[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 125 (Wednesday, July 24, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5032-S5033]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                            Budget Agreement

  Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, earlier this week, the administration and 
House Democrats reached a bipartisan budget deal to deliver on the 
President's priorities and prevent a funding crisis this fall.
  As our Armed Forces continue their global engagements, this agreement 
importantly secures the funding necessary to maintain readiness and 
modernize the force. It provides increased defense spending to recover 
from the depressed military readiness rates of the previous 
administration. It provides our men and women in uniform with the 
resources, equipment, and training they need in order to defend our 
freedoms.
  I know Congress deals with a lot of different topics, and all of 
them, by and large, are important, but there is nothing more important, 
nor is there anything more quintessentially a Federal Government 
responsibility than national security.
  All other considerations aside, if this bipartisan budget deal did 
nothing more than fully fund our national security efforts, I would 
support it, but importantly, it also keeps other important elements of 
the congressional consensus intact--things like the Hyde amendment, 
which, as the Presiding Officer knows, since the late 1970s has ensured 
that no taxpayer dollars can be used to fund abortions. In addition, 
this agreement prevents our Democratic colleagues from trying to block 
President Trump from using funds to strengthen border security.
  The administration--Secretary Mnuchin--negotiated a tough deal and 
one that excludes any radical, leftwing poison pills--a difficult task 
in these times, to be sure.
  We know they wanted to use policy riders--nearly 30 of them and 
counting--to try to implement elements of the Green New Deal to undo 
the President's regulatory reforms or to rewrite our immigration laws 
through the back door. Earlier this year, their far-left policy riders 
led to the longest government shutdown in history and almost prevented 
the enactment of bipartisan border supplemental funding. I saw the 
devastating impact that shutdown had on dedicated public servants 
across the country, especially in Texas. This agreement will prevent 
another senseless shutdown and ensure that the trains of government run 
on time.
  To be sure, no bipartisan agreement is ever perfect. That is the 
definition of a negotiation--both sides give a little. It is the nature 
of compromise, which

[[Page S5033]]

is a necessary part of effective governing. There is no doubt that 
there are other priorities I would have liked to have seen included in 
the deal. I wish we had done something to reform our entitlement 
programs, which will continue to outpace inflation and increase our 
national deficit. Someday, we are going to have to deal with our 
deficits and debt; I just hope it is not during the time of a national 
emergency. But as a practical matter, Speaker Pelosi wasn't going to 
agree with such far-reaching reforms in the context of this spending 
deal and debt limit provision. Thankfully, the President was able to 
secure half of the spending cuts he asked for--roughly equal to next 
year's increase in nondefense spending.
  Above all, this deal carries out the most critical responsibilities 
of the Federal Government, which is to support our national defense and 
fully fund the government's operation.
  Again, I appreciate the President's efforts here and particularly 
those in his administration who helped negotiate this bipartisan deal--
particularly Secretary Mnuchin. I look forward to supporting it.