Senate Record of June 9, 2021 — Congressional Record
Summary
A page of the Congressional Record, Senate, dated June 9, 2021, at page S4007, carrying floor speeches. One Senator urges President Biden to announce sanctions on Russia over the poisoning of Alexei Navalny, to press the case of detained Americans Paul Whelan and Trevor Reed in Geneva, and to pursue arms control. Ms. Ernst then criticizes the President's budget, saying it proposes higher taxes, higher spending and higher debt, with over $6 trillion in new spending and $3.6 trillion in new taxes, and a near doubling of the IRS with 87,000 new employees. Mr. Portman joins her on the budget, and the record also carries statements on the Gaspee and on the fifth anniversary of the Orlando shooting.
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“Senate Record of June 9, 2021 — Congressional Record.”
Original at www.govinfo.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/crec-crec-2021-06-09-crec-2021-06-09-pt1-pgs4007-a0c39ae524/
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June 9, 2021 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S4007
sanctions by June 2 in response to Rus- United States. We allow them to freely The United States of America always
sia’s chemical weapons attack and poi- operate, but they are Russia state- aspires to have a stable, predictable re-
soning of Alexei Navalny. This deadline sponsored enterprises. Perhaps it is lationship with every country around
has passed. time we reconsider how easily the the world. But stable and predictable
The Trump administration regularly Kremlin can disseminate partners do not use chemical weapons
missed congressionally mandated dead- disinformation to the American people. to wipe out their political opposition.
lines. I think back to the Skripal at- Meanwhile, several Americans re- Stable and political partners do not
tack and how President Trump delayed main unjustly detained in Russia, in- tear chunks of territory from their
a decision for months. However, I ex- cluding Paul Whelan and Trevor Reed. neighbors. Stable and political part-
pect better from this administration. The Kremlin’s Kafka-esque treatment ners don’t commit war crimes in places
President Biden and his team must an- of American citizens must stop, and like Syria. Vladimir Putin has been
nounce these sanctions this week, for President Biden should make their re- President for 20 years now. After all
Putin has shown no remorse for these turn a priority of the visit. this time, we know what we are dealing
vile actions, and Russia has taken no Finally, our Embassy presence in with; it is not a stable and predictable
steps to rectify them. Moscow faces increasing, growing pres- partner. We are dealing with a mafia
A democracy- and human rights-cen- sure from the Russian authorities as state run by a vicious authoritarian
tered foreign policy also means coun- they seek to restrict visas for Embassy and his inner circle of corrupt
tering corruption, so I welcome the staff. This has to stop. In my view, if oligarchs, not a normal country. We
White House initiative announced last Russian diplomats’ visas expire here in are dealing with a criminal enterprise,
week. Since January, we have seen the the United States, then they must not a democratic government. And as
President back up this commitment by leave. Extensions should only be grant- President Biden knows, and has said,
imposing sanctions on corrupt actors ed when we see reciprocity on the Rus- when it comes to Putin, we are dealing
from Bulgaria, to Albania, to the sian side. No more games. We have tol- with a ruthless killer. We should act
Democratic Republic of the Congo. erated Kremlin abuse of this process accordingly.
But, moving forward, we must do more for too long, and it has to stop. I yield the floor.
to focus this tool on Russia, the pri- In the short time I have stood on this The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms.
mary source of so much of the corrup- floor today, I have provided but a ROSEN). The Senator from Iowa.
tion we see around the world. glimpse of some of the most chal- BIDEN ADMINISTRATION
The most effective sanction on lenging issues facing the U.S.-Russia Ms. ERNST. Madam President, you
Putin’s inner circle of oligarchs is to relationship, most of which were ig- might have missed it, but without
deny them and their families access to nored by the previous administration. much fanfare, the White House quietly
the West. We must cut off their ability President Biden has to correct course released the President’s budget on the
to travel and use the Western financial and forcefully press these matters in Friday before a holiday weekend.
system to funnel the assets they sys- Geneva. However, there is one area Maybe we weren’t supposed to notice
tematically have stolen from the Rus- that demands real negotiation with the plan at all, but the contents make
sian people over the course of several Moscow: the issue of arms control. it impossible to ignore.
decades. I supported the extension of the New President Biden is proposing higher
Alexei Navalny and others, like the START treaty. It advances U.S. inter- taxes on working Americans and cuts
Organized Crime and Corruption Re- ests, constrains Russia’s strategic nu- to our national defense to pay for a
porting Project, have done excellent clear forces, requires stringent verifi- massive expansion of the Federal Gov-
work exposing Putin and his cronies. cation to ensure Russia meets its com- ernment, an enactment of the radical
The U.S. Department of the Treasury mitments, and affords us the flexibility progressive demands, like parts of the
and the European Union should evalu- needed to maintain a safe, secure, mod- Green New Deal.
ate their research and chart a course ern, and effective nuclear deterrent. What can’t be paid for is simply put
for action. The question is, With New START on the Nation’s ‘‘credit card,’’ adding
We must also directly engage with extended, where do we go from here? I trillions of dollars of red ink. President
the Russian people and make clear that agree with President Biden that estab- Biden’s budget can be summed up like
our problems are not with them but lishing a strategic stability dialogue this: higher taxes, higher spending, and
their government. I urge President with a country capable of destroying higher debt.
Biden to make a direct appeal to the the United States is essential. And don’t take my word for it. The
Russian people over YouTube, commu- Russia continues to pursue new de- New York Times wrote that Biden’s $6
nicate our views and concerns to the stabilizing nuclear systems and ac- trillion budget would ‘‘push federal
Russian people, and provide his vision tively threaten our allies with shorter spending to its highest sustained levels
for what a positive U.S.-Russia rela- range nuclear weapons. However, we since World War II.’’
tionship could look like. The United cannot view this challenge solely Under the Biden budget, by 2028,
States should also increase exchange through a military lens. Diplomacy Washington will collect more tax rev-
programs with Russia, assuming the must lead our efforts to reduce nuclear enue as a portion of our economy than
Russian Government would allow its tensions going forward, and this sum- at nearly any point over the last 100
people to participate. mit would be a good place to start. years. This tax-collecting scheme even
Unfortunately, everyday Russians’ Last week, in the Washington Post, includes a retroactive tax increase.
access to fact-based information and former Ambassador to Russia Mike That is right, folks, you may owe high-
reporting is dwindling in the face of McFaul wrote that the Biden adminis- er taxes on past earnings.
Kremlin crackdowns on journalism and tration ‘‘cannot freeze U.S.-Russia re- Plus, the President would allow the
pervasive propaganda. I am especially lations in place to focus on the greater tax cuts for lower income and middle-
outraged by the Russian Government’s challenge of China.’’ class Americans to expire in 2025, and
decision to label Radio Free Europe/ I believe he is right. Addressing one the result will be higher taxes for most
Radio Liberty in Russia as a foreign challenge cannot come at the expense Americans. Higher tax bills will add
agent, subject to fines and to being of other critical U.S. interests. additional burdens to Iowa families and
kicked out of the country, all for sup- Whether we like it or not, the Krem- small businesses already struggling
porting Russian journalists who report lin clearly sees the United States as its with the rising prices and inflation
on the truth—a commodity in short primary adversary and remains intent being caused by Bidenomics.
supply in Russia these days. These ac- on challenging us at every turn. Past So what do you get in exchange for
dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with SENATE
tions are disgraceful. And it is worth administrations have tried to ignore or all of these new taxes? For the first
noting that, as legitimate news sources minimize the threat. It doesn’t work. time in nearly half a century, tax-
like Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty We need an assertive and comprehen- payers would be forced to pay for abor-
come under fire in Russia, Kremlin sive strategy, one that holds the Krem- tions. The Biden budget contains $600
propaganda arms like RT and Sputnik lin accountable and even puts them on million for electric vehicles. That is a
continue to operate freely here in the their heels from time to time. lot of money to subsidize a product
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S4008 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE June 9, 2021
very few Americans, other than upper landish this budget proposal is. Thank ing economists like these two point to
income individuals on the coasts, seem God, Presidents only propose, Congress the dangers of inflation.
interested in purchasing. disposes because we have the power of As problematic as the spending side
President Biden would also spend the purse. of the budget is—and so far that is the
your taxes to double the size of the IRS I have bad news for my Democratic only part I have covered—we now go to
over the next decade, adding almost colleagues about the release of this; the tax side, and the tax side is equally
87,000 new employees at a cost of near- that the American public won’t have dangerous. The President proposes en-
ly $80 billion. You heard it right, the wool pulled over their eyes as eas- acting the largest tax increase in his-
folks—87,000 new IRS agents. ily as this administration thinks so by tory.
But while the Biden budget promises putting this out late Friday before the Incredibly, even with the $3.6 trillion
a bureaucratic buildup at the IRS, his holiday weekend. Americans will see in new taxes he proposes, his budget
proposal is far less generous to our this budget for what it is, a very still doesn’t come close to putting our
Armed Forces. The Air Force would unserious political document con- national debt on a sustainable path
suffer a substantial cut in its number taining a laundry list of liberal wish given the new spending. This shows his
of aircraft. The small number of new list policies unmoored from economic tax cuts aren’t about fiscal responsi-
ships added to the Navy will not keep or fiscal reality. It would be funny if bility. Instead, they are about pun-
pace with the growth of Communist not for the very serious issues we cur- ishing success and redistributing
China’s shipbuilding. This is especially rently face in our country, and this wealth.
concerning since the CCP now boasts budget makes them worse. Ultimately, this will prove disastrous
the world’s largest Navy and is at- In response to the pandemic, Con- for the economy and, of course, it is
tempting to expand its naval presence gress understandably took bold actions going to affect all Americans. Job-kill-
in the Atlantic. You heard that right— to help individuals keep the roof over ing tax hikes will slow economic
not the Pacific but into the Atlantic. their head and to help small businesses growth. These tax hikes will reduce
The Army budget would be slashed keep their lights on. As a result, our business investment, and these tax
by more than $3 billion. The resulting national debt exploded because of the hikes will result in lower wages and
troop reductions would leave us with pandemic. It now exceeds the entire fewer jobs over the long run. As a re-
the same sized Army we had on 9/11. output of our economy, and this budget sult, then, the middle class is likely to
While essentially freezing defense is going to make that situation even suffer the most.
spending overall, $617 million of the worse. Higher taxes, excessive spending, and
military’s budget would be diverted to As we enter the postpandemic world, escalating debt are not a recipe for our
fighting climate change. we need to address the very real issues economy to ‘‘Build Back Better,’’ those
Folks, who does the President think about rising debt and deficits posing famous words of this President’s eco-
he will be able to call on should we for our country over the long term. nomic program—‘‘Build Back Better.’’
need to fight off foreign threats—his Otherwise, to quote the nonpartisan Instead, they are just a recipe for gov-
new Army of IRS agents? Congressional Budget Office, ‘‘a grow- ernment to ‘‘Build Bureaucracy Bet-
We face new threats around the ing debt burden could increase the risk ter’’ and at the expense of hard-work-
globe, and lowering our defenses, as of a fiscal crisis and higher inflation as ing Americans.
President Biden is proposing, will only well as undermine confidence in the I yield the floor.
embolden our adversaries. Americans U.S. dollar.’’ The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen-
may fear an IRS audit, but Red China The President’s budget completely ator from Ohio.
won’t. ignores potential fiscal and economic Mr. PORTMAN. Madam President, I
When America last spent as much as challenges that we all know are on the am here to join my colleague from
President Biden is proposing, we built, horizon. Taking the concept of ‘‘never Iowa who just spoke and others to talk
essentially from scratch, the world’s letting a crisis go to waste’’ to a whole about the President’s budget.
greatest military force. And all Ameri- new level, the Biden budget would put The budget is comprised of a couple
cans were called on to play their part our country in a permanent crisis mode of things. One is what the spending is
in the most noble of causes. in terms of spending and debt levels. going to be for the country. The spend-
The entire free world will forever owe In 2009, at the height of the financial ing, which is unbelievably high and at
a debt of gratitude to the ‘‘greatest crisis, the government spending peaked unprecedented levels of spending at a
generation.’’ There is no denying that at 24.4 percent of GDP. Now, spending time of unprecedented deficits and a
the sacrifices made by these Americans proposed under President Biden’s budg- long-term debt that is at the highest
and the resources committed to their et would average even higher at 24.5 level ever, is concerning.
mission forever altered human history percent over the next decade. So what The second is that the budget is
for the better. The same cannot be said we had peaked in the 2009 year of the about revenue. So on the spending side,
about what is now being proposed, financial crisis is going to be just com- we all expected it to be a very high
which leaves America weaker in the mon for the whole next decade, and number—over $6 trillion in new spend-
world, and the debt will be paid by fu- that is bad. ing—but on the tax side, we also have
ture generations. Moreover, the President’s budget huge new tax increases. The Senator
The Biden budget is a bust for tax- would set a new record for the debt as from Iowa just said it is the largest tax
payers and a boon for DC bureaucrats a share of the economy. According to increase in the history of the country.
and tax collectors. the President’s own rosy assumptions, He is the former chairman of the tax-
With that, I yield the floor. debt as a percentage of GDP would writing committee, chairman of the
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- reach 112 percent next year, shattering Budget Committee here, and he has
ator from Iowa. the World War II record of 106 percent been through a lot of tax increases over
Mr. GRASSLEY. Madam President, of GDP. And by 2031, debt as a share of the years. This is the largest one in the
as my colleague from Iowa just said, our economy would hit 117 percent of history of the country. It is coming at
something mysterious happened just GDP. So how extraordinary a step this a time when you don’t want to raise
before the holiday weekend when the budget takes. At a time when inflation taxes because we are coming out of this
budget was released. So just before Me- has been rearing its head, proposing pandemic, trying to get the economy
morial Day, the administration re- sustained spending and debt at these back on track.
leased its long-awaited fiscal year 2022 levels is playing with fire, like pouring One reason that we were in good
budget proposal. gasoline on a fire. shape before COVID–19 is because we
dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with SENATE
Having reviewed the proposal, it is Even long-term Democrat economists actually put in place some tax reforms
obvious why they chose this timing to and Obama administration alums, and some tax cuts that really worked.
do it—because they hoped most Ameri- Larry Summer and Jason Furman, Let’s be very specific about that. In the
cans would be too distracted by their have begun to sound the inflation months just before COVID–19 hit, we
backyard barbecues and tributes to alarm. The President would be well-ad- had an economy that was hitting on all
fallen heroes to even notice how out- vised to start taking notice when lead- cylinders in every respect.
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June 9, 2021 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S4009
In February of that year—so Feb- only a few months in office, the Biden people back to work and back to
ruary before the COVID–19 crisis hit— Administration is committed to spend- school, get our children back to school
we had the 19th straight month of wage ing about $6 trillion. and get back to our churches and our
growth of over 3 percent. That was Again, just put this in context. That synagogues, and get back to our nor-
great news in my home State of Ohio, is bigger than the annual budget of the mal life. It is starting to happen, and it
I will tell you, because we had years of United States. When you add up all the is exciting.
flat-rate growth, even declining plans the President has put out there, One of the problems is, again, higher
growth, when you take into account it is $6 trillion in new spending. One of inflation, higher interest rates, and
the effects of inflation. So we had real- the problems with that has been that it also that there just aren’t adequate
ly nice wage growth. has primed the pump. In other words, workers out there, in part, because the
And guess who was made the bene- it put so much stimulus into the econ- government is paying more and more
ficiary of that wage growth. It was omy that it has created inflation. That for unemployment insurance—$300 in
lower and middle-income workers, was something that was warned by Re- Federal supplement on top of the nor-
which is also something you would all publicans, including me and others, but mal unemployment in the States.
think people would hope for in this also Democrats, like Larry Summers, There are still 25 States that have
Chamber. That was partly because the who is a Democrat, an economist, and that, and this means that people often
tax cuts the government put in place in former Secretary of the Treasury. are making more on unemployment
2018 from the 2017 Republican bill pro- Unfortunately, it looks like that pre- than they would be making at work.
vided tax relief to middle-class fami- diction was correct because inflation is On average, about 42 percent of people,
lies, doubled the standard deduction, up. If you ask folks back home about with the additional $300, are making
doubled the child tax credit, lowered it, they will say: Yeah, I went to the more on unemployment than they were
the tax rates, and put more money into gas pump, and it was $3.50 a gallon. at work. That creates a little disincen-
people’s pockets. And the 2017 reforms That is what I heard last weekend. tive.
also spurred needed investment in our That is what I experienced myself. There are other disincentives, too,
communities, growing economic oppor- Also, it is the price of food. out there to go back to work. As a re-
tunities, particularly in low-income Certainly, it is the price of materials. sult, there are 9.3 million jobs open in
neighborhoods. If you are trying to build something America. That is the latest figure from
And the reforms on the corporate today and you want to buy some ply- the Department of Labor based on the
side—on the international side and on wood, good luck. The costs have sky- April numbers. We don’t have the May
the corporate side—generally meant rocketed. numbers yet, but 9.3 million is a record
that more companies were investing in This inflation is real and it is hap- number of job openings in America. We
America, creating more jobs and in- pening, and people are feeling it. In a never had this many jobs open.
vestments here rather than overseas. way, that is a hidden tax, isn’t it? If ev- This is a problem because if you
At the time, the Congressional Budg- erything costs more, it is sort of a re- don’t get people back to work and fill-
et Office did an analysis of the lower gressive tax that is built into the sys- ing these jobs, some of these companies
corporate rate, as an example, and said tem. That is what is happening when are going to downsize. Some will leave
that 70 percent of that benefit was we have inflation. We are also seeing our shores for elsewhere, where they
going to go to workers in terms of pressure on interest rates, of course, can find workers. Others, frankly, are
their wages and salaries. That is ex- which is going to make it harder on automating. You could argue that may
actly what we saw. So, again, there people to buy a home, buy a car, to be be a more efficient, economic decision,
were 19 straight months of wage able to get by. but I don’t like to see that. I don’t like
growth of over 3 percent in February This $6 trillion has made a difference to see that. I think the technology and
before COVID hit. in the sense of sending a message out the automation, where appropriate, are
By the way, also in that time pe- from the Democrats that we would like great, but I want to see people get jobs
riod—the year before COVID hit—we to spend much more, but they already where they get the dignity and self-re-
had the lowest poverty rate in the his- did spend quite a bit that has primed spect that comes from working, and
tory of the country. Let me repeat that the pump—$1.4 trillion in a COVID they get the opportunity to have a ful-
because I think it would be a surprise package, as an example. filling life with work.
for a lot of people to hear this who are By the way, that $6 trillion, when So 9.3 million jobs are open. Let’s fill
so critical of the tax reforms in 2017 on you add it up, is about six times more those jobs. Let’s not do this incredibly
the other side of the aisle, saying this than the government spent in response high spending level talked about in
is not going to help ordinary people. Of to the Great Depression. That is ad- this budget. Let’s not raise these taxes
course, it did. justed for inflation. I am talking about at a time when we are finally seeing
We talked about the wage growth, inflation-adjusted terms. It is about six economies start to rebound after
but also the lowest poverty rate in the times more than the government spent COVID–19. Let’s get back on track. We
history of our country. We also saw a in the 1930s in the Great Depression. had a great economy—an opportunity
50-year low in unemployment. We saw It is a very radical budget, really, economy—before COVID–19. That is
record low unemployment among cer- both on the spending side and on the what we want to return to.
tain groups of Americans, including tax side. The philosophy of more and I yield back.
Hispanics, Blacks, and Asian Ameri- more spending at a time of record debt The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen-
cans. and record deficits isn’t going to help ator from Indiana.
We also saw a situation where there our economy recover. I think it is sim- Mr. BRAUN. Madam President, I
were a lot of jobs being created that ply going to drive inflation, as we come here, probably more than any
were higher wage jobs because wages talked about, put pressure on interest other Senator, on this topic of budgets,
were going up, and we had the kind of rates, keep people out of jobs, and put and it ought to be called the ‘‘lack of
opportunity economy that everybody more financial pressure on everyday budgets.’’
in this Chamber should hope for. Americans. Thank goodness that, currently, we
What is this budget saying? This is Instead, what we ought to do is help have the blueprint out there in black
the budget, again, that President Biden people get back to work. COVID–19, and white for what we intend to do—for
has just put out. He has said: Let’s get thank God, is finally passing. In my what the President intends to do, and
rid of all that tax reform and those tax own State of Ohio, we are finally open- he is going to try to sell it to the
cuts. Virtually, every one of the 2017 ing up again because our COVID–19 American public.
dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with SENATE
tax cuts expires under his budget or is rates are so low. The vaccines are We have been on this pathway for
ended now before it would normally ex- working. I encourage people who decades. During the Reagan years, we
pire. Let me repeat that: The budget haven’t been vaccinated to step for- talked about enlivening the economy,
that they put out wants to increase ward and do it because it helps you and bringing taxes down, letting people
taxes, and that includes taxes on ev- your family and also our communities keep more of their own resources. That
erybody, including the middle class. In to be able to recover more quickly—get worked. I think that still makes sense.
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S4010 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE June 9, 2021
It works in most States. It was driving ator, have talked about that—not solv- month after that disappointing jobs re-
the economy with that dynamic pre- ing it through more government but port—he declared victory. He gave a
COVID. reforming healthcare to make it be- speech in Delaware, and he called it
But what we did lose along the way is come a true industry that believes in ‘‘historic progress.’’ Even the President
that—regardless of our revenues, which transparency, competition, and getting of the United States is stretching the
stubbornly average 17 to 18 percent of the healthcare consumer involved. We language of our Nation right here.
our GPD—when you raise rates, people can fix that part of it, but we can’t get Let’s look at the facts.
don’t produce as much. There is not as any interest even in my own party for What is Joe Biden calling ‘‘historic
much income to tax. When you lower much of that because we defend a bro- progress’’?
them, you get more revenue to tax, and ken healthcare industry. We don’t ask Over the last 2 months, about 850,000
you actually are gaining more revenue it to be transparent, competitive, and fewer people were hired than the econo-
for the government, to boot. So we engage the consumer like most other mists had predicted. In the month of
were there pre-COVID. We only need to industries do and do well and that pro- May alone, 160,000 people left the labor
look to see what was working just 11⁄2 vide a good service to the American force. The percentage of Americans in
or 2 years ago. It was the best the econ- consumer. the labor force actually went down.
omy was doing. So government will end up doing Another month, another weak jobs re-
It was raising wages. We always what it always does. It is so easy to port. It is disappointing but not sur-
should be interested in doing that but borrow from others and to spend the prising. We know why it has slowed
not through government—through the money. You are going to have a sugar down. President Biden and the Demo-
productive private economy. It was high. You are going to feel good, but crats have committed to paying mil-
raising it in places that we had never there is going to be indigestion down lions of people more to stay home from
been able to do it before. So rather the road. The way it is going to end up work than to go to work. If you pay
than throw that blueprint out the door is we are going to have calamities people more to not work than to work,
and go with something like this that within our credit markets, and we are that is what you are going to get. That
has never worked in the past, whenever going to have people no longer willing is what they are being encouraged to
you get government becoming that to lend us money. do. In fact, I would say that these peo-
large a part of your economy—and it We have now taken these trillion-dol- ple are not being lazy; they are being
used to be 20 percent. Even though we lar deficits, which are going to be clos- logical with the incentives that the
were only taking in 17 to 18 percent, re- er to $1.5 trillion, and this new budg- Democrats have put in front of them,
gardless of the tax rates in our own et—again, I hate even calling it a budg- which is money in their pockets to
government revenue, we got used to et—is going to add to that, not lessen stay home from work.
running deficits. That is what hap- it. When you talk about raising reve- There are 9.3 million jobs that are
pened decades ago, and we have all got- nues, there is even anxiety on the unfilled right now in the United States,
ten used to it. If you want to see a other side of the aisle because raising a record high. As a result, small busi-
budget that takes the theory that it taxes never goes well. It is generally nesses—and I heard about it this week-
doesn’t make any difference how much tough to get everybody to agree on it, end in Wyoming—are struggling to find
more you spend than you take in, this and that means our deficits are going people to work there. They are having
is it. If you like it, it is the best budget to be even larger. a hard time finding people to take jobs.
we have ever done. Is it going to take our completely de- They have signs up: ‘‘Help Wanted.’’
Again, we shouldn’t be calling it a pleting the Social Security trust fund ‘‘We Need You.’’ ‘‘Offering Incentives.’’
budget because budgets mean that you that we have been paying into since If people are getting paid more to not
live within your means from year to the thirties, and is it going to take de- work than to work, that is what they
year like all other entities do. State pleting the Medicare trust fund, which are going to do.
governments do it and some that don’t now happens in 51⁄2 years, and is the At the same time, prices continue to
generally have issues in their own American public going to allow us here rise. That is what I heard about as I
States’ economies, but we cannot take to keep spending more money than we was sitting, waiting to have my oil
all of these resources from the private take in year after year and end up changed. It was a longer line than
sector, run them through government where the Chinese won’t lend us any usual in Casper, not because we didn’t
with the inefficiency that goes along money down the road? Others won’t as have good workers but because we
with that, and expect to have a good well because our interest is going to be didn’t have enough of them in a place
outcome. about as much as we pay for defense, that changed oil that had two bays set
Senator GRASSLEY was here earlier and then you are going to have a ca- up but was down to one. They have to
and Senator PORTMAN. They gave you a lamity. do that several days a week because
bunch of statistics. I am going to de- You can blame it on everyone here they don’t have the workforce. They
scribe how this shipwreck ends up on who thinks this feels good now. When can’t find the people to change the oil.
the shore over time. It is just a ques- you want to feel good in the future, So it was a good townhall meeting as
tion of how much we buy into this as you make hard decisions in the we sat around there, waiting for our oil
the way we need to run our govern- present. Any well-run organization or to be changed, talking to people about
ment, which has not worked over the any well-run State or local government their concerns. That is what we heard
last two decades—from the Gulf wars makes those tough decisions in the about: trouble finding workers, infla-
and from all of the stuff that we have short run so they don’t have to solve tion.
tried to do through government for things through a calamity in the long Last week, the White House Press
which we used to at least have pay- run. Secretary was asked about high gas
fors. I yield the floor. prices—and I had heard about that in
The biggest drivers of our current The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- Wyoming as we were sitting around,
deficits nobody wants to talk about. ator from Wyoming. waiting to get the oil changed: You
They are Medicare and Social Security. Mr. BARRASSO. Madam President, I know, it costs about $15 or $20 more to
We knew decades ago that the Social come to the floor to talk about our fill a tank than it did a year ago. Peo-
Security trust fund was going to go economy and link that to the budget ple not only pay attention to how
bust and that it is going to happen here that the President has introduced for many dollars and cents it costs for a
in a little over a decade. Will we do our Nation going forward. gallon of gas but how much it costs to
anything to try to change it? That On Friday, the Department of Labor fill the tank and how much less they
dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with SENATE
takes political will. I have been here a published its monthly jobs report. Just have to spend for other things.
little under 21⁄2 years and have not like the April jobs report, the May re- The White House Press Secretary
found a lot of that. port is a cause for concern. There real- said that gas prices aren’t very high if
The bigger driver of our structural ly wasn’t any cause for celebration. you account for inflation.
deficits would be a broken healthcare Yet President Biden did exactly the If you account for inflation? It is in-
system. I, more than any other Sen- same thing that he did in the previous flation. Gas prices are high because it
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June 9, 2021 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S4011
is what happens when prices go up. course, it is going to cause inflation be- cause today is the 249th anniversary of
That is inflation. cause more money will be out there to the Gaspee raid. I can only imagine
This should be a news flash for Amer- chase the goods and services that are what I am going to do next year when
ica. Inflation is the problem. The White available. it is the 250th anniversary of the
House Press Secretary didn’t seem to President Biden also wants to bring Gaspee raid. I may bring pyrotechnics
see the connection. It is caused by this back the death tax. This would be dev- onto the Senate floor, in violation of
administration. Gas prices have gone astating for farmers and ranchers who every rule.
up about 70 cents a gallon in the last 4 want to keep their farms in their fami- The Gaspee raid is what Rhode Island
months—since Joe Biden took the oath lies. I heard about it this past weekend abolitionist and writer Frances Whip-
of office. It is no surprise when the in Sheridan, WY, with the Wyoming ple McDougall called the ‘‘first blood’’
President, on the day he takes the oath Stock Growers Association. As for the drawn in America’s struggle for inde-
of office, paints a target on the back of families who have had the ranches or pendence, and I come every year to
American energy and pulls the trigger, the farms in their families for over 100 mark this important but overlooked
which makes us more dependent on for- years, we call them centennial families event in American history.
eign sources of energy. in Wyoming, and we celebrate them Our typical history textbook tells us
As the senior Senator from Alaska every year. They have all said, if this that the Boston Tea Party sparked the
said in an Energy Committee hearing, happens—if the Biden administration American Revolution in December of
we are, at this time in the United does this with what it wants to do with 1773. Remember that date: 1773, Decem-
States, using more energy from Russia the death tax—when Grandma or ber. Massachusetts folks in Boston pro-
than we are from her home State of Grandpa passes, every one of them is tested English taxation by pushing tea
Alaska. That is a comment on the poli- going to have to sell the farm just to into Boston Harbor. It was a memo-
cies of this administration. pay the taxes. They have been able to rable protest. We ought to remember
Summer is almost here, and the pan- keep them within the families for 100 it. But we Rhode Islanders contend
demic is almost over. What is going to years. Joe Biden is going to take the ax that a different spark 16 months earlier
happen with regard to the demand for to them. out on Narragansett Bay ignited the
gasoline? It is going to continue to go Get this. He wants to hire 87,000 more Revolution. The date was June 9, 1772,
up. bureaucrats at the Internal Revenue and the central players in this saga
There is a moratorium on the explo- Service. The Internal Revenue Service were two ships, one a little sloop, the
ration of oil and gas in the United is the least accountable and most pow- Hannah, embarking from Newport for
States, and we are making ourselves erful Agency in the Federal Govern- Providence, and the other a British
more dependent on foreign sources. ment. The Biden goal is to collect $700 customs schooner, the HMS Gaspee;
What is the President doing? Imposing billion more from taxpayers. What does hence the Gaspee raid. The Gaspee was
more taxes on American energy. Last he want to do with the money? Use it under the command of Lieutenant Wil-
week, he put more restrictions on the for additional socialist spending. We liam Dudingston of His Majesty’s
production of energy from Alaska. Now have seen the list. Under the Biden Royal Navy, patrolling Narragansett
what does he want to do? Well, we have agenda, working families are going to Bay.
seen it in the Finance Committee right be paying more at the pump, more at The meeting of the Hannah and the
here. He wants to impose the increase the grocery store, and they are going Gaspee and the act of defiance that fol-
of taxes on oil and gas producers. That to end up paying more as well through lowed would be explosive.
is going to hurt the people who work in taxes. They are seeing it now. Our jobs Before I describe the encounter of the
that industry, and it is going to make reports, our inflation reports, our gas Hannah and the Gaspee, it is important
all of us pay more at the tank. This is prices have all been disappointing to to set the stage.
basic economics. If you restrict the all Americans. England’s King George had over-
production of American oil and gas and This is a direct result of the policies extended his empire during the Seven
if you raise the taxes on oil and gas, that are coming out of this administra- Years War, especially in the war’s
the prices people have to pay at the tion and out of this White House. It is American theater known as the French
pump—the prices they pay to fill up time for the President to stop the at- and Indian War. The conflict was ex-
their vehicles—are going to go up. tacks on American energy, to stop pay- pensive to win, and by its end, Britain
President Biden keeps declaring vic- ing people more to not work than to had taken on vast new territory and
tory and keeps doubling down on poli- work, and to stop this irresponsible the cost of governing that territory,
cies that are slowing down the econ- spending spree as outlined in the budg- and the British national debt soon dou-
omy. Two weeks ago, he introduced his et. bled.
budget request for next year. To me, it We know what works. Let’s return to Meanwhile, over the course of the
is a blueprint for bankruptcy. He is the policies that work, to the policies 18th century, Rhode Island had become
proposing $6 trillion in Federal spend- that have been giving us the best econ- a prosperous, major distiller and dis-
ing for next year. During the pandemic, omy in a half a century. Just 16 tributor of rum and trader of goods.
the country hit about $4 trillion in an- months ago, we had low taxes, reason- Now, the rum trade was a corrupt and
nual Federal spending for the first time able regulations, and more American immoral enterprise, a leg of which
ever. This was during a national emer- energy. The economy was booming profited off the labor of enslaved Afri-
gency, and we passed it in a bipartisan until the coronavirus hit. We need to cans, but it was profitable, and the
way with over 90 votes in the Senate. get back to that again. British were thirsty for customs du-
In five different coronavirus relief I yield the floor. ties. So the Crown tried to crack down
bills, we were able to deal with what The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Sen- on Rhode Island’s trade, including its
needed to be done for our Nation at the ator from Florida. rum-running, to collect more customs
time. The pandemic is behind us, and (The remarks of Mr. SCOTT of Flor- revenue to pay down the King’s debts.
the President now wants to spend $2 ida pertaining to the introduction of S. King George’s zeal for tax collecting
trillion more than that every year even 1990 are printed in today’s RECORD in Narragansett Bay got a little out of
after the pandemic is over. This is only under ‘‘Statements on Introduced Bills hand. British officers started seizing
the beginning. and Joint Resolutions.’’) cargo without evidence, leaving the
The Biden budget doesn’t even in- Mr. SCOTT of Florida. I yield the cargo’s owners with no recourse. They
clude some of the most expensive cam- floor. commandeered Rhode Islanders’ ships
paign promises he made when he was The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. on flimsy grounds and then used those
dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with SENATE
running for President. According to BALDWIN). The junior Senator from commandeered ships to collect more
one estimate, the Biden budget is miss- Rhode Island. customs duties. British authorities
ing about $1.5 trillion that he had 249TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ‘‘GASPEE’’ RAID even pressed Colonial sailors into serv-
promised to spend. It is not even in- Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Madam Presi- ice, essentially kidnapping them and
cluded in the budget. What happens dent, I am here for one of my favorite forcing them to work on the ships of
with all of this additional spending? Of days of the year on the Senate floor be- the Crown.
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S4012 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE June 9, 2021
In one incident in July 1764, the cus- Several boatloads of Rhode Islanders, and grandfather, it was one of the
toms ship HMS St. John seized cargo led by John Brown—later to have hardest things I have ever had to do. It
and a brig in Newport Harbor. Rhode Brown University named for him—and was heartbreaking.
Islanders deemed this outright theft. Abraham Whipple—an ancestor, I be- But in this horribly dark time, the
The Governor, Stephen Hopkins, later lieve, of Ms. Whipple McDougall—dis- selfless courage of so many, from com-
a signer of the Declaration of Independ- guised themselves and boarded munity members to law enforcement,
ence, ordered the arming of a sloop to longboats in the night and rowed the 6 to healthcare workers, provided a sense
go out and take on the St. John in open miles from Providence down the bay to of hope. This incredible strength, love,
battle on the bay. the Gaspee. There, they surrounded the and bravery lifted up Orlando and the
The British got wind of it, and they boat, and Brown called on Lieutenant State of Florida and helped us begin to
reinforced the St. John with the power- Dudingston to surrender his ship. rebuild.
fully armed, if meekly named, HMS The lieutenant refused and ordered This week, on the fifth anniversary
Squirrel. So the Rhode Islanders his men to fire on anyone who tried to of this unthinkable tragedy, the State
scrapped their plans for a naval battle board and warned the Rhode Islanders of Florida comes together to honor the
and settled for firing on the St. John of that threat. Well, the Rhode Island- lives lost too soon. And we vow to al-
from fortifications on Goat Island with ers were having none of that. They ways stand up and fight against evil
13-pounder canons. stormed the Gaspee in the dark, and a and hatred in this world.
When the HMS Maidstone impressed melee ensued. Shots were fired. Swords Now I yield the floor to my colleague
into servitude an entire crew of colo- clashed. In the struggle, Dudingston from Florida, Senator RUBIO.
nists, Rhode Islanders carried one of was shot and wounded by a musket Mr. RUBIO. Most Americans remem-
Maidstone’s boats that they were able ball—the first blood there of conflict ber that horrifying day 5 years ago. I
to seize from Newport Harbor to the between the Colonies and the Crown; certainly do. I remember it was a
city commons and burned it, with hun- the first blood, one could say, of the morning, and I started getting text
dreds of onlookers cheering. American Revolution drawn right messages that something horrifying
The Royal Navy impounded promi- there off Pawtuxet Cove. had happened in our home State. As we
nent merchant John Hancock’s sloop, The struggle ended with the Rhode turned on the news, we could see that
the Liberty, in 1768. Even after the Islanders in control of the vessel. it already had been the deadliest at-
charges of illegal wine importation Brown and Whipple’s men ferried the tack on American soil since September
that had justified the seizure sup- British crew safely to shore, sought 11 of 2001.
posedly were dropped, the British Navy medical treatment for Lieutenant And the full horror of that day, of
kept his ship and used it for themselves Dudingston, and then returned to the that night, came into focus, as I re-
for more customs enforcement. The abandoned Gaspee to make sure it member jumping in my truck and driv-
next year, colonists in Newport re- never carried a Rhode Islander again. ing 3 hours to be on the scene. And it
claimed the Liberty by force. To get rid of it for good, they set it on would be a few more days, or a few
These simmering maritime hos- fire and retreated from the boat to more hours, before we learned that it
tilities set the backdrop for the fateful watch it burn and burn until the fire was an attack that was inspired by an
meeting of the Hannah and the Gaspee reached the powder magazines and, ideology of hatred by an individual in-
in 1772. when the fire reached the powder mag- spired by—who had pledged allegiance
As the Hannah sailed north up the azines, explode into the Narragansett to a foreign terrorist organization, and
bay on June 9, the Gaspee intercepted Bay night, blowing the remainder of in that context appeared there on that
her and ordered the crew to stop for a the Gaspee to smithereens and leaving evening. It was an evening of tragedy.
search. The Hannah’s captain, Ben- it all to burn to the waterline. It was, as Senator SCOTT mentioned,
jamin Lindsey, was having none of it, Today, we Rhode Islanders call the Latin night at the Pulse nightclub.
and he did not comply. He held his site of these events Gaspee Point. This was a well-known nightclub in the
course and continued sailing north to- Every year in early June, we celebrate LGBTQ community in Central Florida.
ward Providence. the spirit of Rhode Island defiance that And one would think no one should
Warning shots were fired from the blossomed that day in Narragansett ever be—the last thing someone is wor-
Gaspee. Despite them, Lindsey contin- Bay 249 years ago. We will walk a pa- ried about when they go out for a night
ued on. His smaller and more maneu- rade in honor of Gaspee Day this week- with their friends is that they are
verable vessel led the bigger Gaspee up end, and we will always remember the going to be attacked by a radical
north toward Namquid Point. Well, the Gaspee raid, how it preceded by over a jihadist terrorist in the United States.
waters off Namquid Point shoal, and year the Boston Tea Party, and how, We had seen similar attacks in Lon-
there are shallows off Namquid Point. while those noble Bostonians pushed don and France. And the realization
Lindsey, as an experienced navigator tea bags off of British ships into Bos- that that could happen in Florida, just
and sailor in Narragansett Bay, knew ton Harbor, we blew the boat up. down the street from a small business
this, and he sailed his Hannah over the I yield the floor. furniture store whose owners I had got-
shallows and kept on up to Providence. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The jun- ten to know shook everyone, shook me.
Behind them, the angry Gaspee came ior Senator from Florida. Like most terrorist attacks, it
surging in chase and ground into the ANNIVERSARY OF THE PULSE NIGHTCLUB sought not only to bring death but di-
sand and stuck. SHOOTING vision and fear, to terrorize; and, clear-
Aground off Pawtuxet Cove, the Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Madam Presi- ly, there is a tremendous amount of
Gaspee would need to wait for the next dent, nearly 5 years ago, our State, Na- pain that 5 years later is still there.
high tide before it could float free. tion, the city of Orlando, and Hispanic But from it, what also occurred was
Night closed in on the Gaspee. There and LGBTQ communities were at- that it brought Floridians together,
was no Moon. Lieutenant Dudingston tacked, and 49 innocent and beautiful particularly those in Central Florida—
and his crew were left to wait in dark- lives were lost. It was an evil act—an first, hand in hand to grieve and then
ness and exposed. act of terrorism—designed to divide us to preserve the memory of those whose
Captain Lindsey sailed the Hannah as a nation and strike fear in our lives were lost. The outpouring of love
on up to Providence, and up in Provi- hearts and minds but instead we came and support came not only from Flor-
dence, he immediately arranged a together; we supported each other; and ida but from Americans from all across
meeting of local patriots in a tavern we persevered. We proved to the world the United States who shared in our
called Sabin’s Tavern, which still ex- what we in Florida already knew: Flo- grief and drew inspiration from the
dlhill on DSK120RN23PROD with SENATE
ists under another name today, in what ridians are resilient. State’s resilience.
is now the East Side of Providence, The days I spent in Orlando following Five years later, the process of
just below Brown University. Together, the shooting will always be with me. I mourning continues. The process of re-
and no doubt after refreshments, the talked to many parents who lost their membrance continues, but so, too, is
group decided to end the career of the children. I went to funerals and wakes. Orlando as united as it was 5 years ago.
Gaspee once and for all. And I sat in hospital rooms. As a father It is a reminder to us that even with
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