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Floor Speech
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Mrs. BLACKBURN. 136, H.R. 4016.
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Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. President, it is hard to believe that we are nearly at the end of the year, and that is the end of the year since we started this session of Congress and also President Trump's second term in office.
And in that time, there is so much that we have done to get this country back on track and to begin to undo the damage that was inflicted on so many Americans by the Biden administration. We could take a look at the economy because under the Biden administration, inflation reached its highest point in over four decades; far-left regulations killed jobs, and it held industry back; and our trade deficit exploded. Now, in Tennessee, that hurt our farmers and our manufacturers.
Today, the U.S. economy is on the path to being stronger than ever before, thanks to the President's pro-growth agenda, trillions of dollars in new investments, the largest tax cut in history. All of that came about through the Big Beautiful Bill.
Inflation is down 67 percent; jobless claims are beginning to come down; and the most recent data shows that the U.S. economy is growing at an annual rate of 3.8 percent. Now, that is the fastest pace in nearly 2 years.
At the same time, President Trump and his administration have completely reversed the Biden policies and failures at the southern border. For 4 years, President Biden claimed that there was nothing that he could do--nothing at all--to stop more than 10 million illegal aliens from entering our country, including tens of thousands of convicted criminals.
At one point, the daily average of border encounters topped 15,000, and across the country, Americans suffered the tragic consequences, including rampant migrant crime. Today, our border is secure, thanks to President Trump's strong enforcement of the rule of law. Last month, there were just under 8,000 Border Patrol apprehensions at the southwest border--95 percent lower than the monthly average under President Biden. And unlike the Biden administration, President Trump is turning these lawbreakers away instead of welcoming them with taxpayer-funded benefits.
For the sixth straight month, there were zero parole releases into our country. By comparison, in October of 2024 alone, Biden released more than 10,000 illegal aliens into the country.
President Trump and Republicans are also working to undo the damage done by President Biden's two-tiered justice system. Under his watch, the Justice Department and the FBI were rotten to the core, targeting anyone who stood up to the deep State.
They raided Mar-a-Lago, indicted President Trump on baseless charges, and weaponized America's top law enforcement Agency against conservatives, parents, and people of faith. Through Jack Reed Smith's Arctic Frost probe, this abuse of power reached the Halls of Congress, surveilling lawmakers over our political beliefs. The American people want one tier of justice: equal justice for all.
That is why President Trump and Republicans are fighting for full accountability for those who weaponized our government. We must ensure that this abuse of power never ever happens again.
Under the President's leadership, our Federal law enforcement Agencies are focused on their core purpose, enforcing the rule of law and fighting crime. Now, when we talk about fighting crime in Tennessee, we look at Memphis. Last year, the city recorded the highest crime rate in the country, and, for years, Memphians have demanded action to address the crime crisis.
Now President Trump is delivering it with the Memphis Safe Task Force. By coordinating efforts between more than a dozen Federal and State Agencies, including the Memphis Police Department, Tennessee National Guard, FBI, Justice Department, and U.S. Marshals, the task force is delivering incredible results.
In just over a month of operations, authorities have made more than 2,800 arrests, including 164 warrant arrests for aggravated assault, 185 for domestic violence, 83 for narcotics, 34 for robbery, 22 for sexual assault, 25 for homicide. The task force has also located more than 110 missing children. In many ways, the Memphis Safe Task Force is serving as a national model for President Trump's broader mission to reduce violent crime across the country.
Mr. President, that is why I am asking unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 505, which is at the desk; further, that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.
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Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. President, what the Senator fails to mention is that the cities with the high crime problem are blue cities. They are blue cities.
Also, what he should know is that 63 percent of the residents of Memphis support having the Memphis Safe Task Force fighting the crime that is there.
Now, Memphis had the highest rate per capita in the Nation in 2024, with 2,501 instances of violent crime for every 100,000 people. Now, that is a stat that came from the FBI, and it is why the people in Memphis wanted us to move forward and do something about this.
Since the start of the task force, overall, violent crime rates have fallen 46 percent when compared to the same period last year, and homicides are down 50 percent. Carjackings and sexual assault are down 60 percent.
So when my colleague objects to this, he is objecting to what the good people of Memphis in this fabulous, iconic city are seeing--the results they are seeing. They want Memphis to be the safest city in the country, not the most violent.
They have objected to the arrest of nearly 2,900 criminals in the last 50 days, including sex offenders, murderers, and other violent criminals. They have objected to the rescue of 116 missing children-- 116 children who have been recovered. They have objected to over 300 known gang members being apprehended. They have objected to the seizure of 470 illegal firearms.
We are going to continue to work to make certain that Memphis is the safest city in the United States.
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