Floor SpeechBipartisan2026-01-12

COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE; ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT; AND INTERIOR AND ENVIRONMENT APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2026--Motion to Proceed--Resumed

ImmigrationHealthcareEconomyTaxesEnvironmentForeign PolicyTradeHousingCrime & Justice

Context

On 2026-01-12, Senator Susan M. Collins (R-ME) delivered a floor speech titled "COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE; ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT; AND INTERIOR AND ENVIRONMENT APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2026--Motion " in the Senate. The speech addressed immigration and also covered healthcare, the economy. It referenced legislation including HR6938, S121, S128, among other bills.

Full Text

COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE; ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT; AND INTERIOR AND ENVIRONMENT APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2026--Motion to Proceed--Resumed

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 8 (Monday, January 12, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 8 (Monday, January 12, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S121-S128] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE; ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT; AND INTERIOR AND ENVIRONMENT APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2026--Motion to Proceed--Resumed The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to H.R. 6938, which the clerk will report. The senior assistant executive clerk read as follows: Motion to proceed to Calendar No. 299, H.R. 6938, a bill making consolidated appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2026, and for other purposes. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa. ObamaCare Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, one of the issues that Congress must deal with--and do it very shortly--is the cost of health insurance. President Obama famously said that ObamaCare would let Americans keep their health insurance if they liked it and that it would also lower their premiums. We know, more than a decade later, that those promises were never true. We need to lower healthcare costs. It starts with expanding access and competition to high-quality, affordable health insurance through health savings accounts, association health plans, and other consumer- driven health plans. It also requires action to reduce prescription drug prices through pharmacy benefit manager reform. That reform should not be a tough thing to do because we have three separate approaches in the U.S. Senate, with a total of about 60 to 65 Members, in a bipartisan way, supporting the passage of PBM reform. The evidence for fixing ObamaCare can be found in America's pocketbook today. I recently received a letter from an Iowan, documenting the increases this person has seen in his monthly health insurance premiums, just since ObamaCare became law. Before ObamaCare was signed into law, this Iowan saw zero-percent increases in his health insurance premiums and even saw premium reductions. In the 8 years prior to ObamaCare, this Iowan had a cumulative premium increase of 4 percent. In the 8 years since ObamaCare, this Iowan saw a cumulative premium increase of 87 percent. Health insurance has gotten more costly under ObamaCare--case in point with this Iowan's story. His monthly health insurance premium, which was once around $800 before ObamaCare, is now over $2,000 a month. Extending temporary COVID bonuses for wealthy households, where the money is shoved to insurance companies, is not the answer. We need to enact commonsense solutions to bring down healthcare costs. I yield the floor. Recognition of the Majority Leader The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader is recognized. Commerce, Justice, Science; Energy and Water Development; and Interior and Environment Appropriations Act, 2026 Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, before I begin, I just want to mention Thursday's appropriations vote in the House. Thanks to Speaker Johnson, House Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole, and others, the House passed a three-bill appropriations package--Commerce, Justice, Science; Energy and Water Development; and Interior and Environment--by an overwhelming bipartisan margin. Now it is our turn, and I hope that we will be able to get these bills passed here in the Senate in the next couple of days. We have a lot of appropriations work left to do before the January 30 deadline, and we should not waste any time in getting this bipartisan package over the finish line. Southern Border Mr. President, it is difficult to overstate just how dramatically the situation at the southern border has changed over the past year. [[Page S122]] In November, the latest month for which we have border numbers, there were just 11,000 total encounters at the southern border--11,000. Now, to put that number into perspective, the previous November, under President Biden, saw 94,000 encounters. The November before that saw a staggering 242,000 encounters, and the November before that, 235,000. This November, there were 11,000, and not one individual who tried to cross the border illegally was released into our country--not a single one. In fact, it has been months since an illegal immigrant was released into the interior of our country. Contrast this with the Biden years, which saw literally millions of illegal immigrants released into the interior. I was down at the border recently, and the situation could not be more different from my 2021 and 2023 visits. Back then, I was meeting with overwhelmed border agents and was visiting overwhelmed border facilities. I remember, during my 2021 trip, we visited a facility that was at 16 times its allotted capacity--16 times. During one of my trips, I remember actually seeing with my own eyes individuals attempting to cross the border illegally, and I remember talking to Border Patrol agents--Border Patrol, who, by the time of my 2023 trip, had spent 2 years dealing with recordbreaking numbers of illegal immigrants; Border Patrol agents who were in desperate need of resources and support from the Biden administration--resources and support that never came. I talked to Border Patrol agents on my most recent trip, and what I heard cannot be more different. Border Patrol agents are telling me that the flood that they once dealt with has shrunk now to a trickle; that they are being supported in their work and are allowed to do the job that they were hired to do, which is to protect our southern border. I still can't get over the difference. In 2021 and 2023, I visited the southern border, and I saw chaos. In 2026, I visited, and I saw calm and order, and our country is so much safer because of it. I am grateful for all that President Trump and his administration have done to make and keep our southern border secure. I am proud of the work that we have done here in Congress to help ensure that border security is here to stay. Our Working Families Tax Cuts legislation made a generational investment in the resources that law enforcement needs to secure the border and deter illegal immigration. We funded the completion of the border wall, new technology and border surveillance equipment, and additional Border Patrol agents. We expanded detention capacity and expanded partnerships with local law enforcement to enforce immigration law. And these resources are already having an effect. On my recent trip to the border, agents repeatedly emphasized how they are seeing effects from our Working Families Tax Cuts legislation and in particular with the addition of needed new personnel and counterdrone technology. Thanks to that counterdrone technology, Border Patrol personnel can take over or destroy cartel drones at the border, limiting cartels' surveillance abilities and ability to transport dangerous items. I am proud that after 4 long years of strain thanks to President Biden's border crisis, Border Patrol agents are finally receiving the resources they need to do their jobs, prevent illegal immigration, and keep us safe. Mr. President, January 9 was National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day, and my conversations with Border Patrol agents on my recent trip reminded me of just how blessed we are to have men and women who step up and answer the call to serve as law enforcement officers. From the Border Patrol to the Capitol Police and other Federal agents, to our local sheriff and police departments, our safety is secured for us by men and women who willingly choose to place themselves between us and danger. Too often, the sacrifices these men and women make are not appreciated. In fact, we have seen a reprehensible amount of hostility toward law enforcement in recent months and years. I hope that today and every day, we will take a moment to remember what our law enforcement officers do for us and how very lucky we are to have them. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll. The senior assistant executive clerk proceeded to call the roll. Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. Recognition of the Minority Leader The Democratic leader is recognized. Jerome Powell Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, last night, the New York Times reported that a criminal investigation has been opened into Jerome Powell, the chairman of the Federal Reserve Board. Anyone with two eyes and half a brain knows exactly what this criminal probe represents: a brazen attempt by Donald Trump to cannibalize the Fed's independence. The allegations behind this probe are clearly bogus. This has nothing to do with building renovations, of all things; it has everything to do with Donald Trump weaponizing the DOJ into his attack dog and bullying America's central bank into submission on something unrelated to what they do. This is another ominous, troubling step toward the MAGA-fication of America's monetary policy, which is the bedrock of the global economy and essential for stability in the markets. So the American people should beware: If you are worried about making sure mortgage rates come down, making it easier to buy a home, Donald Trump's attack on the Fed should trouble you deeply. If you are worried about what the economy is going to look like in the next 6 months, 12 months, and beyond, Donald Trump's attack on the Fed should alarm you. If you are a Senate Republican in this Chamber who has at any point spoken out about the Fed's independence, about the need to bring inflation down, about the importance of law and order, now is the time to find your voice and to take a stand. The bogus criminal probe conducted by the DOJ screams for congressional oversight. We need to bring DOJ officials to testify before the Senate and explain this outrageous criminal probe, and the Senate must reject any futu

Referenced legislation: HR6938, HR6938

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COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE; ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT; AND INTERIOR AND ENVIRONMENT APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2026--Motion to Proceed--Resumed Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 8 (Monday, January 12, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 8 (Monday, January 12, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S121-S128] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE; ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT; AND INTERIOR AND ENVIRONMENT APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2026--Motion to Proceed--Resumed The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to H.R. 6938, which the clerk will report. The senior assistant executive clerk read as follows: Motion to proceed to Calendar No. 299, H.R. 6938, a bill making consolidated appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2026, and for other purposes. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa. ObamaCare Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, one of the issues that Congress must deal with--and do it very shortly--is the cost of health insurance. President Obama famously said that ObamaCare would let Americans keep their health insurance if they liked it and that it would also lower their premiums. We know, more than a decade later, that those promises were never true. We need to lower healthcare costs. It starts with expanding access and competition to high-quality, affordable health insurance through health savings accounts, association health plans, and other consumer- driven health plans. It also requires action to reduce prescription drug prices through pharmacy benefit manager reform. That reform should not be a tough thing to do because we have three separate approaches in the U.S. Senate, with a total of about 60 to 65 Members, in a bipartisan way, supporting the passage of PBM reform. The evidence for fixing ObamaCare can be found in America's pocketbook today. I recently received a letter from an Iowan, documenting the increases this person has seen in his monthly health insurance premiums, just since ObamaCare became law. Before ObamaCare was signed into law, this Iowan saw zero-percent increases in his health insurance premiums and even saw premium reductions. In the 8 years prior to ObamaCare, this Iowan had a cumulative premium increase of 4 percent. In the 8 years since ObamaCare, this Iowan saw a cumulative premium increase of 87 percent. Health insurance has gotten more costly under ObamaCare--case in point with this Iowan's story. His monthly health insurance premium, which was once around $800 before ObamaCare, is now over $2,000 a month. Extending temporary COVID bonuses for wealthy households, where the money is shoved to insurance companies, is not the answer. We need to enact commonsense solutions to bring down healthcare costs. I yield the floor. Recognition of the Majority Leader The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader is recognized. Commerce, Justice, Science; Energy and Water Development; and Interior and Environment Appropriations Act, 2026 Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, before I begin, I just want to mention Thursday's appropriations vote in the House. Thanks to Speaker Johnson, House Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole, and others, the House passed a three-bill appropriations package--Commerce, Justice, Science; Energy and Water Development; and Interior and Environment--by an overwhelming bipartisan margin. Now it is our turn, and I hope that we will be able to get these bills passed here in the Senate in the next couple of days. We have a lot of appropriations work left to do before the January 30 deadline, and we should not waste any time in getting this bipartisan package over the finish line. Southern Border Mr. President, it is difficult to overstate just how dramatically the situation at the southern border has changed over the past year. [[Page S122]] In November, the latest month for which we have border numbers, there were just 11,000 total encounters at the southern border--11,000. Now, to put that number into perspective, the previous November, under President Biden, saw 94,000 encounters. The November before that saw a staggering 242,000 encounters, and the November before that, 235,000. This November, there were 11,000, and not one individual who tried to cross the border illegally was released into our country--not a single one. In fact, it has been months since an illegal immigrant was released into the interior of our country. Contrast this with the Biden years, which saw literally millions of illegal immigrants released into the interior. I was down at the border recently, and the situation could not be more different from my 2021 and 2023 visits. Back then, I was meeting with overwhelmed border agents and was visiting overwhelmed border facilities. I remember, during my 2021 trip, we visited a facility that was at 16 times its allotted capacity--16 times. During one of my trips, I remember actually seeing with my own eyes individuals attempting to cross the border illegally, and I remember talking to Border Patrol agents--Border Patrol, who, by the time of my 2023 trip, had spent 2 years dealing with recordbreaking numbers of illegal immigrants; Border Patrol agents who were in desperate need of resources and support from the Biden administration--resources and support that never came. I talked to Border Patrol agents on my most recent trip, and what I heard cannot be more different. Border Patrol agents are telling me that the flood that they once dealt with has shrunk now to a trickle; that they are being supported in their work and are allowed to do the job that they were hired to do, which is to protect our southern border. I still can't get over the difference. In 2021 and 2023, I visited the southern border, and I saw chaos. In 2026, I visited, and I saw calm and order, and our country is so much safer because of it. I am grateful for all that President Trump and his administration have done to make and keep our southern border secure. I am proud of the work that we have done here in Congress to help ensure that border security is here to stay. Our Working Families Tax Cuts legislation made a generational investment in the resources that law enforcement needs to secure the border and deter illegal immigration. We funded the completion of the border wall, new technology and border surveillance equipment, and additional Border Patrol agents. We expanded detention capacity and expanded partnerships with local law enforcement to enforce immigration law. And these resources are already having an effect. On my recent trip to the border, agents repeatedly emphasized how they are seeing effects from our Working Families Tax Cuts legislation and in particular with the addition of needed new personnel and counterdrone technology. Thanks to that counterdrone technology, Border Patrol personnel can take over or destroy cartel drones at the border, limiting cartels' surveillance abilities and ability to transport dangerous items. I am proud that after 4 long years of strain thanks to President Biden's border crisis, Border Patrol agents are finally receiving the resources they need to do their jobs, prevent illegal immigration, and keep us safe. Mr. President, January 9 was National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day, and my conversations with Border Patrol agents on my recent trip reminded me of just how blessed we are to have men and women who step up and answer the call to serve as law enforcement officers. From the Border Patrol to the Capitol Police and other Federal agents, to our local sheriff and police departments, our safety is secured for us by men and women who willingly choose to place themselves between us and danger. Too often, the sacrifices these men and women make are not appreciated. In fact, we have seen a reprehensible amount of hostility toward law enforcement in recent months and years. I hope that today and every day, we will take a moment to remember what our law enforcement officers do for us and how very lucky we are to have them. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll. The senior assistant executive clerk proceeded to call the roll. Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. Recognition of the Minority Leader The Democratic leader is recognized. Jerome Powell Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, last night, the New York Times reported that a criminal investigation has been opened into Jerome Powell, the chairman of the Federal Reserve Board. Anyone with two eyes and half a brain knows exactly what this criminal probe represents: a brazen attempt by Donald Trump to cannibalize the Fed's independence. The allegations behind this probe are clearly bogus. This has nothing to do with building renovations, of all things; it has everything to do with Donald Trump weaponizing the DOJ into his attack dog and bullying America's central bank into submission on something unrelated to what they do. This is another ominous, troubling step toward the MAGA-fication of America's monetary policy, which is the bedrock of the global economy and essential for stability in the markets. So the American people should beware: If you are worried about making sure mortgage rates come down, making it easier to buy a home, Donald Trump's attack on the Fed should trouble you deeply. If you are worried about what the economy is going to look like in the next 6 months, 12 months, and beyond, Donald Trump's attack on the Fed should alarm you. If you are a Senate Republican in this Chamber who has at any point spoken out about the Fed's independence, about the need to bring inflation down, about the importance of law and order, now is the time to find your voice and to take a stand. The bogus criminal probe conducted by the DOJ screams for congressional oversight. We need to bring DOJ officials to testify before the Senate and explain this outrageous criminal probe, and the Senate must reject any futu Referenced legislation: HR6938, HR6938