[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 13 (Thursday, January 20, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S367-S368]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                          Biden Administration

  Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I come to the floor today to oppose the 
Democrats' radical agenda.
  For weeks now, America has been breaking records with cases of 
coronavirus. The scavenger hunt for tests has resulted in long lines 
and empty shelves. We have just had the worst jobs report of the year--
last year--with inflation at a 40-year high. Crime is out of control in 
big cities run by Democrats. The southern border is being overrun by 
hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants every single month. Our 
foreign policy is in shambles; our friends are endangered; and Vladimir 
Putin, China, North Korea, and Iran are emboldened.
  The American people are deeply worried about all of these issues. Yet 
Democrats in Washington are offering no solutions on these pressing 
problems. Democrats created many of these crises in the first place, 
often through incompetence, mismanagement, and weakness. Now, under 
President Biden, they are making them worse.
  Democrats just spent 5 months trying to pass the most expensive 
spending bill in American history. It was a bill nobody asked for 
except for the radical base of professional activists. The bill would 
have led to the largest tax increase in 50 years, trillions of dollars 
in new spending and new debt, and even higher inflation.
  Democrats tried to pass this on the narrowest of margins. Democrats 
failed. As soon as the bill was pronounced dead, Democrats scrambled to 
change the subject. Democrats know they can't solve the inflation 
crisis, the supply chain crisis, the coronavirus crisis, or any of the 
other disasters created by the Biden administration. By ignoring these 
problems, they are practically admitting that, as Democrats, they have 
no solutions.
  So what are they doing instead?
  Well, they have tried to manufacture another crisis. They have 
invented a phony moral panic about election laws. Joe Biden and Kamala 
Harris have repeatedly lied about our elections. They got Major League 
Baseball to move the All-Star Game to a Democrat State. They got 
Hollywood stars and journalists and wealthy corporations to parrot 
their talking points. Now they have former Presidents Obama and Clinton 
getting involved. It has been a shameful effort to frighten the 
American people and further divide our Nation.
  When Joe Biden was a Presidential candidate, he said he would ``heal 
the country.'' He said he would ``restore the soul of the nation.'' 
Just 1 year into his Presidency, we have found out that that was all 
for show. Joe Biden has been one of the most divisive and partisan 
Presidents in American history, and, today, he is on track to be the 
least popular President in modern times.
  I understand why Democrats are desperate to change the subject. Yet 
Democrats are failing on the election issue as well. If Democrats think 
they can win on the idea of a Federal election takeover, they are 
wrong. Joe Biden is so unpopular in Georgia he couldn't even get Stacey 
Abrams to show up to his rally in Atlanta. She is running for Governor. 
She is a political celebrity. Election law is her main issue. Yet she 
wouldn't be seen in public with Joe Biden, and, frankly, I don't blame 
her.

  Two days later, Joe Biden came to Capitol Hill to convince Democrats 
to change the rules of the Senate. He failed again. Brave Democratic 
Senators did the honorable and courageous thing. They kept their word. 
They said they would not destroy this institution for short-term 
partisan gain. They deserve the respect of every Member of this body. 
Joe Biden tried to push them around, and he failed.
  The latest Quinnipiac poll has Joe Biden with a 33-percent approval 
rating just 1 year into his term in office. He has lower economic 
approval ratings than Jimmy Carter. Yet Senator Schumer asked Democrat 
Senators to follow Joe Biden over the cliff.
  Yesterday, in his almost 2-hour press conference, President Biden 
talked about taking his message on the road and campaigning with 
Democrat candidates. I want to see which Democrat candidates actually 
want to stand with him as more and more Members of the House announce 
their retirements because they know, and they can see the writing on 
the wall.
  Senator Schumer wanted a vote in this body on the Washington election 
takeover and on changing the rules of the Senate. The American people 
have utterly rejected both of these ideas. The vast majority of the 
American people support voter identification. If you want a ballot, 
show your ID. They support making voters show a photo ID in order to 
get a ballot. This includes a majority of Democrats, who think it is an 
important thing to do for ballot integrity and accountability and 
security.
  If Democrats want to fix our election laws, they ought to do 
something about what is happening in the majority leader's hometown. 
Just last month, the New York City Council voted to let 900,000 
noncitizens vote in New York City's elections--noncitizens. This is a 
larger group than the margin of victory in this last New York mayoral 
election. In other words, this new group of voters--not citizens of the 
United States--could swing and determine the outcome of the next 
election for the mayor of New York. This is the majority leader's 
hometown.
  Where is the ballot integrity, accountability, and security there for 
American citizens?
  Before Chuck Schumer lectures the American people about our 
elections, he ought to fix the problems in his own hometown.
  Democrats are OK with vaccine passports, and they are OK with 
noncitizens voting, but they are not OK with voter ID, at least on the 
legislation that they brought to the floor. Democrats continue to fail 
to listen to and to fail the American people. Democrats are failing on 
inflation, on coronavirus, on immigration, on crime, and on national 
security. By voting on elections and on Senate rules, Democrats are 
admitting they have absolutely nothing to offer the American people on 
the key issues and concerns that are impacting the lives of people all 
across this country.
  There is plenty of work to do right now. We have to stop unnecessary 
government spending to get inflation under control. We need to support 
law enforcement. We need affordable energy. That is what people want. 
We need to make sure that our schools stay open. We need to make sure 
that they teach our children skills, not ideology. We need to secure 
our border. So, yes, there is plenty of work for this Senate to do. 
Republicans have been more than willing to work with Democrats on all 
of these important issues.
  The American people are looking for solutions. Yet the majority 
leader is giving them pointless exercises and show votes. It is time 
for the majority

[[Page S368]]

leader to abandon this political wish list. Let's get to work on the 
issues facing the American people.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Utah.