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Floor Speech
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Mr. SCHUMER. Well, Mr. President, today, every Senator must answer a very simple question: Senator, do you want chaos at our airports to come down--yes or no, Senator?
Let me repeat the question: Republican Senator, do you want the chaos at our airports to come down--yes or no? If you have had enough of long lines, if you want TSA workers to get paid, then vote yes on the motion I am bringing before the Senate today.
It is unacceptable for workers and travelers and entire airports to get taken hostage in political games, but that is what the Republicans are doing. It is unacceptable to say we will only pay TSA workers if it is attached to a bill that funds ICE with no reforms, but that is what the Republicans have been doing.
Democrats want to pay TSA workers ASAP, with no strings attached. A ``yes'' vote will do that. That is the first time in this Chamber that we will have an opportunity to vote yes or no on whether you want to pay TSA workers ASAP, with no strings attached.
Every bill they have brought before the Senate says: Oh, yes, we want to pay the TSA workers, we want to reduce the lines at airports, but only if you pass ICE funding with no reform.
And the American people want reform. They know that, but you have got Stephen Miller up there in the White House and so many others who don't want any reform of ICE, and our Republican Senate friends are willingly going along with that and holding airports, travelers, and TSA workers hostage.
We Democrats want to bring down the long lines at the airport, and a ``yes'' vote--plain and simple--would do just that. I urge Republicans to support my motion.
The chaos at airports has reached a boiling point. People have been waiting for 2 hours, 3 hours--sometimes more--just to get through security. One couple in Austin said the lines stretched right out the door and into the grass outside the airport.
Meanwhile, TSA workers are about to go a full month without pay. That is unacceptable. It means they cannot pay the rent or the mortgage, they cannot buy groceries, and they are digging into their savings just to get by--these hard-working, good people. And at the same time, they are being asked to work brutal hours.
It is no surprise many of them have been calling in sick. It is not even a surprise that many are looking for other jobs. They have to support their families and themselves. We need to bring this to an end today--today--and that is what we can start doing with a ``yes vote'' on our motion.
As I have said, we have seen a lot of rollcall votes over the past few weeks on the floor related to DHS funding, and they say they want to get up and fund TSA. But they want to fund all of DHS--even ICE, even Border Patrol--with no reform.
This vote today is different from what our colleagues on the other side have offered. It is a breakthrough because it says: Fund TSA only. Vote ``fund TSA with no strings attached.''
Republicans, in essence, say they want to reopen all of DHS but only if there are no changes to ICE and Border Patrol when they vote. That is not acceptable, not just to us, not just to Democrats but to the American people.
The American people feel very strongly that ICE's conduct needs to be reined in. Trump himself, the originator of these horrible ICE goon squads, has said they have gone too far.
We can't just give ICE a blank check to keep operating without guardrails, as Republicans have proposed in their previous votes. So, today, Democrats offer to pay TSA without the anchor of demanding funding of ICE and CBP without any guardrails, which is what the Republicans are doing.
We want to open TSA with no strings attached.
Let me repeat: no strings attached.
There is not one bill the Republicans have brought forward that doesn't have strings attached--strings that don't let it have a majority vote.
Now, we are having productive conversations on reforming ICE and CBP, and Democrats remain committed to securing reforms. But that is an ongoing process. We are meeting today again, but we must fund TSA now.
Let us keep negotiating the outstanding issues with ICE, but let us start sending paychecks to TSA workers now. Let us bring the long lines at the airports--let us end the long lines at the airport now. This is the logical, expedient, correct thing to do.
So in conclusion, I urge my Republican colleagues: Vote yes if you want to pay TSA. Vote yes if you want to bring down the long lines at airports. Vote yes today.
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