[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 36 (Monday, February 24, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Page S1307]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                 Budget

  Mr. President, on the Republican budget, last week, Senate 
Republicans passed their budget resolution, clearing the way to massive 
tax giveaways for Donald Trump's billionaire buddies. From the moment 
Donald Trump was sworn in, everything Republicans have done can be 
boiled down to this: Billionaires win; American families lose. That is 
the Republican agenda in a nutshell.
  This week, it is House Republican's turn. Today, I want to say this 
about the Republican plan in the House: It doesn't matter which path 
Republicans ultimately go with--one bill, two bills, 50 bills. At the 
end of the day, Republicans are very clear: They want to cut taxes for 
billionaires and have the American people pay the cost.
  Republicans want to perhaps push the biggest cuts to Medicaid ever so 
billionaires can have another tax break. That is morally corrupt and 
politically bankrupt.
  With a government shutdown just a few weeks away, what are 
Republicans doing? They are spending precious time trying to cater to 
the wishes of the absolutely richest people in America, instead of 
working to avoid a disastrous halt of services that help tens of 
millions of middle-class American families. Their priorities are 
utterly skewed and upside down.
  If House Republicans proceed this week, the backlash, ``upsetness,'' 
and anger House Republicans saw in their townhalls last week is only 
going to get far more thunderous.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alabama.
  Mrs. BRITT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.


           Remembering Lieutenant Colonel Harry Stewart, Jr.

  Mrs. BRITT. Mr. President, earlier this month, the United States of 
America lost a legend: Harry Stewart, Jr., one of the last surviving 
Tuskegee Airmen, died at the age of 100.
  Lieutenant Colonel Stewart's legacy is one of excellence. He grew up 
watching planes come in and out of LaGuardia Airport, dreaming of one 
day flying himself.
  At just 18 years old, Lieutenant Colonel Stewart joined a new 
initiative launched in Alabama; a first of its kind training program 
for Black pilots established after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.
  He flew 43 missions from late 1944 to the spring of 1945 with the 
332nd Fighter Group; earning the Distinguished Flying Cross after 
downing three German planes in a dogfight just before the Allied 
victory in Europe.
  Lieutenant Colonel Stewart didn't recognize the gravity of what he 
was doing at the time, he said in an interview just last year. He just 
wanted to serve his country, and serve his country he did.
  But let's stop for a moment and think about what that means. 
Lieutenant Colonel Stewart and the rest of the Tuskegee Airmen signed 
up to fight for a country that did not allow them the same rights as 
White citizens. They put their lives on the line to fight for a country 
that treated them as second class.
  They could not live, work, eat, or drink alongside White countrymen 
or women. It was a world where people who looked like them could be met 
with violent attacks just because of the color of their skin. Consider 
what that means--that Lieutenant Colonel Stewart and the Tuskegee 
Airmen dealt with all kinds of discrimination, and yet still decided to 
risk everything to serve this Nation.
  They faced almost inconceivable injustices, but they also believed in 
the promise of America, even though that promise wasn't being met. They 
fought for that promise against the Nazis in Europe and in doing so, 
blazed a trail for countless others to follow.
  After the war, Lieutenant Colonel Stewart and three of his fellow 
Tuskegee Airmen won the U.S. Air Force's inaugural TOPGUN competition, 
an accomplishment that wasn't acknowledged, though, until decades 
later.
  Unfortunately, that was a common theme for Lieutenant Colonel Stewart 
after the war. After aspiring to become an airline pilot his whole life 
and even after serving heroically and earning the Distinguished Flying 
Cross, he was prevented from flying commercial jets because of his 
race.
  Instead, he earned a mechanical engineering degree from New York 
University and remained in the Air Force Reserve. He taught the next 
generations of pilots until being recalled for duty during the Korean 
war. It wasn't until 2007 that the Tuskegee Airmen received the 
Congressional Gold Medal for their valor.
  The legacies of Harry Stewart, Jr., and the rest of the pilots who 
made history, should be recognized as central to America's story.
  In his first term, President Trump promoted Airman Charles McGee to 
brigadier general and pinned his stars in the Oval Office.
  In his second term, Secretary Hegseth has reaffirmed that the Trump 
administration will continue to honor these heroes, and the Tuskegee 
Airmen will remain role models not only for the next generation of 
American servicemembers but for all Americans.
  Lt. Col. Harry Stewart, Jr., and the pilots he flew with represent 
the best of America. Their courage and selflessness in the face of 
adversity both at home and at war are inspirational.
  And their legacies--those of greatness and unquestionable merit--
deserve to be celebrated amongst the rest of our country's heroes, not 
just during Black History Month but all throughout the year.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mrs. Britt). The Democratic whip.
  (The remarks of Mr. Durbin pertaining to the submission of S. Res. 91 
are printed in today's Record under ``Submitted Resolutions.'')
  Mr. DURBIN. I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.