Floor Statements

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to S. Res. 29.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Presiding Officer of the Senate be authorized to appoint a committee on the part of the Senate to join a like committee on the part of the House to escort President Obama into the House Chamber for the joint session to be held tonight at 9 p.m.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate recess until 8:30 p.m. tonight and proceed as a body to the Hall of the House of Representatives for the joint session of Congress provided under the provisions of H. Con. Res. 11; and that upon dissolution of the joint session, the Senate adjourn until 10 a.m. on Wednesday, February 13, 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; following any leader remarks, the Senate be in a period of morning business with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each, with the Republicans controlling the first 30 minutes and the majority controlling the second 30 minutes.

Mr. President, we will gather in the Senate Chamber at 8:20 p.m. this evening to proceed as a body to the House for the State of the Union.

Mr. President, we hope to begin debate on the nomination of Senator Hagel to be Secretary of Defense tomorrow.

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

Mr. President, following leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of S. 47, the Violence Against Women Act. The time until 5:30 p.m. will be equally divided and controlled between the two leaders or their designees.

At 5:30 there will be several rollcall votes in relation to amendments to the bill. Right now there are up to seven rollcall votes remaining. We don't know if that, in fact, will take place. I have been advised that National Airport has been closed off and on during the day, or at least flights haven't been coming in because of some kind of a weather problem, low-hanging clouds. We have had a number of calls from Senators who are saying they may not be able to be here. I will keep in touch with the Republican leader and we will go from there.

The way things are scheduled now, we have up to seven rollcall votes starting at 5:30 today. We are going to complete work on the Violence Against Women Act, or hope we can do that, tonight. We are going to have the State of the Union tomorrow and we hope on Wednesday and/or Thursday we will be able to finish the Hagel nomination.

There has never in the history of the country been a filibuster on a Defense Secretary, and I am confident there won't be on this one. I am told the committee will report this matter out tomorrow, and we will move this to the Senate floor as quickly as possible.

We have a work period, and when we get back we will try to complete the National Security Director, Mr. Brennan, and we will move on to Mr. Lew, who will be the Secretary of the Treasury.

We have some votes, and we will line up this week what we are going to do when we get back after the work period we have at home for 5 days.

I look forward to a productive night. I hope we can complete these votes, because there are people working very hard on this, not the least of which has been the President pro tempore, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, who has worked on this matter for a number of years. I hope we can complete this very quickly.

The Chair may announce the business of the day.

Mr. President, following leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of the Violence Against Women Act. The time until noon will be divided and controlled equally between the two leaders or their designees. At noon, Senator-designee Cowan of Massachusetts will be sworn in to be a Member of the Senate.

We expect to complete action on the Violence Against Women Act. We hope to be able to do that today. If we cannot, we will do it tomorrow.

Mr. President, I am told S. 209 is at the desk and due for a seconding reading; is that correct?

Mr. President, I would object to any further proceedings with respect to this bill.

Mr. President, I am optimistic that today the Senate will complete work on an important bipartisan measure that has been directed by the President pro tempore of the Senate; that is, the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act.

But Senate passage means little if our counterparts in the House fail to act on this crucial legislation. They failed once before. Let's hope this year they will get it past the finish line.

The Republican-controlled House, I repeat, failed to act last year, and the women of America do not want them to fail again. I was reassured to hear House Majority Leader Cantor say yesterday that he ``cares very deeply about women.'' He went on to say the House would act to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act.

But Americans heard the some promise last year. Despite overwhelming evidence that this legislation saves lives, House Republican leaders used procedural gimmicks and stalling tactics to block its reauthorization. I would remind Leader Cantor and his Republican colleagues of the seriousness of the delay.

Every minute House Republicans wait to act, another 24 Americans will become victims of domestic violence. Every day House Republicans stall, another three women will die at the hands of their abusers. Every year House Republicans put off action in order to please extremists within their own party, during that period of time more than 200,000 women will be sexually assaulted, more than 2 million will be stalked, and more than 1.3 million women will be abused by their partners.

It has been almost 300 days since the Senate passed a bipartisan bill to help law enforcement officials protect women and their families across this

country. But despite strong bipartisan support in the Senate, Republicans in the House refused to join the efforts to end domestic abuse.

Those partisan delays put women's lives at risk. Thousands have written letters and e-mailed and called to support this legislation. One Nevada woman shared her story of how her partner held a gun to her head and threatened to pull the trigger. She escaped with her life, but many women are not so fortunate. Every year more than 1,000 women are killed by domestic abusers. Since the Violence Against Women Act expired, more than 16 million women have been victimized.

The law is effective. In the two decades since it was enacted, the law has helped millions of women escape their attackers and seek justice. There is obviously much more work to do. I say to my friend Leader Cantor: It is time for the Republican leaders to stop talking about how much they care about women and start acting to protect women. More than one-third of the women in this country have been the victim of violent sexual assault or stalking. Congress must do everything in its power to help law enforcement officials prevent these terrible crimes and prosecute the perpetrators. Reauthorizing this legislation would help law enforcement improve strategies to prosecute crimes against women. It would provide legal assistance to the victims of violence and funding for shelters to allow women to escape their abusers. It would safeguard youth who are experiencing dating violence and stalking.

Until we fully reauthorize this law, authorities will not have all the tools they need to fight domestic violence. Today--we hope it does not go over until tomorrow--we do not need another day's delay. For the second time in 2 years to protect American women and their children, we hope to take bipartisan action. I hope the House will act quickly to follow suit, as they did not do last year. I trust Leader Cantor's words that this legislation is a priority. I will not be the only one holding him to his promise he made yesterday, to swiftly reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act. In fact, there will be 160 million American women who are watching and waiting to see if he turns his words into action.

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

Mr. President, a few minutes ago Senator Carl Levin cast his 12,000th vote. It is my honor to say a few words about Carl Levin. He has served the State of Michigan for 35 years and is the longest serving Senator in the history of that State. During his 35 years in the Senate, he has been known as a workhorse. If there is a problem that needs to be looked over by someone who understands the issue, go to Senator Levin. He is a person who dots all the I's and crosses all the T's. I depend--and have depended--on him so much for issues that are difficult.

He is a native of Detroit and attended Swathmore College. He graduated--as I always remind him--from Harvard Law School. I called them several times, but obviously my application was lost. I never heard back from them.

He served as general counsel to the Michigan Civil Rights Commission and as assistant attorney general for the State of Michigan. He ran for the Detroit City Council and served two terms there. He was elected in 1978 to the U.S. Senate where he has served six terms and is an effective champion for the people of Michigan.

Public service runs in his family. Sander Levin is his older brother, who came to the House of Representatives in 1982 with me, Durbin, Carper, Boxer, to name just a few.

Senator Levin has heard me say this several times, and I will continue to say it because it is one of the most impressive, memorable statements I have ever had in a very personal setting. I was in the House of Representatives, and I was thinking about running for the Senate. I went over to meet with Carl Levin to get his ideas. As I was trying to establish some rapport with him, I said: I am serving with your brother. He and I came here together. Without hesitation and so sincerely, he looked up at me and said: Yes, he is my brother, but he is also my best friend.

I have never, ever forgotten that. That speaks so well of the Levin family. Sandy has been the chair of the House Ways and Means Committee and is now the ranking member of the House Ways and Means Committee. Carl is very proud of his brother's service, as Sandy is proud of the service of his brother.

Carl Levin has been the chair of the Armed Services Committee, which of course is one of the most important and powerful committees in the entire Congress. He is a respected voice on issues dealing with national security. He has done so much to improve the status of men and women in the military for our great country.

The very first bill he introduced as a Senator speaks to the kind of person he is and the issues he cares about. He introduced a bill to end discrimination by credit card companies. Two Congresses ago we did some real good reforms during the credit card debate. Senator Levin was involved in that, as well he should have been, because he was the first to bring to the attention of the American people what needed to be done.

He is also the chairman of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, which for decades has done great work for this country. Under his guidance and leadership, it has done some remarkably good work. He was the one who delved deeply into the Enron collapse. Again, that committee has done a lot of work on abusive credit card practices. It is one of the main reasons we were able to get the credit card reform done.

He led investigations in the 2008 financial crisis. He has looked very closely and did a wonderful report on what I refer to as tax loopholes, and I think that is how he refers to it also. He has been one of the country's leading experts--and certainly one of the leading experts in this body--of American manufacturers. We know that manufacturing has had such strong forces in Michigan in years past and they are coming back as a result of the work the Michigan delegation has done, led by Senator Levin.

He is someone who understands that we have a new world, we have global markets, and we have to continue working hard to make sure we are a part of that, and we are.

He has fought to protect the Great Lakes--Michigan's signature natural resource.

He is married to Barbara, a wonderful woman, who has been so thoughtful and kind to me, but especially my wife, during her recent illness. They have been married since 1961. They have three daughters and six grandchildren.

Carl Levin is somebody whom I so admire. He has a lot of service left in him. There are so many things he is capable of doing as a result of the positions he now holds in the Senate. The one thing I admire so much about Carl Levin--as I have already indicated--is how strongly he feels about his family. He and his brother have a piece of property in Michigan. They call it the tree farm. In Searchlight I still have my hat they gave me that says ``Tree Farm.'' He has talked to me on many occasions--we haven't talked lately--about how he and his brother like to walk on their tree farm. There is nothing there but trees, but it is an occasion for them to be together as brothers.

Congratulations to Carl Levin on reaching this impressive milestone of 12,000 votes. Not only has he left that mark--he left that mark in my mind and anyone who has served with him--but he has left his mark as being an extraordinary man.

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

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that we proceed to morning business, with the Senators allowed to speak for up to 10 minutes each.

Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to Mark Sullivan, who is retiring from his position as Director of the United States Secret Service on February 22, 2013.

Serving as Director for nearly 7 years, and working for five Presidents, Mark Sullivan leaves his mark on the agency by achieving such benchmarks as the Secret Service Uniformed Division Modernization Act, and the Former Presidents Protection Act. He also oversaw the complete overhaul of the Secret Service IT Modernization and Operation Mission Support, which enhanced White House security. He led the effort to create the National Computer Forensic Institute in Hoover, AL, and established numerous overseas field offices to build partnerships between all levels of law enforcement.

Mark Sullivan began his distinguished 30-year career with the Secret Service as a special agent assigned to the Detroit Field Office in 1983. In 1990, Mr. Sullivan was transferred to the Fraud Division in Washington, DC, where he coordinated and monitored multi-jurisdictional criminal investigations involving credit card fraud, bank fraud, and other criminal activity. In 1991, Mr. Sullivan received his first assignment to the Presidential Protective Division, where he served 4 years.

In 1996, Mr. Sullivan was selected as Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Office of Protective Operations. He returned to the field in 1997 as the Resident Agent in Charge of the Columbus Resident Office, which oversaw all Secret Service activities in Central Ohio. Twenty months later, Mr. Sullivan was promoted back to Washington, DC as Deputy Special Agent in Charge of the Counterfeit Division, where he managed the agency's investigative activities related to the criminal production and distribution of counterfeit currency and other financial instruments. In July of 1999, he returned to the Presidential Protective Division as an Assistant Special Agent in Charge.

Mr. Sullivan was promoted into the Federal Senior Executive Service in July, 2000, when he was selected as a Deputy Assistant Director in the Office of Protective Operations. In 2002, he was reassigned to the position of Deputy Special Agent in Charge of the Vice Presidential Protective Division. A year later, he was reassigned to the position of Deputy Assistant Director of the Office of Human Resources and Training. He next served as Assistant Director for the Office of Protective Operations, where he oversaw all protective activities for the agency, encompassing 12 divisions and 2,300 employees.

Mr. Sullivan was named Deputy Director in January, 2006 and on May 31, 2006, he was sworn in as the 22nd Director of the U.S. Secret Service.

Prior to joining the Secret Service, Mr. Sullivan spent 3 years as a special agent in the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Mark Sullivan has received numerous awards for superior performance throughout his 34-year career in Federal law enforcement. In 2010 he was recognized by President Obama as the recipient of the Distinguished Presidential Rank Award, which he also received in 2005 from then President George W. Bush. Mr. Sullivan is to be honored for his dedication and commitment to public service, devoting his life to the safety of our first families, our Nation's leaders, and the general public. He has been a steadfast partner to the legislative branch, assisting with State of the Union addresses, Inaugurals and other joint partnerships. He will be greatly missed here in the Capitol and we wish him well in his future endeavors.

A native of Arlington, MA, Mr. Sullivan, who is from a large Irish Catholic family, received his bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice from Saint Anselm College in Manchester, NH. He and his wife of 26 years, Laurie have three daughters, one of which, Lauren, has followed in her father's footsteps by entering public service after graduating from college. She has worked for the Senate Sergeant Arms for over 3 years. A former boss once said of Sullivan, ``If you were casting someone for the role of director of the Secret Service, he looks the part. He's a tall, handsome Irishman, with grey hair and the demeanor of a born leader.'' I join with my colleagues from both sides of the

aisle in thanking Director Sullivan for his outstanding service to our Nation.

Mr. President, I rise today on behalf of our Nation's disabled veterans to once again discuss an end to an unjust and outdated policy known as ``concurrent receipt.'' For the past 122 years, this practice has prevented veterans from receiving the full benefits earned through years of service and personal injury in defense of our Nation. The law requires that a retired disabled veteran reduce their retirement pay dollar-for-dollar by the amount of any disability compensation received, in many cases wiping out retirement pay altogether. This is simply wrong.

I have worked over the past decade to fight to change this outdated policy and commend the progress Congress has made on behalf of our Nation's veterans. In 2002, I was pleased that Congress passed a measure known as combat-related special compensation, or CSRC, allowing for disabled retired veterans to receive payments that are the financial equivalent of concurrent receipt. In 2003 I was pleased that Congress enacted a 10-year phase-in of concurrent receipt for military retirees whose disability is 50 percent or greater, and in 2004, Congress eliminated the 10-year waiting period for those veterans with 100 percent service-related disability. Moreover, in 2008, concurrent receipt eligibility was expanded to include those who are 100 percent disabled due to un-employability and extended equivalent financial payments to those who are medically retired or have retired prematurely due to force reduction programs. Most recently, in 2012, I was pleased to offer an amendment to the fiscal year 2013 National Defense Authorization Act ensuring that our combat-disabled military retirees receive proper combat-related disability and retirement benefits by eliminating the ``glitch'' in the CRSC formula that can actually cause a reduction in their compensation amount when the VA increases their disability rating. While I am proud that the 10-year phase-in period for veterans who are rated 50-90 percent will finally come to fruition this year, I still believe that Congress has fallen short of meeting the commitment of providing full concurrent receipt to all of our Nation's heroes. This is unacceptable and that is why we have to take care of the hundreds of thousands of disabled veterans who still need our help.

For me, this is a simple matter of fairness. No other Federal retiree is forced to forfeit their retirement--only our disabled military retirees. Veterans' disability compensation is recompense for pain, suffering, and lost future earning power caused by a service-connected illness or injury. Few retirees can afford to live on their retired pay alone, and a severe disability only makes the problem worse by limiting or denying any post-service working life. There is no reason to deny veterans who have served their country honorably the right to the full value of their retirement pay simply because their service also led to disability.

Today I reintroduce the Retired Pay Restoration Act of 2013 in order to eliminate all restrictions to concurrent receipt. I hope my Senate colleagues will join me in supporting this bill. We must take action now and support the veterans who have given so much to our grateful Nation. This is the right thing to do.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I rise today on behalf of our Nation's disabled veterans to once again discuss an end to an unjust and outdated policy known as ``concurrent receipt.'' For the past 122 years, this practice has prevented veterans from receiving the full benefits earned through years of service and personal injury in defense of our Nation. The law requires that a retired disabled veteran reduce their retirement pay dollar-for-dollar by the amount of any disability compensation received, in many cases wiping out retirement pay altogether. This is simply wrong.

I have worked over the past decade to fight to change this outdated policy and commend the progress Congress has made on behalf of our Nation's veterans. In 2002, I was pleased that Congress passed a measure known as combat-related special compensation, or CSRC, allowing for disabled retired veterans to receive payments that are the financial equivalent of concurrent receipt. In 2003 I was pleased that Congress enacted a 10-year phase-in of concurrent receipt for military retirees whose disability is 50 percent or greater, and in 2004, Congress eliminated the 10-year waiting period for those veterans with 100 percent service-related disability. Moreover, in 2008, concurrent receipt eligibility was expanded to include those who are 100 percent disabled due to un-employability and extended equivalent financial payments to those who are medically retired or have retired prematurely due to force reduction programs. Most recently, in 2012, I was pleased to offer an amendment to the fiscal year 2013 National Defense Authorization Act ensuring that our combat-disabled military retirees receive proper combat-related disability and retirement benefits by eliminating the ``glitch'' in the CRSC formula that can actually cause a reduction in their compensation amount when the VA increases their disability rating. While I am proud that the 10-year phase-in period for veterans who are rated 50-90 percent will finally come to fruition this year, I still believe that Congress has fallen short of meeting the commitment of providing full concurrent receipt to all of our Nation's heroes. This is unacceptable and that is why we have to take care of the hundreds of thousands of disabled veterans who still need our help.

For me, this is a simple matter of fairness. No other Federal retiree is forced to forfeit their retirement--only our disabled military retirees. Veterans' disability compensation is recompense for pain, suffering, and lost future earning power caused by a service-connected illness or injury. Few retirees can afford to live on their retired pay alone, and a severe disability only makes the problem worse by limiting or denying any post-service working life. There is no reason to deny veterans who have served their country honorably the right to the full value of their retirement pay simply because their service also led to disability.

Today I reintroduce the Retired Pay Restoration Act of 2013 in order to eliminate all restrictions to concurrent receipt. I hope my Senate colleagues will join me in supporting this bill. We must take action now and support the veterans who have given so much to our grateful Nation. This is the right thing to do.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.