do right now to help American families: We must lower prescription drug costs. This is very personal to me. I grew up in a family without healthcare. My mom struggled to find care for my brother who had a serious disease. Eventually she found a charity hospital 4 hours away for his treatment. I remember asking my mom how much lower drug costs would have to be for her to consider changing pharmacies. Without missing a beat, she said: a dollar. This story is not uncommon. All over my State I hear the same thing: Drug prices are rising, and we are having trouble affording the lifesaving medication we need. I recently met Sabine Rivera, a 12-year-old from Naples, FL, who was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes more than 2 years ago. She is 12 years old, and she is already worried about how she will afford the rising cost of insulin--something no 12-year-old should ever have to stress about. Patients want to shop for better coverage and lower costs, but too often they can't or don't know how. At the same time, pharmaceutical companies are charging low prices for prescription drugs in Canada, Europe, and Japan but charging American consumers significantly more. Why? Because for too long politicians have done nothing. American consumers are subsidizing the cost of prescription drugs in Europe and Canada and all over the world. Why should we be doing that? That certainly is not putting America first, and that is not putting American families first. That is why I am working with President Trump and Republicans and Democrats in Congress to fix this problem. I recently introduced the America First Drug Pricing Plan with Senator Josh Hawley to take real steps to lower costs for patients and put the consumers back in charge of their healthcare decisions. Part one of my bill focuses on transparency. First, pharmacies must inform patients what it will cost to purchase drugs out of pocket instead of using their insurance and copays. If patients choose to pay out of pocket, which is sometimes cheaper, the total cost would be applied to their deductible. Second, insurance companies should, and must, inform patients of the total cost of their prescription drugs 60 days prior to open enrollment. This allows patients to be consumers and shop around for the best deal. Finally, my bill would simply require that drug companies cannot charge American consumers more for prescription drugs than the lowest price they charge consumers in other industrialized nations. I have found that provision to be controversial in Washington. Do you know where it is not controversial? Everywhere else. In Tampa and Orlando, Miami and Panama City, all over Florida, this just makes sense. I don't spend a lot of time outside of Florida, but I would wager and say that across the country my bill would make a lot of sense too. Why would we as American consumers, who make up 40 percent of the market for prescription drugs, pay two to six times more for drugs than consumers in Europe or Canada or Japan? That needs to change. My bill takes real steps to change this, and I believe it should have bipartisan support. I also led seven of my colleagues in a letter to pharmaceutical companies asking them to work with us on solutions to lower the cost of prescription drugs. We are still waiting to hear back. American consumers are facing a crisis of rising drug costs, and we can't wait any longer. I will not and cannot accept the status quo of rising drug costs. We need to get something done this year, and I am fighting every day to make sure we do. I yield the floor.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I proudly support the confirmation of Judge T. Kent Wetherell II to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida today. He earned his undergraduate and juris doctor degrees from the Florida State University and has committed himself to public service for the past 20 years. He has served as deputy solicitor general in the Office of the Florida Attorney General; an administrative law judge in Florida's division of administrative hearings; and, for the past decade, as an appellate judge on Florida's First District Court of Appeal. Judge Wetherell will continue to serve our State and Nation well, and I am proud to support his confirmation to the Federal bench.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the first vote in the series be 10 minutes in length.