Floor Statements

Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before

the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that it stand adjourned under the provisions of S. Res. 343.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate consider the following nominations en bloc: Calendar No. 143, 144, 145, and 272; that the Senate vote on the nominations en bloc without intervening action or debate; that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate; that any statements related to the nominations be printed in the Record and that the President be immediately notified of the Senate's actions; and that the Senate resume legislative session.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the filing deadline for first-degree amendments to the substitute amendment No. 2137 and the underlying bill, H.R. 3684, be at 11:15 a.m. and second- degree amendments at 11:55 a.m. on Saturday, August 7.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 69, S. 610.

I ask unanimous consent that the Murray-Burr amendment at the desk be agreed to; that the committee-reported substitute amendment, as amended, be agreed to.

I ask that the bill, as amended, be read a third time.

I know of no further debate on the bill, as amended.

I ask unanimous consent that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 86, S. 1041.

I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported amendment be agreed to.

I ask unanimous consent that the bill, as amended, be considered read a third time.

I know of no further debate on this measure.

I ask that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 110, S. 812.

I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Veterans' Affairs be discharged from further consideration of S. 1031 and that the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Veterans' Affairs be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 1448 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time.

I know of no further debate on the bill.

I ask unanimous consent that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

Mr. President, I understand that there are two bills at the desk, and I ask for their first reading en bloc.

I now ask for a second reading, and in order to place the bills on the calendar under the provisions of rule XIV, I object to my own request.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the filing deadline for second-degree amendments be at 11:45 a.m. on Saturday, August 7.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 11 a.m., Saturday, August 7; that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and morning business be closed; that upon conclusion of morning business, the Senate resume consideration of H.R. 3684.

Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that it stand adjourned under the previous order.

Mr. President, last week, the world saw something that it had never seen before: surfing as an Olympic sport. The story of how this happened begins with a native Hawaiian named Duke Kahanamoku.

Duke was a natural athlete. He learned to swim at Waikiki Beach, and he went on to win five Olympic swimming medals, including three golds. He was an innovator who pioneered something called the ``Kahanamoku kick,'' or the flutter kick, now used by most freestyle swimmers.

He was a visionary who, after winning gold at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, pressed the International Olympic Committee to make surfing an Olympic sport. He traveled the world to promote surfing, bringing it to the continental United States and Australia and elsewhere, and became known as the father of modern surfing.

But, more than anything else, Duke Kahanamoku was an ambassador of aloha and the spirit of Hawaii. A reporter once asked him if it was a bigger thrill to win gold medals or ``ride some of those giant waves,'' and he answered that surfing was a bigger thrill.

One century later, Duke's vision of Olympic surfing became reality, and there is nothing more fitting than Hawaii's own Carissa Moore winning the first Olympic Gold Medal.

If you want to see what the embodiment of aloha looks like, look no further than Carissa Moore. Like Duke, she shares his native Hawaiian roots and started surfing at Waikiki Beach as a young child. By the time she reached high school, she was already world-class.

She attended my alma mater, Punahou, a school that has graduated more than 30 Olympians and President Obama. Carissa also became the youngest person ever to win a world surfing title, at age 18, and went on to win three more.

Today, she stands alone as the world's top-ranked surfer, but it is not just talent that sets her apart. There is a saying that the best surfer is the one having the most fun, and that is unquestionably the case with Carissa. She is actually the best surfer, and she is also having the most fun.

She has this incredible combination of speed and power in the water and a remarkable humility that she carries with her everywhere that she goes. She is an intense competitor who wants to win every event that she enters but also wants to see her opponents and, more importantly, the sport of surfing itself succeed.

She has a passion to be admired and a joy that is infectious. She is, in short, the rare athlete who must be seen to be believed. And I know because I have seen it in Hawaii, and now the whole world knows too.

After she won the gold medal last week, Carissa spoke of Duke Kahanamoku. ``It was beautiful to see his dream come true a century later,'' she said. She might as well have been speaking for all of Hawaii.

So, today, we honor Duke and the incredible legacy that he left. We honor Carissa Moore for her athleticism and her commitment to inspire the next generation of surfers, especially young girls, and we celebrate the sport of surfing finally getting the recognition that it deserves.

Mr. President, I yield the floor.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

I ask for the yeas and nays.