[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 49 (Tuesday, March 16, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1547-S1548]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                 Budget

  Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I come to the floor to talk about 
President Biden's runaway spending proposals.
  Of course, as a conservative Republican, when I look at this thing, I 
have to say: Wait a second. This is not something that I can support in 
any way.
  We have a 50-50 Senate here in the United States. The Democrats have 
won a narrow margin in the House, but the Democrats in Washington are 
acting like they have won in a landslide and have a national mandate. 
They do not. If there is any mandate when you have a 50-50 Senate and 
when you have such a narrow range in the numbers between the 
Republicans and the Democrats in the House, you would say it is a 
mandate to move to the middle. That is what the American people voted 
for. They said: Let's get to the middle. Let's find solutions to move 
our country forward.
  It does seem, to me, what the Democrats are doing is an unprecedented 
overreach. The Democrats have only had control in Washington for about 
a month and a half, and it has already cost the American people $1.9 
trillion. It is an astonishingly large figure. It was supposed to be 
for coronavirus relief, but 1 percent of the money went for vaccines, 
and only 9 percent went to actually fighting the coronavirus. Yet, 
before they passed the bill, that is what the Democrats said it was 
for. It does seem to be the oldest page in the Democratic playbook.
  We all remember the old ObamaCare bill and debate and discussion. 
They said it was a tax. When they needed votes in Congress, they said 
it wasn't a tax. Then they realized they were going to lose in court, 
and they said it was a tax all over again. Well, we have seen the same 
playbook here. They said we needed more coronavirus relief, and then 
they passed this liberal wish list. Once they had the votes, they 
admitted the bill was not about coronavirus medical relief, healthcare 
relief or vaccines or fighting the disease. No--a liberal wish list.
  Now, don't just take my word for it. The Democratic majority leader, 
standing right there, called it a ``turning point'' that transforms the 
United States. The White House Press Secretary called it the ``most 
progressive bill in American history.'' One Democratic leader in the 
House called it an ``ideological revolution.'' I guess they forgot it 
was supposed to be about the coronavirus. It doesn't sound like 
coronavirus healthcare relief to me.
  After the bill passed, Speaker Pelosi admitted this was the same bill 
that she put forward last summer. Back then, the New York Times looked 
at it and called it ``more a messaging document than a viable piece of 
legislation.'' POLITICO called it a ``Democratic wish list filled up 
with all the party's favorite policies.''
  This was never a coronavirus relief bill. They used the coronavirus 
to cover the payoff to all of the most powerful people in the 
Democratic Party: $85 billion to union pension plans, irresponsibly 
run; $26 billion for California Gavin Newsom; $12.5 billion for New 
York and Governor Andrew Cuomo; a big payoff for teachers unions and 
potentially millions for Planned Parenthood.
  President Biden signed the bill, and then he gave a speech a few 
hours later. In effect, he admitted the bill doesn't get us 1 day 
closer to reopening our country. This is what this was supposed to be 
about--getting kids back to school, getting people back to work, and 
getting the virus behind us. President Biden said ``there is a good 
chance'' that small groups of people can get together outside in July. 
Well, he said, ``that doesn't mean large events.''
  The Democrats spent $1.9 trillion, and, once again, they moved the 
goalposts. Congress has already paid for enough vaccines for every 
American to get vaccinated by the end of May. The Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention says that getting vaccinated means getting your 
life back. This is what they told us. It means you can have indoor 
gatherings without masks. America needs to be fully open before the 
Fourth of July.
  The Democrats haven't even finished their victory lap over the 
spending bill, and they are already telling us they want more. Here are 
just a few examples of what they propose to do, not with their money 
but with the American people's money--the taxpayers' money, the hard-
earned dollars of the people who go to work every day and send their 
tax dollars to Washington.
  In their $1.9 trillion wish list, the Democrats tried to double the 
minimum wage by Federal mandate. They failed, but they are going to 
keep trying.
  Now, of course, the Office of Management and Budget, which took a 
look at this thing, said: Well, if they had succeeded, it would have 
forced 1.4 million Americans who have jobs right now to be out of their 
jobs because, when you mandate a doubling of the minimum wage, small 
businesses are either going to have to close or lay off certain people 
so they can pay the wages to others in an effort to keep the doors 
open. It means less tax revenue overall for the country, and it means 
more spending for unemployment insurance. If you add it up, it would 
increase the national debt by about an additional $54 billion.

  In their $1.9 trillion wish list, the Democrats also wrote a big 
check to the teachers unions.
  Now, they actually didn't need the money because, in the five 
bipartisan coronavirus bills that we have passed in overwhelming 
majorities, we sent schools $113 billion. The schools haven't even 
spent most of that money yet. In fact, they have only spent about $16 
billion of the $113 billion. There is almost $100 billion yet to spend. 
On top of that, the Democrats have just put up another $170 billion in 
their wish list. If you add it up, that is nearly $270 billion to spend 
with no promise--none--to reopen the schools.
  The Democratic leader wants to forgive $1 trillion in student loans. 
Subsidizing student loans just lets colleges raise prices. That is 
exactly what would happen if Leader Schumer's plan were to become law. 
Colleges don't need to raise prices. They need to lower the cost of 
education.
  Senator Sanders has an even more radical proposal. He wants to 
forgive

[[Page S1548]]

all Federal student loans, and that would cost $1.6 trillion. Forgive 
them all. Just forgive all of the loans. It doesn't matter. Rich or 
poor, forgive all of the loans. Well, that would drive up the price of 
tuition even higher. If it allows colleges to get the money directly 
from the Federal Government without having to go through the students, 
the costs will escalate dramatically.
  Let me remind my Democratic colleagues that most Americans don't have 
college degrees. Yet, under the Democratic plan, all taxpayers--all 
taxpayers--would have to pay for the college tuitions for all of the 
students, including those who have families who can clearly afford to 
pay the tuitions to the colleges which they attend. It doesn't matter. 
If you go to the most exclusive college or if you go to your State 
college, if you have a debt, we are going to get rid of it, says the 
Democratic proposal, and the hard-working taxpayers of America are 
going to be stuck with the bill. Count me out on that one.
  The Democrats want to take tax dollars from people who don't have 
college degrees or who never went to college and give it to the 
leftwing professors at so many universities, and this is wrong.
  President Biden also wants to double down on ObamaCare. He thinks 
ObamaCare didn't go far enough. According to one estimate, President 
Biden's healthcare plan would cost about an additional $2.25 trillion. 
These are astronomically large figures. His housing plan would cost 
$640 billion. The Democrats have proposed another $2 trillion in 
infrastructure spending. One Democratic Senator even called for 
doubling that amount--$4 trillion in new infrastructure spending.
  This is just the tip of the iceberg. I could go on and on. If you add 
up all of the new spending proposals by the Democrats and the White 
House and the Senate, it could cost nearly $12 trillion. By the end of 
this year, the national debt is going to be bigger than our economy, 
and we have the biggest economy in the world. Even before the Democrats 
passed their wish list, we were on track this year to have the second 
biggest deficit since World War II.
  When the Democrats increase spending, we know what is next--massive 
tax increases on the American public. We heard it yesterday in the 
news. It was in the headlines. That is President Biden's plan--the 
first major tax increase in 28 years. He is proposing the biggest tax 
increase since 1993. He wants to raise taxes on businesses and on 
families, and he even wants to resurrect the death tax. Let me remind 
President Biden what happened after 1993. A year later, the Republicans 
took back the House and took back the Senate.
  The 2020 elections were close. The American people didn't vote for 
this radical agenda, and it is a radical agenda. They didn't vote for 
$12 trillion in new spending and new taxes with increased tax rates and 
increased taxes on long-term investments like your home and increased 
taxes like the death tax--oh--and more money for the IRS so it can send 
agents to investigate the American public even further.
  I would urge the Biden administration and my Democratic colleagues to 
listen to the people and to the people from whom I hear every weekend 
in Wyoming. It is time to put down the credit card. It is time to stop 
the spending spree. It is time to move to the middle to solve 
problems--that would be best for our Nation if we would address them--
for the people of this great Nation.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered