Trump Administration

Floor Speech

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Mr. LUJAN. Will the Senator yield for a question?

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Mr. LUJAN. First, I want to begin by thanking our friend, and I say ``our friend'' because he is more than my friend, Senator Merkley. We are friends from across our Nation's Capital and across America--some who are here, listening to you themselves, and others who, I am sure, are tuning in. Whether it is on social media or on C-SPAN or on one of the news outlets that is carrying the conversation that you are having on behalf of the American people, I want to say thank you. Thank you for your courage, for your conviction, and for your tireless leadership in speaking up today on behalf of all that is going on across America and around the world but especially what is impacting your constituents.

If I am not mistaken, Senator Merkley, it has been nearly 20 hours that you have been on the floor now, speaking to the American people.

Now, I like you. I am proud to be a U.S. Senator. I know, the way you speak about Oregon, I am always battling with you on whether it is New Mexico or it is Oregon. Which is more beautiful? I still believe it is New Mexico, but that is not my question today, Senator Merkley.

I am so proud to represent the people from New Mexico, and every day I am reminded that the work that we do here doesn't just impact our homes. The work that we do here touches every corner of the United States of America.

For the last 3 weeks of this Republican shutdown--and the reason I say that is that the American people know that the House of Representatives has a majority of Republicans; that the Speaker of the House is a Republican; that the majority in the U.S. Senate is controlled by Republicans; that the majority leader is a Republican; and that the President of the United States is a Republican.

Now, as I visit with constituents from across New Mexico--and last night, Senator Merkley, I had a townhall, a telephone townhall. We had thousands and thousands of New Mexicans who were on this call. They all told me that they were worried about what would happen if their health insurance premiums doubled, even tripled. Every news article I read this morning and those that I saw on television or on social media today had similar stories from constituents about concerns about maybe losing their healthcare.

Now, Senator, you know, as well as so many people across New Mexico and a few across America, that 3 years ago I survived a stroke. When someone has a heart attack or a stroke or some other chronic episode like that, you learn that time is not on your side. You are not thinking about how expensive those hospital bills may be. All you are hoping is that you can get to see a medical professional who might be able to save your life. By the grace of God, by the love of my family, Senator Merkley, I am here. I am alive today. I healed, and it is quite miraculous, but a big part of that was because I was fortunate enough to have health insurance. I was fortunate to get to a facility quickly enough. On the way there, a local paramedic and an EMT from Santa Fe County Fire Department helped to prepare me before I got to the emergency room. They helped to save my life.

Well, right now, across the country it is not just the concern of health insurance premiums doubling or tripling so that millions of people could lose coverage; under this thing called the Big Beautiful Bill, my Republican colleagues here said: Well, we are going to have the largest cut in Medicaid funding since the program has been created.

In addition to that, how about my Republican colleagues saying: Well, let's also go after food programs, and the largest cut to food programs across America were included in that bill.

The reason I bring up Medicaid is that, in New Mexico, we had a Republican Governor who actually embraced Medicaid expansion. So New Mexico was one of the States that had the most uninsured people per capita and became one of the most insured. Because of that expansion, people were able to get care and help.

As for those rural health clinics that also provide care to so many of our Medicaid beneficiaries in New Mexico, all of a sudden, when Federal Medicaid dollars go away, they might close.

So I am going to go back to my stroke.

Time is not on our side. If someone has to travel hours to try to get into a medical facility because the rural health clinics have closed that might be able to stabilize them in the way that that EMT and that paramedic did for me at the local fire department, they might not heal or, worse, they may not live.

Now I am going to get back to one of the conversations we are having right now: How can we work as Democrats and Republicans and work with the President to ensure that health insurance premiums will not double or triple for the American people?

One of my constituents told me, Senator Merkley, that it is almost like they are reaching into our pockets and just stealing money. What I mean by that is, in New Mexico, if these tax credits go away, it is going to cost people about $7,000 a year--7,000 bucks--for hard- working, middle-class families. That is taking from their pockets.

In addition to that, when they go to the grocery store--well, let me even back up a little. Remember when the President said, when he was running as a candidate, that, on day one, he would lower prices for the American people just like ``that''? Well, at the grocery store, things are getting more expensive. Everything seems to be getting more expensive. Well, that is taking money out of the pockets of the American people--our constituents--who are hard-working families just trying to get by, who are trying to leave better lives for their kids than they had for their own if they are blessed to have children.

Many are worried about how they will even put food on the table now that the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is delayed or even this program called WIC. You know, there are acronyms all over our Nation's Capital. WIC is the program for Women, Infants, and Children.

How are we going to make decisions across the country to make sure that we are going to provide food for the most vulnerable in the richest Nation in the world? Everyone seems to be worried about that except for President Donald Trump.

The reason I say that, Senator, is, this week, all President Donald Trump seems to care about is breaking ground on this $250 million ballroom.

Some constituents have reached out to my office and have asked: Well, what does that mean?

I have told them: Well, the President allowed a bulldozer to go and knock down part of the White House so he could build a $250 million room to throw some parties in. That is essentially what is happening.

I mean, heck, in New Mexico, Senator, if someone is going to do some remodeling of their home, they have to go pull local permits and get permission and follow the rules and all the rest--not this guy. At a time when people are about to have their health insurance premiums double or triple and when food programs are getting taken away, this President says that his priority is to build a $250 million party room. That is a lot of money. That is more money than most people will see in their lives. I mean, heck, $1 million is one of those numbers.

In addition to that, President Trump decided to throw a picnic yesterday for some of my Senate Republican colleagues who wanted to be there. I was told that he gave away thousands of dollars of his own personal Trump swag. What is that--hats? signed bags? pens? I don't know what else was in there--watches? maybe a pair of his shoes? Instead of working to end this shutdown that they started, they decided to have a picnic.

It is my understanding that President Trump may even be leaving the country this weekend. He is leaving for a week as opposed to bringing people together?

I am reminded, Senator Merkley, that President Trump said not too long ago in an interview: If there is a shutdown, it is up to the President to bring people together to prevent the shutdown.

I think, in that same interview, the President said something along the lines of, if there is a shutdown, it is a bad mark on the President. It sounds to me like the President should be bringing people together.

Last night, one of my constituents from Albuquerque, NM, shared with me that she had been furloughed as a Federal employee. She told me she didn't know how she was going to pay this month's bills without a paycheck. She felt that President Trump was doing nothing to end the shutdown, and she didn't know how she could continue handling all the stress of not being paid. That is something else that we are not talking about here--all of the stress and mental health challenges that families are going through.

One of my constituents in Las Vegas, NM, has four children, a mortgage to pay, and his family lives paycheck to paycheck. He said, with all the stress and hurt that is being caused by the Republican shutdown, he doesn't know if people will be able to afford their healthcare if it is taken away.

This week, people across America are watching Donald Trump tear down the east side of the White House to make room for that $250 million ballroom.

There is a story that I just saw coming in, Senator Merkley, about President Trump and that it looks like he is trying to shake down the Department of Justice to get 230 million bucks for himself. And here is the kicker: The person who would actually have to sign off on giving President Trump $230 million in taxpayer money from the Department of Justice is a guy named Todd Blanche. Anyone who knows who this person is knows that Todd Blanche was Donald Trump's personal defense attorney. He didn't do so well because he got convicted, but he is the guy who would have to sign off.

So I will sum it up this way, Senator Merkley--and I have a question for you, sir. My colleague from Hawaii said it perfectly yesterday. Here is the quote:

There is enough money to bail out Argentina with $40 billion.

By the way, for people who don't know what that means, to all the cattle ranchers in America, President Donald Trump said he is going to bail out Argentina and buy $40 billion of their beef. What is that going to do to American cattle producers?

Now back to the quote:

There is enough money to bail out Argentina with $40 billion.

``There is enough money to buy Kristi Noem,'' who is the Secretary of Homeland Security, ``a $173 million [personal] jet,'' just to fly a little more comfortably.

There is enough money to renovate that ballroom for 250 million bucks, but there isn't enough money for you, the American people. It seems to me the priorities are clear.

So will the Senator yield for a question?

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Mr. LUJAN. Senator Merkley, how are Americans supposed to trust an administration that seems to be so focused on giving things to themselves when Americans are worried they won't be able to afford basic necessities like food and health insurance?

I yield to the Senator.

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