[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 169 (Tuesday, September 28, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S6713]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                 Budget

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I am glad that the Democratic leader came 
to the floor after the Republican leader. He certainly clarified some 
of the statements that were made by Senator McConnell and brought a 
dose of reality into the picture. I listened carefully to Senator 
McConnell's speech, and I was waiting for one word. I knew he would say 
it at some point, and yet I don't think he did. I might have missed it, 
but I don't think he ever used the word ``filibuster''--``filibuster,'' 
the requirement of 60 votes to proceed with the business of the Senate.
  The reason why that is essential is the Democrats are prepared to 
accept the responsibility of funding the government and dealing with 
our national debt, acknowledging our debt ceiling. And if the 
Republicans don't care to be part of that conversation--or to engage in 
it, that is their wish--that is what they can have. But Senator 
McConnell has put in a filibuster, a requirement of 60 votes, which 
makes it literally impossible for the Democrats on their own to accept 
their responsibility. He didn't mention that the entire time.
  I think we have reached a new low point in the U.S. Senate, where the 
Republican leader and his followers, to a person, are prepared to 
jeopardize the economy of the United States for purely political 
reasons. We know that this filibuster means we need Republican votes to 
move this measure. And he has made it quite clear that he won't give 
those votes, at least as of yesterday. I can only hope that Republican 
Senators going home, maybe this weekend, hearing from their 
constituents and businesses, will have second thoughts about this and 
accept that bipartisan responsibility that we all face.
  There is a second you had to listen very carefully to catch with 
Senator McConnell's opening statement. He went on to say at great 
length that the last time we passed a debt ceiling extension was in 
August. And, he said, incidentally, all the spending leading up to 
August was covered by that debt ceiling. Well, that may have been true. 
What did he fail to tell us? There was another bill that he voted for, 
Trump supported, the Republicans supported, and the Democrats voted 
for, too, in December for $900 billion in spending. That wasn't covered 
by the earlier August debt ceiling. He knows that. So to say all the 
debt of the Trump administration has been taken care of just isn't the 
fact. And I am glad we have a chance to clarify that.
  He seems to think that we are going to ``hurt families and help 
China'' if we press forward with the reconciliation bill. Does it hurt 
families to find an affordable way to have quality daycare for their 
kids? I don't think so. Does it hurt families when children get a 
chance for pre-K education so they are ready for school when the day 
comes? Does it hurt families when we extend education from K-12 to K-14 
and say to our community colleges, We are going to give you a mission: 
Prepare the workforce for the 21st century? Give these Americans the 
skills they need for a good paycheck and a home and a family and a 
future.
  According to the Senator from Kentucky, that hurts American families. 
I think he is just flatout wrong. It helps them in critical ways. It 
really addresses expenses and challenges they face and need a helping 
hand to succeed.
  And in terms of helping China, a competitive American workforce, 
investment in research and innovation does not help China. If we invest 
in this country, in its people and its ideas, we have always succeeded 
and led the world.
  So I disagree with the Senator from Kentucky completely. His 
approach--tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans, corporations that, 
frankly, can escape any tax liability--hasn't worked. And it won't 
work. It is fundamentally unfair, and it fails to invest in the people 
that need it the most: working families, middle-income families, 
children and their future.
  (Mr. PADILLA assumed the Chair.)