Floor Statements

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 9:30 a.m., Thursday, June 27, 2013; that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, and the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day; that following any leader remarks, the Senate resume consideration of S. 744, the comprehensive immigration reform bill, and the time until 11:30 a.m. be equally divided and controlled between the two managers or their designees, with Senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each.

So there will be three rollcall votes at about 11:30 a.m. tomorrow on confirmation of the Foxx nomination, on adoption of the committee-reported substitute amendment, and on cloture on S. 744, the comprehensive immigration reform bill.

Following the statements of Senators Chambliss for 15 minutes and Senator Sessions for 10 minutes, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate adjourn under the provisions of S. Res. 189 as a further mark of respect to the memory of the late Senator Hathaway of Maine.

Of course.

Mr. President, following leader remarks the Senate will be in a period of morning business for 1 hour. The majority will control the first half, the Republicans the final half. Following morning business the Senate will resume consideration of S. 744, the immigration bill.

Order of Procedure

I ask unanimous consent that the filing deadline for first-degree amendments to S. 744 be 12 p.m. today.

The filing deadline for all first-degree amendments both to the substitute amendment and the bill is today at noon.

The Senate will recess from 12:30 to 2:15 for our weekly caucus meetings. Senators will be notified when votes are scheduled.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, law enforcement officials who made the arrests and looked at this called it a ``modern day plantation.'' What happened was a string of very profitable convenience stores had undocumented immigrants from Pakistan and the Philippines routinely working up to 100 hours a week for below minimum wage. And although their employers made $180 million over a dozen years, while pocketing much of their employees' wages, these workers lived packed into apartments unfit for human habitation. Because they lacked the proper immigration paperwork, the workers were simply too afraid to speak up for themselves.

It happens all the time. These were the circumstances at more than a dozen 7-Eleven stores in Long Island, NY, and in Virginia. They were raided last week by Federal immigration officials. The unfortunate conditions exposed by this high-profile bust, however, are all too common. The busts do not come very often. They were able to get to the bottom of this. Most of the time these people are so abused and nothing happens except the abuse continues.

More than one-half of undocumented day laborers say they have been cheated by employers. One-quarter of undocumented workers polled in New Jersey say they have been assaulted by their employers, a crime they rarely report. A lot of times there are language barriers, and they are simply afraid they are going to lose their jobs and maybe be deported.

In one survey virtually every undocumented female farm worker said sexual violence in the workplace is a very serious problem. The 11 million people living in America without the proper documentation are particularly vulnerable to abuse by these employers who are very unscrupulous.

A system under which people can be forced to live as indentured servants, under substandard living conditions and the threat of violence hurts all workers, and it is wrong. It is immoral. The bipartisan immigration bill before the Senate will eliminate the kind of exploitation seen at these rogue 7-Eleven stores and other dishonest employers in a number of ways.

First, it will reduce illegal immigration by strengthening our borders and fixing our broken legal immigration system. We all acknowledged before going into this debate that our system was broken and needed to be fixed. That is what this bill does. The bill will also make the electronic employment verification system, known as E-Verify, mandatory within 5 years. That will make it virtually impossible for people without the proper immigration paperwork to secure jobs, removing the incentive to come here illegally and removing the incentive from these unscrupulous employers taking advantage of those people.

The legislation will allow temporary workers to change jobs without losing their visas, making it possible for them to escape and report exploitative employers without fear of deportation. They have not been able to do that. They will not until we pass this legislation.

This measure also offers more visas for victims of crime, including employer abuse. These protections will be good for honest workers, helping them stand up for their rights without fear of retribution. It will be good for honest employers, whose unscrupulous competitors have an unfair advantage.

This legislation also recognizes that undocumented workers play an important role in our economy and need an earned pathway from the shadows to citizenship. The path will not be easy; it was not intended to be. Undocumented people will have to go to the back of the line, pay penalties and fines, work, pay taxes, learn English, and stay out of trouble.

The alternative, to deport 11 million people, is impractical, inhumane, and just plain wrong for our economy. Helping millions of immigrants get right with the law will boost our national economy by more than $800 billion over the next 10 years, and it will reduce the deficit by almost $1 trillion over the next two decades--a pretty good deal.

Last night's strong bipartisan vote on the Corker-Hoeven border security compromise was a huge step forward for this legislation. Opponents of immigration reform can no longer hide behind false concerns about border security. That is an understatement. There can be any excuse to oppose immigration reform. If it is, it is transparently obvious that they are just trying to figure out a way to vote against this legislation.

I hope those who have stood in the way of this legislation will instead join us to do what is right for our economy and humane for immigrant families. It is time to crack down on crooked employers--that is what they are--who exploit and abuse undocumented immigrants. It is time to give hope to 11 million immigrants who want nothing more than to become citizens of a place they call home.

Madam President, could I ask the distinguished Senator to allow me to offer a unanimous consent request?

I express my appreciation to the Senator for the courtesy.

Unanimous Consent Agreement--Executive Calendar

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding rule XXII, at 2:15 p.m. today, the Senate proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 180, under the previous order.

For the information of all Senators, at 2:15 p.m., there will be 30 minutes for debate followed by a vote on the confirmation of Penny Pritzker to be Secretary of Commerce.

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

Madam President, I ask for the yeas and nays.

Madam President, there will be no more rollcall votes tonight.

At 11:30 tomorrow, I remind everyone we have a motion to waive the budget point of order. We will also vote after that on the Leahy amendment No. 1183, as modified. Following that, we will have a vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the committee-reported substitute. So we have those votes already set up.

I have been at the White House for the last couple hours with Senator McConnell. I got back to the cloakroom, and we are working on an amendment list. During my absence here the staff has been working very hard. We have worked amongst ourselves, we have worked with the Republicans trying to come up with a list of amendments. We are not there yet. I am informed that the last half hour or so we went backward rather than forward. But we are working on this. We can still do it. We have to keep our eye on the prize and make sure everyone is willing to give a little, because right now there are too many amendments that will never be agreed to. But this can be done, and we will continue to work. A majority of both caucuses wants amendments. Having said that, simple majorities won't do it. But I am hopeful and confident we are going to be able to work something out on amendments.

Mr. President, I hope the Senator wasn't rushed completing his statement, because I was listening intently and appreciating all he said today.

I haven't had the opportunity to express through the instruments of this floor how much I appreciate the Senator from Colorado. He has done such a terrific job. He has been one of the four Democrats. He hasn't sought a lot of press on this, but he has been a stalwart in getting this done for a couple reasons.

One, his State of Colorado is a perfect example as to why we need this bill. The demographics have changed in that State remarkably, as they have in my State of Nevada. His quiet concern for what we need to do and then his quiet movement to make sure we get the things done we need to is evident in this immigration bill.

Frankly, we had a discussion today in our caucus, as we have had on several occasions, about student loans. No one is better prepared to talk about that issue than the Senator from Colorado. He is not only concerned about what happens to students who are in college, but also he was a school superintendent, understanding what people who want to go to college have to deal with. So I appreciate very much the statements of the Senator from Colorado. He has done a remarkably good job, and the people of Colorado are so fortunate to have this good man in the Senate.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that we now proceed to a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to S. Res. 186.

I ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 9:30 a.m. tomorrow, Wednesday, June 26, 2013; that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, and the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day; and that following any leader remarks, the Senate resume consideration of S. 744, the comprehensive immigration reform bill, and the time until 11:30 a.m. be equally divided and controlled between the two managers or their designees; that the filing deadline for second-degree amendments to the committee-reported substitute and the bill be 10:30 tomorrow morning.

There will be three rollcall votes in relation to the immigration bill, as announced earlier, starting at 11:30 a.m. tomorrow.

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

Mr. President, following any leader remarks the Senate will resume consideration of the immigration bill. The filing deadline for second-degree amendments to the Leahy amendment No. 1183, as modified, is 4 p.m. today. At 5:30 p.m. there will be a cloture vote on the Leahy amendment, as modified.

Mr. President, I have often said that Speaker Boehner has a hard job. That was obvious last week when the House Republican caucus revolted to defeat the Speaker's farm bill. Even though the Speaker took the unusual step of announcing his support for the measure ahead of the vote, this bill went down in flames. It was the first time the House of Representatives has defeated a farm bill since the program was created in the 1930s.

I admit I was sorry to hear the House Republican leadership blame the bill's defeat on Democrats, but I was not surprised. They had to blame someone. They could not blame themselves, even though they should. It was no surprise that House Democrats opposed this mean-spirited bill. The legislation would cut $20 billion from the safety net that keeps millions of Americans, including millions of children, from going hungry every year. That is what it was about. The farm bill eliminated 8 billion meals for hungry American families and children. That is what the House bill did. So it is no surprise that Democrats did not vote for a bill that whacked America's most vulnerable citizens.

We have seen this film before. The Speaker should have known he could not pass legislation that amounts to a partisan love note to the tea party. He will be forced to take up a more bipartisan measure. He should do it now. There is no need to reinvent the wheel. The Senate has already done the work that was necessary to be done. We passed a good bipartisan bill. The Speaker should dispense with the drama and the delay and take up the Senate farm bill now. The bill passed on an overwhelming bipartisan vote in this Chamber. In fact, it did twice. We passed it last year. The Speaker refused to bring up the bill in the House. Passing the Senate farm bill will create jobs, will reduce the deficit by some $23 billion, and it will make important reforms to both farm and food stamp programs without balancing the budget on the backs of hungry Americans.

I spoke over the weekend to Tom Vilsack, the Secretary of Agriculture. We agreed that maintaining the status quo is not an option. Doing nothing means no reform, no deficit reduction, and no certainty for America's 16 million farm industry workers.

I want everyone within the sound of my voice as well as my colleagues on the other side of the Capitol to know that the Senate will not pass another temporary farm bill extension. It is time for real reform that protects both rural farm communities and urban families who need help feeding their children.

If the Speaker took up the Senate's bipartisan measure, it would easily pass the House with both Republican and Democratic votes. There is no shame in passing a bill that moderates in both parties support. We have seen time and time again that the tea party's ``my way or the highway'' approach to legislating does not work. The only way to pass a bill in either the House or the Senate is to do so with votes from both Democrats and Republicans. The Senate farm bill passed with 66 votes in this Chamber. It was a perfect example of a bipartisan bill. The Speaker should allow a vote on this measure in the House now--today.

The immigration bill before the Senate is another example of bipartisan legislation. The immigration bill will pass this Chamber with Democratic and Republican votes. When the immigration bill passes, the Speaker should quickly bring it up for a vote in the House of Representatives.

So I say, Mr. Speaker, rather than twisting the arms of tea party extremists, work with moderates in both parties to pass bipartisan legislation. Mr. Speaker, rather than trying to force legislation designed to please only the

right wing, you should take away the obstacles we have and take the easy way out, actually. Do the right thing. Seek votes from Democrats and Republicans. America deserves the commonsense approach. That is what we used to do. We should do it once again.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Madam President, what is the pending business?

I would ask the Chair to close morning business and move to whatever the business of the day is.