tomorrow the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the case Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt. The central issue of this case is an attack by the State of Texas on women's health and the clinics that provide abortion services. I wish…

I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt

You cannot turn your back on the workers and retirees in these communities when times get tough.

But it is like all of this was just dumped on us overnight like a tsunami.

There was never any doubt that our money was going to be there.

We ought to be looking, for example, at reforming the common bond provision, which has been a vital part of retirement policy debates in the past.

What this is really about is making sure that Congress ensures that the promise that pension benefits are all about is protected.

This is an extraordinarily important time for our country, colleagues, because there is a longstanding principal of pension law that says you do not take away benefits that our workers have earned.

It is so important that the committee move and move quickly.

my hope is--and your Senators and others have been constantly bringing this up with the chairman--that the wakeup call that you have delivered this morning really results in a bipartisan solution, and fast.

To me, in our country, you just do not snatch away pension rights from Americans who never did anything but the right thing.

We need to get over that illusion.

The Finance Committee is a place where Democrats and Republicans can come together to find solutions to the enormous retirement challenge in America.

the very first time was after Congress passed this ill-advised law that I was so strongly opposed to.

In this country, that is not the way it is supposed to work.

Thousands of coal miners' pensions are hanging in the balance, and the clock is ticking down to disaster for retired coal miners in the coming months.

tonight the Senate voted to turn its attention to the issue of opioid addiction. Clearly, what we know now is that opioid addiction has carved a path of destruction across America--a path of destruction from Medford, OR, to Manchester, NH…

Part of the reason why I think the law is necessary is because I do not see another way to keep the plan from running out of money entirely.

this month marks 5 years since Bahrainis of all backgrounds took to the streets in Manama in peaceful protest, calling for reform in their country. As Senators have heard me recount here before, the Government of Bahrain responded with…

I do not need a justification. You just made the justification why we owe it to retirees to correct this and not just leave Wall Street with all the cash.

If they decide that they are met, they will say so.

In this country, there is a longstanding principle of pension law that says you don't take away benefits that workers have earned. But unless Congress acts soon, that guarantee is about to be broken.

It is my view that this committee and the Congress should move on this bill as soon as possible.

it is critical at the same time to step up treatment, because the addiction does not go away.

As the committee that's required to pay for the most important health programs in the nation, the Finance Committee needs to do its part to address the opioid crisis.