Floor Statements

Mr. President, I rise to honor our colleague the senior Senator from Nebraska, Ben Nelson, upon his retirement from the Senate. This will become effective after the first of the year.

For 12 years, Ben has been a valued member of the Democratic caucus and an exemplary Senator for Nebraska and the country. But his life in public service dates back to his youth. He spent his college days serving his Nebraska community in another way--as a lay minister. But eventually he chose law over ministry and went to law school. He attended law school at the University of Nebraska, where he got his bachelor's and master's degrees.

He spent many years practicing insurance law. He served as director of the Nebraska Department of Insurance and as president of the Central National Insurance Group. Then, in 1990, he was elected Governor of Nebraska. Four years later, he was reelected--with almost 75 percent of the vote--to become the first Nebraska Governor in 20 years to win a second term. So it was not a surprise when he ran for the Senate in 2000. He won, even though President Bush took Nebraska handily.

It is easy to see Ben Nelson truly possesses the same independent spirit as his Nebraska constituents. He served his constituents with distinction in the Senate and, of course, when he was Governor and as insurance commissioner. He has always provided a strong voice for fiscal responsibility, and he has been terrific for the State's energy industry, agricultural sector, and even tourism.

Similar to many of his Nebraska constituents, Ben is an avid hunter, fisher, and outdoorsman.

As a sidelight, one of the things we learn as kids--and as we get older it is something we must adhere to--is that one should not be envious. Envy isn't something that is very becoming of human beings, especially in an adult. But I think if the truth were known, many Senators would be very envious, as I am--and I would even think the Acting President pro tempore would be--about that hair of Ben Nelson's. I mean that is a mop of real hair.

It is often people call his office and they believe he has a toupee, but it is his hair. He will pull it for you anytime just to show you it is real. I mean he has hair like a 15-year-old. So I have to acknowledge I am a little envious of his hair, and I think, if the truth were known, maybe others are as well.

My wife has said on many occasions--and she tells me this all the time--how handsome Pat Leahy is and she is so glad he doesn't do a comb-over.

Anyway, Ben Nelson is an avid hunter, fisher, and outdoorsman. He has bagged pheasants and turkey, and one time, to the consternation of all of us, he decided he was going to take Senator Schumer from New York hunting for pheasants. He did that. Everybody survived it alive, and Ben Nelson still boasts about that; that he was able to bring Schumer back all in one piece. More important, the people who went

hunting with them all came back in one piece. The story goes that Senator Schumer even shot a bird or two.

A lot of us have some trouble accepting that, but that is what Ben says and I will take him at his word. He has bagged all kinds of game birds--dove, quail, pheasants, turkey--but he has also had the opportunity to hunt all over the world and has bagged some of the most exotic game that is possible for a hunter to hunt. He is the epitome of a sportsman.

Ben isn't just a great hunter, though. He is also an accomplished practical joker and a wonderful singer. That may surprise some people. In our caucus, I proved to everyone that he could sing, and sing quite well. He recorded a few years ago a song called ``Western Town'' to raise money for visually impaired children. He was one of a dozen Nebraskan celebrities to record songs for this charity. I obtained a copy of this and played it at a Democratic caucus a few years ago. It was a hit. He was singing--it is his voice--and it was very good. Here is how it goes:

I'm from a western town in Nebraska. Don't know why I left

so long ago. All I know is this western town in Nebraska

lives in my heart and in my soul.

He did a great job of that song, as he has done everything since I have known him.

I am sure Ben is looking forward to going home to the western town-- Omaha--where he lives with his wife Diane. She is wonderful. She was a great first lady and a wonderful Senator's spouse. I like her for lots of reasons, the smile she has, but also she makes some of the best chocolate chip cookies I have ever eaten. They have four children and five grandchildren. As he departs for Omaha, he will be sorely missed here in the Senate.

He has always been a loyal and dedicated member of this caucus, even when he was showing loyalty by questioning the wisdom of the party sometimes. He is arguably the most conservative member of the caucus. And while there are a few things Ben and I disagree on, we agree on most everything. Through the last 12 years he has been a valued member of the team. He has made many of our accomplishments possible through his dedication to country first and State second. That is how it should be.

Edwin Chapin, a North American preacher and poet, said:

No more duty can be urged upon those who are entering the

great theater of life than simple loyalty to their best

convictions.

Ben Nelson lives by his convictions, even though it may put him at odds with his party or his constituents. His highest duty is to country and his conscience.

We had a retirement party a week ago tomorrow, and when it was over, I grabbed Ben and we embraced. I care a great deal about him. He has made some extremely difficult votes, but he did it because it was the right thing to do. His duty is to country and his conscience, and I repeat, I have such high respect for Ben Nelson. I will miss him. I have enjoyed working with him.

I congratulate Ben Nelson on his career in public service, including his service in the Senate, and wish him the very best in his retirement.

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

Mr. President, on behalf of Senator Tim Johnson, I ask unanimous consent that Jeanette Quick, a detailee on his committee staff, be granted the privilege of the floor for the duration of S. 3637.

Mr. President, following leader remarks, the Senate will be in a period of morning business until 11:45 today. During that period of time, Senators will be allowed to speak up to 10 minutes each. It is certainly not mandatory, but we would like that time to be used for speeches of our retiring Senators.

At 11:45 a.m., the Senate will move to executive session to consider the Walker and Berg nominations, both district judges from Florida and Michigan, respectively.

At approximately 12:10 p.m., there will be up to three rollcall votes: first on passage of the Russia trade bill, and then on confirmation of the Walker and Berg nominations. We expect only two rollcall votes as we hope the Berg nomination will be confirmed by voice.

Mr. President, we Democrats have been saying for more than 4 months it is time for the House to pass a middle-class tax cut, which we approved here in the Senate in July. As the days until the country goes over the fiscal cliff tick by, more and more Republicans have joined our chorus. They realize the Republican leaders' unwillingness to compromise sooner has put them in a real bind. So reasonable Republicans are asking their House leadership to allow a vote on the Senate-passed legislation. What was once a trickle has become more of a flood.

Last week, Republican Representative Tom Cole said it was time to give middle-class families certainty that taxes won't go up by $2,200, on average, on January 1.

Then Tim Scott, Republican, a conservative Republican from South Carolina, admitted the Senate's middle-class tax cut would surely pass the House since it will take only 26 moderate Republican votes to ensure passage.

I don't agree with columnist David Brooks--on occasion I don't agree with him, perhaps most of the time I don't agree with him--but no one can ever dispute the brilliance in writing of this columnist for the New York Times. He is a great journalist. He writes so well

and explains things so well. I have great admiration for him.

He wrote yesterday, ``Republicans have to realize that they are going to have to cave on tax rates.'' That is the way it is, ``they are going to have to cave on tax rates.''

Then on Tuesday, the day before yesterday, the senior Senator from Maine, Olympia Snowe, urged House Republican leaders to end the suspense for middle-class taxpayers. They shouldn't have to wonder, Senator Snowe said, whether ``we will ultimately raise taxes on low- to middle-income people.'' I assure them, we won't raise taxes on the middle class and the poor. That is what Olympia Snowe said.

On Wednesday, Senator Susan Collins joined her colleague from Maine, agreeing the idea of ending the suspense for the middle class ``has merit.''

Yesterday it seemed every practical Republican left in Washington was suddenly willing to say out loud what we have known for weeks: The only remaining option is for the House to pass the Senate bill. Dozens of House Republicans signed onto a letter urging Speaker Boehner to take the last exit before the cliff.

Neither President Obama nor Democrats in Congress have been ambiguous about our proposal to provide economic security for 98 percent of American families and 97 percent of small businesses, while asking the wealthiest 2 percent to contribute a little more to stop this runaway debt.

Now even a dyed-in-the-wool conservative such as Senator Coburn from Oklahoma has endorsed the Democratic approach. Here is what he said:

I know we have to raise revenue. I would rather see the

rates go up than eliminate tax credits and deductions that

benefit the middle class.

He has been heavily involved in everything that has happened the last several years in Washington dealing with what to do with the debt. When he joins in, that is significant, so it is apparent how this will end. The only question is when will it end. How long will Speaker Boehner make middle-class families wait for relief, and how long will he force the financial markets to wait for certainty? The longer he delays, the greater the risk to our economy.

So, John Boehner, who is my friend, I urge you, you don't have to listen to me. Listen to your own caucus. Listen to prudent members of your own party and around the country. We can argue whether to give more unnecessary tax breaks to the wealthy tomorrow. We can discuss responsible ways to reduce our deficit next week. We can reform our Tax Code next year, but we must give economic certainty to the middle class now, today. Democrats agree, Independents agree, the majority of Republicans agree, and the American public agrees by a huge margin. Even dozens of CEOs from major corporations, whose personal taxes would go up under our plan, emphatically agree. I have been saying for weeks the only people who aren't on board are the Republicans in Congress, but now even they are crying out for compromise. I only hope my friend John Boehner is listening.

Reserving the right to object, I have been thinking how best to describe what has been going on here on Capitol Hill the last couple of weeks.

Every morning I get up, the first thing I read is the sports page. I am disappointed in the sports page from the Washington Post. It is not nearly as good as it used to be, and the New York Times is not very good either, but I read them. There is always some good news on the sports page. Then I go to the front page to get some of the bad news. I follow sports no matter what it is--basketball, football, baseball, whatever it is--and I have watched very closely.

It is not one of my favorite teams, but it is really fun to watch the New York Jets. Coach Ryan has a problem. He has three quarterbacks: Sanchez, Tim Tebow, and he has a guy by the name of McElroy. He can't decide who their quarterback is going to be. That is the same problem the Republicans are having. Romney is gone, but he is still in the background. We have McConnell and we have Boehner. Who is the quarterback, Mr. President? Who is the quarterback?

My friend talks about the trillions of dollars of debt. We just had an election. The people overwhelmingly know why we have this debt. The polling right before the election showed that the vast majority of the American people realized the debt was caused by George Bush. That is a fact.

We will have another jobs report out tomorrow. We had a little problem because of what happened with Hurricane

Sandy, but we still have created about 100,000 new jobs. Private sector job growth has been significant. We are approaching--let's see, it must be about 4 million jobs now that have been created. That doesn't nearly make up for what was lost during the Bush years, but we are making progress.

People in America realize we can no longer have the top-down economy the Republicans so loved during the Bush years and what they wanted to create again with Governor Romney.

I would be happy to take a look at the proposal my friend the Republican leader has shown us if we could come up with something like we did when they created this other furor by refusing to increase the debt, where we had an ability to come here and have a couple of votes to determine if we were going to increase it. If that is what they want to do again, I would be happy to seriously take a look at that and report to the White House and my caucus, but until then I object.

Mr. President, of course, as I said, I will be happy to look at the proposal by my friend, but the President doesn't want to do anything other than what we have done before, and that is where we are now, and that is why I would be happy to take a look at his proposal, because if it is what we did last summer, I would be happy to take a look at that and move forward.

Mr. President, it is not only we Democrats, but we have a long line of Republicans who, as I outlined early on, are recognizing that we need to immediately make sure the middle class and the poor are taken care of without their taxes being increased. We have Representatives Cole, Scott; David Brooks, a columnist from the New York Times; Senators Snowe, Collins, and Coburn; and a long list of Republicans saying let's move on.

Madam President, this morning Senator McConnell came to the floor. He made a serious offer dealing with the debt ceiling--one of the most important issues facing this country. As I said, it is a serious offer. I have not personally read it. My staff looked at it, and it is important enough that I would like to have a vote on it this afternoon. I need to have a caucus and explain to my troops what this is all about. If we can work something out with Senator McConnell, I would like to have a vote sometime this afternoon. I do need to have a caucus. We have another vote right now, and if my Republican colleagues think there is not a chance of having a vote this afternoon--I can only do it by unanimous consent. If someone is going to object to it, they should do it now and we will arrange another time to address this issue.

So the issue is that Senator McConnell has made a proposal on how we handle the debt ceiling, and we have to get permission from my Republican colleagues as to whether we can have a vote on it this afternoon at a time that would be as convenient as possible. I don't think we need a lot of time to debate it. We have done that lots of times.

Madam President, I know there are airplanes that people want to leave in, but this is very important. This vote will end at about 1 p.m. I scheduled the caucus for 1:30 p.m. There is no reason we couldn't start the caucus at 1:05 p.m. We can move it up.

I need some direction from my Republican colleagues. So if I hear no one yelling no, then we will go ahead and schedule this as soon as we can this afternoon, to vote.

Madam President, to my friend from Texas, the conference we will have won't take very long--half an hour, maybe 45 minutes. I am sure we could finish that by 1:45 p.m. or something like that, and we could have a vote.

Madam President, I now ask unanimous consent that at 1:30 p.m. today, the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. 3664, which is a bill regarding debt limit increases, the text of which is at the desk; that there be no amendments in order to the bill; that there be up to 10 minutes of debate equally divided between the two leaders or their designees; that upon the use or yielding back of time, the bill be read a third time and the Senate proceed to passage of S. 3664.

Madam President, reserving the right to object, what we have is a case of Republicans in the Senate once again not taking ``yes'' for an answer.

This morning, the Republican leader asked consent to have a vote on his proposal. Just now I told everyone we are willing to have that vote, an up-or-down vote. But now the Republican leader objects to his own idea. So I guess we have a filibuster of his own bill. So I object.

If my friend will yield, I have business here and then he will get the floor right back.

Madam President, I now move to proceed to Calendar No. 554,

Madam President, 387 is on its way. I have a cloture motion at the desk.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum under rule XXII be waived.

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

Mr. President, I wish to say a few words about my friend and colleague Senator Jim Webb. He has made a decision not to run for reelection which, for me, is very sad, but it is truly not a good deal for the State of Virginia or our country. Jim Webb has served one term in the Senate. He accomplished more in that one term than most do in a lifetime. I repeat, I am very sorry to see him leave.

Jim is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, a highly decorated Marine. He was an infantry officer and served with distinction in Vietnam, and that is an understatement. He did serve with distinction. He earned a Navy Cross, which is the second highest decoration in the Navy and Marine Corps. He got that for heroism in Vietnam. He was awarded a Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, two Purple Hearts.

He, of course, wanted to be in the military all of his life, but when he returned from Vietnam he could not do it anymore. His injuries from the war prevented him from doing that. He attended Georgetown Law School where he graduated with distinction, served 4 years with President Reagan as Assistant Secretary of Defense and Secretary of the Navy. He was the first Naval Academy graduate to serve as the civilian head of the Navy. He is also an author, having written six books, a filmmaker, screen writer. He even won an Emmy.

Long after Jim Webb left the Marine Corps, and despite his many civilian

accomplishments, he remains a marine at heart. He is a marine through and through. He learned the tradition of service at home, although home changed often with his father's duty station. Jim's father was an officer in the U.S. Air Force and a pilot during World War II.

Jim's son, Jimmy Webb, a marine who served in Iraq, continued that tradition of service. Although Jim Webb was a vocal opponent of the Iraq war, he was incredibly proud of his son's service as a soldier in battle-torn Iraq. Every day of his 2006 campaign, Jim Webb wore his son's combat boots. It was a tribute not only to Jimmy, his boy, but to all people who have been sent into harm's way, he said.

I met Jim Webb in my office not far from here as a result of Senator Bob Kerrey asking me if I would spend some time with him. I was happy to do so. I will never forget that meeting, just the three of us in the room. Those of us who worked with Bob Kerrey know he is and was such a vibrant person. He was almost mischievous, I guess you could put it. You could just tell he had a little touch of differentness.

When he brought Jim in to visit with me I learned very quickly they were both warriors--Bob Kerrey, a Navy Seal, recipient of the Medal of Honor, and Jim Webb, as we said, Navy Cross, a Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, both veterans of the Vietnam war.

As we sat talking, it was obvious they were both fighters, warriors. Jim certainly proved that in his 2006 campaign. The reason Bob wanted me to visit with him is because Jim Webb had decided he wanted to run for the Senate. What did I think of it?

I probably told Jim what a lot of people told him: You want to run for the Senate? The election is right upon us.

He said, I want to do that.

Not many believed he had any chance of winning. He believed he could, Bob Kerrey believed he could, but he ran because he wanted to and, boy, did he run hard.

For me, though, it did not settle in my mind until the night before the election. There was an event in Alexandria, VA. It was a cold November night. I stood with Jim on that stage. I realized then that he could win. People were lined up for blocks. ``Lined up'' was the wrong word--people covered blocks. Every open space as far as you could see was filled with people.

President Clinton was there. I was there. They didn't come to see me, of course. They came to see not President Clinton, they came to see Jim Webb because he was doing the impossible. He had captivated the voters. He was unafraid. He spoke his mind. And what a smart man.

I marvel at the intelligence of Jim Webb, his ability to learn and to express his ideas. As I said, he captivated the voters. That is really why he won the race he should not have been able to win.

Once he was elected, he was a marvel to watch. He believed he could change the world. He did change several corners of the world. Let me give one example. He was a new Senator and he came to me and said, I have an idea. Jim Webb is not a person who just focuses on an idea and walks away from it. When Jim Webb came to see me, he had the legislation he had drafted. It was not sent to some bill drafter to have him look it over, he drafted the legislation himself. What did he want to do? He wanted to introduce a post- 9/11 GI Bill Of Rights. What he wanted to do was expand educational benefits for military families and he brought our commitment to our veterans to the standard enjoyed by World War II veterans. He was just a freshman Senator.

After spending about an hour with him with facts and figures and the actual legislation, I said sign me up. I will do whatever I can to help you with it.

A brandnew Senator passed this major piece of legislation. He built a coalition of veterans and Democratic and Republican Senators to fight for this legislation. Since this legislation became law in 2008, more than 750,000 veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and their families have used the program to access the education they deserve.

Jim, who speaks Vietnamese, has also helped shape our country's foreign policy in other places. He played a key role in Burma where he secured the rights of democracy activists such as Aung San Suu Kyi, who came and visited us a month or so ago.

Jim Webb is a unique individual in so many different ways. He has visited many of the places where the battles were fought in World War II. He went to those islands and spent time walking to see what the veterans had gone through in a war prior to the one in which he was involved. He actually did that. It was physically hard, but he wanted to do that and he did it on his own.

Robert Kennedy said:

Few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but

each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and

in the total of all those acts will be written the history of

this generation.

Jim Webb should be proud of his part--it was not a small part--in writing the history of his generation. He did it in the battlefields in Vietnam. He did it in the Pentagon. He did it here in the Senate.

I do not know what is ahead for Jim Webb, but we have not heard the last of him. He has a wonderful, beautiful wife and wonderful children. He left his mark on the Senate and he will never be forgotten, even though he served here one term. I am really sorry his Senate career was not longer, but I am gratified it was so productive.

I congratulate Jim Webb and express on this Record how much I admire him and what a strength he has been to me. He was a strength to me on the health care bill. He has given me wonderful information on immigration--which I have spent a lot of time on. I have read some of his books. I have not read them all but I read a couple of them. He is somebody I will miss very much and I will always consider Jim Webb somebody who made me a better person.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

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

Madam President, following leader remarks, the Senate will be in a period of morning business for up to 4 hours. The reason for that is we have been on a Defense bill for a considerable number of days, and people haven't had the opportunity to come to express their views on a number of different issues, so we are going to extend that morning business for a longer time than normal.

Following morning business, about 2 o'clock, we will begin consideration of H.R. 6156, the Russia trade bill. We hope we are able to complete action on that matter today.

Madam President, across the country Americans are lamenting the lack of progress in negotiations to avoid a massive tax increase on middle-class families, and I share that frustration. But for insight into why negotiations have been difficult, consider yesterday's failure of the disabilities convention at the hands of the tea party. This shouldn't have been a battle, but extreme elements of the Republican Party picked a fight when there was nothing to fight about. Thirty- eight Republicans voted against the convention, including several who were on record supporting it, even cosponsored it. This treaty, already ratified by 125 countries, would hold foreign nations to the same high standard and treatment the United States already maintains for people with disabilities.

It would safeguard American citizens traveling, working, and serving abroad, and that is hundreds of thousands of people right now. The treaty has the support of veterans groups, disability groups from around the country, virtually all of them. It wouldn't cost the taxpayers a single penny. It wouldn't require any changes to existing United States law, and the issue is as bipartisan as they come.

Here is what one Senator said about the treaty:

Protecting the rights of persons with disabilities, any

person's, is not a political issue. It is a human issue,

regardless of where in the world a disabled person strives to

live a normal, independent life where basic rights and

accessibilities are available. Disability rights and

protections have always been a bipartisan issue and ratifying

this treaty should be no different.

This wasn't some ultraliberal speaking, it was Senator John McCain, a disabled veteran, a hero from the Vietnam conflict, who broke with extremists and tea partiers and voted to ratify the treaty.

The convention also has the strong support from a number of other leading Republicans, including George H.W. Bush, the first President Bush. He, by the way, of course, was a World War II veteran and did heroic things during that war.

It also has the support of former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, certainly a patriot. Senator Dole, a disabled veteran from World War II, who led the fight to pass the treaty, was here yesterday urging Republican support.

Think about that. Robert Dole, who was grievously injured in World War II, spent more than 2 years in a hospital, came to this Senate floor, and the first speech he gave was on disabilities. We

need to do something about it. He was here leading the fight to pass the treaty, urging Republicans to support it.

A few Republicans greeted him as he was in his wheelchair here. They greeted this 89-year-old war hero--I repeat, a patriot--who just last week was in Walter Reed Hospital. Then one by one all but a handful of them voted against the treaty, ensuring its failure. But their professed reasons for opposing it had no basis in fact--none.

Most Republicans acknowledged that. Some used an excuse, well, it is a lameduck, we shouldn't be doing it in a lameduck. I mean, wow.

There is no justification for sending a message that every individual around the world who strives to lead a productive life in spite of a disability does not deserve the same just treatment. There is no justification for telling disabled Americans, especially those who have sacrificed their bodies for our freedom, our veterans, that they don't deserve the same protections abroad they do here at home. Yet that is the message 38 of my Republican colleagues sent yesterday.

Tax Increases

These are the same Republicans with whom Democrats are supposed to reach an agreement to protect middle-class families from a tax increase. It is difficult to engage in rational negotiations when one side holds well-known facts and proven truths in such low esteem. Hopefully, compromise is not out of reach, but as negotiations continue, I hope my Republican colleagues will keep in mind the oft- repeated words of Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan who said, You are entitled to your own opinion, but you are not entitled to your own facts.

I know how high the stakes are. The days run short. There is still a quick, easy way out of this. The House must take up the Senate-passed middle-class tax cut. A few reasonable Republicans who are left agree we need to give certainty to middle-class families now.

Yesterday Olympia Snowe, a very courageous legislator for more than two decades, who is retiring, said Congress should fight about tax rates for the top 2 percent after we have reassured the middle class. Americans ``should not even be questioning that we will ultimately raise taxes on low- to middle-income people.'' That is her quote.

People are questioning this. If House Republican leaders allow a vote on our legislation, it will pass; every Democrat will vote for it. It will only take 26 Republican votes. It is a huge body, 435 Members. We only need 26 Republicans for this to pass. I know there are 26 Republicans who would vote for this. We have one conservative Republican serving in the House who has said more than half would vote for it. I believe there are 26 reasonable Republicans willing to put their promise to serve constituents ahead of their pledge to serve Grover Norquist.

So I say to my friend, John Boehner, in the House of Representatives, you control matters on the floor. No one else does. You have the ability, and you are the only one who has the ability, to put this on the floor for a vote.

He should do that. That would be the American way.