Floor SpeechBipartisan2026-09-29

STRENGTHENING AMERICA'S TURNING POINT ACT

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Context

On 2026-09-29, Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) delivered a floor speech titled "STRENGTHENING AMERICA'S TURNING POINT ACT" in the Senate.

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STRENGTHENING AMERICA'S TURNING POINT ACT

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 154 (Tuesday, September 29, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 154 (Tuesday, September 29, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S5140-S5144] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] STRENGTHENING AMERICA'S TURNING POINT ACT The bill (H.R. 1550) to redesignate Saratoga National Historical Park as Saratoga National Battlefield Park was ordered to a third reading, was read the third time, and passed. Mr. HAWLEY. Mr. President, on October 3, 1945, a Mr. Franc L. McCluer of a liberal arts college in Fulton, MO, set pen to paper to write to then former-Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who was enjoying his retirement, having recently lost an election in the midst or just after the Second World War. Mr. McCluer--President McClure of the college, which was named Westminster--invited the former Prime Minister to come to Missouri, to Fulton, to deliver a series of lectures. And I suspect that the invitation might there have met its final end, had not another American and, indeed, another Missourian appended a few words to the bottom. Here is what President Harry S. Truman wrote in his own hand on that invitation to Winston Churchill. He says: [Dear Winston:] This is a wonderful school in my home state. Hope you can do it. I'll introduce you. So, lo and behold, the invitation made its way to former-Prime Minister Churchill, who accepted on the spot; and he and Harry Truman traveled together overland by train to Westminster College in Fulton, MO, to deliver, on Churchill's part, what became one of the most famous speeches of the 20th century, known as the Iron Curtain speech. It was such a significant speech and such a significant moment in the history not just of Westminster College and Fulton, MO, but such a significant moment in American history that the trustees of the college and the leaders of the town decided thereafter it would be well worth commemorating. And so after that speech was concluded, they tried to decide on an appropriate form of commemoration. They settled on a symbol that I think is altogether fitting: a church--a church called St. Mary Aldermanbury--actually, from London, which the trustees of Westminster and the town leaders of Fulton had brought from London brick by brick and rebuilt on the college campus at Westminster. Here is a picture of it right there, with a statue of Churchill delivering his famous Iron Curtain speech that stands on the site to this today. The thing about the church is, its own story retells the grit and determination of the American people through depression and war and also of the long alliance between the people of the United States and the people of the United Kingdom, because the church was first built in the 12th century as a parish church in London, but then it was destroyed by the Great Fire of London in 1666. Sir Christopher Wren, the famous architect, redesigned it and had it rebuilt in 1679, only for it to be gutted and destroyed once again by the London Blitz in 1940. [[Page S5141]] And there the church sat in ruins until the people of Westminster in Fulton, MO, brought it to the United States--to Fulton, to the campus-- and rebuilt it as a commemoration of the speech, yes, but I would suggest even something more: as a commemoration and mark of what we hold dearest together, what we most cherish as Americans, because that church symbolizes, really, the cradle of our civilization; the values that underlie who we are as a people; the sanctity of the individual; the rights of individual conscience; the right to worship; the liberties that flow to us not from a government, not from a bureaucrat, but from almighty God, as our own Declaration of Independence, 250 years old this year, so eloquently declares. And there the church stands today, continuing as a symbol of what it means to be an American, continuing as a symbol of what we hold most dear, most valuable, most cherished as a people. And today, the measure that we just adopted on this floor makes, for the first time, this landmark into a National Historic Landmark, there on the campus of Westminster in Fulton, MO, that will forever preserve this historic place and this historic site for posterity but will also, I think, communicate the significance of this moment and the significance of the church and what it represents for the American story. And in this time of trial and difficulty we face in our own country, when so many question the value of our historical heritage, when so many question the fundamentals of our culture and suggest that this country is fundamentally evil, fundamentally racist, fundamentally bigoted, fundamentally ill-founded, I think this church and this landmark speak to the great and enduring goodness of our country, the powerful and enduring significance of the values on which this country is founded. And I hope now, for decades and indeed, Lord willing, for centuries to come, this church will stand on the campus of Westminster in Fulton, MO, blessed as a National Historic Landmark, to speak to the principles that are at the heart of the American experiment and which we reaffirm in this 250th year and which continue to shine brightly in the State of Missouri. I yield the floor. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa. Affordability Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, lowering costs for Americans has been a key focus of this Republican Congress. The 2025 Working Families Tax Cut Act prevented the largest tax increase in the history of our country. If that bill had not passed, taxes would have gone up by about $3,500 per family. The tax cuts have put more money into working families' and seniors' pocketbooks by establishing no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, and expanding tax relief for seniors to the tune, for seniors, of a $6,000 tax credit. It also increased the child tax credit, and it also has a deductibility of interest on car loans. So you see, when we call it the Working Families Tax Cut Act, you can see the important provisions that back up that title. Those taxpayers earning between $50,000 to $200,000 that took advantage of at least one of these new deductions received an average tax cut of between $815 and $1,250. Moreover, the rest of the law made pro-growth policies that incentivized business investment permanently. This has enabled Iowa companies such as Sukup Manufacturing in Sheffield and Vermeer Corporation in Pella to fund multimillion-dollar expansions and add hundreds of good-paying jobs. This Senator has worked to lower costs of healthcare by cutting waste, fraud, and abuse out of the healthcare system. I am also working hard to hold pharmaceutical companies and powerful drug middlemen called pharmacy benefit managers accountable. In February, Congress passed key PBM reforms to lower drug costs for seniors and Americans with private health insurance. Of course, everybody agrees more needs to be done to stop anticompetitive practices of Big Pharma and these pharmacy benefit managers. I will continue to push to fix a broken system and lower drug costs. I have also worked to lower food costs by supporting American agriculture and passing the farm bill. Lowering high input costs for farmers is key, a very key way to help American agriculture and, at the same time, all American families at the dinner table. The Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee-passed farm bill includes my transparency tools to help bring down fertilizer costs. It also includes year-round E15 that will deliver a $14 billion boost in corn demand and lower the price at the pump of up to 40 cents per gallon. Here in the Senate, we have expanded and protected the Trump administration's effort to remove redtape and put more money back into the pockets of working families and small business owners. So far, the administration's efforts have resulted in over $1 trillion in total regulatory cost reductions. Reducing redtape spurs innovation and lowers production costs, putting downward pressure on the price of household goods. Last here, but not least, affordability requires fiscal sanity, something the Biden administration didn't have because fiscal recklessness by the previous administration spurred 9 percent inflation, costing Iowa households an extra $7,000 in just his first 20 months in office. Now, we hear all this talk about inflation since Trump took over. Is the memory of Americans so short that they don't remember 9 percent inflation in the previous administration and how now it is dramatically down? Now, self-proclaimed democrat socialists are running for office, promising a pile of budget-busting policies rather than delivering affordability. Such policies would exacerbate inflation and push up interest rates on mortgages, car loans, and consumer credits. In contrast, Republicans, by focusing on rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in government, are working to snuff out inflation and contain interest costs. This includes trimming $1 trillion in mandatory spending as part of the Working Families Tax Cut Act. This work and more are making life more affordable for America. SCREENS Act Mr. President, now another short comment I want to make on another subject about cancer screening. Last week, I introduced a bipartisan cancer screening bill titled the ``Standardizing Cancer Recommendations for Early Evaluation and Navigation of Screening Act''; SCREENS, as an acronym for that legislation and that long name of the legislation. The bill will improve access to cancer screening guidelines so they are more accessible, transparent, and user-friendly. Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States. We know that access to cancer screenings increases the chance of early treatment and reduces mortality. This is especially important for rural Americans and with the rising rates of cancer in young people. To ensure patients have access to the best information at their fingertips or in the doctor's off

Referenced legislation: HR1550, HR1550, HR3620

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STRENGTHENING AMERICA'S TURNING POINT ACT Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 154 (Tuesday, September 29, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 154 (Tuesday, September 29, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S5140-S5144] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] STRENGTHENING AMERICA'S TURNING POINT ACT The bill (H.R. 1550) to redesignate Saratoga National Historical Park as Saratoga National Battlefield Park was ordered to a third reading, was read the third time, and passed. Mr. HAWLEY. Mr. President, on October 3, 1945, a Mr. Franc L. McCluer of a liberal arts college in Fulton, MO, set pen to paper to write to then former-Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who was enjoying his retirement, having recently lost an election in the midst or just after the Second World War. Mr. McCluer--President McClure of the college, which was named Westminster--invited the former Prime Minister to come to Missouri, to Fulton, to deliver a series of lectures. And I suspect that the invitation might there have met its final end, had not another American and, indeed, another Missourian appended a few words to the bottom. Here is what President Harry S. Truman wrote in his own hand on that invitation to Winston Churchill. He says: [Dear Winston:] This is a wonderful school in my home state. Hope you can do it. I'll introduce you. So, lo and behold, the invitation made its way to former-Prime Minister Churchill, who accepted on the spot; and he and Harry Truman traveled together overland by train to Westminster College in Fulton, MO, to deliver, on Churchill's part, what became one of the most famous speeches of the 20th century, known as the Iron Curtain speech. It was such a significant speech and such a significant moment in the history not just of Westminster College and Fulton, MO, but such a significant moment in American history that the trustees of the college and the leaders of the town decided thereafter it would be well worth commemorating. And so after that speech was concluded, they tried to decide on an appropriate form of commemoration. They settled on a symbol that I think is altogether fitting: a church--a church called St. Mary Aldermanbury--actually, from London, which the trustees of Westminster and the town leaders of Fulton had brought from London brick by brick and rebuilt on the college campus at Westminster. Here is a picture of it right there, with a statue of Churchill delivering his famous Iron Curtain speech that stands on the site to this today. The thing about the church is, its own story retells the grit and determination of the American people through depression and war and also of the long alliance between the people of the United States and the people of the United Kingdom, because the church was first built in the 12th century as a parish church in London, but then it was destroyed by the Great Fire of London in 1666. Sir Christopher Wren, the famous architect, redesigned it and had it rebuilt in 1679, only for it to be gutted and destroyed once again by the London Blitz in 1940. [[Page S5141]] And there the church sat in ruins until the people of Westminster in Fulton, MO, brought it to the United States--to Fulton, to the campus-- and rebuilt it as a commemoration of the speech, yes, but I would suggest even something more: as a commemoration and mark of what we hold dearest together, what we most cherish as Americans, because that church symbolizes, really, the cradle of our civilization; the values that underlie who we are as a people; the sanctity of the individual; the rights of individual conscience; the right to worship; the liberties that flow to us not from a government, not from a bureaucrat, but from almighty God, as our own Declaration of Independence, 250 years old this year, so eloquently declares. And there the church stands today, continuing as a symbol of what it means to be an American, continuing as a symbol of what we hold most dear, most valuable, most cherished as a people. And today, the measure that we just adopted on this floor makes, for the first time, this landmark into a National Historic Landmark, there on the campus of Westminster in Fulton, MO, that will forever preserve this historic place and this historic site for posterity but will also, I think, communicate the significance of this moment and the significance of the church and what it represents for the American story. And in this time of trial and difficulty we face in our own country, when so many question the value of our historical heritage, when so many question the fundamentals of our culture and suggest that this country is fundamentally evil, fundamentally racist, fundamentally bigoted, fundamentally ill-founded, I think this church and this landmark speak to the great and enduring goodness of our country, the powerful and enduring significance of the values on which this country is founded. And I hope now, for decades and indeed, Lord willing, for centuries to come, this church will stand on the campus of Westminster in Fulton, MO, blessed as a National Historic Landmark, to speak to the principles that are at the heart of the American experiment and which we reaffirm in this 250th year and which continue to shine brightly in the State of Missouri. I yield the floor. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa. Affordability Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, lowering costs for Americans has been a key focus of this Republican Congress. The 2025 Working Families Tax Cut Act prevented the largest tax increase in the history of our country. If that bill had not passed, taxes would have gone up by about $3,500 per family. The tax cuts have put more money into working families' and seniors' pocketbooks by establishing no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, and expanding tax relief for seniors to the tune, for seniors, of a $6,000 tax credit. It also increased the child tax credit, and it also has a deductibility of interest on car loans. So you see, when we call it the Working Families Tax Cut Act, you can see the important provisions that back up that title. Those taxpayers earning between $50,000 to $200,000 that took advantage of at least one of these new deductions received an average tax cut of between $815 and $1,250. Moreover, the rest of the law made pro-growth policies that incentivized business investment permanently. This has enabled Iowa companies such as Sukup Manufacturing in Sheffield and Vermeer Corporation in Pella to fund multimillion-dollar expansions and add hundreds of good-paying jobs. This Senator has worked to lower costs of healthcare by cutting waste, fraud, and abuse out of the healthcare system. I am also working hard to hold pharmaceutical companies and powerful drug middlemen called pharmacy benefit managers accountable. In February, Congress passed key PBM reforms to lower drug costs for seniors and Americans with private health insurance. Of course, everybody agrees more needs to be done to stop anticompetitive practices of Big Pharma and these pharmacy benefit managers. I will continue to push to fix a broken system and lower drug costs. I have also worked to lower food costs by supporting American agriculture and passing the farm bill. Lowering high input costs for farmers is key, a very key way to help American agriculture and, at the same time, all American families at the dinner table. The Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee-passed farm bill includes my transparency tools to help bring down fertilizer costs. It also includes year-round E15 that will deliver a $14 billion boost in corn demand and lower the price at the pump of up to 40 cents per gallon. Here in the Senate, we have expanded and protected the Trump administration's effort to remove redtape and put more money back into the pockets of working families and small business owners. So far, the administration's efforts have resulted in over $1 trillion in total regulatory cost reductions. Reducing redtape spurs innovation and lowers production costs, putting downward pressure on the price of household goods. Last here, but not least, affordability requires fiscal sanity, something the Biden administration didn't have because fiscal recklessness by the previous administration spurred 9 percent inflation, costing Iowa households an extra $7,000 in just his first 20 months in office. Now, we hear all this talk about inflation since Trump took over. Is the memory of Americans so short that they don't remember 9 percent inflation in the previous administration and how now it is dramatically down? Now, self-proclaimed democrat socialists are running for office, promising a pile of budget-busting policies rather than delivering affordability. Such policies would exacerbate inflation and push up interest rates on mortgages, car loans, and consumer credits. In contrast, Republicans, by focusing on rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in government, are working to snuff out inflation and contain interest costs. This includes trimming $1 trillion in mandatory spending as part of the Working Families Tax Cut Act. This work and more are making life more affordable for America. SCREENS Act Mr. President, now another short comment I want to make on another subject about cancer screening. Last week, I introduced a bipartisan cancer screening bill titled the ``Standardizing Cancer Recommendations for Early Evaluation and Navigation of Screening Act''; SCREENS, as an acronym for that legislation and that long name of the legislation. The bill will improve access to cancer screening guidelines so they are more accessible, transparent, and user-friendly. Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States. We know that access to cancer screenings increases the chance of early treatment and reduces mortality. This is especially important for rural Americans and with the rising rates of cancer in young people. To ensure patients have access to the best information at their fingertips or in the doctor's off Referenced legislation: HR1550, HR1550, HR3620