Floor Statements

Mr. President, I certainly want to thank my good friend, the chairman of the Finance Committee, for his observation. He is moving in the right direction. As everyone is clearly aware, the issue of not allowing amendments is a highly sensitive matter. The Senate has been changed dramatically in recent years.

The time to have a negotiation over amendments is before cloture is invoked, not after. If there is an indication on the other side that we are willing to have that negotiation, the time to do it is now because our experience postcloture with the ability to offer amendments has not been good, to put it mildly.

So I think the chairman of the Finance Committee is headed in the right direction. The timing is a little off. We would like to have this negotiation over amendments before cloture is invoked on the bill.

Madam President, is the next vote in order on the underlying tax extender bill?

Thank you, Madam President.

The American people actually need to know what is happening in their Senate. This body exists to ensure that the citizens of this country have a say in what our government does. The Senate is supposed to be the citadel of our democracy, the place where we guarantee that no one in the country is cut out of the legislative process. The whole purpose of this body is to make sure that nobody is left out or left behind.

Yet today we have a Democratic majority that has turned this body literally on its head. Instead of preserving the Senate's prerogatives, they have systematically weakened or destroyed them all together. They have turned the Senate into a graveyard of good ideas and open democratic debate.

It is a gag order on the American people we represent. Instead of robust, freewheeling debates about the important issues of the day, we get bizarre monologues about the Democrats' latest villain.

We get silly, shameful attacks on private citizens. So in one sense it is fitting that the majority leader announced today he wants to rewrite the Constitution. I mean, at least you have to give them marks for consistency.

They are already muzzling our constituents by blocking amendments, and now they want to muzzle them even more by changing the Bill of Rights. This is completely out of control.

Even if the Democratic majority doesn't like our ideas or those of our constituents, the answer isn't to take away their constitutionally guaranteed right to speak their minds. The answer isn't to shut down their representatives' ability to influence legislation through amendments. The answer, my friends, is to come up with better arguments. The answer is to actually convince people in a free and open marketplace of ideas that you are right.

Why are Washington Democrats so afraid of a free and open exchange of ideas? What are they afraid of? Do they have that little faith in the judgment of the people we represent? Over the past few weeks we have seen just how scared our friends on the other side are of a free and open debate.

A big majority wants to repeal President Obama's medical device tax; 79 people in this body voted for it. They won't allow a vote on it.

The American people want to see a vote on the Keystone Pipeline. Most Senators say they want to vote on it too, but we are not allowed to vote on it.

We have a tax bill that Members on both sides want to improve and Members on both sides want to support. Yet we don't get a chance to amend it.

We should have certainty in our Tax Code instead of these endless expirations that only make it harder for people to prepare and for businesses to plan and to compete. They don't want to do that either. They are completely allergic--completely and totally allergic--to anything that is constructive.

What they are doing is muzzling the people of this country, a gag order on the people we were sent to the Senate to represent--all presumably to protect their power. This is really quite scandalous. The American people need to know what is happening in their Senate because this is bigger than any one bill. It is about protecting the right of the American people to have a say in what goes on in Washington.

We represent millions of people on this side of the aisle. They represent many of the people on their side of the aisle. I think there are something like 40 or so Democratic amendments pending to this bill--Democratic Senators who offered amendments to this bill who will not be heard.

This is all about protecting the one opportunity they have to shut us out. It is about a party that has become so afraid of losing its hold on power that they are willing to do just about anything to hold onto it--even if it means, as I said earlier, to try to amend the Bill of Rights.

We have a lot of smart people on the Democratic side, but I expect none of them are smarter than James Madison. Yet apparently they decided--after a couple of hundred years--Madison's work is not sufficient. They want to recommend we amend the Bill of Rights. What is before us today is not that; it is a tax extender bill.

Therefore, I ask unanimous consent that if cloture is invoked on Senate amendment No. 3060, the Wyden substitute, the amendment be considered original text for the purpose of amendment; and notwithstanding the provisions of rule XXII, it be in order for the Republican leader or his designee to offer the Toomey amendment related to the medical device tax, and that amendments then be offered in alternating fashion between the majority and the minority, with all amendments being related to tax policy.

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

Mr. President, this week we recognize National Police Week. National Police Week is a time to pay tribute to the service and sacrifice of the men and women in Federal, State, and local law enforcement across our Nation. Law enforcement is one of our Nation's highest callings, as brave peace officers put themselves on the line to defend the lives, safety and property of their neighbors. Therefore, it is entirely appropriate that we pause this week and throughout the year to thank them for their service.

The Nation's capital is host to thousands of police officers who have come to celebrate National Police Week with their fellow officers. No one but another peacekeeper or their families can truly grasp the duty of defending their communities. No one but another peacekeeper can truly know the joys of camaraderie and the sorrows of deep loss that each one has experienced.

I want to especially recognize the many men and women of Kentucky law enforcement. Many of them have traveled to Washington this week, and I will have the pleasure of meeting with some of Kentucky's finest and their families later today, including the Ellis family and the Shaw family.

I am personally grateful to them for bravely risking their lives in our defense. Sadly, this occasion of National

Police Week is also the time when we pay tribute to two brave and honorable police officers from the Commonwealth of Kentucky who have fallen in the line of duty in the past year.

Deputy Sheriff Chad D. Shaw of the McCracken County Sheriff's Department tragically suffered a fatal heart attack on August 6, 2013. He was 47 years old. Deputy Shaw had been at the Community Christian Academy in Western Kentucky, near Paducah, helping coordinate security for a meeting among the faculty and staff to kick off the new school year when he collapsed and was immediately taken to Baptist Health in Paducah.

Tragically, it was too late for the U.S. Army veteran and 12-year veteran of the McCracken County Sheriff's Department. McCracken County Sheriff Joe Hayden says: ``Deputy Shaw will always be remembered for his love of his family, his love for helping others, and the thoroughness in the way he did his job as a public servant for the citizens that he served.''

Deputy Shaw leaves behind his wife Margaret and two daughters. I express my deepest condolences to them, as well as to members of the McCracken County Sheriff's Department and to all who knew Deputy Shaw at the loss of this fine and good man who chose to wear the uniform of both his country and his Commonwealth and brought honor to both.

I also pay tribute to another Kentucky officer lost to us in the last year, officer Jason Scott Ellis of the Bardstown Police Department. Officer Ellis was tragically killed on May 25 of last year. He was 33 years old. Officer Ellis was killed when he was en route home following his shift. He was in uniform and driving a marked vehicle. It is believed he was ambushed by a subject who deliberately placed debris in the middle of the roadway, causing Officer Ellis to stop and exit his vehicle.

As Officer Ellis removed the debris, the killer or killers opened fire from a nearby hilltop, shooting him multiple times and killing him instantly. It is no exaggeration to call what happened to Officer Ellis an assassination. Maddeningly, the killer or killers are still at large.

Officer Ellis's tragic death marked the first time in the history of the Bardstown Police Department for an officer to be killed in the line of duty. A reward for the assassin, or assassins, still at large has grown to over a quarter of a million dollars.

Commissioner Rodney Brewer of the Kentucky State Police pledges that his troopers will continue to aggressively investigate this heinous murder until an arrest is made. Kentucky State Police, Bardstown police, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation continue to seek the public's assistance with any detail, regardless of how small, regarding the evening of Officer Ellis's death, May 25, 2013.

Ellis was a huge asset to his force. He was not only a field-training officer, but he was also their only K-9 officer. With his police dog Figo, he fought illegal drug use in Bardstown. Few can forget one of the iconic photos of 2013 that featured Figo resting his paw on the coffin of his departed partner Officer Ellis at the funeral service.

Bardstown Police Chief Rick McCubbin credited Officer Ellis with being one of the department's top officers when it came to arrests and making a dent in the drug problem.

``He also made me feel like he was Superman,'' says Amy Ellis, Officer Ellis's wife, ``that nothing would ever happen to him.'' Chief Rick McCubbin says Officer Ellis paid the ultimate sacrifice doing what he loved, being a police officer.

Jason Ellis was a native of Cincinnati and a student at the University of the Cumberlands in Williamsburg, KY. At school he was a star baseball player. He set records for alltime career hits, doubles, home runs, and career games played. He went on to play minor league baseball in the Cincinnati Reds system from 2002 to 2005.

Even as the star of the baseball diamond, however, coaches and teammates remember Jason Ellis talking about becoming a law enforcement officer. His wife Amy says:

He was always a go-getter . . . He was dedicated to his job

and he wanted to clean the streets up. And that was the way

to get the drugs off the streets.

Officer Ellis was a 7-year veteran of the Bardstown Police Department. He leaves behind a grieving family, including his wife Amy, his two young sons Parker and Hunter, two sisters, his mother and stepfather, and many other beloved family members and friends.

More than 300 people attended a candlelight vigil for Officer Ellis outside the police station shortly after his murder. On May 30 of last year, Officer Ellis was laid to rest at Highview Cemetery in Nelson County. Fellow law enforcement officers from across Kentucky and as far away as Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Illinois came to pay their respects. Hundreds of police cruisers helped to make up the funeral procession over those beautiful rolling hills and country roads of Nelson County.

Over 1,000 people filled the church sanctuary to capacity, with even more standing in the aisles, to show their reverence and respect for Officer Ellis's service and his sacrifice. Chief Rick McCubbin says this about his tragic slaying:

It's basically a large family here and a lot of these

officers have worked together many years, so as you can

imagine they are very close. They know each other well, they

know each other's families, each other's children, so it's a

devastating hit.

Officer Ellis's loss is a devastating hit not only to his family, not only to his brother officers, but to all of us throughout Kentucky who respect and admire the men and women who wear a police uniform and make a solemn vow to defend the lives of others, even at the cost of their own.

I want to express my deepest condolences to Officer Ellis's family, to the members of the Bardstown Police Department, and to peace officers across Kentucky for the loss of one very brave officer: Jason Scott Ellis.

I am relieved to say that for the grieving family members of Officer Ellis, Deputy Shaw, and every peace officer lost in the line of duty across our Nation, resources to help are available. One of those resources is COPS, or Concerns of Police Survivors, Inc. COPS members include spouses, children, parents, siblings, significant others, and affected coworkers of officers killed in the line of duty.

The Kentucky chapter of COPS has been at the forefront of serving this mission. Last year Kentucky COPS hosted the Traumas in Law Enforcement seminar for law enforcement agencies to learn how to deal with line-of-duty deaths. With 62 participants, it was one of the highest attended seminars that any COPS chapter or organization has ever put on. This is an organization that does not forget, taking care of the families of our fallen law enforcement heroes long after their watches end.

I am proud of our Bluegrass State peace officers for taking the lead in helping other men and women in blue to deal with these tragic losses. As I have just related in the stories of Officer Ellis and Deputy Shaw, any loss of a law enforcement officer is too great a price to pay for the families and communities they protect.

I will be honored to meet with some members of the Kentucky COPS who are here in the Nation's Capital for National Police Week today in my office. Sherry Bryant is the wife of Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources officer Douglas Bryant, who was tragically killed in the line of duty back in 2003.

Laurie Stricklen is the wife of police officer James ``Stumpy'' Stricklen of the Alexandria, KY, Police Department, who suffered a fatal heart attack on March 24 as a result of injuries sustained after restraining a suspect.

Anthony Jansen is the son of police officer Anthony Jansen of the Newport Police Department, who was accidentally shot and killed while in the line of duty on December 30, 1984. His son Tony carries on his father's tradition as he is himself now a police officer.

So I am privileged to welcome all of those brave police survivors as well as the families of Officer Jason Ellis and Deputy Clay Shaw to my office today. To honor these fallen heroes and to help bring justice to those who would injure or kill our police officers, I am proud to be a cosponsor of the National Blue Alert Act. This bipartisan legislation calls for what would be equivalent to a national AMBER Alert system to efficiently share information with the public when a law enforcement officer is killed or seriously injured.

I know my colleagues in the Senate join me in holding the deepest admiration and respect for the many brave

law enforcement officers across Kentucky and the Nation. We are grateful so many have come to town for National Police Week.

We recognize theirs as both an honorable profession and a dangerous one. We recognize that what they do is vitally necessary to maintain peace and order in a civil society.

Mr. President, I rise today to honor and congratulate my good friend, Mira Ball. On June 5, Mira will receive the Midway College Legacy Award for her many contributions and years of service to Midway College, located in Midway, KY.

Mira is the first ever recipient of this award, which will be given out at the Inaugural Spotlight awards in June. The purpose of the Legacy Award is to recognize ``a person or persons that have impacted Midway College over a period of many years by giving time, service, support and/or resources.'' With such a description, it's no wonder that Mira was the first in line to receive it.

Mira's contributions to Midway College, which is Kentucky's only women's college and a leader in degree programs for men and women, are aplenty. She has served on the board of trustees since 1990, became the first woman to chair the board in 1997, and was honored to be elected a life trustee in 2000. Last year, she served as interim chair while the institution was in a transitional period.

Even with her devotion to Midway College, Mira has amazingly found time to pursue a multitude of other interests and causes. She became the first woman president of the Lexington Chamber of Commerce in 1991 and was also the first woman to chair the University of Kentucky board of trustees, a post she occupied from 2007 to 2010. If you hadn't noticed, my friend Mira has never been afraid to be the first to do anything.

Additionally, Mira has been one of our State's strongest advocates for education reform, and she currently serves on the endowment board of Kentucky Educational Television, KET. She is also an involved member of the Calvary Baptist Church and is an active philanthropist to health care and education groups.

Somehow, amidst this seemingly endless stream of extracurricular activities, Mira carves out some time for her day job. She serves as the chief financial officer for the very successful Ball Homes LLC homebuilders, which she runs with her husband, Don, and their three children--Ray Ball, Mike Ball, and Lisa Ball Sharp. In addition to their children, Mira and Don have seven grandchildren--making for a wonderful family that is undoubtedly her biggest achievement of all.

Mira's tireless efforts to better the lives of others deserve the recognition of this body. Thus, I ask that my U.S. Senate colleagues join me in honoring Mira Ball, and congratulating her for being the first-ever recipient of the prestigious Midway College Legacy Award.

Many years ago, Senator Henry Cabot Lodge called the Senate ``the most powerful single chamber in any legislative body in the world.''

Imagine making that kind of statement about today's Senate. Instead of a strong, independent voice at the vanguard of American policymaking, what has the Democratic-run Senate become? It has become a campaign studio, a late-night punch line, the place where the far left gets its way and the middle class gets left behind.

We saw this again yesterday when the majority leader was so determined to prevent the consideration of Republican amendments that he killed every Democratic Senator's amendment in the process. He didn't seem to care about letting the more than 4 million people in my State have a say on one of the most important issues affecting their livelihoods--coal. He didn't seem to think the millions of Americans represented by his own Democrats deserved a meaningful say on energy either.

Even after Senate Democrats from States such as Alaska, Maine, Colorado, and Arkansas put out press releases touting the kinds of ideas contained within their amendments, no amendments were allowed.

The fact that some of these same Senators are now trying to convince others of how moderate and influential they are, it is ridiculous. By backing the majority leader's power play instead of standing up for their constituents, they show where their loyalties lie.

Let's remember. The majority leader apparently thought the American people didn't deserve a say on energy, at a time when many in the middle class are struggling with high energy bills, a lack of jobs, and stagnant wages, the kinds of things that could be helped with smarter energy policy. He also blocked this debate at a time of growing global energy crises that demand American leadership.

Moments such as those were when our country used to come together in the Senate, when we used to have a serious discussion and actually pass serious legislation to solve serious problems, but not today, not in the Senate anymore. Today it is a place where the majority leader seems to deliver a daily monologue about almost anything but jobs, where Democrats obstruct serious ideas and where they have shut down meaningful debate on so many major issues.

Think back to last week when Senate Democrats declared that addressing global warming was the moral crusade of our time and then refused to even debate or consider legislative measures to actually address it or when the American people were calling out for us to pass jobs legislation and Senate Democrats put forward legislation that could actually cost up to 1 million jobs, all while they continued to block serious, House-passed job-creation bills.

Meanwhile, Washington Democrats' repeated attempts to pass the buck on gridlock are now bordering on absolute farce, just a complete farce. Last week we saw a fact-checker from a major leftwing paper debunk one of their favorite talking points about filibusters, giving it the highest possible rating for dishonesty.

The charges that have been made about Republican filibusters were given the highest rating for dishonesty by a left-leaning newspaper. This is what the fact-checker said: ``On just about every level, this claim is ridiculous.'' This is the fact-checker for a left-leaning newspaper responding to these daily charges about Republican filibusters: ``On just about every level, this claim is ridiculous.''

So let's be clear. It is time for Senate Democrats to look in the mirror. Under Democratic rule, the Senate has become the place where serious legislation comes to die, the graveyard for good ideas. That is the main reason President Obama wants so badly to keep his Senate majority this November. It is his castle moat--the moat around the castle--the last thing standing between him and signing the serious legislation the middle class deserves but the far left hates. It is his buffer against having to approve things such as Keystone Pipeline.

The Keystone Pipeline is a project almost everyone knows will create thousands of good jobs at a time when we need them very badly. It is a project the American people support overwhelmingly, but of course the far left hates it, and the far left controls today's Washington Democratic Party.

I will tell you one thing the far left does like, though--seeing headlines such as this last week from the AP: ``Democratic Leader Blocks Senate Vote On Keystone.'' This is the President's majority leader they are talking about. Both he and they are hoping to keep their Senate majority this November so they can see even more headlines similar to that one.

The American people are going to have their say. In the meantime, it is time for the majority leader to start worrying about today's Senate. The American people are tired of waiting for this body to act on the jobs bills Senate Democrats continue to blockade. They are tired of all the show votes.

Our constituents already know the Senate Democratic agenda for the rest of the year was drafted by campaign staffers anyway. They would have been able to figure that out even if our Democratic friends hadn't just said it; that the agenda was drafted over at the Democratic senatorial committee. But enough is enough. The American people sent us to the Senate to do something about jobs and address the issues that actually matter to their daily lives. It is time the Democrats, who run the Senate, drop the diversions and finally work with us to do so.

I yield the floor.

Reservation of Leader Time

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that all filed amendments to Calendar No. 368, S. 2262, be in order for floor consideration of this bill.

Mr. President, therefore, I propose a different unanimous consent agreement. I ask unanimous consent that the only amendments in order be five amendments from the Republican side related to energy policy with a 60-vote threshold on adoption of each amendment. I further ask that following the disposition of these amendments, the bill be read a third time, and the Senate proceed to vote on passage of the bill, as amended, if amended.

Mr. President, we are all pleased today to welcome Pastor Trevor Barton to the Senate as he delivered the opening prayer.

Pastor Trevor, as everyone calls him, serves as lead pastor at Hawk Creek Church in London, KY. He is a laid-back guy, not big on fancy titles--the kind of pastor who would rather be preaching in blue jeans than a suit.

But under his leadership, Hawk Creek has exploded from a tiny fellowship to a congregation of well over 1,000 souls. I hear some parishioners drive all the way from Tennessee and Virginia just to listen to his sermons. Apparently, Pastor Trevor's parishioners aren't the only ones who have had a long commute to Hawk Creek. I hear the pastor sometimes drove in from almost an hour and a half away in Lexington. He did it so he could be close to his two young sons Shepherd and Greyson and to his wife Allison as she worked on a residency at UK Hospital.

Still, Pastor Trevor has developed important ties with the community in and around London. Hawk Creek does a lot of work with the Appalachian Children's Home. His church also has an important partnership with the local jail. Pastor Trevor's sermons are piped in live and loud every Sunday for the inmates to hear. One of my staffers told me she heard of Hawk Creek performing a baptism for about 70 inmates in a parking lot of that jail.

I think that says a lot about Hawk Creek Church, and it underscores something today's guest Chaplain once said: Whether ``you've messed up in the past, present, future, you are welcome'' in his church.

So I am proud to introduce Pastor Trevor today. We have been pleased to have him here as he dignified our proceedings with a prayer.

Earlier this week, the Supreme Court did the right thing by affirming his right to do so. I am delighted to welcome this fellow Kentuckian as he carries out this proud American tradition

Senate Debate

Mr. President, the American people sent us to Washington to debate serious issues. They expect us to take our jobs seriously, to develop effective solutions to the issues that matter to them. That is our charge. Throughout our Nation's history, the Senate has been the place where the weightiest issues have been discussed and debated and, in many cases, resolved.

It is where we wrestle with whether to go to war. It is where we pass landmark bipartisan legislation such as the Civil Rights Act, the GI bill, and the Welfare Reform Act. But over the past several years, and very vividly in the past several months, that proud history has started to erode.

Instead of a forum for debate and resolution of the most pressing domestic and international issues facing our Nation, it has become fodder for late-night TV. When the American people turn on C-SPAN these days they do not

often see a majority party driving serious debate on the issues of the day. They hear bizarre monologues about greased pigs and a couple of Kansans the majority leader seems to be thinking about all the time. They see a daily display of absurd political theater that has almost no relevance at all to their daily lives.

It is quite disgraceful. But it is no surprise either since the Democratic majority clearly ran out of ideas a long time ago. Their refusal to engage in serious debate is just another symptom of that. Senate Democrats are afraid to expose their party's empty playbook, so they play games instead. They fill the time with aimless diatribes against private citizens and legislative theatrics that are more about satisfying their liberal patrons than addressing the real concerns and anxieties of the American middle class.

It is all about revving up the far left for them, so they will show up in November and save the President's Senate majority. That is the hope, at least.

But the larger point is this: As Washington Democrats seek to preserve their hold on power, they are becoming increasingly untethered from the daily concerns of average Americans.

That is why you are seeing the Senate lose its sense of purpose. That is why you are not seeing any real debates. Instead of listening to the needs of the middle class, they dance to the tune of the left. That is why you see Senate Democrats pushing legislation that would cost up to 1 million jobs--at a time when the middle class is practically begging us to create jobs. That is why you see Senate Democrats basically boasting that their legislative agenda was drafted by campaign staffers--with no shame at all. And that is why you see Senate Democrats killing job creation bills the House sends us, without even so much as a vote.

No wonder the American people are so disgusted with Washington. Wouldn't you be? The majority's antics this week were particularly shameful. They shook their fists and declared that global warming was the most important issue of our age--that to stand in the way of their preferred solutions would be, at best, immoral. They shouted it from the rooftops and, presumably, sent emails to leftwing supporters to let them know just how serious they were and how Republicans were somehow holding things up.

What they did not tell their supporters was that the Democrats' own majority leader, who also spoke forcefully on the issue yesterday, has been blocking the Senate from voting on global warming for years. Why? Because he does not want his fellow Senate Democrats to have to take a tough vote and because he knows it would never pass a Chamber Democrats control anyway.

As I said, almost everything has become a show in the Senate now. The needs of the middle class are simply lost in the shuffle, and the institution itself is trivialized, it is diminished. The Senate used to be a place where we would discuss the pressing issues of the day. We would be able to do so again if the Senate floor were not being used as a campaign studio.

On Iran, Republicans have tried for months to debate and vote on additional sanctions to put an end to its nuclear program. We know a huge bipartisan majority would vote for increased sanctions if the majority leader would only allow the bill to come to the floor. But he will not. Just as he stopped us from voting to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline yesterday, resulting in headlines such as this one from the AP: ``Democratic leader blocks Senate vote on Keystone.''

``Democratic leader blocks Senate vote on Keystone.''

In fact, at a time when we should have been debating energy, the majority leader refused to allow a single Republican amendment on energy this week--not a one. As I have noted in recent days, the Republican-led House has offered Democrats 125 rollcall votes on their amendments since last July. Here in the Senate, the majority leader has allowed us nine--nine--rollcall votes on Republican amendments since July.

But let me put a finer point on that. Democrats in the House have received more than twice as many rollcall votes on energy-related amendments alone as we have received on all amendments since July. That is not the way this body was meant to function. It is disrespectful to the millions of American citizens represented on the Republican side of the aisle. They deserve a chance to be heard.

The way the Senate operates these days is a travesty--no real debate, no amendments, no respect for the millions of Americans represented by the minority party. It has become an arm of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. We owe the American people so much more than that.

It is time to focus on the middle class again--to let go of the obsession with the far left and the next election. It is time for the Senate to be the Senate again.

Honoring Our Armed Forces

Sergeant Jeremy R. Summers

Mr. President, I want to speak today about a brave young U.S. Army soldier from my home State of Kentucky who was lost in battle. SGT Jeremy R. Summers, of Brooksville, KY, perished on July 14, 2011, from wounds suffered when the enemy attacked his unit with small-arms fire in the Paktika Province of Afghanistan. He was 27 years old.

For his service in uniform, Sergeant Summers received many awards, medals, and decorations, including the Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart Medal, two Army Commendation Medals, the Army Achievement Medal, the Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal with Bronze Service Star, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Korean Defense Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, three Overseas Service Ribbons, the NATO Medal, and the Combat Action Badge.

Kenneth Michael Summers, Jeremy's father, says this about his son:

He never hesitated to make a new soldier feel welcome into

the unit. There was one soldier who said he was so scared

because he was a newbie, but Jeremy stepped up and helped

him. [The other soldier] said for that, he was so thankful

and would never forget Jeremy. That was a common story when

soldiers told us about their experiences with Jeremy.

Jeremy was not only thoughtful and willing to help others, he was also a dedicated and committed servicemember, and I am sure it was due in part to his following the example that was set for him. Both Jeremy's father and mother, Laura Jo Summers, served in the Army. Jeremy, who graduated from Bracken County High School in Brooksville in 2002, enlisted in the Army in March of 2005 and served for 6 years.

At the time of his deployment to Afghanistan, he was serving as a U.S. Army forward scout observer and was assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, based out of Fort Campbell, KY. Previously Jeremy had deployed to both Iraq and Korea.

Jeremy was a voracious reader and loved to watch scary movies. He was known to indulge in a practical joke or two to scare his friends. Jeremy was also a bright student in school, who earned a degree in computer engineering after his first tour of duty. Jeremy asked his parents for advice about reenlisting and decided to continue serving his country in uniform.

Sergeant Summers has followed not only the tradition of his parents but also the tradition of service of so many brave Kentucky men and women who have worn our country's uniform.

``He felt more comfortable in the military lifestyle than he did as a civilian,'' Jeremy's father recalls. ``I reckon it was only fitting . . . since he started life as a military brat and ended as an honorable soldier.''

Speaking for his family, Jeremy's father continues on to say this:

Jeremy was a good listener, a great friend, an awesome

brother and a terrific son. I wish all of you could have

known him like we did. He is still one of our hearts'

greatest treasures.

Mr. President, we are thinking of Sergeant Summers' family today after the loss of one of their hearts' greatest treasures. These include his parents, Kenneth Michael and Laura Jo Summers; his grandparents Joyce Wagoner and Mary Fowler, his siblings Austin Hunter and Jessica Elizabeth Summers, and many other beloved family members and friends.

My colleagues and I here in the Senate extend our greatest sympathies and

condolences to the Summers family for the loss of their son, brother, grandson, and friend Jeremy. We are proud of him for following the example set by his parents and volunteering to wear an American patriot's uniform.

We are deeply humbled and honored to be the beneficiaries of his life of service and his ultimate sacrifice. Without the bravery of men such as SGT Jeremy R. Summers, our Nation would not be free.

Reservation Of Leader Time

Madam President, I rise today to honor an upstanding citizen from my home State, the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Pat Bell grew up in the heart of Appalachia and has spent his life working to better the region and the lives of those who call it home. The Lake Cumberland Area Development District will honor him on May 22 when they name their office building The Pat Bell Building.

Patrick R. Bell was born and raised in McCreary County, Kentucky. Pat was always passionate about helping others, and once he finished his own education he began teaching in the McCreary County school system, rising to the position of school superintendent in the 1960s.

Following his tenure as superintendent, Pat was selected to be the Lake Cumberland Area Development District's first executive director. In this capacity Pat was able to increase the quality of life in the region by organizing infrastructure projects and developing initiatives to increase economic activity.

Pat left the LCADD after 12 years at the helm, but he never lost his desire to serve. In fact, his success at the LCADD led to his next post as the Director of the Lake Cumberland District Health Department. Pat served as director from 1982 until his retirement in 1994, during which the Lake Cumberland District Health Department expanded from five member counties to 10.

His retirement was short lived, however. Never one to turn down an opportunity to serve his community, Pat accepted an appointment to become mayor of Columbia, KY. He then ran for, and won, a second term, which expired in 2010. Although he is once again in retirement, his friends and family know him too well to rule out the possibility of future public service.

Pat Bell's seemingly unlimited capacity to serve others is an inspiration for us all. He truly has a servant's heart, and I ask that my Senate colleagues join me in honoring him today.

Madam President, I rise today to honor the long and distinguished career of Jim Sharpe. Now retired, Mr. Sharpe opened his first business in Somerset, KY, in 1947. Since that time he's opened several more, pioneered the houseboat business, and has become an irreplaceable fixture in his community.

Lake Cumberland is known by many as the ``houseboat capital of the world''--a designation that is owed in no small part to Jim Sharpe. Jim was one of the first to pioneer the industry--building his first houseboat in

1953. Much has changed since he sold that first 10-by 24-foot steel boat, and Jim has been there for it all, often leading the way. Houseboats are now much bigger--up to 20 by 100 feet--and are made of aluminum and have on-board heating and cooling systems. One thing that never changed, though, is Jim's passion for building his customer's ``dream boat.''

Despite being one of the founding fathers of the industry, houseboats do not constitute the totality of his life's work. Jim has owned and operated several other businesses in Somerset in addition to Sumerset Marine. In 1966, he developed Food Fair groceries, which he grew into a chain of 13 stores. Two year later, he opened Somerset's first fried chicken restaurant, Kettle Fried Chicken, and in 1974 he bought a car dealership, Pulaski Motor Company.

Although he is now retired, Jim still has plenty to keep him busy. Jim and his wife of nearly 65 years Mary Jo have four children and nine grandchildren, and he has also found time to pick up golf and travel the country.

Jim Sharpe's drive and determination in his business, his commitment to his community, and his love of his family can serve as an example to us all. I ask that my U.S. Senate colleagues join me in honoring this upstanding Kentucky citizen.

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

Mr. President, earlier this morning it was suggested that Republicans are creating a problem on the Portman-Shaheen bill because we are insisting on amendments. I am stunned that anybody would think that insisting on amendments would be unusual or out of order. That is what we used to do in the Senate. We had amendments offered and we had votes on them by both sides.

One Senator, it was suggested, insisted on an ObamaCare amendment. That was dropped 5 days ago. Nobody is insisting on an ObamaCare amendment on the Portman-Shaheen bill. Senator Vitter had suggested that earlier but decided that was not a good idea on this particular bill because it was the opportunity, we hoped, to get four or five votes on important energy-related amendments. Senator Durbin actually objected.

So I think it is important to set the record straight this morning. What Senate Republicans are asking for is four or five amendments related to the subject of energy. I would remind our colleagues that the minority in the Senate has had eight rollcall votes on amendments it was interested in since last July--since last July.

During that same period the House of Representatives, where it is often thought the minority has no influence at all, has had 125 rollcall amendment votes. So what is going on is the Senate is being run in a way that only the majority leader gets to decide who gets to offer amendments. He says: Maybe I will pick one for you.

That is not the way the Senate used to operate, not the way the Senate should operate, and I hope not the way the Senate will operate starting next year.

The majority leader, as I indicated, is basically shutting down the voice of the people here in the Senate; that is, the people who are represented by 45 of us. For 7 long years he has refused to allow truly comprehensive debate on energy in this Chamber. We have not had a comprehensive debate since 2007. He had a chance to change that yesterday. Dozens of Senators asked him to do that. We know the American people want us to do it. But he refused. Apparently he does not think the American people deserve a vote on a single energy amendment. Apparently he does not think the American middle class, which is being squeezed by rising energy costs and over-the-top government regulations, needs the kind of relief Republicans are proposing. He clearly must not think the people of eastern Kentucky deserve our help either. Kentuckians in the eastern part of my State are experiencing a depression--that is a depression with a ``D''--that the President's energy policies actually created and are making worse.

The administration has proposed new rules that would make life even harder for those folks, rules that would make it effectively impossible to build another coal plant anywhere in the country. Coal is a vital industry to the livelihood of literally thousands of people in my State. We should be allowed to help them, but the majority leader said no.

Let's be honest. He does not seem to think the people we represent deserve a say on much of anything anymore. Democrats over in the Republican-controlled House, as I indicated earlier, have had 125 amendment votes since last July, but here in the Senate the Democratic majority has allowed us nine. I said eight earlier. It is actually nine amendments since last July, that is, rollcall votes. It is shameful. But it says a lot about which party is serious these days and which one is literally playing games. It says a lot about the complete lack of confidence Washington Democrats have in an open debate. What is wrong with having an open debate? They are completely out of ideas, and apparently they do not want anybody to know that Republicans have suggestions to be made. So they are attempting to muzzle us at a time when middle-class Americans are in need of some relief. Do they really think that Americans who have had to cope with rising electricity prices, stagnant wages, and growing hopelessness in the Obama economy-- do they really believe the Senate should not even be debating ideas that might help them?

It is hard to think otherwise. So I think middle-class Americans, looking at the Senate these days, are left to draw an obvious conclusion: That their concerns matter far less to today's Senate Democrats than the political imperatives of the far left. We know the President's political team must be pleased. One White House aide said they plan to lean on Senate Democrats to ``get the right outcome'' this week; in other words, to stop the American people from having a real debate on energy policies.

For the President and his political pals, it must feel like ``mission accomplished.'' This means he can avoid having to sign or veto legislation that might be good for the middle class but offensive to the furthest orbit of the left. It also means he can continue to impose energy regulations such as the one I mentioned earlier, through the back door, to govern by executive fiat, without having to worry about niceties such as Democratic accountability.

After all, far-left activists presumably demand that the President impose those regulations because they do not want the American people getting in the way again. They know what happened the last time they let that happen, when a fully Democratic-controlled Congress could not even pass a national energy tax.

As long as it has a Senate Democratic majority on its side, the far left knows it will not have to worry about the American people messing up its plans again. The majority leader proved that again this very week. The far left will not have to worry about the representatives of the American people voting through the Keystone XL Pipeline either.

Here you have a project the American people support overwhelmingly that would create thousands of jobs when we have rarely, rarely needed them more, and that would pass Congress easily if the majority leader would allow a vote, but he will not because the far left will not let him. If we do get a vote, the Democratic leadership will be sure to filibuster against the jobs the Keystone XL Pipeline will create.

Activists on the left positively hate this energy jobs initiative. They rail against it constantly, even though they cannot seem to explain in a serious way why it is a bad idea. But it is a symbol in their minds, so they demand Senate Democrats block its approval and Senate Democrats dutifully do just that.

Again and again we see the needs of the middle class subsumed to the whims of the left. That has become the legacy of today's Democratic majority. They have diminished the vital role the Senate plays in our democracy. We do not seem to debate or address the most serious issues anymore, even with significant events at home and abroad that deserve our attention, because for the Senate Democrats who run this place, the priority is not on policy, it is on show votes and political posturing 24/7. This reflects a party that has simply run out of ideas, that has failed to fix the economy after 5\1/2\ years of trying, and now sees its political salvation not in making good policy for the middle class but in exciting the left enough to save the day come November.

I guess we will see if this strategy pays off. But that is not what truly matters around here. What matters is that millions in our country are hurting and that Senate Democrats do not seem to want to act. Look, they should be joining with us to help our constituents because the American people did not send us here to play games or to serve the far left. Our constituents sent us here to have serious debates on issues that matter to them, such as energy security, national security, economic security. All three can be addressed if the majority leader would simply allow Republican amendments to be considered.

Our constituents want Congress to make good policy. The fact that we do not seem to do that under the current majority is quite tragic. The American people deserve better. They deserve a debate and they deserve to be heard.

Honoring Our Armed Forces

Specialist Russell E. Madden

Mr. President, I want to pay tribute to a brave and honorable young man from Kentucky who was tragically lost in the performance of his military service. SPC Russell E. Madden, of Bellevue, KY, was killed on June 23, 2010, in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

Specialist Madden volunteered for his final mission and was in the lead vehicle in a convoy that was attacked by the enemy. His vehicle was struck by a rocket shell. He was 29 years old.

For his service in uniform, he received the Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart Medal, the Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Afghanistan Campaign Medal with Bronze Service Star, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, the Overseas Service Ribbon, the NATO Medal, and the Combat Action Badge.

Russell Madden joined the Army just under 2 years before his death. His father Martin Madden reflects on his son's time in service by saying:

Nineteen months is not a long military career. But 19

months was long enough to graduate basic training at Fort

Sill, Oklahoma, with honors.

His dad continues:

Nineteen months is long enough to be running and gunning as

a lead convoy gunner on convoys that sometimes took 16 hours

to move 40 miles to replenish forward operating bases,

completing over 85 missions outside the wire in nine months .

. .

Nineteen months may not represent a prolonged period of

time in the minds of most Americans; however, it is just long

enough to create a patriot, to define heroism, and accept a

place of honor among those who stand in silent testimonial to

the strength of this great nation.

The bond between father and son that moves Martin to speak these words was forged, of course, not just over 19 months but over Russell's entire lifetime. Like so many of the extraordinary heroes who hail from Kentucky, Russell's childhood is full of examples of a young man devoted to a cause greater than himself.

He was the oldest of three children, along with his younger sister Lindsey and younger brother Martin. Like most young siblings, at times the kids would fight. Russell's parents had a unique way to defuse family tussles. Martin said:

In order to settle [disagreements], we placed both [Russell

and Lindsey] in the middle of the living room and told them

to stand there hugging each other. After about 20 minutes of

standing there hugging, we would begin to hear them laughing

and having a good time, and we would go in and tell them if

they could get along they could stop.

Little sister Lindsey remembers childhood stories like these, just as she remembers her brother's dedication to service. She said:

All he ever told me, every time I talked to him, was that

he wanted to make me proud. And he has. He always made me

proud.

Russell attended Bellevue High School, where he displayed his dedication to serving on a team as a star athlete in football, baseball, and track. During his senior year, the track team was 1 week away from the State meet when the top hurdler was injured. The whole team was in danger of not qualifying unless someone stepped in. Russell volunteered to run the hurdles, even though he had never run a hurdle event in his life.

Martin Madden recalls:

Russell took off running at full sprint, stopped when he

got to the hurdle and jumped over it, then took off running

at full speed until he reached the next hurdle and stopped

and jumped over that one, throughout the track. It was the

most unorthodox style the coach had ever observed, but with

the state qualifier taking place next week, the coach allowed

Russell to represent the team.

As a result, Russell's first-ever hurdle event was the State- qualifying match. Even using what his father calls his ``God-awful ugly style,'' Russell qualified and ran in the final State competition, where he placed sixth.

Russell was a winner on the football field just as he was in track and field. Every Friday night, during the 1999 season, fans packed Gilligan Stadium to watch Bellevue High play out what would be an undefeated season. Russell played running back and was such a talented athlete that he could also kick field goals and extra points, return kickoffs, punt, quarterback, and play wide receiver--and that is only on the offensive side of the ball. He also played linebacker on defense.

As a result of his all-around athletic success, volunteer work, and coaching of youth football teams, Russell was inducted into both the Bellevue High School Sports Hall of Fame and the Northern Kentucky Youth League Football Hall of Fame. He was also recognized by the Northern Kentucky High School Football Coaches Association for his sportsmanship. Russell graduated from Bellevue High School in 2000.

In 2008 Russell and his wife Michelle learned that their son Parker had a preliminary diagnosis indicating a high potential for cystic fibrosis. Martin said:

Russell joined the Army to fight for his country and

provide the medical treatment necessary for his young son.

Russell enlisted in 2008, and during his deployment to Afghanistan was assigned to the 1st Squadron, 91st Cavalry Regiment, 173rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team based out of the Conn Barracks in Germany.

Russell's father Martin recalls how Russell's fellow soldiers felt about Russell's dedication to them and their team--a dedication that echoed the drive of the young man who volunteered for the hurdles and excelled on the gridiron.

``This . . . is what the soldiers in his platoon told me,'' Martin said.

Russell said to them:

Guys, I will not let you down. We will get there. . . .

If ever there was going to be a problem, they wanted to be with Russell because they knew he would never let them down.

Respect and admiration for Russell's dedication to a cause greater than himself even reached the halls of the Kentucky General Assembly, which passed a joint resolution to designate Kentucky Route 1120, within the city limits of his hometown of Bellevue, as the ``SPC Russell Madden Memorial Parkway.'' Russell's family was present as the new street sign was unveiled for the first time.

Russell's wife Michelle said:

It is an awesome tribute to my husband. He deserves it. I

want this sign for my son to say, ``Hey, that's my dad's

sign. That's what my dad's done for us.'' This is what is

going to carry on his legacy.

We are thinking of SPC Russell E. Madden's family today, including his wife Michelle, his son Parker, his stepson Jared, his parents Martin Madden and Peggy Davitt, his sister Lindsey, his brother Martin, and many other beloved family members and friends.

It is important that Russell's family knows that no matter how long or how short his time in uniform may have been, Martin Madden is absolutely right that his son will and must be forever remembered and revered for the sacrifice he has made on behalf of our country.

I know SPC Russell E. Madden certainly will be remembered by this Senate. I ask all of my colleagues to join me in expressing the utmost respect for his life and his service.

We extend our greatest condolences to his family for a loss on behalf of our Nation that can never truly be erased.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, reserving the right to object, it has been my position since late last week that it would be appropriate for the minority--not having had but eight rollcall votes since July--to have five amendments of our choosing on this bill, and therefore I am going to propose a counter consent request at this time.

I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 368, S. 2262; that the only amendments in order be five amendments to be offered by myself or my designee related to energy policy, with the first amendment being my amendment No. 2982 on saving coal jobs, and with a 60-vote threshold on adoption of each amendment; that following the disposition of these amendments, the bill be read a third time and the Senate proceed to a vote on passage of the bill, as amended, if amended.

I object.

Mr. President, earlier this morning I noted that the majority leader has refused for 7 years to allow a serious debate on energy in this Chamber. I said he has tried to stifle the voice of the American people again this current week as well, at a time when so many middle-class Americans are suffering from high energy costs, lost jobs, and stagnant wages in the Obama economy; at a time when global crises clarify not just the need but the opportunity for America to establish a greater energy presence overseas that would grow more jobs here at home; at a time when eastern Kentuckians are suffering a depression, made so much worse by this administration's elitist war on coal.

Well, Republicans are going to keep fighting. Even if Senate Democrats would rather pander to the far left and shut down debate, Republicans are going to keep fighting for the middle class. That is why we had hoped to offer forward-leaning amendments today which aim not just to increase energy security but also to improve national security and economic security for our middle class.

One amendment I had hoped to be able to offer would approve construction of the Keystone Pipeline, which everyone knows will create thousands of jobs right away.

One amendment would expedite the export of American energy to our global allies, which would create more of the jobs we need right here in the United States.

One amendment would have prevented the administration from moving forward with its plans to impose a national carbon tax through the back door, even though Congress already rejected the idea several years ago and even though we know it would devastate an already suffering middle class.

There is another amendment too, one I had planned to offer personally, along with the junior Senator from Louisiana and the senior Senator from North Dakota. It would halt the administration from moving forward with new regulations on coal-fired powerplants until the technology required to comply with the regulations is commercially viable, which it currently is not.

The Obama administration's extreme regulations would hammer existing coal facilities too, taking the ax to even more American coal jobs in the midst of an awful economy. These coal regulations are especially unfair to the people of my State. We know they would hit Kentuckians who are already suffering--constituents of mine who just want to put food on the table and feed their families. Congress needs to do something to help. That is why I would have offered that amendment today.

I remind my colleagues that the amendment we had hoped to offer is almost identical to legislation offered by the Democratic senior Senator from West Virginia that already passed the House of Representatives on a bipartisan basis. So there is no excuse not to pass it here. We hope the Senator from West Virginia and his Democratic colleagues will stand with us to do just that.

Mr. President, I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I rise today to honor an accomplished educator from my home State, the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Lewis D. Carter Jr. will retire from his position of superintendent of the Monroe Country Schools on July 1--nearly 40 years after beginning his career in education.

An intense passion for education runs throughout the Carter family. Lewis's grandfather was the first in the family to hold the post of superintendent of the Monroe County Schools in the early 1900s. His father also held the position for 28 years until his retirement in 1980, and his great-aunt and his great-uncle held the same position near the time of his grandfather. For Carter, teaching the next generation of children might as well be ingrained in his DNA.

Carter got his start in 1975 teaching health and PE. Since then, he has held positions across the education field. In 1991, he was made principal of Tompkinsville Elementary School. In 1994, he began 10 years as the director of adult education, in addition to coordinating the School to Work program. More recently he served as the deputy executive director of the Kentucky Education Cabinet--an assignment that immediately preceded his current position.

Carter will have plenty to keep him busy in retirement. In addition to his large family he and his wife of 42 years, Sheila, have two children and six grandchildren--Lewis will let you know that he has a ``hunting, fishing and golfing list'' that requires his attention.

While Lewis can look forward to some much deserved fun in his retirement, he will be sorely missed in the Monroe County School System. Lewis's big heart and passion for education serve as an example for us all. I ask that my U.S. Senate colleagues join me in honoring this exemplary citizen.

Mr. President, The Daily Times recently published an article chronicling Lewis D. Carter Jr.'s career. I ask unanimous consent that the full article be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, let me briefly make a few observations about some of the majority leader's opening comments this morning.

As he knows full well, Senator Vitter dropped his request for an ObamaCare amendment days ago, before the weekend. I think it is important for everybody to understand, the minority in the Senate has had eight votes since July--eight votes since July--on amendments that we wished to vote on.

We have not had a fulsome energy debate in the Senate since 2007--7 years ago. What we are asking for here is four or five amendments related to the subject of energy--one of the biggest issues in our country. That is hardly obstructionism. It is laughable to suggest that it is obstructionism for the minority to be given four or five amendments on issues related to the underlying bill, particularly since we have only had eight amendment votes on amendments that we wanted to vote on since last July, and we have not had a fulsome, broad-ranging energy debate since 2007.

So I would say to my friend, the majority leader, I do not think there is anything at all unreasonable about what we are requesting. Far from obstructionism, it is about time we had a debate on energy. We are having an energy boom in this country. It is important to our constituents all across the land. Forty-five Republicans represent millions of Americans. We wish to have a chance to have our voices heard occasionally. Eight amendments for the minority since July? This is not the way the Senate ought to be run.

Would the majority leader yield for a question?

My friend the majority leader wandered rather far afield. The subject for today is whether it would be inappropriate at 10:20 a.m. on a Tuesday for the minority to have four or five amendments of its choosing, sometime during the course of the week.

It is great that some amendments have been accepted by Members on my side. I am happy about that. The majority picked the ones they were willing to accept and accepted them. I think that is great.

But what about the rest of the Members of the minority, who are not suggesting that we would drop unusual amendments or amendments on an entirely different subject--four or five amendments during the course of the week, with relatively short time agreements, related to the subject of energy.

It strikes me that is simply not unacceptable. We have had eight votes on amendments of our choosing since last July--eight. This is not the way to run the Senate.

The minority represents a lot of Americans, millions and millions of Americans. We are entitled to have our ideas debated and voted on in the Senate as well, ones that we want to vote on, not ones that the majority leader picks for us.

That is the point. We don't think what we are asking is in any way unreasonable. It is certainly consistent with the traditions of the Senate, particularly since we have only had 8 votes on amendments of our choosing in the last 7 or 8 months. I mean, goodness gracious. There is a way to finish this bill. It does enjoy broad bipartisan support.

The majority leader mentioned the President. I don't know that his name has come up in connection with this. We are simply asking for the opportunity to debate and vote on important energy amendments on an energy bill during the pendency of the week. That is all we are asking.

I wish to go on. I understand later the majority leader is going to do some procedural matters, so let me go on and make my opening statement.

Energy

Later today we expect the President to talk about the weather at the White House. Presumably, he will use the platform to renew his call for a national energy tax, and I am sure he will get loud cheers from liberal elites, from the kinds of people who leave a giant carbon footprint and then lecture everybody else about low-flow toilets.

But the vast majority of middle-class Kentuckians I represent actually have to worry about paying utility bills, putting food on table, and finding a job in this terrible economy. They are less interested in just doing something on energy. They want to do the smart thing.

What they want are practical solutions to the problems and stresses they are dealing with every single day. That is what we should be focusing on this week because this debate shouldn't be about alleviating the guilt complexes of the liberal elite. It should be about actually achieving the best outcome for the environment, for energy security and, most importantly, for the people we were sent here to represent.

One thing that seems clear is this. Even if we were to enact the kinds of national energy regulations the President seems to want so badly, it would be unlikely to meaningfully impact global emissions anyway unless other major industrial nations do the same. That means getting countries such as China and India on board.

The President knows that. The President also knows that much of the pain of imposing such regulations would be borne by our own middle class.

That is why this discussion has become so cynical, and it is part of the reason the President's own party couldn't even pass a national energy tax when it had complete control of Washington's Congress back in 2009 and 2010. If the American people weren't willing to go along with considerable domestic pain for negligible global gain then, it is foolish to think they would assent to a bad idea now.

Remember, even the President's own party in the Senate wouldn't bring up the President's proposal for a national energy tax despite their overnight speeches and complaints about everyone else.

Of course, none of this has stopped the President from trying to get his way anyway. That is why we have seen this administration's attempt to do an end run around the legislative process to try to impose a similar agenda through executive fiat.

It needs to be stopped. The President's regulations are hurting people, often people who are already struggling and vulnerable--the very people the President claims he wants to help.

Our constituents are being hurt because of a cynical political agenda, because of a war on coal and other sources off American energy that the far left like and the Democratic Party is simply demanding.

The middle class doesn't even have a meaningful say in this discussion because the President has decided the Congress the people elect doesn't really matter anymore. Republicans are trying to change that this week.

We have asked the majority leader to allow votes on energy amendments that would let our constituents have a say for once. My constituents in Kentucky should be able to weigh in on an EPA rule that would negatively impact existing and future coal plants. Kentuckians deserve a real say on ongoing regulatory efforts to tie up mining permits and the red tape that is stifling the creation of good jobs in coal country.

Our constituents should finally be truly heard on the Keystone Pipeline they overwhelmingly support. The American people deserve a real debate on how we can best tap our own extraordinary natural resources to achieve energy independence at home and how we can help our allies overseas through increased exports of American energy.

These are the proposals we should be voting on this very week, proposals that can help our economy, boost the middle class and jobs while strengthening our national security and lessening our dependence on foreign sources of energy.

But we can't move forward if the Democrats who run the Senate keep trying to protect the President at the expense of serving their constituents. We know they are getting pressure from the White House to shut down a real debate on energy. One of the President's aides yesterday made it clear that it will be leaning on Democratic Senators to ``get the right outcome.''

In other words, this is to do the White House's political bidding and to once again ensure that struggling middle-class Americans get the short end of the stick from the Democrats here in Washington.

The American middle class is hurting, absolutely hurting. By a 2 to 1 margin Americans say the country's economic conditions are poor. Only about one-quarter say there are enough jobs available where they live, and they have been suffering from years of spiking electricity prices that would only get worse if the President's agenda were fully realized.

These are the people who deserve our attention. They are the ones who are struggling, not the far left, not the activists who yell the loudest and appear to care the least about who their ideas actually hurt, and not the President's political fixtures in the White House. These are not the people on whom we should be focusing.

It is time--way past time--to start paying attention to the people who actually sent us to the Senate. They deserve a robust debate about how to develop policies that can actually lead to lower utility bills that can put coal families back to work, that can help create well- paying jobs, that can help increase energy security, and that can help prevent energy from being used as a tool of war and oppression by global adversaries.

That is why we were sent to the Senate to debate these kinds of things.

If Democrats have good ideas on energy too, this is the time to share theirs.

What is wrong with having amendments from both sides on this bill. We want to hear everybody's serious ideas.

The American people have waited 7 long years, as I said earlier, for a serious energy debate in the Democratic-run Senate--7 years. It is about time they got it, and this is the perfect week to do it.

I yield the floor.

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

Madam President, all year I have been coming to the floor to urge Senate Democrats to work with us to help the middle class. So far they haven't seemed too serious about it. We saw that last week when they insisted on pushing legislation that could cost-- not create but cost--up to 1 million jobs. Seventeen thousand of those jobs would be lost in Kentucky alone.

I am hoping Senate Democrats are finally willing to turn the page. I am hoping they are finally willing to get serious about helping the middle class, because if they are, here is the energy debate we should be having right here this week: We should be having a debate about how to develop policies that can actually lead to lower utility bills for squeezed families, policies that can put people back to work in America's coal country, policies that can help the kind of well-paying jobs our constituents want and deserve, and policies that can lead to a more effective use of North American energy supplies, that can help stabilize the world at a time when energy has become a weapon of states that do not hold our interests at heart.

Middle-class Americans struggle every day just to make ends meet. For many, the rising cost of energy is a big part of that. The price of electricity has been rising over the last decade, jumping by double digits in many States, and that is even after adjusting for inflation.

So it is unacceptable that it has been 7 years since we have had a real debate about energy jobs, energy independence, and energy security in the Democratically led Senate.

Republicans have a lot of good ideas about ways to help alleviate pressure on the middle class, and we have good ideas about how to create new opportunities through the use of our country's abundant energy supplies. I am sure our Democratic friends have some good ideas, too, and we would all love to hear them because these days we haven't heard a lot of serious energy talk from our friends on the other side.

We haven't heard many concrete Democratic proposals that would effectively alleviate the real concerns and anxieties and stresses that my constituents and theirs deal with on an everyday basis. That is what we would like to hear from them this week, and that is what the American people deserve to hear.

We know Washington Democrats tried and failed to push a national energy tax--cap and trade--through Congress back when they had complete control of Washington. We know President Obama hasn't given up on that idea, even after the people's representatives refused to go along with it--in a Congress that was controlled entirely by his party.

That is why we see the Obama administration trying to do an end run around Congress to get what it wants: to impose through the bureaucracy massive new regulations that would make things even harder for already squeezed middle-class families.

So what Republicans are saying is this: Our constituents deserve a voice in what Washington Democrats are planning to do up because they are the ones whose lives and livelihoods will be most affected by these decisions, and through legislation this very week our constituents should be able to weigh in on these kinds of Democratic plans.

For instance, my constituents in Kentucky should be able to weigh in on

an EPA rule that would negatively impact existing and future coal plants. Kentuckians deserve a say on ongoing regulatory efforts to tie up mining permits and the redtape that is stifling the creation of good jobs in the coal industry and coal country.

The American people deserve a debate on how we can best tap our own extraordinary natural resources to achieve energy independence here at home and how we can help our allies overseas through increased exports of American energy too.

These are what we should be voting on this very week--serious energy policy proposals that can jolt our economy, boost middle-class incomes and jobs, and improve America's energy security in the world.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.