Amy Klobuchar, John Boozman Spar Over Amendment On Big Beautiful Bill

Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Sen. John Boozman (R-AR) spoke about an amendment to the Republican Big Beautiful Bill on the Senate floor Tuesday.

Transcript

00:00Senator from Minnesota. Mr. President, I call up my amendment with Senator

00:04Kelly of Arizona, number 2849, and ask that it be reported by number. Clerk will

00:11report. Senator from Minnesota, Ms. Klobuchar for herself and Mr. Kelly

00:16proposes an amendment number 2849 to amendment number 2848. Mr. President, in

00:25addition to the many outrages of this bill, $4 trillion in debt, millions of

00:30people off of their health care, in the middle of the night it got worse, and it's

00:35something that must see the light of day. And that is, we all know it shifts $64

00:41billion to the states that they can't pay for, for food assistance, on the backs of

00:47veterans, on the backs of kids, on the backs of people with disabilities. But the

00:52whole reason we were told that it was shifted over to the states was so that

00:57we would incentivize states to reduce errors. In the middle of the night, the

01:02biggest hypocrisy of the entire bill, the Republicans have rewarded states that

01:08have the highest error rates in the country. Ten states with the highest error

01:13rates just to help Alaska, which has the highest error rate. So the message to the

01:19country and the nation's governors from the Republican senators is this. Raise your

01:23error rates. Get them up to 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%. Make a whole bunch of mistakes when it

01:30comes to SNAP, because then you'll get more money. You won't have your cuts for a

01:35year. You won't even have them for the next year. For the rest of us, the states,

01:39all the states in the Midwest that are doing their best, they got to pay in. So

01:44senators decide, are you going to go with your states? Are you going to reward waste

01:49fraud and abuse? Because with this provision that you put in there, you have done the

01:54opposite. Strike this fiscal insanity from the bill and vote yes.

01:59Mr. President. Senator from Arkansas. I rise in opposition to the amendment offered by my colleague from Minnesota.

02:07We have amended the state matching funds requirement for SNAP to provide a delayed

02:15implementation implementation date for states that have extremely high payment

02:22rates, payment error rates. These states will have additional time to plan, to budget, and to adjust.

02:30This will help all states be ready for the change. By 2030, all states will have phased in and be subject to the

02:42matching funds requirement. The states involved, if we did fiscal year 24, again, the key to this is doing it in a fair way.

02:53Alaska is one of the states. Maryland is one of the states. Oregon is one of the states. New York is one of the states.

03:02Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, Florida, Georgia, Alaska, and DC. Hardly Republican priorities.

03:14And I would do, as Amy said, I would vote what's important to your state. And if you've got a high error rate, this allows you

03:23additional time in order to get your house in order so that you will not be penalized.

03:31And with that, I ask for a yeas and a nays and encourage a positive vote. A no vote. A positive vote, meaning a no vote.

03:46Is there a sufficient second?

03:50There appears to be. There is. The clerk will call the roll.

03:56There appears to be. There is. The clerk will call the roll here.

03:58The clerk will call the roll.

03:59Greater TSON năm in town.

04:12Now just Note on that 5 fifth a sunday case note here.

04:20The clerk will call the post commentص.

04:21And Robot is the Formula is set.