Floor Statements

Following leader remarks, if any, the Senate will resume consideration of the National Defense Authorization Act. The filing deadline for second-degree amendments is 4 o'clock today.

At 5 p.m., the Senate will proceed to executive session to consider the nomination of Paul William Grimm to be United States District Judge for the District of Maryland. At 5:30 p.m., there will be two rollcall votes: first on confirmation of the Grimm nomination, and then on the motion to invoke cloture on S. 3254, the Defense bill I just spoke about.

Mr. President, significant progress has been made on this legislation. The two managers of the bill, as I indicated, know how this place works, and they worked extremely hard to clear a lot of amendments. We soon will be approaching 100 amendments that have been dealt with in this legislation. In fact, for all I know, they could have already done it since this morning, so I think we have made great progress. I know there is more progress that can be made by their continuing to work on this.

Mr. President, before I came to Congress I was a lawyer. I tried lots of cases, more than 100 cases to juries. My greatest victories, though, weren't the cases that we spent in a courtroom and worked on in a courtroom. My greatest victories were the cases that never saw the inside of a courtroom.

As English poet George Herbert said, ``A lean compromise is better than a fat lawsuit,'' and that is true. It is always better to settle than to fight. I have done my fair share over the years of negotiating, both as a lawyer and as a Senator and as a Member of the House. I have a bit of negotiating advice for Republican leaders: You are doing it wrong. Generally during a negotiation, each side brings an offer or demand to the table. That is how it has always worked. Then the two sides sit down and find middle ground. It is not always easy and it is rarely fun. True compromise means no one gets everything they want, but unless both sides come to the negotiating table with an offer, you can't even begin the negotiation. In fact, unless both sides come to the table with an offer, there is no negotiation.

Over the last week, Republican leaders from both Chambers have complained that Democrats put forward a proposal for resolving the fiscal cliff that reflected our priorities--our priorities. What did they expect?

Our proposal is simple. We want to end unnecessary tax breaks for the richest of the rich and provide security for everyone making less than $250,000 a year. No one should be surprised at President Obama's offer. It is exactly what he has said he supports time and time again. For months now, it is what I have said I support. I have said it time and time again. It is what Democratic Senators campaigned on across the country this election cycle. This plan would protect 98 percent of American families and 97 percent of small

businesses from tax increases. It also passed the Senate 4 months ago, and it has the support of the American people. The vast majority of Americans--Independents, Democrats, and even more than 40 percent of Republicans--supports this.

I wish I could share with you the details of the Republicans' answering proposal, but there hasn't been one. They haven't produced a single proposal.

We are not doing their homework for them. It is the Republicans' responsibility to respond with a counteroffer--not a hint dropped during, perhaps, an interview with the Washington Post, the New York Times or even the Wall Street Journal or a Sunday talk show but a real modified offer. President Obama has told Republicans and the world where he stands. The sooner the Republicans make a legitimate offer, the sooner we can all start working to find middle ground.

So let me remind my Republican colleagues that as we work toward a final agreement, millions of middle-class families are nervously watching and waiting. For 4 months Republicans have held them hostage to protect the richest 2 percent of taxpayers. Reasonable rank-and-file Republicans are urging their leadership to stop delaying Senate-passed legislation that would give millions of middle-class families making less than $250,000 the certainty that their taxes won't go up by about $2,200 on January 1.

It will be hard for Speaker Boehner to pass our bill--no, it wouldn't be hard at all; it would be so easy. Every Democrat in the House will vote for it--every Democrat in the House. To reach 218 votes, which is half plus 1 in the House, it takes only 26 reasonable Republicans willing to put the needs of the middle-class demands ahead of Grover Norquist. That is so simple.

So when my friend, the Speaker, says he can't pass it, that is simply without foundation or fact, and it is not true.

As my friend and colleague, the senior Senator from Missouri, Claire McCaskill, said on a Sunday talk show yesterday, John Boehner has a decision to make. This is what she said: ``He's got to decide, is his speakership more important or is the country more important.'' That is a pretty easy question to answer for everyone. It should be an easy question to answer for Speaker Boehner.

As we continue to hope for a balanced agreement that will safeguard the economy, I hope Speaker Boehner ends the suspense for millions of American families and does it soon.

Would the Chair announce the business of the day.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding the previous order with respect to treaty document 112-7, the vote on ratification will occur at 2:15 Tuesday, tomorrow, December 4, with all the provisions of the previous orders remaining in effect. What this does is rather than having the vote at noon on the disability treaty, we would have it after our caucus.

Mr. President, following leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of the Defense Authorization Act. There will be four rollcall votes at 9:30 a.m.

Order of Procedure

I ask unanimous consent that all votes after the first vote be 10 minutes in duration.

Mr. President, this week something rare occurred here in the Senate: We debated a bill under regular order. No filibusters were mounted, no cloture motions were filed on the motion to proceed. That is certainly a rare occasion. For that reason we have had ample time to debate and consider amendments. This is how the process should work.

Typically, over the last few years we have spent weeks running out the clock on endless procedural motions rather than debating important legislation. It is no wonder the Senate rarely accomplishes anything when it takes more than a week to have a vote even to begin a bill; that is, whether we even take up a bill, start debate on a bill.

I would note, however, that even in this case, and this is an important piece of legislation, the Defense authorization bill--I did not have to file cloture to get to the bill, but we spent weeks going back and forth to get this bill to the floor. Even though the bill managers are working mightily to make regular order work, a number of Senators have advanced nonrelevant amendments, threatening to derail the process. More than 360 amendments have been filed to this bill, many of them nonrelevant. I understand there is a lot of pent-up feelings about: Why have I not been able to offer amendments the last couple of years? Well, because we have not gotten on bills, and when we do, nothing much happens because of the problems that have developed.

A number of my colleagues, especially this past week, both Democrats and Republicans, have come to me asking for a better path forward in this body, this legislative body we so love. They want the Senate to function again in the manner the Founders envisioned. They want to see us debate legislation, consider relevant amendments, and then vote up or down on the matters before this body. Senators want to see us conclude legislation, pass or fail. Let's decide what we are going to do, not avoid doing something. They do not want to see more good bills filibustered to death without ever even getting a real vote. If a bill is worth bringing to the floor of this body, the Senate, it should get to the floor so we can start the debate.

One reason we have been able to work with 50, 60 amendments on this bill--actually that are disposed of--is because we did not have to waste time for more than a week on a motion to proceed to get to it. So I repeat, if a bill is worth bringing to the floor of this body, it should get to the floor quickly. It deserves an up-or-down vote once we go on it.

Mr. President, we are fortunate to have two of the most seasoned veterans managing this bill. They understand the legislation. They have worked together for a quarter of a century on this. No one knows this subject matter better than these two managers.

Having said that, they are now going to put their experience to a test because they are going to come up with a finite list. People have wanted to start legislating the way we have legislated. That is what we are doing here. As I mentioned this morning, we have almost 400 amendments that have been filed on this bill, but that is not unusual. People have a pent-up desire to offer amendments and we all understand that. But from that list, these two managers are going to cull a number of amendments to come up with a finite list; that is, a list of amendments that should be disposed of.

They are going to do that by unanimous consent, and I hope everyone will cooperate. They will be as fair as they can to Democrats and Republicans. People should look at the list. If they don't like it, then they should talk to one of the managers, but that is the way it is. There will be no more votes after the next one, but by noon today there will be a determination as to whether there will be further activity on this legislation.

We have a vote that is now going to be announced by the Chair in a minute. I hope everybody understands we have made great progress on this bill. This legislation has passed 51 consecutive years. This will be the 52nd year we have passed this bill. It would be untoward and not good for our fighting men and women not to pass this legislation. Once we pass it, we can't spend a lot more time on it. This is a massive bill. It has to go to conference with the House. The two managers and the conferees have to work something out so we will have a final product before the end of the year.

I would be happy to yield.

Finally, I ask all Senators to know that word ``cloture'' did not purse my lips.

The work done has been exemplary by the two managers. I appreciate it very much. We have disposed of 75 amendments. We have another batch we are going to approve very quickly. We have had rollcall votes. There has been significant progress made. We are not going to be able to lock in a finite list of amendments. That is always hard to do. But I am confident we are going to be able to get this done.

Senators McCain and Levin and their staffs will be available over the weekend, and staff will be available more than the two Senators, who have spent many hours on the Senate floor. We need to make sure people who have problems with the proposal made by the two managers, that they let them know because we need to lock this in as quickly as possible.

I am going to file cloture in just a minute. I encourage people to work with the managers. We are going to go out. Senators Levin and McCain are going to clear a few amendments, and then we are going to go out for the weekend. This has been a very productive week.

Cloture Motion

Mr. President, I have a cloture motion at the desk.

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

Senator Levin will announce to the Senate at a later time-- but just to give an idea of what to expect--there will be a Maryland judge's vote on Monday evening. Then that will be followed by a cloture vote on the matter that I just sent the motion on to the desk.

We would hope that there will be the ability at that time--while the 30 hours are running--to clear a bunch of amendments.

Mr. President, as in executive session, I ask unanimous consent there be no amendments in order to the treaty or the resolution of ratification; that following leader remarks on Tuesday, December 4, the time until 12 noon be divided in the usual form; that at 12 noon the Senate proceed to vote on the Resolution of Advice and Consent to Ratification of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities; that if the resolution is adopted, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table; that the President be then immediately notified of the Senate's action; further, that if the resolution is not adopted, the treaty be returned to the calendar, there be no motions or points of order in order other than a motion to reconsider.

Mr. President, following leader remarks, the Senate will be in a period of morning business for 1 hour, with Republicans controlling the first half and the majority controlling the second half. Following morning business, the Senate will resume consideration of the Defense authorization bill. We will continue to work through the amendments to the bill during today's session. Rollcall votes are expected all throughout today.

I would now yield to my friend, the senior Senator from the State of Wisconsin. I will have more of an opportunity at a later time to say things about Senator Kohl, but I have had a wonderful experience in getting to know this quiet, very productive man. I have enjoyed his innate skills. He is one of the best businesspeople we have in America today, one of the best Senators we have in America today.

Mr. President, it is a remarkable short history, very amazing how wonderful our country is. I note just in passing that my wife's father, my father-in-law, was born in Russia, immigrated to the United States like the rabbi and Senator Kohl's father.

Mr. President, it took 4 months, but Republicans are finally realizing their way back from the fiscal cliff has been right in front of them all along. In July the Senate passed legislation to give economic certainty to 98 percent of American families and 97 percent of small businesses, to every American making less than $250,000 a year. For 4 months we have been one vote away from a solution to this looming crisis. For 4 months House Republicans have refused to act. Instead, they have held the middle class hostage to protect the richest 2 percent of taxpayers--people who have enjoyed a decade of blooming income and shrinking tax bills.

One has to admire the President, who went out and campaigned on this issue. He did not in any way walk away from the issue. He said: That is how we are going to get our fiscal house in order. And independents by a huge margin, Democrats by a huge margin, and 41 percent of Republicans support what the President asks us to do.

So now reasonable Republicans--I think it is very important--are coming around to what Democrats have said all along: Let's reassure millions of Americans that taxes will not go up by $2,200 a year on January 1; that is, those people who are the middle class of America.

Prominent Republicans are calling on Speaker Boehner to end the suspense for millions of these American families. Yesterday Republican Congressman Tom Cole of Oklahoma, a veteran in the House of Representatives, urged his caucus to pass the Senate's legislation keeping taxes low for those making less than $250,000 a year. That would pass by an overwhelming margin. All the Speaker has to do is let it come up for a vote. I would bet a lot of his Republicans would vote for it. I would bet a majority of his Republicans would vote for it. Virtually every Democrat would vote for it. They only need 218. There are 435 Members in the House. We also noted yesterday that Republican Congressman Tim Scott of South Carolina, who is noted for his conservatism, admitted yesterday that if the Speaker brought our bill to a vote, it would surely pass. So it is time the House Republican leadership listened to the will of the American people--Independents, Democrats, and Republicans--and also the advice of the reasonable members of their own caucus. The way out of this standoff is clear. Yet we are left wondering how long Republicans will force middle-class families to wait and to worry.

Unfortunately, resolving the standoff will not resolve every conflict over the fiscal future. We have to end wasteful tax breaks for the richest Americans. We agree. We agree with the majority of Americans. We are serious about reducing the deficit. It will take a balanced approach. Last year we successfully worked across party lines to cut $1 trillion worth of spending we could not afford. Even our Republican colleagues acknowledge budget cuts alone will not solve our fiscal challenges. We can argue over whether to give more wasteful handouts to the wealthy. They can do that tomorrow. We can discuss balanced, responsible ways to reduce our deficit tomorrow. But let's take care of the middle class today.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. President, we have one more vote to start in just a few minutes. Senator Levin wants to say something about the schedule for tomorrow.

Senator Levin.

There will be no morning business.

I ask for the yeas and nays.

I move to lay that motion on the table.

The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Madam President, I now move to proceed to Calendar No. 419, the DOD authorization bill.

Madam President, the first hour will be equally divided and controlled between the two leaders or their designees, with the majority controlling the first half and the Republicans controlling the final half. We expect to begin consideration of the DOD authorization bill today.

Disabilities Convention

On April 14, 1945, a very young Robert Dole lay gravely wounded in the mud of a war-torn Italian hillside. He had been hit with shrapnel which tore through his shoulder and his spine. But 24 years later, after years spent rebuilding his body and building a political career, the future Senate majority leader gave his maiden speech on the Senate floor. His first floor speech here in the Senate was about the challenges faced each day--even in this the richest of nations--by people just like Robert Dole, people with disabilities. That is what he spoke about. He described the discrimination disabled Americans faced as ``maybe not exclusion from the front of the bus, but perhaps from even climbing aboard it.''

Over the next 27 years of his Senate career, including 11 years as majority leader, and throughout his years in the private sector, Bob Dole would remain a vocal advocate for Americans with disabilities. Since Senator Dole fought for passage of the Americans With Disabilities Act in 1990, barriers have been lifted, helping people with disabilities in this country live the full and productive life they want and deserve.

There is no finer example of the extraordinary goals Americans can achieve in spite of their disabilities than Bob Dole's inspiring career. In my mind's eye, I can see Senator Dole on the Senate floor standing straight and tall, slim, and articulate--as I indicated yesterday, always with something funny to say. But what people did not notice was that one of his arms was inoperative. He always kept a pen in that hand so people would not grab his hand or something like that. But it was distinctive. That was the distinctive Robert Dole. He was such a force here in the Senate, and to think that he did it all after having been really blown up in a war.

The United States has been a leader in expanding disability rights across the globe. U.S. law has been the gold standard for the rest of the world. But the United States must continue to lead by example and must do more to protect American citizens traveling and working abroad.

The disabilities convention before the Senate today--a treaty ratified by 125 nations--would advance those goals. This convention would give us

an opportunity to strengthen our leadership on disability rights around the world. It is another step toward ensuring that all people with disabilities in any country are treated with dignity and given the right to achieve to their full potential.

Ratification of this treaty will not cost the U.S. taxpayers a single dime. It will not require any changes in our existing law. It has the support of veterans groups and disability groups around the country. It has the strong backing of a bipartisan group of Senators and leading Republicans such as George H.W. Bush as well as Senator Dole. He called me a few days ago to tell me how much he wanted this passed.

Like passing the Americans With Disabilities Act, ratifying the treaty is the right thing to do. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, ``If you would lift me up you must be on higher ground.'' If the United States wishes to be a global example for the huge strides people with disabilities can make when barriers to succeed are removed, we must take the high ground.

I thank Senator Kerry, the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, Senators McCain, Lugar, Durbin, Barrasso, Coons, Tom Udall, Moran, and others, and especially Senator Harkin, who is the father of the Americans With Disabilities Act, leading the way on this issue. With their help, I hope we can quickly ratify this treaty.

Recognition of the Minority Leader

Madam President, what is the matter now before the Senate?

Is there further debate on this matter?

Madam President, on behalf of Senator Udall of Colorado, I call up amendment No. 2985.

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

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 535, S. 1998.

I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported substitute amendment be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read a third time and passed, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate, and that any statements related to the bill be printed in the Record.