[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 163 (Tuesday, September 21, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6560-S6561]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                       Business Before the Senate

  On another note, Mr. President, in the coming days, this Senate has a 
historic decision to make and very little time to make it. We have to 
set aside politics, which the American people are begging us over and 
over to do, and we have to ensure that our government can continue to 
function in the midst of this public health crisis and a recovering 
economy. Now, in any reasonable scenario, these would be 
noncontroversial and nonpartisan endeavors, but sadly, at this moment 
in the U.S. Senate, reason is in short supply.
  In recent days, some of our colleagues on the other side of the aisle 
have indicated that they are prepared to--listen to this--sabotage the 
routine process of government for political reasons. This could have a 
catastrophic impact on this Nation.
  Last week, Senator McConnell reiterated that Republicans will not 
join Democrats in voting to deal with the debt limit. What exactly does 
it mean? Well, imagine if you and I just up and decided to stop paying 
your credit card bills. If Congress fails to raise or suspend the debt 
limit before the Treasury runs out of cash, our Nation runs the risk of 
default for the first time in history. That is why lawmakers have to 
set aside politics, as we have done nearly 80 times in our history, to 
keep the government's bills being paid. Truthfully, this shouldn't even 
be a debate.
  Raising or suspending the debt limit has nothing to do with any new 
programs or new spending. It is about paying off the tab that the 
government has already incurred. We are receiving the bill at the 
restaurant after we have had the big meal; the question is whether we 
will pay it.
  Here is the kicker: Much of the debt that the Republicans are 
threatening not to pay was approved by Senate Republicans when Donald 
Trump was in the White House. In other words, we are being asked to 
approve the Trump debt from his years in the Presidency, which largely 
had the support of the Republicans, and the Republicans are telling us: 
``Hands off. We won't accept responsibility for the things we voted for 
during the Trump years.''
  The last time Congress suspended the debt limit was in August 2019, a 
little over halfway through President Trump's term. Between then and 
the beginning of President Biden's term, congressional Republicans 
approved $6 trillion in new debt. In fact, during Trump's one term in 
office, the national debt ballooned by 36 percent. Fiscal 
conservatives? During the Trump administration, the national debt 
ballooned by 36 percent. Well, that surely has happened before in 
history? No, I am sorry, it has not. That is the fastest it has grown 
under any President in American history. The Trump years were the 
biggest debt years in the history of the United States, and now the 
Republicans don't recognize it. They want to walk away from it.
  You may be wondering: For what noble or productive purpose did the 
Republicans go so deep in debt during the Trump years? Well, a big 
chunk of it was Donald Trump's tax giveaway to the richest Americans--
$2 trillion--$2 trillion in tax cuts for people at the superwealthy 
level in America. And now it is time to say to the Republicans: You 
voted for those tax cuts. The wealthiest people in America applauded 
you. Now would you at least step up and admit it?
  Nope. Now that it is time for Republicans to pay for the meal that 
they ate, the political banquet, they are vowing instead to dine and 
dash. They are taking a page straight from the playbook of Donald 
Trump, the man who called himself proudly ``the king of debt,'' a man 
who didn't pay his own bills as a businessman and who incurred the 
largest increase in the national debt of any President in history. And 
in the process, the Republicans--to take this incredible and 
inexplicable stand--are willing to risk the full faith and credit of 
the United States.
  When it comes to America's debt, default is simply not an option for 
any rational person. There is not a single American who will emerge 
unscathed if the Republicans execute this political strategy. 
Defaulting on our debt

[[Page S6561]]

threatens Social Security payments for tens of millions of Americans, 
it threatens healthcare coverage for tens of millions more, and it 
could slash benefits for our Nation's veterans. Who could be proud of 
that vote?
  On a national global scale, default would be, in the words of Mark 
Zandi, Moody's chief economist, ``financial Armageddon.'' It would send 
markets into free fall and threaten America's status as the world's 
reserve currency. Imagine that. You say to the seniors: Well, maybe/
maybe not on your Social Security payments. And, incidentally, the 
stocks and the ETFs and the mutual funds and the investments you had 
for your retirement--hang on tight; they are about to take a huge hit, 
a hit that is totally avoidable.
  Back in 2011, when House Republicans initially refused to raise the 
debt limit, America's credit rating was downgraded. So what? Interest 
rates went up, so we are paying more money in interest instead of 
paying it for things America values--healthcare, education, 
infrastructure.
  Some economists believe that episode hurt consumer confidence and 
hobbled our economy in the great recession. It also stuck taxpayers 
with billions of dollars in increased borrowing costs. Think about how 
fragile America's economy is at this very moment. We are still 
recovering from a once-in-a-century public health crisis and the worst 
economic crisis in 75 years. The last thing we need is a self-inflicted 
crisis that is motivated by partisanship.
  Mr. President, right now, our economy has to be our highest priority. 
We need to come together and get the government funded. We also have an 
obligation to provide financial relief to Americans who have been hit 
by the environmental disasters. My State escaped that, but tomorrow 
that may not be the case. You never know with these extreme weather 
events. Hurricane Ida was an eye-opener for many parts of this country. 
People are suffering. Disaster aid for these people is essential.
  We need to also help resettle the refugees from Afghanistan. They 
risked their lives for Americans; we should make a home for them here 
in the United States.
  We also want to make sure that we support our military in every way 
possible.
  Instead of bickering and political brinksmanship, Congress needs to 
rise to this moment of crisis. The American people sent us to 
Washington not to manufacture crises but to prevent them. That is 
exactly why Senate Democrats are moving ahead to put President Biden's 
Build Back Better plan in place. Pay our debts, invest in a prosperous 
future--that is our plan. We would love to have Republican support for 
it. We have a once-in-a-century opportunity to consider working 
families, middle-income families, struggling families, not the wealthy.
  The Build Back Better plan will grow our economy for generations to 
come. If fully enacted, it will create a future for every parent to 
take off work to care for a newborn child. Every high school grad can 
receive a college education and set their sights on a good-paying job. 
And every senior citizen can afford prescription drugs they need 
without dipping into their saving. These investments will make America 
healthier, happier, stronger, and more prosperous.
  And unlike President Trump's giveaway to the rich, President Biden's 
Build Back Better plan is a prudent investment in our Nation's 
financial future. We are going to pay for it; that is the Senate 
Democrats' intent. It will not be added to the deficit.
  I look forward to discussing that plan in detail in the weeks to 
come.