Laken Riley Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. TUBERVILLE. Mr. President, the last 4 years have been nothing short of a national nightmare. The runup to the nightmare began in 2020.

After fending off a ridiculous impeachment attempt in the early months of 2020, President Trump was riding high, and the economy was booming.

Under President Trump, we saw record levels of low unemployment for all Americans, especially among Black and Hispanic Americans. Inflation, which is ultimately a tax on the paychecks of hard-working Americans, was also at record lows.

We had the most secure border in history. Dangerous terrorists, cartel members, and human traffickers weren't flooding into our country. Americans' jobs were more secure because they didn't have to compete with millions of foreigners who have entered the country the last 4 years trying to steal their jobs. The cost of buying a home was also cheaper as a result.

Under President Trump, we were energy independent. This made the cost of living more affordable for all Americans. We were able to power American homes, cars, and factories with reliable and abundant energy.

Those are just a few of the domestic successes that Americans were benefiting from under President Trump.

On the global stage, we finally had stability after decades of foreign wars. Under President Trump, there were no new wars. We were respected around the world and feared by our adversaries. Russia didn't dare invade Ukraine when President Trump was in office. NATO countries were told to pay up: Pay your bills. China wasn't imposing its will in the South China Sea or across the world. China was contained, and its influence was diminishing.

Under President Trump, the Abraham Accords were signed, bringing peace to the Middle East. As we have seen the last few years, achieving peace in the Middle East was no easy feat. But President Trump achieved it, and he did it quickly. The United States and the world were in harmony.

The left couldn't stand these many successes that President Trump's administration was achieving at home and abroad, so they pulled out all stops to take him down. That is when the deep state bureaucrats and globalist organizations worked together to intensify the COVID-19 crisis. At the same time, the George Floyd riots erupted and destroyed cities across our country. Liberal DAs and politicians didn't do anything to stop it. It was absolute anarchy--total chaos orchestrated by leftwing politicians, the media, and antifa thugs.

Meanwhile, the media tried to manufacture a scandal because President Trump held up a Bible in front of a historic church, while the rioters burning the city of DC were ignored.

It was all a ploy to take down President Trump and tarnish his legacy.

Before the plot to take out the President was in full swing, we saw America achieving heights we had never ever seen before.

For a moment, the left thought they had bested Trump with the COVID sham and the Floyd riots and ultimately by rigging the election. But after controlling Biden by hiding him in the basement and then installing him as President, the Democrats were like a dog who finally caught the car. Once the Democrats took the White House, they quickly realized they didn't know how to run the country. It is not quite like running a struggle session in a Berkeley classroom or leading an HR call for a woke corporation.

The Democrats had 4 years to show the country they could govern more effectively than President Trump, but what have they done? What is one thing they have done to make our country better? I can't think of one policy, one law or directive that actually benefited the American people.

From day one, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris invited foreigners to illegally enter our country. They weren't shy. Joe Biden told foreigners to ``surge the border'' and ``You should [all] come.'' While the administration opened the border, they shut down the Keystone Pipeline, making Americans pay more for groceries and gas.

The Biden administration engaged in a culture war domestically, embracing far-left ideas about sexuality, gender, and race. We have been told repeatedly over the past 4 years that men can get pregnant. And the Democrats didn't just push woke ideology on adults; they forced it on children in their classrooms and on social media.

They have supported biological men competing in women's sports. They are perfectly OK with men sharing locker rooms and showering with girls. The Biden administration published a rule that would destroy title IX which was created to protect women and girls, all in the name of gender equity.

You know, not only did Democrats wage war on American culture, they weaponized our justice system, going after President Trump, conservatives, and anyone who dared to oppose their agenda. Just look at how they went after the January 6 protesters, pro-lifers with the FACE Act, parents at the school boards, and the dozens of illegal actions they took against President Trump.

The Biden administration, with the help of congressional Democrats, passed a bunch of bills with names that sound good, but actually they harm many Americans.

Take the Inflation Reduction Act, for example, one of their prize bills that they have passed in the last few years. It was a legal way to launder money to blue States to bail them out, while red States were hung out to dry.

It pumped money we don't have into the economy, causing the runaway inflation we are dealing with today. The administration was also weak on the world stage appeasing every interest but the interests of the American people. This administration was committed to cozying up to Iran by reinstating the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action as if the world wasn't already a dangerous place. Why would President Biden's administration agree to help Iran improve their nuclear facilities? It makes no sense.

This administration bent over backward for NATO, handing over billions of hard-earned American taxpayer dollars with no plan on ending the war in Ukraine. It executed a disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan that left 13 servicemembers dead, with many others severely wounded. This administration was basically asleep at the wheel.

Who was running the country? Well, it wasn't Joe Biden. It was clear from the 2020 campaign that he didn't have the mental capacity to be President. To make matters worse, he spent 570 days, 40 percent of his Presidency, on vacation. Instead, the White House was run by a committee of leftwing staffers and special interests who ultimately ran the country into the ground, and the media and the Democrats were complicit. It is truly shameful what they have done to this country in the last 4 years.

But now we are finally turning the page. We are entering a new golden age in America with President Trump's return to the White House, and this is our last chance at righting the ship the left has steered so far off course.

President Trump will return our country to the values of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We will return to the Judeo- Christian beliefs and principles of the West that made our Nation so great. And how should the Senate help return our country to these principles?

We need to confirm every single one of President Trump's nominees as quickly as possible. We don't have time to drag our feet on any of these nominees. The Democrats never once attempted to block President Biden's Cabinet nominees. Zero Senate Democrats voted against any one of his picks--zero.

President Trump needs to be able to exercise the full power and authority of his office as soon as he is sworn in, and that requires confirming his Cabinet picks.

It will also require the issuing of Executive orders to undo anything that President Biden has done in taking congressional action to put these policies in place.

Expect a flurry of Executive orders, a new offensive idea to rebuild our broken country. Expect Executive orders on the border, on unleashing American energy, and getting DEI out of our government and out of the lives of American people.

We also need to get behind President Trump on passing one reconciliation bill that will secure our border, reignite our energy independence, and cut taxes so the American economy can boom again.

On the global stage, the Senate needs to get behind President Trump pressuring NATO, all the NATO countries, to pay their fair share. No more military handouts for European countries and no more lighting taxpayer dollars on fire on behalf of Ukraine. It is time to get this war over with.

The Senate needs to support President Trump and exert maximum pressure on Iran and other terrorist organizations wreaking havoc on the Middle East and the West.

We also need to join President Trump's commitment on shrinking the Federal Government through strong congressional action. We will do this by working closely with the Department of Government Efficiency, better known as DOGE.

We need to shrink the government, cutting the ridiculous regulations that are crushing American small businesses.

And, finally, we need to focus on accountability. We need to hold people accountable for the damage that has been done to our country. We need to support the pardon of January 6 protesters who were wrongly prosecuted and horribly treated by our justice system.

We need to step up and fight for pro-life, pro-life protesters who were persecuted by the administration under the FACE Act. We need to open investigations into DOJ Civil Rights and National Security Divisions, and that starts by confirming Kash Patel and Pam Bondi to the posts where President Trump needs them and needs them in a hurry.

We need to be aggressive in these pursuits. Senate Republicans need to demonstrate courage and will and resolve like President Trump showed on the campaign trail. Are we willing to take a bullet for this country like President Trump did?

Are we willing to take on the fake news media who will try to undermine his everyday agenda? The job ahead of us won't be easy. The economy is in bad shape, job numbers are down, inflation is sky high. Our enemies are on the move abroad and in the interior of our country, but the American people chose President Trump and the Republicans for such a time like this.

They gave us a mandate to deliver them from the past 4 years of hell that this administration has caused. But now, it is a new day in America. The nightmare is almost over. And in a few more days, the Sun will rise in America. Greatness awaits us if we answer the call of the American people.

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