John Thune

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn), the Senator from Indiana (Mr. Braun), the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Cassidy), the Senator from Iowa (Ms. Ernst), the Senator from Tennessee (Mr. Hagerty), the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Hawley), the Senator from Utah (Mr. Romney), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Rubio), the Senator from Alabama (Mr. Tuberville), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn), the Senator from Indiana (Mr. Braun), the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Cassidy), the Senator from Iowa (Ms. Ernst), the Senator from Tennessee (Mr. Hagerty), the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Hawley), the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Marshall), the Senator from Utah (Mr. Romney), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Rubio), the Senator from Alabama (Mr. Tuberville), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn), the Senator from Indiana (Mr. Braun), the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Cassidy), the Senator from Iowa (Ms. Ernst), the Senator from Tennessee (Mr. Hagerty), the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Hawley), the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Marshall), the Senator from Utah (Mr. Romney), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Rubio), the Senator from Alabama (Mr. Tuberville), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn), the Senator from Indiana (Mr. Braun), the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Cassidy), the Senator from Iowa (Ms. Ernst), the Senator from Tennessee (Mr. Hagerty), the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Hawley), the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Marshall), the Senator from Utah (Mr. Romney), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Rubio), the Senator from Alabama (Mr. Tuberville), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Cassidy), the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Kennedy), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Last Tuesday, the American people spoke, and they spoke decisively. They made it clear that they have had enough of the failed Biden-Harris-Schumer agenda, and they chose Donald Trump and Vice President-elect Vance to lead our country, along with Republican majorities in the House and Senate. I congratulate President Trump and Vice President-elect Vance on their tremendous victory. It is difficult to overstate what President Trump did in this election. Republicans improved our margins in three out of every four counties in the United States and grew support with nearly every demographic group. President Trump won more Hispanic support than any Republican President ever before, and younger voters played a crucial role in his victory. The Republican coalition is broad and strong and growing. The American people handed President Trump and Senate Republicans a decisive victory, and now the real works begins: delivering on our agenda. That starts with ending the Biden-Harris border crisis and deporting illegal immigrants. Also at the top of the list is strengthening our economic and fiscal future. The last 4 years of Democrat inflation have been very difficult for working Americans, and so Republicans will be focused on doing everything we can to expand economic opportunity and to increase growth. That starts with taking action via reconciliation to preserve the tax relief Republicans delivered for Americans during the first Trump administration. It is also time to check the bureaucratic machine here in Washington, DC. A key element of making America prosperous again is taking a hatchet to the regulatory apparatus choking our economy, starting with the 1,000 Biden-Harris regulations that have already cost Americans nearly $2 trillion. And of course a major focus of both the Trump administration and the Republican Congress will be restoring American strength to promote peace at home and abroad. That includes restoring American energy dominance for the sake of both economic growth and our national security. Yesterday, my colleagues chose me to lead Republicans here in the Senate during the 119th Congress. I am honored by the trust they have placed in me, and I will work every day here in the Senate to serve my colleagues and to advance President Trump's agenda. My philosophy of leadership is inspired by my dad. Some of you know that I played basketball growing up. I remember one game particularly. I had 36 points and 12 rebounds. At one point in the game, there was a time when it came down to fast break, and I pulled up and made a shot off the glass. After the game, my dad pointed that out, and he said, ``You know, Chris was open, wide open, under the basket, and you should have given him the ball.'' That was my dad. He hated ball hogs. He wanted me and my siblings to be team players. He always believed that if there was somebody else who had a better shot than you did, that you got him the ball. That is my goal as leader: to pass the ball to the best-positioned player, to empower everybody on the team. We have a lot of brilliant people in the Republican conference, brimming with ideas and knowledge, and it will be my job to make sure that they have the chance to use those ideas and that knowledge to strengthen our country and make life better for the American people. That is what I focused on as chairman of Senate Commerce Committee, it is what I have focused on as whip, and it is what I plan to do as leader. The leader's office will be a resource, not a roadblock, for Members seeking to achieve their legislative goals. That starts with empowering committees, which will in turn ensure that individual Members at all levels of seniority have a real voice in the legislation we consider. As whip, I have consistently advocated for our Members' amendments, resulting in over 100 amendment votes this Congress. In the majority, we can do better, and I will continue my commitment to amendments as leader. The committee process is key to developing strong legislation, but all Members of the Senate--and not just the Members of a particular committee--should have a voice in final legislation through amendments on the floor. Members should assume that amendment votes will be the norm. That will mean taking tough votes at times, but that is part of our jobs. Members should also expect a return to regular order in the Senate next year. I will devote serious time in the summer to floor consideration of appropriations bills so that we don't constantly wind up with an end-of-the-year pileup and problematic continuing resolutions. Needless to say, the floor priority at the start of the year will be confirming President Trump's nominees, and Members should expect an aggressive schedule until those nominees are confirmed. I know communication has been a concern for Members of our conference. As whip, I have tried to be very accessible, whether that is by phone or in person, and that is something I intend to continue as majority leader. That includes regular, substantive updates for Members and staff. Neither Members nor staff should be left without information, wondering what is coming next. I plan to have regular meetings with Speaker Johnson and with the White House to ensure smooth coordination and a strong working relationship between the House, the Senate, and the administration as we work together to implement President Trump's agenda. I will have more to say on all of this down the road, but for now, I want to once again thank my colleagues for the trust they have placed in me. I will work every day to honor that trust and to serve our Members and the American people. I want to also express my gratitude to Leader McConnell for his tireless service to the Republican Party and to the Senate. I am glad that, while he may be stepping down as leader, he will still be serving here in the Senate. I want to again congratulate President Trump and Vice President-elect Vance. They ran a tremendous race, and it will be my honor to work with them to advance our Republican agenda. I want to say a special word of congratulations to Vice President- elect Vance, who has been our colleague here in the Senate for the past couple of years. He made an impact right out of the gate and has been a stalwart advocate for his constituents. Now he will be a stalwart advocate for the American people. I look forward to continuing to work with him in his new role as Vice President. A big thing that drew me into politics was Ronald Reagan. His philosophy of limited government and peace through strength resonated with me. But I was also drawn by his sense of humor, his optimism, and his belief in America. I suspect that a lot of people who voted for President Trump in this election were attracted in part by the fact that President Trump conveys a lot of that optimism and faith in our country. It has been a tough 4 years for the American people, but, like President Trump and Ronald Reagan, I believe that America's best days lie ahead. I look forward to working with my Republican colleagues here in the U.S. Senate and with President Trump and Vice President Vance to build a strong and prosperous America and a bright new dawn for the American people. I yield the floor.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Cassidy), the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Kennedy), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Indiana (Mr. Braun), the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Cassidy), the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Kennedy), the Senator from Kansas (Mr. Moran), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Rubio), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from North Dakota (Mr. Cramer) and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Wisconsin (Mr. Johnson) and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance). Further, if present and voting: the Senator from Wisconsin (Mr. Johnson) would have voted ``nay.''

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Idaho (Mr. Risch), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Rubio), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. Cotton), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. Cotton), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, when the history of the Biden-Harris administration is written, I suspect it will be defined by the historic inflation crisis that has characterized almost all 4 years of this Presidency. And it started almost right away. Eager to begin implementing their big spending visions, Democrats seized on COVID as an excuse for a massive, partisan $1.9 trillion spending spree, the so- called American Rescue Plan Act. Democrats were warned by Democratic economists that their bill ran the risk of setting off ``inflationary pressures of a kind we have not seen in a generation.'' But they proceeded anyway. Vice President Harris cast the deciding, tie-breaking vote in the Senate to ensure that this massive government boondoggle would become law. And within weeks of its passage, inflation began climbing--and kept climbing and climbed more and more. By 2022, inflation had reached its highest level in 40 years--40 years--and Americans felt the consequences. As the price of everything from gas to groceries shot up, Americans dipped into their savings to make ends meet or put essential items on their credit cards. They took on second jobs. They visited food banks. They put off home repairs or family vacations. They skipped necessary medical care. And even as the rate of inflation has finally--and I say ``finally''--slowed, Americans continue to suffer as prices remain elevated. Today, Americans are paying 21 percent more for groceries than they were when President Biden and Vice President Harris took office. They are paying 37 percent more for energy, 45 percent more for gasoline, 22 percent more for shelter--and the list goes on. Today, a typical family needs to spend an additional $13,202 per year to maintain the same standard of living it enjoyed when President Biden and Vice President Harris took office--$13,202 per year. Just think about that for a minute. How many lower and middle-income families do you know that can easily absorb an extra $13,000 a year? How many families out there have had to lower their standard of living as a result of the Biden-Harris administration's policies? How many missed vacations or missed braces or missed extracurricular activities or missed car repairs or home projects does that $13,000 represent? And in addition to the staggering price hikes of the past few years, Americans have had to contend with additional economic pain as a result of the rate hikes the Federal Reserve was forced to impose to deal with the Biden-Harris inflation crisis. Those rate hikes drove up credit card interest rates. They drove up rates for car loans. They drove up mortgage rates. And so Americans who, for example, have had to charge things to their credit cards to deal with high food or energy prices are now facing increased challenges in paying off that debt. A September Wall Street Journal article noted: Around 9.1% of credit-card balances turned delinquent over the past year, the highest rate in over a decade, according to an August report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Other Americans are finding the American dream of owning your own home to be increasingly out of their reach as they face elevated mortgage rates on top of staggering housing prices. President Biden has talked a lot about building an economy from the bottom up and the middle out, but it is lower and middle-income Americans who have suffered the most in the Biden-Harris economy. And if Vice President Harris becomes President and Democrats take control of Congress, the next few years aren't likely to look too good for lower and middle-income Americans either. It has already become clear that Vice President Harris intends to continue with the tax-and-spend agenda that she and President Biden have worked to impose. And if she is elected, Americans should brace for more economic pain. The need is great. Costs are still high. Gas prices are high. Owning a home is a struggle. Every time I look at my bank account, it's always going down. That is what one American had to say about the economic situation earlier this year, and it has been the story for too many Americans in the Biden-Harris economy. We can only hope that they don't have to deal with another 4 years of it. 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. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. Cotton), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. Cotton), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Scott), the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Tillis), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. THUNE

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

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. Cotton), the Senator from Mississippi (Mrs. Hyde- Smith), the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Sullivan), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, as a Senator from a rural State and a former chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, expanding broadband access to rural areas has long been a priority of mine. I have done a lot of work on this issue, which is precisely why I was so concerned when the infrastructure bill proposed $42 billion for rural broadband to be funneled through the Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration, or NTIA. I was doubtful whether NTIA was capable of administering $42 billion, given its previous struggles to administer a fraction of that amount of money. And, unfortunately, those concerns have turned out to be well- founded. The Biden-Harris administration's signature broadband initiative and Vice President Harris's tenure as broadband czar have been nothing short of a disaster. It has been nearly 3 years since the $42 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment, or what we call the BEAD program, was established at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to provide broadband access to unserved communities. Three years. And in all that time, the program has not connected a single household to the internet. Let me say that again. It has been nearly 3 years--and to be precise, 1,044 days--since the BEAD program was established. And in all of that time--over 1,000 days--the program has not connected a single household to the internet. A logical question would be: Why? Please, tell us why? Well, it is a story--a sad story--of government inefficiency and progressivism run amok. Instead of focusing on delivering broadband services to unserved areas, the Biden-Harris administration loaded down the BEAD program with a liberal wish list of requirements that were never envisioned by Congress and have obstructed broadband deployment: climate change mandates, prioritizing government-owned networks over private investment, biased technology mandates, prioritizing the use of union labor, attempts to impose price controls in direct violation of the law, DEI hiring priorities. What should have been a straightforward application and approval process for building networks has become a literal morass. Why, oh why, Mr. President, should rural telecoms in South Dakota be talking about climate change mandates in building out broadband networks to serve underserved people in rural areas of the country? As if the list of woke requirements weren't enough, it has been matched by massive inefficiency from the administration. One State official who recently testified before the Energy and Commerce Committee in the House had this to say about the program's implementation: States face a common issue--navigating the complex BEAD process. NTIA's functional requests are akin to building a plane while flying it without having the necessary instructions to be successful. NTIA has provided either no guidance, guidance given too late, or guidance changing midstream, all with a lack of appreciation for State operations and costs and the needs of our telecommunications providers. Another official from another State described BEAD as--and I quote again--``the most burdensome Federal program'' she has ever imagined. The most burdensome Federal program she has ever imagined. And worse yet, ever had to manage. Given all this, I suppose it is no surprise that not only has broadband not reached even one household through the BEAD program, but construction projects haven't even begun. Current expectations for the start of construction on various BEAD projects range from sometime next year to sometime in 2026--2026. We are already at 1,044 days since this program was enacted. Not a single dollar has been allocated out of the $42 billion. Well, if this is what things look like with Vice President Harris as broadband czar, I shudder to think what things would look like if she were in charge of the entire Federal Government. This isn't the first time I sounded the alarm on the implementation of the BEAD program and the burdensome and extra legal requirements the Biden administration--the Biden-Harris administration, I should say-- has imposed. I have been joined in this by Commerce Committee Ranking Member Senator Cruz, who shares my concerns, as well as other committee Republicans who share those concerns as well. I would like to see some of my Democratic colleagues taking a closer look at BEAD implementation and broadband implementation more generally. As the BEAD program makes very clear, you can throw a lot--a lot--$42 billion a lot--a lot of taxpayer money at a problem and still not get results. I would like to see the Commerce Committee conduct a lot more oversight of the programs and Agencies under its jurisdiction. It has been more than 1,500 days since the last Federal Communications Commission oversight hearing at the Commerce Committee-- the committee, the principal committee of jurisdiction over the FCC. In fact, we haven't had a single FCC oversight hearing since Democrats took control of the Senate back in 2021. And despite the ongoing failure of the BEAD program at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, we haven't held a single hearing on NTIA yet in this Congress. While I understand that highlighting the failure of the Biden-Harris administration's signature broadband initiative is probably not high on Democrats' priority list, our obligation to the American people and our concern for the millions of Americans without broadband access should put BEAD oversight at the top of the Commerce Committee's agenda. Mr. President, the BEAD program's failure certainly highlights the fact that Vice President Harris has been no more effective as broadband czar as she has been as border czar. It also points to a larger problem--larger problems--with progressivism, like big promises, poor results, and the prioritization of liberal social fantasies over the needs of the American people. I suspect that if ``Broadband Czar'' Harris becomes President Harris, the BEAD program will not be the last disastrous government program we see on her watch. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. THUNE

Mr. THUNE. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. Cassidy), the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. Cotton), the Senator from Mississippi (Mrs. Hyde-Smith), the Senator from Idaho (Mr. Risch), the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Sullivan), and the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Vance).

Mr. THUNE

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