John Thune

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, last week the Washington Examiner published an article highlighting Democrats' third--third--filibuster of this new Congress. That is right. You heard it--third. The party that mere months ago literally was gleefully making plans to destroy the filibuster is now using the filibuster left and right. But as we know, for Democrats, it is, ``One rule for me, another for thee.'' As the Washington Examiner piece made clear, some Democrats are even embracing their hypocrisy. ``You use the rules that exist,'' one Democrat said. ``I might advocate for a higher speed limit, but I still observe the speed limit until it is changed.'' Well, OK, but are Democrats still crusading to abolish the filibuster while Republicans are in charge? The answer is, of course, not because abolishing the filibuster isn't about principle for Democrats; it is about political advantage. So Democrats will unashamedly support different rules depending on who is in charge. Now, I could spend my whole time today talking about Democrats' rank hypocrisy when it comes to the filibuster, but I would also like to talk about the content of the bills that they filibustered and what that says about the Democratic Party. In the few short weeks of this new Congress, Democrats filibustered three bills: the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act; the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act, otherwise known as the ICC sanctions bill; and the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act. The Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act was a simple bill. It simply stated that a baby born alive after an attempted abortion must be given the same protection and medical care that any other newborn baby would be given. That is it. You would assume such a bill would be entirely uncontroversial. Democrats may not believe in protecting unborn human beings, but surely--surely--they still believe in protecting born human beings. But as it turns out, protecting born human beings, at least when they are born alive after an abortion, is not on the Democrats' priority list. In fact, every Democrat in the Senate--every Democrat, without exception--voted against this bill. And I am afraid the sad truth is, the Democrats are so deeply concerned with preserving the supposed right to kill unborn babies that they couldn't bring themselves to protect born babies for fear that it would eventually lead to recognizing the humanity of the unborn. All I can say is that a party that was so committed to killing unborn babies that it can't vote to protect born babies is nothing short of morally bankrupt. So that was the first bill the Democrats filibustered. The next was the ICC sanctions bill, and that was another straightforward bill. It would have sanctioned foreign individuals who are involved in International Criminal Court efforts to investigate, arrest, or prosecute U.S. citizens or citizens of U.S. allies that are not party to the ICC or the International Criminal Court. The bill was a response to the ICC's decision to pursue warrants for Israeli officials, and it was also designed to protect Americans and American soldiers, in particular, who had been targeted by the ICC in the past. But once again, Senate Democrats--with one lone exception-- found themselves incapable of taking a stand. Now, I am not sure if it was anti-Israel animus or if they were afraid of antagonizing the anti-Israel wing of their party or if they are simply too beholden to Big Tech, which lodged some tenuous concerns about this legislation, but for whatever reason, Democrats filibustered the bill. In doing so, they not only failed to rebuke the ICC for its illegitimate targeting of Israeli leaders, but they failed to protect U.S. citizens. The third bill the Democrats filibustered--and filibustered just this past week, I might add--was the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act. This legislation was designed to restore the original intent of title IX, which is giving women equal opportunities in education by ensuring that women and girls, and women and girls only, are permitted to play in women's sports at federally funded educational institutions. The bill, of course, is a response to the growing problem of women's sports being invaded by biological males. I want to quote for you something from August 2024. This is a United Nations report from just last August, a report from the United Nations on violence against women and girls. The replacement of the female sports category with a mixed- sex category has resulted in an increasing number of female athletes losing opportunities, including medals, when competing against males. According to information received by March 30, 2024, over 600 female athletes in more than 400 competitions have lost more than 890 medals in 29 different sports. ``[O]ver 600 female athletes in more than 400 competitions have lost more than 890 medals in 29 different sports.'' That is a quote out of a United Nations' report on violence against women and girls in August of last year. It is not even remotely fair. Girls should not be having to compete in races that are stacked against them. Women deserve their own athletic opportunities--opportunities that are not taken away from them by biological males who have their own spaces in which to compete. But try explaining that to Democrats. Democrats like to portray themselves as leading the charge on women's issues, but not one Democrat--not one--could bring himself or herself to vote in support of women and girls. Biological males, not women, got Democrats' support last Monday. Well, apparently, Democrats' commitment to equal opportunity for women only runs so deep and quickly falls by the wayside when the left demands adherence to some new ideology. The outcome of the 2024 Presidential election was partially a rebuke of far-left dogmas and ideologies. Apparently, Democrats have learned nothing from that electoral rebuke. Today, the supposed party of the little guy, the underdog, the disadvantaged, has become a party willing to sacrifice born human beings to abortion extremism and equality for women and girls on the altar of transgender ideology. I have to say it is no wonder the American people rejected them in November of 2024. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I call up Grassley amendment No. 1237.

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask that the reading be dispensed with.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 31.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 34.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. THUNE. I yield the floor.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 26.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to legislative session for a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I have seven 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:

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 117, submitted earlier today.

Mr. THUNE. I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 118, which was submitted earlier today.

Mr. THUNE. I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to executive session to consider the following nomination: The nomination on the Secretary's desk in the Coast Guard; that the nomination be confirmed; that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate; that no further motions be in order to the nomination; that the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action and the Senate then immediately resume legislative session.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 3 p.m. on Monday, March 10; that following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, morning business be closed, and the Senate proceed to executive session and resume consideration of Executive Calendar No. 29, the Chavez-DeRemer nomination; further, that the Senate vote on confirmation of the nomination at 5:30 p.m.; further, following disposition of the Chavez- DeRemer nomination, the Senate resume legislative session and resume consideration of the motion to proceed to Calendar No. 18, S. 331, and the Senate vote on adoption of the motion; finally, if any nominations are confirmed during Monday's session of the Senate, the motions to reconsider are considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

Mr. THUNE

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

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, in just a few short weeks, President Trump has restored order to the southern border. If initial reports are accurate, approximately 8,450 illegal immigrants were apprehended trying to cross the border last month. Not long ago, Border Patrol would sometimes apprehend that many illegal immigrants in a single day--in a single day. With less chaos, Border Patrol can focus on the criminals, cartels, terrorists, and traffickers who used to try to hide behind the surges, and that makes our country safer. But we have more work to do. Illegal drugs continue to plague too many communities and take too many Americans' lives. More Americans die of drug overdoses each year than Americans who died in the entirety of the Vietnam war. The New England Journal of Medicine estimated that 22 teenagers died of overdoses each week in 2022. That is an entire high school classroom lost every week to the scourge of drugs. And so many of these tragedies are from a lethal dose of fentanyl in a single pill--fentanyl that can frequently be traced back to the southern border. This crisis is affecting every part of the country. We have seen it in South Dakota. Police in Sioux Falls seized enough fentanyl to kill 2.5 million people last year. Law enforcement reports that cartels have a presence in our area, and the price of a single pill has dropped from $40 a few years ago to $5 per pill today, largely because of increasing supply. I am grateful for the men and women in law enforcement and first responders who work every day to save lives, and we need to help them get these drugs off our streets and prevent more overdose deaths. The President is already taking major steps to halt the supply of drugs flowing across our borders, and, later today, the Senate will vote to begin consideration of the HALT Fentanyl Act, which will provide law enforcement with a critical tool to combat fentanyl. Until a few years ago, the fentanyl analogs that have killed so many Americans were generally classified as schedule II substances, meaning they were less tightly regulated and violations carried lighter penalties. And if a particular analog was moved to schedule I, cartels would slightly alter the chemical composition of their fentanyl equivalents to avoid a crackdown--changes that made those drugs no less deadly. But in 2018, President Trump put a stop to that. All fentanyl analogs were temporarily reclassified as schedule I drugs, enabling law enforcement to go after the people bringing this poison to our communities. Congress has extended this provision several times because it works, but the most recent extension expires at the end of this month. It is time that all fentanyl analogs are permanently classified as what they are: the most deadly kind of drugs. Our colleagues Senators Cassidy, Grassley, and Heinrich have put forward a bill to do just that, expanding on Senator Johnson's leadership in this area and Senator Graham's good work. The HALT Fentanyl Act would permanently list fentanyl analogs on schedule I. Doing this will help law enforcement keep pace with the evolving threat of fentanyl that is driving drug overdoses in our country. It has backing from a number of State attorneys general and from law enforcement. Attorney General Bondi has endorsed the bill. It has bipartisan support here in Congress, including bipartisan cosponsorship and strong bipartisan votes in both the Senate Judiciary Committee and in the House of Representatives. I am also proud that this bill has come to the Senate floor through regular order. The Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on fentanyl, where members heard the heartbreaking stories of lives taken or changed forever by deadly fentanyl analogs. The committee held a markup and reported the bill to the floor by a bipartisan vote of 16 to 5, and now we are going to have a debate on the bill here on the floor of the U.S. Senate. And I hope that, in the coming days, we will have a productive process to make a law that will save American lives. So, Mr. President, I thank Senators Cassidy, Grassley, and Heinrich for their leadership on this issue, and Senators Johnson and Graham for their work, as well, and I am looking forward to sending the HALT Fentanyl Act to President Trump's desk soon. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. THUNE

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

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 28.