Floor Statements

Mr. President, I rise today to recognize the founding dean of the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, Richard ``Dick'' Morgan. Dick came to Nevada to take on the daunting task of starting Nevada's first law school. When given the timeframe for starting the school, Dick said it could not be done; then he went out and proved himself wrong many times over. Dick's outstanding success with Boyd School of Law now serves as the model on how to create a new law school of exceptional quality.

Under the Dean's steady hand, Boyd Law School has achieved both provisional and full accreditation with the American Bar Association in record time. The school has received special recognition for its work with the Saltman Center for Conflict Resolution, the Nevada Law Journal, client counseling training, Society of Advocates, and legal writing programs. With amazing rapidity, the school has earned an outstanding reputation for scholarship and high-quality graduates. Already, the school's alumnae are having a tremendous impact on the legal profession in Nevada. They serve as judicial clerks, pro bono attorneys, respected members of law firms throughout the State, legal counsel in Federal and State agencies, and even on my own staff.

On June 30, 2007, Dean Morgan is stepping down as the head of the law school. Although he will be sorely missed, his legacy is tremendous. UNLV's law school dean is leaving us with an outstanding institution that will continue to train the minds of many of our best and brightest students. I am confident that the attorneys trained by the school will be instrumental in guiding the future growth and progress of our State.

When he came to Nevada, he had served as a law professor and as dean of both the Wyoming and Arizona State Colleges of Law. Reflecting on his experience in legal education, Dean Morgan recently honored Nevada by characterizing his 10 years with Boyd School of Law as ``the best'' of his 27 years in legal education. I am grateful he spent his best years with us. He has certainly been invaluable to the Nevada legal community.

Going forward, Dean Morgan plans a community-service semiretirement. Based on his dedication to UNLV, I am confident that he will be a tremendous asset to any organization he is associated with. I offer Dean Morgan my sincere thanks for all he has done for Nevada and wish him the best on his retirement.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 150, S. 254.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported amendment be agreed to, the bill as amended be read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid on the table, and that any statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record.

The committee amendment was agreed to.

The bill (S. 254), as amended, was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, read the third time, and passed.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to Calendar No. 153, S. Res. 130.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that morning business be closed.

Madam President, on behalf of Senators Kennedy and Specter, I call up an amendment that is now at the desk.

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

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until Tuesday at 10 a.m.; that on Tuesday, May 22, following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired and the time for the two leaders reserved for their use later in the day; that there then be a period of morning business for 60 minutes with Senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each, with the time equally divided and controlled, with the Republicans controlling the first half and the majority controlling the final half; that at the close of morning business, the Senate resume consideration of S. 1348, the immigration bill, and Senator Sessions be recognized to speak until 12:30 p.m., at which time the Senate stand in recess until 2:15 p.m. in order to accommodate the respective party conference meetings; that at 2:15 p.m., if Senator Sessions has not concluded his remarks, he then be recognized to conclude those remarks, with no amendments in order during the time of his remarks. He will complete his remarks to the extent of 2 hours for tomorrow. Under the order we previously entered, he has 2 hours tomorrow. So at 2:15, whatever time he didn't use prior to 12:30, he would have that time.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now stand in adjournment.

Mr. President, this morning, following any time utilized by Senator McConnell and myself, the Senate will begin consideration of H.R. 2206, the emergency supplemental legislation. There will be an hour of debate prior to a vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the Reid-McConnell substitute amendment. The time is also equally divided between the two leaders or their designees.

The cloture vote will occur around 10:45. If cloture is invoked, and we expect that it will be, the Senate will immediately agree to the amendment and then go to a vote on the passage of the legislation. Therefore, there will be 2 rollcall votes expected this morning.

Following the completion of the action on the supplemental, the Senate will begin debate on the conference report accompanying the budget resolution. Senators Gregg and Conrad have worked on this through the entire process. They are two veteran legislators, and they understand this issue more than anyone else in the Senate and probably in the country. We will have that vote, hopefully, around 3:30, between 3:30 and 4:30 this afternoon, if all things go well. We are waiting for the House to pass it. I think they will do that around 3:30 this afternoon.

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

Mr. President, yesterday, the Senate held two important votes: one on the Feingold amendment, which called for transitioning the mission; and on the Warner amendment, which would require the President to certify the Iraqi Government is meeting benchmarks in order to receive United States aid.

I supported the Feingold amendment, which provides a real change of direction and course out of the war. I opposed the Warner amendment because, after more than 4 years of war, 3,400 American deaths, almost 30,000 wounded, and more than $500 billion--almost arriving at $1 trillion dollars in taxpayer dollars spent--we need action, not more reports, especially those without consequences.

Yet, while I supported one vote and opposed the other, I am encouraged by both. They show real and growing momentum on both sides of the aisle to move away from this tragic, endless war. As the Los Angeles Times reported this morning:

The votes illustrated Congress' dramatic response to public

dismay with the war.

As CNN's Dana Bash said:

It was a milestone in the Iraq war debate. For the first

time, the vast majority of the President's fellow Republicans

voted to directly challenge his Iraq policy.

It is no wonder a broad bipartisan consensus for change is emerging. We are well into the fourth surge of U.S. forces since the start of the war, yet April was one of the deadliest months in the entire war, and attacks on our troops show no sign of decreasing. The Iraqi Government has failed to adopt an oil law, a law on de-Baathification, or any further constitutional amendments they are required to implement.

Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki is accused of sabotaging efforts of peace and stability by firing some of the top law enforcement officials for doing too good a job of combating violent Shiite militias.

Conditions are so chaotic, according to a report this morning by the Chatham House Research Institute--which is a respected institute in England--they say the Iraqi Government is:

. . . on the verge of becoming a failed state with

internecine fighting and a continual struggle for power

threatening the nation's very existence.

The U.S. mission grows further and further disconnected from our strategic national interests. Instead of focusing on force protection, hunting down al-Qaida and other terrorists, and training the Iraqi military--missions that will make us more secure, help the Iraqi people, and reduce our troops' exposure to sectarian violence--United States forces, as we speak, are patrolling Baghdad streets, extremely vulnerable to snipers, kidnappers, and these explosive devices which have become so well-known over there.

Our brave fighting forces have done everything we have asked of them, and even more. Every day we debate the war, our troops remain in harm's way. The overwhelming veto-proof bipartisan majority of the Senate is now on record saying the status quo is unacceptable.

With that reality as a backdrop, this morning we will vote for cloture on Senator Murray's sense-of-the-Senate resolution that will move us to conference on the emergency supplemental bill and the important negotiations that will take place in the near future on the Iraq situation.

Last evening, I spoke to the father of one of the hostages in Iraq. He lives in Reno, NV. We talked, and it was difficult. He loves his son, he prays for his son's return, as we all do. We talked about how we have hope that he is alive.

I urge all my colleagues to support the resolution we are going to vote on. We can all agree we need to move swiftly to the supplemental bill that fully funds our troops. We all agree we can't ``stay the course.'' That is not an option, as President Bush has done for more than 4 years.

As we move this debate to conference, the American people deserve to know that the Democrats' commitment to bring this war to a responsible end has never been stronger. If enough of our Republican colleagues decide to join with us, even the President will have to listen.

Mr. President, it is my understanding the parliamentary issue before this body is a vote that will occur at 10:30; is that right?

At 10:35. And at 10:35, because the leaders used some of their time?

Mr. President, I think it would be in the best interest of the Senate if we go ahead and start the vote. I have not had an opportunity to check with the minority, so I don't want to move to do that before I do so. We will know that in a minute. But it would probably be better if we got the vote started, if there is no one here to speak in the next 5 minutes.

I think we will go ahead and start the vote, and if somebody is concerned about the extra 5 minutes, then we will extend the time an extra 5 minutes. I ask that we proceed with the vote.

Madam President, I so appreciate the work these two fine men have done on this bill. This was so difficult to get from that point to where we are now. It could not have been done but for the fact that these are two of our most experienced legislators, who work well together. They have political differences, but they understand the importance of getting a budget resolution.

Having said that, and recognizing some urgency in getting the vote done, I ask unanimous consent that the next 5 minutes be equally divided between the two managers of the bill, and if the House vote is completed at that time--and we believe it will be--the vote occur within 5 minutes.

Madam President, this will be the last vote this week. Our first vote next week will be a 5:30 p.m. cloture vote on the immigration matter. It appears the Democrats and Republicans have reached an agreement on immigration, so we will spend a lot of time on that legislation next week, along with the supplemental.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

I ask for the yeas and nays.

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

Mr. President, let me say we have had some really good work this week in the Senate. When I came here on Monday and indicated we would have to work into the weekend, that wasn't just for fluff. I really thought we would have to do that because we had so much to do. We were heavily involved in WRDA, a bill that was so important to be done, but a lot of hiccups come in complex legislation like that. We were able to finish that in a few days. I was concerned about the budget and the time limits that are statutory in that regard. We completed that. I was concerned about the supplemental, getting something to the House, which was a tremendously difficult job. We were able to get that done. Finally, there has been an agreement in principle on immigration, which we will take up, I hope, Monday evening.

Any one of these things gives no bragging rights to Democrats or Republicans, but it gives bragging rights to Democrats and Republicans because none of this could have been done but for the recognition that you have to work together to get things done. There is no better example of that--and I said it briefly on the floor yesterday--than Senator Boxer and Senator Inhofe. They are really two political opposites in most everything. But they are also experienced legislators, both having served in the House and in the Senate. Senator Boxer is chairman of the committee now, and Senator Inhofe was chairman of the committee. Senator Inhofe knew how important WRDA is. He worked together with Senator Boxer, and vice versa, and they got that done. That is tremendously good work.

On the budget, I boast about the managers all the time because I think they work well together--Senators Conrad and Gregg. What they were able to piece together with this budget was very difficult. It wasn't mechanical, but it was difficult.

On the supplemental, I give a little credit to me, a little credit to Senator McConnell, and the rest of the credit to the Senate because we were able to get that done and get a bill to conference with the House. We have had a number of meetings with the President's chief of staff-- Senator McConnell and I, Speaker Pelosi, and other representatives of the President. We hope to be able to complete that very important conference report by next week at this time.

Finally, on the immigration issue, at this stage, I have kept this to myself, but Senator McConnell was one of those who urged me to stick to my timeline, stick to the 2 weeks. He said, ``If we are going to get anything done, you have to set a time limit.'' We did that. I don't know if the immigration legislation will bear fruit and we will be able to pass it. At least we have something to talk about as a legislative vehicle on the floor that is bipartisan in nature. You may not agree on the respective parts, but that can be debated. We are going to start Monday night.

The reason I mention that this evening is all Senators and all staffs

are watching. The players on that--Senators Specter, Leahy, Kennedy, Kyl, and others--have recognized they are going to have to work into the night. If we are going to finish this bill next week, we are going to have to work nights, and that doesn't mean 6:30 at night. We have one Senate event that we are locked into Tuesday evening, but that doesn't mean the managers cannot work while we do that. It is an event at the Botanical Gardens for Senators. So we are going to work long, hard hours to complete that most important legislation.

In short, this was a very good week for the Senate and for the American people.

We need a lot more weeks like this, and we hope to do that in the future.

Mr. President, from April 28 to 30, 2007, approximately 1,200 students from across the country participated in the national finals of We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution, an educational program developed to educate young people about the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights. The We the People program is administered by the Center for Civic Education and funded by the U.S. Department of Education through an act of Congress.

During the 3-day competition, students from all 50 States demonstrated their knowledge and understanding of constitutional principles. The students testified before a panel of judges in a congressional hearing simulation focusing on constitutional topics. I am pleased to announce that Damonte Ranch High School from Reno, NV, won their statewide competition and earned the opportunity to compete in the national finals.

The names of these outstanding students from Damonte Ranch High School are as follows: Fabien Dior-Siwajian, Ashley Fanning, Morgan Holmgren, Stephanie Kover, Tony Miller, Amy O'Brien, Stephany Pitts, Austin Wallis, and Eben Webber.

I would also like to commend the teacher of the class, Angela Orr, who donated her time and energy to prepare these students for the national finals competition. Also worthy of recognition is Marcia Stribling Ellis, the state coordinator, and Shane Piccinini, the district coordinator, who are among those responsible for implementing the We the People program in Nevada.

Please join me in congratulating these students on their outstanding achievement at the We the People national finals and wish them the best of luck in the years ahead.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to executive session to consider Calendar Nos. 44 and 108; that the nominations be confirmed; that the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table; that the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action; and that the Senate then return to legislative session.

Mr. President, S. 1419 is at the desk. I ask for its first and second readings, and then ask unanimous consent that the measure be placed on the calendar today.