Floor Statements

If I can interrupt my friend, I ask the Senate adjourn following the appearance of the Senator from Arkansas, Mr. Pryor, to make a unanimous consent request. Following that, the Senate would adjourn under the previous order.

If my distinguished colleague will yield, it is my understanding also that the two managers have agreed to set aside the pending amendments for other amendments to be offered. I believe that is the case.

I think those who have amendments should get to the Chamber as quickly as they can because one of the sponsors of one of the amendments now pending will not be here until this afternoon. So we can move that along with other amendments. It is my understanding that this bill, when it was up last year, took 8 weeks. It is my understanding that the majority leader wants to finish this bill within the next 2 weeks. So that is a really big order because some of these amendments are very difficult. Some of the issues are difficult.

I suggest we should get on this as quickly as possible because it is going to be very difficult to finish this bill in 2 weeks.

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

I announce that the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Edwards), the Senator Florida (Mr. Graham), the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry), and the Senator from Connecticut (Mr. Lieberman) are necessarily absent.

I further announce that if present and voting, the Senator from Florida (Mr. Graham) and the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry) would each vote ``nay''.

I announce that the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Edwards), the Senator from Florida (Mr. Graham), the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry), and the Senator from Connecticut (Mr. Lieberman) are necessarily absent.

I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from Florida (Mr. Graham) and the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry) would each vote ``nay.''

I move to reconsider the vote.

I ask unanimous consent that the majority whip be recognized to speak for up to 5 minutes.

Will the Senator yield?

I wonder, does the Senator think any parents of these kids earning $10,000 to $26,000 a year, do they benefit from the cut in dividend payments from corporations? Do you think they benefit much from that, which was in the final version of the bill?

Will the Senator yield?

The Senator and I have been back in Washington for some time. Right out these doors and various other places in the Capitol, there are lobbyists, lobbyists who represent interests. Did the Senator run into any lobbyists during consideration of the tax bill, the people wearing the Gucci shoes, delivered to the Capitol in limousines, lobbyists representing these people who were left out of the benefits of this tax bill passed 2 weeks ago?

Mr. President, will the Senator yield for a statement?

Mr. President, I have been waiting to be recognized so I could lay on this Record a compliment from me, the people of the State of Nevada, and the country for the brilliant statement the Senator made this past Saturday on national radio. Rarely are the statements of the Democrats who follow the President's weekly address picked up on the weekly and hourly news shows on the weekends. But the statement of the Senator from Arkansas was on the news all Saturday afternoon and all day Sunday, the reason being that it was such a timely statement the Senator made. It is obvious that it had a tremendous impact because we have now heard from the majority. Paraphrasing the statements we have heard over here today: Yes, I guess we could have done a little better, and we will work something out so there will be some adjustments made on how children in America are treated for tax purposes.

The Senator from Arkansas, I believe, can take much of the credit for our being here today. I told her personally, and I want to say publicly, she did a tremendous job representing the people of Nevada and the rest of the country.

Will the Senator yield for a question?

How long did my friend serve in the House of Representatives?

During that period of time, you served, as did I, with the now majority leader in the House of Representatives, Mr. DeLay; is that true?

Is the Senator aware of a statement made by the Republican majority leader in the United States House of Representatives today that said:

They had their chance. There is a lot of other things that

are more important than that. To me it is a little difficult

to give tax relief to people who don't pay income taxes.

Is the Senator aware that the majority leader of the House of Representatives has made this statement today?

The majority leader said:

They had their chance. There is a lot of other things that

are more important than that. To me it is a little difficult

to give tax relief to people who don't pay income taxes.

It is clear, in answer to the Senator's question, that the majority leader in the House of Representatives, the person who controls what comes and goes on that floor, has said that these people are out in the cold, for lack of a better description. They had their chance. As I discussed with the Senator from North Dakota, they had their chance. These people who make from $10,000 to $26,000 a year, their chance is weighed with the problems of people who make much more money. They have no one representing them. As I discussed with the Senator from North Dakota, there is no more populated area than the Halls of this Capitol Building when there is a tax bill up, with lobbyists who are looking for a little niche to help the elite of the country.

These people are not the elite. These people we are trying to help are not elite. They are people who, as Senator Dorgan said, take showers after work, not before. I am terribly disappointed that already the person who sets the agenda for the Republican House of Representatives has said these people are finished. They had their chance.

The Senator is aware that the tax bill, according to this White House, was passed to create jobs. The Senator has heard that?

The Senator is also aware of people like Warren Buffett who said: I am going to get hundreds of millions of dollars as a result of this tax bill. I don't want the money. I don't need the money. I won't invest the money. You have heard him say this?

Does the Senator acknowledge that any amount of money that people who are making $10,000 to $26,000 a year receive, whether it is $100 or $500, will be immediately spent to buy things that create jobs for people?

The Senator is aware that here in Washington Members of the Senate every 6 years have to raise money talking to people to see if they will help us; is he not?

Does the Senator think many Senators will go to this group of people who make from $10,000 to $26,000 a year for campaign contributions?

Mr. President, reserving the right to object.

Mr. President, I say through you to the acting majority leader, we are confident that the child care amendment offered by the Senator from Arkansas, through the Senator from New Mexico, will pass. We do not really care if it is done in the energy bill or in a separate, freestanding arrangement. Whatever the two leaders work out, we are happy to work on this.

The energy bill, as it is now before the Senate, is a revenue measure. We understand the importance of moving the energy bill. We want to cooperate in any way we can.

However, we do understand the importance of this matter that was not taken care of in the tax bill that involves 12 million children in America. So we hope that can be resolved quickly and that we can have a vote on it in the next few days. We look forward to cooperating with the majority in any way we can to move this matter forward.

No objection.

Mr. President, the only thing I want to say is that there is a limited amount of time. If people are not here to use their time, they just don't get that time. The two managers are here. As I indicated late last night, the order was entered for a certain amount of time for individual Senators. If they are not here, they will not be able to use that time later on today.

I announce that the Senator from West Virginia (Mr. Byrd), is necessarily absent.

I announce that the Senator from West Virginia (Mr. Byrd) is necessarily absent.

Will the Senator yield?

Madam President, the Senator from Massachusetts has agreed to 15 minutes equally divided on this amendment.

Will the Senator yield?

I announce that the Senator from West Virginia (Mr. Byrd) is necessarily absent.

I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from West Virginia (Mr. Byrd) would vote ``nay''.

We have no objection.

The next amendment we have in order is that offered by Senator Feingold, but Senator Kennedy is here, wishing to present a unanimous consent request.

Mr. President, will the majority be willing to enter into a time agreement on the amendment offered by Senator Feingold in relation to pay-go? He has agreed to 15 minutes on our side. I ask that in the form of a unanimous consent.

Whatever you want--15 minutes.

Mr. President, will the Senator from Wisconsin yield for a question?

The distinguished Senator from Oklahoma wouldn't yield for a question that I wanted to ask earlier but he said the reason we can't amend this bill even a little bit is because the House was not here. I ask my friend from Wisconsin: Does he think it would be a good idea to ask the House leadership to call on Governor Ridge to send all the airplanes he has available to see if they can return?

Mr. President, even though the motion by my friend from Oklahoma has been made too early, I ask unanimous consent that when Senator Feingold completes all the time he has been allotted, the request made by the Senator from Oklahoma be valid, and then Senator Feingold could move to waive.

I announce that the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kennedy) is necessarily absent.

Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote and lay that motion on the table.

The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

At this time, I renew the unanimous consent request on unemployment insurance earlier offered by the Senator from Massachusetts, Mr. Kennedy.

Earlier today, Senator Kennedy asked that the Senate approve the unemployment insurance legislation which was sent from the House to the Senate early this morning. I have asked to renew the request of the Senator from Massachusetts that that be adopted by the Senate.

I certainly understand, and that would be satisfactory. We do not need to make the request, but we would hope that it would be made very quickly.

In the interim, the next amendment we would ask to be considered is that of the Senator from South Carolina, Mr. Hollings. He has agreed to 20 minutes for himself. We ask if there would be a like time agreed to by the majority? That would be 40 minutes equally divided, with no second-degree amendments in order. There have not been any offered so far. I ask that in the form of a unanimous consent request.

We will take care of you. Let's get this done.

If I might, I appreciate very much the consideration of the Senator from South Carolina because we have not finished his amendment. We failed to tell him that the Senator from Alaska was going to offer this request.

This is, as I understand it, the House passed unemployment insurance compensation action; is that true?

We have no objection.

We are very grateful this is completed. As we indicated earlier, we are sorry it is not an extended benefit but we are better off than we were an hour and a half or 2 hours ago. We extend our appreciation to the majority.

I say to the Senator from South Carolina, the Senator from Iowa will speak for a very brief period of time and then he is going to, I understand, move to table your amendment.

I wonder, is the Senator going to yield back his time?

I announce that the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kennedy) and the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Edwards) are necessarily absent.

I move to reconsider the vote, and I move to lay that motion on the table.

The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Will the majority leader yield?

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that all Senators wishing to make statements regarding Senator Domenici be allowed to do so, and at such time as they are completed, that they be put in a proper cover and given to Senator Domenici.

Mr. President, could I ask unanimous consent those be the only amendments in order.

I announce that the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Edwards), the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kennedy), and the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry) are necessarily absent.

I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry) would vote ``nay''.

Mr. President, as we spoke last night as we were leaving, it seemed to me the only hurdle left was what we were going to do about the amendment offered by the distinguished Senator from Washington. She has offered this amendment 7 years in a row. We have had a straight up- or-down vote on this amendment 7 years in a row. It seems to me that would be the way to handle this matter, which, of course, is controversial, as are many other amendments on this very bill. Once we get through that--if, in fact, we do get through it, and it could hold

up the bill for an indefinite period of time--we have very few matters left on this side.

I have not been able to determine from the managers if they have been able to clear the Landrieu amendment. We were concerned about the Biden amendment and the Dodd amendment.

I think that is about all we have other than the Boxer amendment, which is going to be debated sometime today.

She has agreed to take a short time on that.

The end is in sight. But knowing the Senate as I do, the simple fact that the end is in sight doesn't mean that we will ever get there.

I hope we can resolve the Boxer matter and the Murray matter rapidly. Having done that, I think we will proceed through this bill quite quickly.

We would still be willing to do that. The Senator from California has indicated, if the Chair will allow me to speak to the Senator from Virginia, that she is agreeable to take an hour evenly divided on her amendment.

Mr. President, the Senator from Washington waited for hours last night during the parliamentary wrangle that we had. I think we are willing to enter into that time agreement. I think we first have to dispose of the Murray amendment before we agree to that. Under the order, we have to work on the Daschle amendment. As soon as we complete that, I think we should dispose of the Murray amendment before we go to the Boxer amendment.

Not at this time, we would not. I think we need to dispose of the Murray amendment one way or the other. Once we do, I think we can work something out on the Boxer amendment.

Mr. President, I call up amendment number 791.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

If the Chair would allow me, Senator Daschle agreed to the modification of the amendment. That could be handled either later today or in the managers' package.

Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, if the Senator will yield, without losing his right to the floor.

Tremendous progress has been made in the last few hours, as we have seen by these amendments. We are very close to being able to issue a consent we hope will be agreed upon to finalize the bill, but we need just a minute to do that. There is a call in the cloakroom we have to resolve before we do that.

Would the Senator from Virginia do that, please.

Mr. President, if I may interrupt, I failed to mention this to my friend a second ago. Our leader has asked that the vote occur at 2:15, rather than an hour from the time it begins. We would still only have an hour of debate. There are other things we can do during that period of time. So I ask for that modification.

These are subject to relevant second-degree amendments.

We just got a call from Senator Byrd. We are going to have to wait.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Reserving the right to object, Domenici, Kerry, Landrieu, Grassley also have the same language, that they be subject to relevant second-degree amendments. We have stated that twice. I want to make sure that is clear.

Mr. President, if the Senator will yield, this took just a few minutes to read. It took hours to accomplish.

We are now going to a situation where Senator Murray and Senator Brownback will debate for 1 hour. Following that, there will be a vote on or in relation to the Murray amendment. Following that, we will work our way through these other amendments that have been declared to be in order on this bill. Some of them, I hope, will be resolved.

I personally extend my appreciation to the two managers of this bill for their patience, their understanding, and also Senator Murray and Senator Brownback. The issue about which we are going to debate for an hour is very sensitive to everyone, those two Senators especially. They have also been courteous to each of us and each other. I think this is a fair way to proceed.

I announce that the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry) is necessarily absent.

I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry) would vote ``yea''.

Mr. President, will the Senator yield?

Mr. President, if I could ask the distinguished managers of the bill to allow a very brief colloquy and a unanimous consent request by the Senators from Massachusetts and New York, and maybe a couple of others, we would take no more than 2 minutes for the Senator from Massachusetts and 3 minutes for the Senator from New York.

Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, if the Senator will yield, I have no objection. I think that would be appropriate. I also ask that there be recorded votes on both the Boxer and Warner amendments; further, that between the two votes, there be 5 minutes equally divided under the control of Senator Boxer and Senator Warner.

No objection.

Mr. President, I also ask that this amendment have the name of the Senator from California on it, also.

I announce that the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry) is necessarily absent.

I further announce that if present and voting, the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry) would vote ``aye''.

Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum. I don't want you to lose the floor, but if I had the floor I would suggest the absence of a quorum.

Reserving the right to object.

Mr. President, would that be the 126th judge we have approved during the Bush years?

I announce that the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry) is necessarily absent.

I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry) would vote ``yea''.

I announce that the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry) is necessarily absent.

I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kerry) would vote ``aye.''