John Barrasso · TranslatePolitics.com

Senate

Order for Adjournment

2026-07-20

“I want the Senate to finish for the day after my colleagues speak.”

Senate

Orders for Tuesday, July 21, 2026

2026-07-20

“You all know what I want. I want the usual schedule and rules for our next meeting on Tuesday. Let's go through the motions and get this done.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 10 a.m. on Tuesday, July 21; that following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, morning business be closed, and the Senate proceed to executive session to resume consideration of the Flowers nomination; further, that the Senate recess tomorrow from 12:30 until 2:15 p.m. for the weekly conference meetings and that all time during leader remarks, recess, and adjournment count postcloture on the Flowers nomination; and finally, that if any nominations are confirmed during Tuesday's session of the Senate, the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's actions.

View on ourcommons.ca ↗

Senate

Cloture Motion (Executive Calendar)

2026-07-20

“Some Senators are absent. One would vote yes if he was here.”

Senate

Providing for Congressional Disapproval Under Chapter 8 of Title 5, United States Code, of the Rule Submitted by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services of the Department of Health and Human...

2026-07-16

“I want to say who is absent. Some Senators are not here. They did not vote. I want the record to show how they would have voted.”

Senate

Cloture Motion (Executive Session)

2026-07-16

“Some people are not here. One would vote yes if he was here.”

Senate

Wyoming (Executive Session)

2026-07-16

“I want you to think Democrats are bad. Democrats are extreme and scary. Democrats will make everything bad. Democrats want open borders and high taxes. Democrats want to defund the police and weaken law enforcement. Democrats want to change the Constitution and control the Supreme Court. Democrats want to control the selection of the next President. I want you to be scared of Democrats. Republicans are good. Republicans passed tax cuts and secured the border. Republicans stand for freedom and American greatness. I want you to like Republicans and not like Democrats. I want you to think Republicans are good and Democrats are bad.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. President, over just the last couple of weeks, the people of Wyoming have celebrated two very important events: July 4, Independence Day, as America turned 250; and July 10, Wyoming Statehood Day. My home State of Wyoming turned 136 that day. We celebrated both of those great occurrences all across the State for a full week. We had the iconic Cody Stampede Rodeo in Cody, WY. We saw volunteers in Gillette serve over 4,000 hot dogs at the Independence Day community celebration. We saw the Boy Scouts in Sheridan serve over 1,000 pancake breakfasts. And my Rotary Club in Casper celebrated the values that started our country. We had Wyoming best-selling author C.J. Box read the Declaration of Independence at a community gathering in Carbon County. The streets were packed for the Independence Day parade in Cody, and people then gathered at Veterans Park for the annual ``Let Freedom Ring'' celebration. The seats were full for the Big Wyo Rodeo in Sheridan and the Casper Rodeo finals just this past Saturday night. Our entire congressional delegation attended parades and festivities all across the Cowboy State. This is the America that we saw these past 2 weeks. Yet there is another vision being offered to this country today, and we see it on the other side of the aisle. It is the vision being offered by the Democrats, and it is a dark vision, indeed. It is a vision of open borders, of high taxes, and of lawlessness. It is a vision that damages our communities and disrespects the values that Americans hold dear. Today's Democrat Party has taken a radical turn to the left. Today's Democrat leadership is enabling it. America's largest city--the hometown of the minority leader, Senator Schumer--is now being run by a professed socialist. Our Nation's Capital is about to elect one as well. People proclaiming to be socialists are winning Democrat primaries across the country. In Michigan, a Democrat front-runner for the U.S. Senate is campaigning with an extremist who blames America for the September 11 terrorist attacks. These were the attacks that 25 years ago cost the lives of 2,977 Americans. Extremism drives the Democrat Party, and its influence within the party is growing. Here is what they want: Democrats want open borders. Democrats want to defund the police. Democrats want to abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Democrats want to abolish the U.S. Border Patrol. Democrats want to weaken law enforcement. They want to make it harder to remove illegal immigrant criminals from our communities. Democrats want to pack the Supreme Court. They want judges who will rewrite the law and ignore the Constitution. Democrats want to abolish the electoral college. They want to make it possible for only a handful of big cities in blue States to control the selection of the next President. Democrats want higher taxes. They want hard-working American families to pay for healthcare for illegal immigrants. Democrats want to keep affordable, available, reliable American energy in the ground. That is today's Democrat Party. They are radical, they are extreme, they are dangerous, and they are scary. You may have noticed that, in the middle of a heat wave, the new Democrat mayor told New Yorkers to turn up their air conditioning to 78 degrees. Why? Because the New York power grid was collapsing. How could that be? Why was the New York power grid collapsing? Well, because New York Democrats--pressured by climate extremists--shut down reliable nuclear powerplants. Welcome to the Democrat Party of 2026. Alarmingly, in this very Chamber, Democrat leaders are cheering on the radical left. After socialists swept their primaries this summer, one Democrat Senator said that ``this is a very good trend.'' Another said it is a sign that their party is ``alive and well.'' Another said we are now seeing the ``future of the Democrat Party.'' By contrast, Republicans continue to deliver results. We passed the Working Families Tax Cut law. We stopped the largest tax increase in American history. We put more money back into the pockets of millions of hard-working Americans. Ninety-six percent of Americans who make under $200,000 a year benefited from the Working Families Tax Cut law. Republicans secured the border. We passed the largest investment in border security in American history. We fully funded ICE and Border Patrol for the next 3 years, and we are deporting illegal immigrant criminals. The contrast is clear: Democrats stand for high taxes, open borders, and lawlessness. Republicans stand for freedom, liberty, and American greatness. America is worth defending. America is worth celebrating. America is worth fighting for. That is what Republicans are committed to doing, and that is what we did as the people of Wyoming over the Fourth of July. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

View on ourcommons.ca ↗

Senate

National Defense Authorization Act (Executive Session)

2026-07-15

“You blocked military funding. You put politics over national security. You voted against many things for the military. You flip-flopped. You voted against good things for troops. You voted against many things that protect our nation. You voted against saving taxpayer money. You voted against things I like. You called missile defense wasteful spending. I think that is remarkable. You act like penny-pinchers when it comes to the military. But you spend lots on other things that I don't like. I think you are radical and dangerous and scary. The world is dangerous. In conclusion, you are disrespecting the troops and undermining America. We need to pass this bill.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. President, few votes in this body are as important as the vote to fund our troops, our military. Yesterday, right here on this floor, the U.S. Senate--every single Democrat--voted to block that funding. And just 10 minutes ago, the minority leader came to the floor and bragged about the fact that the Democrats had blocked the funding for our military. He stood here and said they are proud of the fact that they are, once again, choosing politics over the security of our Nation. That is what we're facing here in the U.S. Senate today. We're talking about the National Defense Authorization Act, and this Congress has passed this bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act every year for the past 65 years. And when it came to the floor of the Senate yesterday, the minority leader said to the Democrats: Say no. Say no to the military. I am going to go through the list of all the things they said no to yesterday. This year should be no different than the other years--65 years in a row. This year's Defense bill gives our military every tool it needs to keep us, as Americans, safe. It invests in peace through strength at home and abroad. Importantly, this bill provides a pay raise for the men and women who defend our Nation. Every single Democrat in this Chamber joined Senator Schumer, joined Bernie Sanders, and joined Elizabeth Warren and said: No, we are not voting for it. We are not voting for it. That is what they said. They refused to allow the debate to even begin. This was before the bill even started the debate here on the floor of the Senate. And it is interesting because many of them flip- flopped. What do I mean by that? It means that, first, many of them voted for the bill in the committee in order to send it to the floor. Then it gets to the floor, and what happens? All of them vote to block it from even beginning the debate. Apparently, Democrats were for it before they were against it. Here is what Democrats voted against: They voted against higher pay for our troops. They voted against better healthcare for our service members and their families. Democrats voted against better housing for our troops. Democrats voted against stronger deterrence. Democrats voted against a more lethal military. Democrats voted against a larger, stronger Navy. Democrats even voted against a modern nuclear deterrent. Don't we want to deter nuclear war? This is at a time when nuclear weapons are proliferating all around the world. In my home State of Wyoming, we have F.E. Warren Air Force Base. The airmen who serve there are the lynchpin of our land-based nuclear force. The deterrence there has been known over the decades as our Nation's ``ace in the hole.'' That is how it works--the desire to protect us as a nation. Democrats voted against all of it. They actually even voted against expanding our military recruitment effort. They don't want us to be able to recruit for the military, and they don't want the military to be properly funded and equipped in a way that protects us as a nation. Democrats actually even voted against more savings for taxpayers. Democrats voted against protecting women's sports at our military schools. No, they don't want any of that. Democrats voted against promotions based on merit and merit alone: Oh, no. You have merited and earned a promotion? No, you are not getting it on merit alone. That is who the Democrats have become. That is the threat to our Nation--this far-leftist group that is telling the Democrats here on the floor of the Senate what to do. And for things that had been bipartisan in the past, they said: No, we can't do that anymore. This far-left wing of the party is telling us what to do and how to march in step. Democrats voted against ending harmful DEI mandates. They voted against stronger border security. They like open borders. They don't want border security. They voted against funding to combat against the cartels that are moving poison into the country--killing young people in record numbers. Democrats voted against stopping the flood of deadly drugs and illegal border crossings. Just 2 days ago, right here on the Senate floor, the Senator from Maryland, Senator Chris Van Hollen, said this: Missile defense--to defend against incoming missiles for the American people--was wasteful spending. It is remarkable. Defending the country is wasteful spending. That is who the Democrats have become. The Democrats act like pennypinchers when it comes to paying our troops to protect our homeland; yet, they accept the astronomical cost of the waste, the fraud, and the abuse--free healthcare for illegal immigrants, the fraud that is happening like we are seeing in Minnesota, and all of those things. The Democrats are for all of that, but they are not for our troops, and they are not for defending our Nation. That is the Democrat Party of today. The Democrats of today are radical; they are extreme; they are dangerous; they are scary. Well, the world is a dangerous place, and by voting against the National Defense Authorization Act, the Democrats are disrespecting the American troops; they are undermining American security; and Democrats are jeopardizing America's strength. Look, our friend Lindsey Graham believed in peace through strength. I do, as well as do most Americans--but not the Democrat Party of today. It is time for us to act on that belief: that America is best when we are strong and it helps make us more safe. It is time for the Senate to pass a bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act, and it is time for Democrats to act like Americans. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

View on ourcommons.ca ↗

Senate

Vote on Schwartz Nomination (Executive Session)

2026-07-14

“I want to talk about who is absent and who voted yes or no. A man from Pennsylvania and a man from California were not here. One man was picked for a job. People from some States said yes. People from some other States said no. The Senate decided he can have the job.”

Senate

Remembering Lindsey Graham (Executive Session)

2026-07-14

“I want to remember Lindsey Graham. He was my friend. He did a lot for South Carolina and for the military. He made people laugh. He helped me with votes in the Senate. He fought for things he believed in. He helped confirm judges. He worked with other people to get things done. He was important in the Senate. I am sad he is gone.”

Official Congressional Record

Mr. President, I rise today to honor my good friend and colleague Lindsey Graham. Our colleague from South Carolina led an impactful life. He leaves an impressive legacy, and he left all of us important lessons for life. The great cause to which Lindsey Graham devoted his life was the United States of America. That is what it was from day one all the way to the end. Lindsey Graham loved America. He believed that our Nation is exceptional, as do so many of us. He believed our Nation was worth fighting for. He believed especially in the American people. He fought for the people of his home State of South Carolina and the people of this great country every single day, and he did it with determination. He always believed that America was a nation that he needed to fight for every day to make us safer and stronger. His life was shaped early on by duty and by love. Tragedy came early. At the age of 21, he lost both of his parents within 15 months. At the time, he began raising his 13-year-old sister Darline. He made sure that she stayed in school and went on to continue her education in college. He was with her all the way. He later adopted her. Lindsey once said that he was most proud of the woman that Darline had become. Now Darline is going to fill her brother's seat right here in the U.S. Senate, and there is nobody better to carry on Lindsey's legacy than his beloved sister. Lindsey was a strong advocate for our military. He joined the Air Force right out of law school, and he served our Nation, in uniform, for 33 years. He remained in the Reserves even while serving in Congress. One year, over New Year's, Lindsey was serving in Afghanistan. I went and met him there, and we went and visited with the troops from my home State of Wyoming and with his troops from South Carolina. He never let anyone forget how proud he was of our servicemembers and of our country. Lindsey's dad ran a bar in South Carolina. Lindsey talked about it often. He used to say it was good training for his life in politics. Lindsey told me that one of the key lessons he learned from his father was this: The key to being a successful bar owner in South Carolina-- probably or anywhere--is you have to be funny enough that people will keep coming back, and you have to be tough enough so people won't take over your business. That was Lindsey Graham. He was the funniest man in the U.S. Senate. His humor was like Super Glue. It brought people together. It kept them together. Lindsey and I traveled the world, often to war zones, and when you traveled with Lindsey, you visited a lot of tough places around the world. We visited Iraq, Afghanistan, Ukraine. We traveled to show our support for the men and women of our military. Lindsey and I got to know each other on those long trips, and we shared a lot of laughs. I will never forget how much fun it was with Lindsey to sing the lyrics of the old television shows, the ones from the fifties, sixties, and early seventies. Some of his favorites--and he knew all the words--were ``Gilligan's Island,'' ``The Beverly Hillbillies,'' ``The Addams Family,'' ``Green Acres,'' ``F Troop,'' and, of course, ``Car 54, Where Are You?'' We would sing together, we would laugh, and these moments will stay with me forever. His friendship meant the world to me. You know, Lindsey was constantly on the move. He just returned from Ukraine this past weekend. He was scheduled to be on ``Meet the Press'' on Sunday morning in the studio. I think his favorite three places to be were at home in South Carolina, on the golf course with President Trump, and in front of the TV camera for Sunday morning news shows. His greatest strength, of course, was his character. In Congress, people are often divided into show horses and workhorses. Lindsey was both. He was a show horse and a workhorse, and he was the best at both. As President Trump said on Sunday morning, Lindsey was uncommonly hard-working, energetic, and steadfast. When Lindsey believed in something, he fought for it, and no one was more effective. The American people remember his stirring defense of now-Justice Brett Kavanaugh. It was an incredible moment, and his words changed the course of history. Lindsey was a true conservative, and he also believed in working across the aisle. He wanted to tackle our Nation's most pressing challenges, and he knew in many ways you had to do that in a bipartisan way. He believed in the Reagan approach: If you can't get the whole loaf at once, take it a slice at a time. That is how the Senate is supposed to work. Lindsey chaired some of the most powerful committees in this Chamber. As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, he led the second fastest confirmation of a Supreme Court Justice of all times--Amy Coney Barrett. When this Congress began in 2025, he became the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee. He made clear that he would carry out the agenda that the American people had just voted for in November of 2024. He guided the Senate through some of the toughest battles we have ever had. The Working Families Tax Cut law and the Secure America Act are a direct result of Lindsey Graham's leadership. As whip, my job is to count the votes, and I could always count on Lindsey to help when the votes were close. The Senate has taken 135 votes on hostile amendments from the Democrats in the last year and a half. They were trying to undermine the Republican agenda. Thanks to Lindsey's persistence and his help, we did not lose a single one. Lindsey truly was a force of nature here in the Senate. From the cloakroom to the committee room, to the campaign trail, he brimmed with ideas and with energy. That is what makes his passing and the timing of it so tragic. He was at the peak of his influence and impact. He still had so much more to do and to give. The U.S. Senate will never see anyone quite like Lindsey Graham again. He was a happy warrior, he always put service before himself, and he believed in the Senate as an institution. He continued to shape it throughout his successful and significant career. He helped make America stronger and safer. I join the entire Senate and his friends and his family in mourning the loss of our dear friend Lindsey Graham. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Sheehy). The clerk will call the roll. The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.

View on ourcommons.ca ↗

Senate

Vote on Jones Nomination (Executive Calendar)

2026-07-13

“I want to say who is not here today.”