On the recordJanuary 11, 2022
in a letter written in 1789, Thomas Jefferson declared that the ``earth belongs to the living, not the dead.'' Relationships between generations, he explained, are but that of a distant set of independent nations. Mr. President, I don't know how many of my Democratic colleagues still admire Mr. Jefferson, but they are certainly taking his words to heart. There is little concern on one side of this Chamber about the impact of our actions beyond our own time here. There is a belief that the importance of this hour's partisan ambitions outweighs the value of centuries-old institutions. Abandoning the 60-vote threshold in order to seize control of America's elections isn't simply shortsighted, it is clueless. It is the exact opposite of what the people who sent us here want. Back home in Indiana, I hear from anxious Hoosiers because these are anxious times. I know what is on their minds--rising inflation, the cost of putting food on their table and gas in their tanks. I hear from them about paying to heat their homes. Many are struggling to pay next month's rent. They are tired of and still worried about a pandemic that President Biden promised to shut down, and they are angry. Many are angry about a southern border that this President has left wide open.…
Source
govinfo.gov




