Floor Statements

Mr. President, we are continuing to work on Senator Johnson's military construction appropriations bill. The Senate will be notified when votes are scheduled on that matter.

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

Mr. President, following any leader remarks, the Senate will be

in a period of morning business for 1 hour. Republicans will control the first half and the majority will control the final half.

Following morning business, the Senate will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to H.R. 2055, the Military Construction and Veterans' Affairs appropriations bill, postcloture. We hope to yield back time and begin consideration of the bill sometime today.

Mr. President, there are some in the Republican Party who will not listen to the truth no matter who speaks it.

This is my opinion: If we allow this Nation for the first time in its history to default on our national obligations, it will not only be a black mark on our reputation but also a massive financial disaster that will sweep the world into global depression.

But it is not my opinion alone. I have come to that belief by listening to the most respected voices in the business community. Default, they say, is a ``risk our country must not take.''

They are not the only ones who believe that is true. The most respected bankers have also said it. JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said default would be ``catastrophic.''

Investors have said it. Bill Gross, one of the world's largest mutual fund managers, sent us a warning yesterday. He said:

There should be no question at all. The debt ceiling must

be raised and not be held hostage by budget negotiations.

Don't mess with the debt ceiling, Washington.

That is what Bill Gross said.

Economists have also said it. Ben Bernanke, appointed by President Bush as Chairman of the Federal Reserve, has said default would be a ``major crisis'' that would send ``shock waves'' through the world financial markets. Yesterday, he said failure to avert default would mean ``huge financial calamity.''

Even other Republicans have said it. This is what Speaker Boehner said in April:

Not raising the debt limit would have serious--very

serious--implications for the worldwide economy and jobs here

in America.

Perhaps most telling of all, all three rating agencies have already sent warning shots across our bow. Last night, Moody's cautioned us that America's AAA rating was already under review for downgrade. Never in the history of the country has that happened, that we are being reviewed to downgrade our debt rating. We have 3 weeks left until we miss our first payment. They cited the ``rising possibility'' that we will default. They said we could lose this crucial rating--which saves every American money every day--even before we miss a payment.

Standard & Poor's has told Congress and business leaders that even if the United States keeps paying creditors but delays payments such as Social Security or veterans' benefits, it may cut our rating.

Fitch Ratings has said a default would ``threaten the still fragile financial stability of the United States and the world as a whole.''

So why are some Republicans in Congress still saying that a first ever default on our Nation's financial obligations would be no big deal?

When every financial expert, investor, business leader, and banker in the country--and even every reasonable member of your own political party--is telling you the consequences of default would be catastrophic, it is time to start listening. Why? Because default won't just roil the financial markets, pushing interest rates higher and tank the stock markets. It will affect every American's wallet as well.

Here are a few of the things that will happen. Social Security checks and benefits to our troops would stop. Some of the most vulnerable Americans would be placed at risk. Our promise to the men and women who protected this Nation so bravely--and those who protect it today--would be broken. We would not be able to make payments to our military.

Payments on our national debt would stop. American investments and retirement accounts could be decimated. Millions of Americans could lose their jobs.

Interest rates would rise not only for the government but for ordinary Americans as well. Those Americans will pay more for their mortgages. They will pay more to use a credit card or buy a car or finance a university education. They will even pay more for their electric bills, groceries, and gas. The spike in interest rates and damage to the U.S. dollar alone would cost the average American family more than $1,500 immediately. It would be the most serious financial crisis this country has ever faced, and it would come at a time when our economy can least afford it. In the long run, it would wind up costing the government not millions, not billions, but trillions of dollars--a fact Republicans shouting about the debt fail to mention. For every 1-percent increase in interest rates, it will cost our Nation $1.3 trillion--again, not million, not billion, but trillion. For every 1-percent increase in interest rates, it will cost this Nation $1.3 trillion.

With so much at stake, even Speaker Boehner and Minority Leader McConnell seem to understand the seriousness of the situation. They are willing to negotiate in good faith, which I appreciate, and the country appreciates.

Meanwhile, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor has shown that he shouldn't even be at the table, and Republicans agree he shouldn't be at the table.

One House Republican told Politico, a Hill publication, last night: ``He lost a lot of credibility when he walked away from the table. . . . It was childish.'' What is that all about?

We had negotiations going on here in Room S. 219, a short jaunt from here, and he walked out on the meetings with the Vice President of the United States. It was childish.

Another Republican said Cantor is putting himself first. He said this: ``He's all about Eric.''

The time for personal gain and political posturing is over. It is time to put our economy and our country first. The risks we face are simply too grave.

We don't need to take my word for it. More than 300 respected business leaders wrote to Congress the night before last to make it clear how serious this crisis is.

A great nation--like a great company--has to be relied upon

to pay its debts when they become due. This is a Main Street

not Wall Street issue.

We are listening. It is time for the irresponsible voices in the Republican Party who continue to deny the truth of this crisis to start listening as well.

I note the absence of a quorum.

Madam President, I am giving fair warning to everyone. We have gotten nonchalant about coming to vote. We have an extra 5 minutes. We are not going to extend that in the future. It is not fair to everyone else who gets here on time. So everyone is on notice. We are going to cut the votes off in 20 minutes. People come straggling in 8, 10 minutes late. That is not going to work anymore. It is going to affect Democrats and Republicans.

Madam President, this will be the last vote of the week. We will more than likely be in session tomorrow. There will be no votes tomorrow. If there are people who want to offer amendments, the two managers of this bill, Senator Johnson and Senator Kirk are here. They are here tonight. This vote coming up will be the last vote of the week.

Mr. President, per the request of Senator Kyl's office, I ask unanimous consent that a letter from myself and Senator Kyl to the Attorney General be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that CPT Michael K. Lynch, a U.S. Army Aviation officer, who is currently serving as my defense legislative fellow this year, be granted floor privileges for the duration of H.R. 2055.

Madam President, following any leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of S. 1323, which is a bill to express the sense of the Senate on shared sacrifice in resolving the budget deficit, with 1 hour of debate equally divided and controlled. The filing deadline for all second-degree amendments to S. 1323 is 10 a.m. this morning.

At approximately 10:40, there will be up to two rollcall votes. The first will be a motion to invoke cloture on S. 1323, the piece of legislation I just spoke about. The second rollcall vote will be on a motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and related agencies appropriations bill.

Madam President, sometimes it is very hard to find common ground in Washington. But there is one thing on which Republicans and Democrats agree: It is absolutely necessary that Congress prevent a catastrophic default on the Nation's debt that would put our economy at grave risk. I have said it, and so have my Republican colleagues.

The business community is shouting out very loudly the same thing. This week, business leaders wrote to Congress--in fact, it was yesterday--and the White House to ask us to put our differences aside and avert a default crisis before it is too late. Literally hundreds of CEOs, including executives of some of the Nation's largest companies and the most respected business groups, signed the letter--more than 300. They wrote, ``This is a risk our country must not take.'' They said that if we don't reach a deal soon, the stock market will be in ``disarray.'' We all know that. We all know we cannot afford to have our country crash. Our economy is already struggling to stay on course to recovery. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce president Tom Donahue, who signed the letter, also said earlier this week that a default would have ``dire consequences for our economy, our markets, and Main Street Americans.''

Business leaders are begging us to do something and to do it quickly. That is why I was shocked to hear the Speaker of the House say yesterday that averting a default crisis was President Obama's problem, not his. That is not what he said a few months ago when he urged us to ``deal like adults'' with the problem. It wasn't what he said when he voted to raise the debt ceiling seven times while George W. Bush was President, increasing the debt limit by $4 trillion. In fact, when the Speaker voted to increase the debt limit by nearly $1 trillion one time alone in 2003, he didn't demand that it be accompanied by massive spending cuts or any spending cuts. Instead, a Republican Congress approved hundreds of billions of dollars in tax cuts for the wealthy, which contributed to our massive debt, and they were all on borrowed money. All those massive tax

cuts people received around the country were on America's credit card that has now come due.

Congress has raised the debt limit 89 times since it was created in 1939--54 times with Republican Presidents and 35 times under Democratic Presidents. Ronald Reagan asked Congress to raise the limit 18 times-- and we raised it--twice as many as any other President. Republicans never claimed then that the issue was the President's problem. For Republicans to claim now that the deficit is a problem only for the President or Democrats in Congress is irresponsible. It is even more irresponsible considering President Bush, with the help of Republicans here in Congress, doubled the debt while he was President. That is more debt accumulated than any President in history, by far.

This problem belongs to all of us in Congress, and it will take all of us working together--political parties aside--to make a deal possible. This is not money being borrowed to spend more money; it is money we need to raise the debt ceiling so we can pay the bills we have already accrued.

Democrats realize finding common ground isn't always easy. If it were, we would have hammered out an agreement a long time ago. But reducing the deficit and getting our fiscal house in order is too important to quit when the going gets tough.

Theodore Hesburgh, the famous president of the University of Notre Dame, said this about making difficult decisions:

You don't make decisions because they are easy; you don't

make them because they are cheap; you don't make them because

they're popular; you make them because they're right.

It is time for Democrats and Republicans to get together to do what is right for our Nation. We simply cannot allow our country to fail to pay its bills for the first time in its history. I am confident we will find a way to get this done. The risks to our economy are too great not to.

I was happy to hear yesterday--I received a phone call from the Republican leader at 12:30 yesterday. He has come forward with a proposal to address the debt limit. I am studying it and discussing it with my Senators. I have another meeting at 11 o'clock. Senator McConnell has spent a great deal of time working on this, and I commend him for his thoughtful and unique proposal. It is something we have to look at very closely. I am heartened by what I read. This is a serious proposal, and I commend the Republican leader for coming forward.

I believe the Republican leader's proposal, combined with ideas he and I have been discussing to force a vote on deficit-reduction proposals, could go a long way toward resolving the impasse in which we now find ourselves. We both agreed a long time ago that the problem is not the President's. It is our problem, it is every American's problem, and certainly it is the problem of every Member of Congress.

In the meantime, this afternoon congressional leaders will again meet with President Obama and his senior advisers to try to advance our discussions.

Democrats realize finding common ground isn't always easy. As I said before, if it were, we would have hammered out an agreement a long time ago. But I say again, reducing the deficit and getting our fiscal house in order is too important to quit when the going gets tough. I am confident that somehow, someway, we will find a way to get this done. We can't allow our country for the first time in its history to fail to pay its bills. The risks to our economy are far too great not to.

In that letter we received yesterday, American business leaders said it very well:

Now is the time for our political leaders to put aside

partisan differences and act in the Nation's best interests.

It is time to pull together rather than pull apart.

So I urge my Republican colleagues to remember this: We are not opponents, squaring off across a baseball diamond or some playing field. We are on the same team with the same goal in mind. Let's take, for example, the baseball team I just talked about. If the catcher doesn't show up or refuses to play, it doesn't matter how good the pitcher is, it doesn't matter how good his curve is or how fast he can throw that ball, the team doesn't stand a chance without a catcher. A team is needed to accomplish the goals of a baseball team. We need a team to accomplish the goals this Congress has. It is time each and every one of us here in Congress remembered that. In the words of American business leaders, ``It's time to pull together rather than pull apart.''

Madam President, I would hope following the Republicans' luncheon they will allow us to move to this bill. Senator Johnson and staff are ready to move forward on this legislation. We would hope after the luncheon they would allow us to be on it. So it would be open for amendment. There are lots of spots open for people to offer amendments. This would be our first appropriations bill. I think it would be, especially in that we are working on these budgets, deficit- reduction programs right now here and at the White House, a good message to everybody

that we can do an appropriations bill and stay within our legislative framework as far as spending.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Madam President, following any leader remarks, the Senate will be in a period of morning business for 1 hour, with the majority controlling the first half and the Republicans controlling the final half.

Following morning business, the Senate will resume consideration of S. 1323, which is a bill to express the sense of the Senate on shared sacrifice in resolving the budget deficit. The filing deadline for all first-degree amendments to S. 1323 is noon today.

The Senate will recess from 12:30 until 2:15 today for our weekly caucus meetings.

As a reminder to all Senators, last night I filed cloture on S. 1323, which is the matter I just spoke about. I also filed cloture on the motion to proceed to H.R. 2055, which is the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill. As a result, there will be up to two rollcall votes tomorrow morning.

Mr. President, the Senate has just adopted a motion to proceed to a bill, S. 1323, to express the sense of the Senate on shared sacrifice in resolving the budget deficit we have been so concerned about.

It is my understanding the minority has amendments they wish to have considered. I am happy to work with the Republican leader to figure out a way for this to happen. In the meantime, however, we need to push forward. We all need to do that. I am going to fill the tree and file cloture on this bill. I am happy to continue to talk with the Republican leader and anybody else who is interested in having specific amendments to this legislation we are now on.

I will not allow this legislation to be bogged down by an endless list of unrelated amendments. It is too important for the Senate to reaffirm its commitment to ensuring all Americans--including millionaires and billionaires and profitable corporations--contribute to the collective effort to reduce this deficit. This is a commonsense statement that we believe in simple fairness. Middle-class families and seniors have already been asked to sacrifice too much.

Democrats have gone on record saying that the wealthiest of the wealthy should be asked to contribute to this effort and make similar sacrifices. We hope our Republican colleagues will finally join us in this effort.

Over the past several weeks, I have had good conversations with the Republican leader and the chairman and ranking member of the Appropriations Committee about trying to work through appropriations bills under the regular order.

As a result of these conversations, in an effort to move forward, I am going to file cloture on a motion to proceed to the Military Construction-VA Appropriations bill tonight. I hope we can show the country that the Senate can work through an important appropriations bill without getting bogged down.

Remember, there are different rules on these matters. You can't deal with legislative matters on appropriations bills. I hope we can have some amendments on our sense-of-the-Senate resolution dealing with having the wealthiest of the wealthy contribute to the problems we have with the deficit in this country, and following that I hope we can move to Military Construction-VA. Our servicemen and veterans who have served our country so well need this.

Amendment No. 529

Mr. President, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. President, on this amendment I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, I have a second-degree amendment at the desk.

Mr. President, I have a motion to commit the bill with instructions, which is also at the desk.

Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays on that amendment.

Mr. President, I have an amendment to the instructions at the desk.

I ask for the yeas and nays on this amendment.

I have a second-degree amendment at the desk.

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

Mr. President, I move to proceed to Calendar No. 91, H.R. 2055.

I have a cloture motion at the desk.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum required under rule XXII be waived with respect to both cloture motions.

Mr. President, I now withdraw my motion to proceed.

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

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I would say before my friend leaves the floor, his leader, my friend, the senior Senator from Kentucky and I are representing the Senate along with Senator Kyl and Senator Durbin at the White House. We have been there many days now. We understand, all of us there, Democrats and Republicans, the significant adverse effect this huge debt has on our country. Everyone there is trying to arrive at a point where we do something about that. We are not there yet. It is difficult to do. We understand it is going to take, we believe, a mix of spending cuts and some way to generate some more revenue. We are working our best to get this done.

My friend is right, the debt is a drag on the economy. There is no question about that. Once we are able to raise the debt limit, I think we are going to see some energy in this economy we have not seen in some time. But we are not there yet. I wish I could report to my friend from Alabama and the rest of the Senate and the country that we have completed our negotiations, but we have not. We are going to go back again tomorrow. The President said 3:45, and I said a.m. or p.m.? It will be 3:45 p.m. tomorrow that we will be back, trying to move forward.

My friend from Alabama has an important responsibility as the person who is the ranking member now of that most important Budget Committee. I am sure he has learned a lot, having taken this assignment, that he did not know before. That is the way it is with everyone in the Senate. I have learned a great deal working through the CR, different iterations of that, and now on this work we are doing trying to arrive at a debt reduction package along with raising the debt ceiling. I have learned a lot. I have a lot more to learn.

I appreciate the intensity of my friend in that in which he believes, whether it is this or as the person running the Judiciary Committee for the

Republicans. He is always very intense. He and I don't always agree but we agree more than people think. But one thing no one can ever take away from the junior Senator from Alabama is the seriousness of his being in the Senate.