Floor SpeechBipartisan2026-04-20

RECONCILIATION

ImmigrationHealthcareEnvironmentDefenseCrime & Justice

Context

On 2026-04-20, Senator Charles E. Schumer (D-NY) delivered a floor speech titled "RECONCILIATION" in the Senate. The speech addressed immigration and also covered healthcare, the environment. It referenced legislation including S1834, S1835.

Full Text

RECONCILIATION

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 69 (Monday, April 20, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 69 (Monday, April 20, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S1834-S1835] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] RECONCILIATION Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, what does this majority choose to spend our time on instead? Any hour now, Republicans are expected to release a budget resolution that adds tens of billions of dollars to the national debt and pumps colossal sums into ICE and Border Patrol without any reforms, all while doing absolutely nothing to lower costs for hard-working Americans. We need to pause and examine how we got to this moment, because in a well-functioning Congress, the majority focuses on solving people's problems, not constantly cleaning up their own messes and shoveling tens of billions more into unaccountable rogue Agencies. Remember, last year, in Donald Trump's ``Big Ugly Betrayal,'' Republicans rammed through $75 billion for ICE and tens of billions more for Border Patrol, with virtually no guardrails, minimal training standards, and no real idea of what they were unleashing. Well, that led to disaster, as could have been predicted. In January, Federal immigration officers in Minneapolis murdered two American citizens in broad daylight, triggering a reckoning across the country. After the murders of Alex Pretti [[Page S1835]] and Renee Good, the American people wanted change. Democrats told our Republican colleagues we needed to work together to rein in ICE and Border Patrol and prevent this kind of violence from happening again. We put forth commonsense reforms modeled on guardrails law enforcement already follows in the States: no masked agents in unmarked vehicles, no bursting into people's homes without warrants, and body cameras for all agents. But after weeks of back and forth, it became painfully obvious that Republicans were not serious about reform. Instead of listening to the people, Senate Republicans listened to Donald Trump and Stephen Miller. Even when Democrats offered to narrow the reforms to a small, targeted set of proposals in exchange for funding, Republicans, afraid of Trump, afraid of Miller, said no. Leader Thune eventually brought a bill to the floor that would fund the rest of the Department of Homeland Security, while leaving ICE and Border Patrol aside, as negotiations on reform continued. Democrats unanimously supported this bill. It was something we had been pushing for weeks because we believed FEMA, the Coast Guard, CISA, TSA, and the other four Agencies of DHS must be able to serve the American people. But that agreement is now collecting dust in the House. Speaker Johnson and House Republicans refuse to move it. And that brings us to where we are today. It is Republicans who have chosen to keep FEMA, the Coast Guard, CISA, TSA, and all other DHS Agencies shut down. It is Republicans' own divisions and their own inability to govern that have led to the longest shutdown of an Agency in American history. Even now, instead of working with Democrats, Republicans want to waste even more time by going it alone through reconciliation. Any moment now, they are expected to release a budget resolution that would tee up more than $75 billion over 3 years for ICE and Border Patrol through reconciliation, while doing nothing--absolutely nothing--to lower costs for hard-working Americans. Let's be clear. What the Republicans are doing is not how a well- functioning Congress should be spending its time. We should be debating legislation to help people pay for groceries, afford the rent, and bring down electric bills. We should be focused on outrageous gas prices and on retiring Donald Trump's costly military endeavors. Instead, Republicans are preparing to spend precious time bogging the Senate down by partisan bickering. And at a moment when President Trump claims we cannot afford Medicare or daycare, Republicans somehow think that we can give ICE and Border Patrol a blank check. Isn't that amazing? People are suffering because they can't pay for their healthcare needs, and, instead, the Republicans want to send more money to ICE and Border Patrol. One thing is clear--one thing is very clear: Americans cannot afford the cost of Republicans' continued chaos. ____________________

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RECONCILIATION Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 69 (Monday, April 20, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 69 (Monday, April 20, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S1834-S1835] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] RECONCILIATION Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, what does this majority choose to spend our time on instead? Any hour now, Republicans are expected to release a budget resolution that adds tens of billions of dollars to the national debt and pumps colossal sums into ICE and Border Patrol without any reforms, all while doing absolutely nothing to lower costs for hard-working Americans. We need to pause and examine how we got to this moment, because in a well-functioning Congress, the majority focuses on solving people's problems, not constantly cleaning up their own messes and shoveling tens of billions more into unaccountable rogue Agencies. Remember, last year, in Donald Trump's ``Big Ugly Betrayal,'' Republicans rammed through $75 billion for ICE and tens of billions more for Border Patrol, with virtually no guardrails, minimal training standards, and no real idea of what they were unleashing. Well, that led to disaster, as could have been predicted. In January, Federal immigration officers in Minneapolis murdered two American citizens in broad daylight, triggering a reckoning across the country. After the murders of Alex Pretti [[Page S1835]] and Renee Good, the American people wanted change. Democrats told our Republican colleagues we needed to work together to rein in ICE and Border Patrol and prevent this kind of violence from happening again. We put forth commonsense reforms modeled on guardrails law enforcement already follows in the States: no masked agents in unmarked vehicles, no bursting into people's homes without warrants, and body cameras for all agents. But after weeks of back and forth, it became painfully obvious that Republicans were not serious about reform. Instead of listening to the people, Senate Republicans listened to Donald Trump and Stephen Miller. Even when Democrats offered to narrow the reforms to a small, targeted set of proposals in exchange for funding, Republicans, afraid of Trump, afraid of Miller, said no. Leader Thune eventually brought a bill to the floor that would fund the rest of the Department of Homeland Security, while leaving ICE and Border Patrol aside, as negotiations on reform continued. Democrats unanimously supported this bill. It was something we had been pushing for weeks because we believed FEMA, the Coast Guard, CISA, TSA, and the other four Agencies of DHS must be able to serve the American people. But that agreement is now collecting dust in the House. Speaker Johnson and House Republicans refuse to move it. And that brings us to where we are today. It is Republicans who have chosen to keep FEMA, the Coast Guard, CISA, TSA, and all other DHS Agencies shut down. It is Republicans' own divisions and their own inability to govern that have led to the longest shutdown of an Agency in American history. Even now, instead of working with Democrats, Republicans want to waste even more time by going it alone through reconciliation. Any moment now, they are expected to release a budget resolution that would tee up more than $75 billion over 3 years for ICE and Border Patrol through reconciliation, while doing nothing--absolutely nothing--to lower costs for hard-working Americans. Let's be clear. What the Republicans are doing is not how a well- functioning Congress should be spending its time. We should be debating legislation to help people pay for groceries, afford the rent, and bring down electric bills. We should be focused on outrageous gas prices and on retiring Donald Trump's costly military endeavors. Instead, Republicans are preparing to spend precious time bogging the Senate down by partisan bickering. And at a moment when President Trump claims we cannot afford Medicare or daycare, Republicans somehow think that we can give ICE and Border Patrol a blank check. Isn't that amazing? People are suffering because they can't pay for their healthcare needs, and, instead, the Republicans want to send more money to ICE and Border Patrol. One thing is clear--one thing is very clear: Americans cannot afford the cost of Republicans' continued chaos. ____________________