Floor Statements

Mr. President, the bill that I introduce today features language that would remove the legal ambiguity that for years has inhibited the Secretary of Transportation from raising fuel economy standards for passenger cars, and the measure would mandate that a fuel economy standard for passenger cars be set at 40 miles per gallon by model year 2017. By providing authority to increase standards for passenger cars, and requiring a specific fuel economy standard target, this bill would provide consumers with fuel savings at the pump, limit the Nation's dependence on foreign oil, and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The bill would remove from the current Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) statute the requirement that the Secretary of Transportation submit to Congress any proposal to increase or decrease fuel economy standards. This requirement has been deemed unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court. This legal hurdle, coupled with years of Federal funding legislation precluding the Secretary from reviewing CAFE, has prevented increases in fuel economy in the domestic passenger vehicle fleet.

The Secretary recently completed a dramatic reform of the fuel economy standards for the light-truck fleet, and he might have made similar reforms to the passenger fleet but for the statutory ambiguity of the current CAFE statute. I applaud the Secretary for his recent CAFE increases for light trucks, and I commend the administration for its seven light truck CAFE increases in the last six years. But the time has come for the Secretary to increase fuel economy standards for passenger cars as well.

In 2000, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) issued a report that concluded that the benefits resulting from CAFE since its implementation in 1978 clearly warrant Government intervention to ensure fuel economy levels beyond what may result from market forces alone. The NAS panel found that CAFE has led to marked improvements in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, fuel consumption, and dependence on foreign oil.

Mr. President, the United States imports almost 11 million barrels of crude oil every day, compared with only five million produced here at home. And over two million imported barrels hail from the Persian Gulf region. The terrorist attacks waged on this country on September 11, 2001, and the ongoing turmoil in the Middle East has brought into focus the need to reduce our dependence on all foreign oil. The savings achieved by increasing fuel economy standards for the entire U.S. passenger vehicle fleet is essential if we are to increase our energy independence and national security.

This bill also would require the Secretary of Commerce to create a national registry system that, for the first time, would enable the automobile industry to trade fuel economy credits with other industries that generate greenhouse gas emissions. Participation in the registry would be voluntary, and any entity conducting business in the United States would be eligible to utilize the services of the registry. Therefore, automobile manufacturers would be able to contribute or purchase emissions credits with other industries that generate greenhouse gases in order to achieve compliance with CAFE and emissions standards.

Mr. President, any change to fuel economy standards requires the careful balance of many factors, including national security, consumer preference, domestic employment, as well as the need for powerful and durable vehicles in rural America, including my home State of Alaska. The amendment would provide the Secretary the authority to balance these considerations, and to make the appropriate and necessary fuel economy increases. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. President, the bill that I introduce today features language that would remove the legal ambiguity that for years has inhibited the Secretary of Transportation from raising fuel economy standards for passenger cars, and the measure would mandate that a fuel economy standard for passenger cars be set at 40 miles per gallon by model year 2017. By providing authority to increase standards for passenger cars, and requiring a specific fuel economy standard target, this bill would provide consumers with fuel savings at the pump, limit the Nation's dependence on foreign oil, and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The bill would remove from the current Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) statute the requirement that the Secretary of Transportation submit to Congress any proposal to increase or decrease fuel economy standards. This requirement has been deemed unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court. This legal hurdle, coupled with years of Federal funding legislation precluding the Secretary from reviewing CAFE, has prevented increases in fuel economy in the domestic passenger vehicle fleet.

The Secretary recently completed a dramatic reform of the fuel economy standards for the light-truck fleet, and he might have made similar reforms to the passenger fleet but for the statutory ambiguity of the current CAFE statute. I applaud the Secretary for his recent CAFE increases for light trucks, and I commend the administration for its seven light truck CAFE increases in the last six years. But the time has come for the Secretary to increase fuel economy standards for passenger cars as well.

In 2000, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) issued a report that concluded that the benefits resulting from CAFE since its implementation in 1978 clearly warrant Government intervention to ensure fuel economy levels beyond what may result from market forces alone. The NAS panel found that CAFE has led to marked improvements in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, fuel consumption, and dependence on foreign oil.

Mr. President, the United States imports almost 11 million barrels of crude oil every day, compared with only five million produced here at home. And over two million imported barrels hail from the Persian Gulf region. The terrorist attacks waged on this country on September 11, 2001, and the ongoing turmoil in the Middle East has brought into focus the need to reduce our dependence on all foreign oil. The savings achieved by increasing fuel economy standards for the entire U.S. passenger vehicle fleet is essential if we are to increase our energy independence and national security.

This bill also would require the Secretary of Commerce to create a national registry system that, for the first time, would enable the automobile industry to trade fuel economy credits with other industries that generate greenhouse gas emissions. Participation in the registry would be voluntary, and any entity conducting business in the United States would be eligible to utilize the services of the registry. Therefore, automobile manufacturers would be able to contribute or purchase emissions credits with other industries that generate greenhouse gases in order to achieve compliance with CAFE and emissions standards.

Mr. President, any change to fuel economy standards requires the careful balance of many factors, including national security, consumer preference, domestic employment, as well as the need for powerful and durable vehicles in rural America, including my home State of Alaska. The amendment would provide the Secretary the authority to balance these considerations, and to make the appropriate and necessary fuel economy increases. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. President, it has been an honor and a privilege to work with Senator Bill Frist for the past 12 years. Bill has been a solid leader for our party and he has served the people of Tennessee with distinction.

Senator Frist came to politics through a nontraditional route-- through the operating room. Bill got involved in politics because he believed he could do even more for his patients--and the people of Tennessee--in the Senate. And he was right. Bill's meticulous approach to this job is exactly what you would expect of a person with his training. He never gave up on his goals and worked tirelessly to see them into law.

I became President Pro Tempore of the Senate close to the time when Bill became our majority leader. I enjoyed working by his side and thank Leader Frist for including me--as President Pro Tempore--in all leadership meetings. Senator Frist also traveled with us to China for U.S. Interparliamentary Group meetings. Once our meetings were finished, he continued on to Africa for medical mission work.

As majority leader, Bill carried the administration's message. He fought hard for the President's judicial nominees. And as we saw yesterday during his farewell address, Bill leaves us with great honor and recognition. Our leader will now return to where, in some ways, his heart has always been--the practice of medicine. But deep in my heart, I feel that public service will again call Bill to give of his time and talents to help preserve our democracy and our freedoms. Catherine and I will miss being with Bill and Karyn.

rick santorum

Mr. President, yesterday I was moved by the emotional farewell of Senator Rick Santorum. He said he still feels the thrill of coming to work in this building every day. The energy he put toward his work in this Chamber, I will remember as one of Senator Santorum's most striking qualities.

Senator Santorum's enthusiastic direction of the Republican conference rallied our majority. I believe he jeopardized his own future in Pennsylvania by urging us to think and act for the national good. Pennsylvania has been served well during his time in Congress and so has our Nation.

Rick's energy has been of great benefit to many charities, and he has taken a special interest in helping those affected by autism. His efforts on behalf of each of these causes have been exceptional. And despite his many commitments, Rick's dedication to his family and personal convictions never wavered. Catherine and I wish Rick and his family well.

george Allen

Mr. President, Senator George Allen has served the Commonwealth of Virginia with honor and integrity. George is a principled person, following bedrock beliefs gained growing up in a strong family.

These principles have led George to promote and defend freedom in this country and around the world. His legislative accomplishments are aligned with this philosophy.

Senator Allen's major accomplishments include the Internet Tax Nondiscrimination Act, the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act, increased benefits for the families of fallen troops, funding to upgrade telecommunications infrastructure for minority- serving institutions, and greater protections for intellectual property.

In all of this, Senator Allen has not forgotten who his real boss is: the American people. He has always, and will continue, to put the interests of this country above his own. That is a true mark of a leader, ald all Virginians can be proud to have been represented by a man with Senator Allen's character.

As many of his constituents, colleagues, and friends know, Senator Allen closed much of his correspondence with the words ``keep winning.'' Just like his dad, a Hall of Fame coach who reached great heights and suffered tough losses on the gridiron, we know George won't let this setback define him. We all expect him to ``keep winning'' for Virginia.

Catherine and I wish him and Susan the very best. We know we will hear

Mr. President, a well-respected public servant will soon retire after 40 years of outstanding service to our Government and the American people.

Anthony J. ``Tony'' Zagami first came to Capitol Hill in 1965, at the age of 13, to serve as a page in the United States Senate. Several years later, Tony returned as an assistant to the Secretary of the Senate. I was the whip for the Republican party at the time, and in this capacity, it was my privilege to work closely with Tony and the Secretary. Tony also spent 9 years as the general counsel to the Joint Committee on Printing, which I was ranking member of from 1987 to 1992.

Tony left the halls of Congress in 1990 to become general counsel at the U.S.

Government Printing Office, and he has remained in this post for the past 16 years. Tony's legislative background has proven to be a tremendous asset during his tenure as general counsel. His leadership and vision have helped transform the GPO into a profitable, efficient, and thoroughly modern organization.

In January, Tony will retire as the longest serving general counsel in the GPO's 145-year history. In honor of his many accomplishments, Tony has also been named the first general counsel emeritus of the GPO.

On behalf of my colleagues in Congress, I thank Tony for his dedication and hard work over the years. We all wish Tony, his wife, and their three children the very best.

Mr. President, I wish to take a few minutes. I ask unanimous consent the Senator from Ohio, Mr. DeWine, be permitted to take the floor following my remarks.

Mr. President, we ought to understand what we are talking about now because the bills that are before the Senate now and the CR should have been enacted by October 1. This bill will move that money out to February now and will not be available to the department agencies until sometime in February.

I am concerned about this because prior to this Congress, the quality-of-life money for the members of the Department of Defense was under the Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense that I cochair with my friend from Hawaii, Senator Inouye.

We are disturbed that Congress has not finished its work on the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs appropriations bill. To me, the failure to complete this work is inexplicable.

I am disappointed we are unable to reach an agreement with the House on the matters contained in this bill and to realize the necessity of completing action on the bill in total. We are neglecting our congressional responsibilities by not completing work on this bill. It is unfortunate. We have had a considerable amount of time to do so.

This is not a routine disagreement between Members of the House and the Senate. This is a disagreement that affects our Nation while we are at war. We have hundreds of thousands of service men and women deployed around the world. This sends a message we are not willing to take the time to finish the work necessary to assure they have the money, the funding, the facilities to do the work we have asked them to do. It will have an impact on military life and the morale of our armed services.

The Military Construction appropriations bill not only contains money for military construction and for quality of life, but it also contains the money for our veterans. In total, it provides critical funding for family housing, barracks, mission facilities, implementation of the base closure and realignment process, maintenance of defense and veterans facilities, environment cleanup, the Defense Health Program, and medical care for our veterans.

Now I am told that the CR does now come up to the President's request for

the medical health program, and that really removes part of my objection to proceeding on this bill. Without this bill, the Department of Defense and Veterans Affairs have to contend with this continuing resolution. Most people do not understand it. It means these moneys will be postponed until mid-February, the additional moneys that are necessary to meet the additional demands being placed on our Armed Services before September 30. We are supposed to finish this bill by September 30.

I am told the Department of Defense will not be able to start a single military construction project, although those projects were authorized more than 3 months ago. It means the projects cannot be started until the regular bill is passed. I hope it will be passed in February.

Now, I took the time to go to Italy and look at the new Army base there and the new Air Force base there, as we are redeploying our forces from Germany and other places into Italy. Those projects involve barracks, quality of life facilities, and family housing. That cannot go forward. The money will not be available because it was not covered by the 2006 appropriations bill. It is not covered by this continuing resolution.

I think it is true now, because of what I mentioned, the Veterans' Administration should be able to sustain the medical care for our veterans without disruption. But I can tell the Senate, they will not be able to go much more than mid-February without running into real trouble. So one of the first bills that ought to be considered when we get back is the Veterans appropriations bill.

I am here tonight because I announced to our conference I would oppose this CR unless it contained these bills in it. After consulting, and my staff consulting, with the Department of Defense, the Veterans' Administration, and understanding what the House has done now since that time on the medical portion for the Veterans' Administration, it does not seem possible for me to do that now. All I can do is express my deep reservation about voting for this bill under the circumstances.

We should have had at least the balance of the military money and the veterans money made available by this Congress before we went home. And I am really disappointed it is not possible.

Mr. President, I say to the Senator from Texas, you wish the floor again? The Senator from Ohio would follow me, but you wish to comment?

Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Texas for those comments.

My point is, the Congress as a whole should have finished its job. We should have done this job before this Congress ends, particularly for those bills which impact the men and women in our Armed Services, their families, and the veterans who have served, particularly the new class of veterans now who are coming out of the service, many of whom are wounded. Many of them have readjustment problems. This bill, the bill the Senator from Texas and her subcommittee prepared, would have answered many of those problems. It would have made money available now to deal with them.

I am chagrined that bill is not going to pass. I think it is a failure of this Congress. And we ought to admit it is a failure. But as far as this Senator is concerned, we have done everything we can to try to rectify that. It is just not possible to get the Congress to vote. The House has already voted. I do not think it is possible for us to try to amend this bill now. And I am told the agencies involved have reviewed it and say they will find a way to continue their work until February without it.

That does not answer the question to me though because the things they should start now would be well underway by February, and it will not be possible with postponing this bill. It is a tragedy we are not able to complete our appropriations process, in my opinion.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 4709 and that the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Yes. The definition of ``IP enabled voice service'' in this bill is not meant to be the universal definition of ``IP enabled voice service'' to be used in future legislation that involves other contexts. And, it should not be interpreted as a signal to the FCC that it should alter or change the definitions of Interconnected or IP enabled voice services that it has used in other contexts.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid on the table, and that any statements relating to the measure be printed in the Record.

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

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

I send a bill to the desk and ask unanimous consent for its immediate consideration.

Mr. President, a year ago I raised the issue of the problem of the small timber industry in Alaska, and we had an amendment to be offered to the tax bill. I was asked not to proceed then, and I received a commitment that this amendment would be included in the next tax bill as a technical correction. We thought it was going to be in this year again, and I discovered it is not in the bill.

What this bill does, it deals with the problem created in the timber industry in southeastern Alaska when a series of companies failed and they left a situation where the pension plan is supported only by the surviving companies. These companies have the obligation to pay the pensions of those who retired from other companies that failed, prior to their demise, but they found they cannot do that and survive unless the time within which the payments are to be made is extended. That will be the purpose of this bill. The purpose of this bill is to extend the time so that the surviving companies can pay not only their own employer contribution for their own employees but for the employees of the companies that failed.

I have been told today that this bill affects 600 to 1,000 jobs in southeastern Alaska now and up to 2,000 employees who already retired. Unless the time is extended, the surviving companies will fail and the existing employees will lose their jobs and those who have already retired will not get their pensions.

I conferred with our friend, the chairman on the House side, Chairman Thomas. I suggested the only way to deal with this now, since the House has already passed this bill without the amendment in it, would be to have this independent bill passed. I am grateful to all who have been considering this bill all day long. It has been an all-day-long proposition, and I do hope it will be passed now so that we may try to see if the House can pass it before they adjourn.

I do urge immediate passage of the bill.

I move to lay that motion on the table.

The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. President, this past August, Alaska lost a great hero and the Stevens family lost a cherished friend. Susan Butcher was the four-time Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Champion and the first and only woman to mush her team to the summit of Mt. McKinley--with her friend and Iditarod race founder, Joe Redington, Sr. She is the reason we say ``Alaska--where men are men and women win the Iditarod.'' Susan left behind her husband David Monson and daughters Tekla and Chisana, and friends and admirers everywhere.

In the solitude of the unforgiving Arctic terrain, this tough, focused, intelligent woman traveled and ran many thousands of miles with her dog teams over the years--a distance greater than a trip around the world. In David's words, she was the most driven woman on the face of this earth.

Susan's skill as a musher was matched only by her great and abiding love for her dogs. If her dogs were happy, Susan was happy.

Whether on the trail or at home, Susan always took care of her huskies before tending to her own needs. With

only her ax and a parka, she once fended off a moose attacking her team along the trail. The moose killed two dogs and stomped 13 others. In another harrowing experience, she was rescued by her dogs when her sled broke through the ice on a remote river in the Wrangell Mountains. After that escape, Susan said she looked at every moment of her life as a gift. Susan did it all--living a life without many regrets and always great humor.

Susan was blessed with a wonderful partner when she married fellow musher and lawyer David Monson. He gave her the love, laughter and relentless support that carried her through their years together. They expanded their family beyond their 100 huskies with the birth of their daughters Tekla and Chisana. Susan embraced motherhood with even greater passion, energy and devotion than she had in her life as a musher. And the girls blossomed in a home and cabin filled with books, music, Native Alaskan culture, and, of course, dogs.

In December 2005, Susan was diagnosed with leukemia and began the toughest fight of her life. At the time, her husband David said ``We're going to do everything we can to make sure she has the best care. She does have the best attitude. Someone said this might be a tough disease, but this leukemia hasn't met Susan Butcher yet.'' Throughout her treatment in Seattle, Susan actively campaigned to help others by increasing donations to the National Marrow Donor Program and support for leukemia and lymphoma research.

Over the past 20 years, Susan often traveled to Washington--bunking with our family--sled dogs, cat, kids and all. Presidents Reagan and George Bush, Sr., invited her and her lead dogs to the White House. She drove her team in the inaugural parades--the last time in 2001, with both her daughters in the sled. With her lead dog, Granite, she was welcomed by Justice Sandra Day O'Connor to her Supreme Court chambers, and to the Pentagon by her friend General Colin Powell, then chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Susan had a gift for inspiring others to never give up, to test their limits, to see their way through to the finish line, and to always try the path less traveled. It is no wonder her favorite poem reflected her New England roots--Robert Frost's ``The Road Not Taken.''

On a winter day in 1994, near her home in Eureka, AK, the reporter Skip Hollandsworth watched Susan and her dogs: ``She whispers a command, and in unison the dogs pull forward. The sled slips across the snow. Soon, Butcher and her dogs are like a mirage in the distance. A few moments later, the cold, silent land swallows them up.'' ``Sometimes when she leaves,'' David says, ``I wonder if she ever wants to return home.''

Some day in the years ahead, Susan and David's beautiful daughters Tekla and Chisana will graduate from high school. We hope they and their friends will find the same inspiration to challenge themselves as Susan's words instilled in our daughter Lily's Holton Arms class in 1999.

Mr. President, Alaska lost one of its brightest stars when Susan Butcher passed away. We will always remember this remarkable and courageous woman.

I ask unanimous consent that Ms. Butcher's commencement address to the Holton Arms School be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, it is with sadness that I call to the attention of my colleagues the recent passing of one of our most loyal and hardworking former Senate staff members, John Mark Lacovara.

Mark, as he was called by his family and friends, was part of a Capitol Hill

family, joining both his father and sister in holding staff positions in the U.S. Senate. Mark began his Senate career in 1969. He worked his way up the ranks in a number of jobs, starting first as an elevator operator, then as an enrolling clerk, and finally capping his career as the Senate journal clerk.

Those of us who knew him admired his tireless and cheerful dedication to this body. Often he would be the last one to leave his office at night and the first to arrive in the morning, no matter how late the previous session had ended. He truly loved his job, but due to health reasons, he resigned in 1997.

Mark was born in Washington. He grew up in Rockville and graduated from Richard Montgomery High School. Attending night school while maintaining his full-time Senate duties, he received a bachelor's, degree in political science with a minor in American history from the University of Maryland. He served as a member of the U.S. Air Force Reserve for many years.

Mark Lacovara passed away on October 3, 2006. Mark was the son of the late John Lacovara, administrative assistant to the Senate Sergeant at Arms, and Mrs. Patricia Lacovara Ingold of Springfield. My colleagues join me in extending our deepest sympathy to her and Mark's sisters, Dale Monno, a retired lieutenant with the Capitol Police, and Joyce. He will be missed by all of his friends in the Senate.

Madam President, during my time of almost 7 years as chairman of the Appropriations Committee, I have met with Dr. Von Eschenbach quite often. We had many requests for documents. I can't remember once that he refused. But beyond that, I came to the floor today to say that I have gotten to know Dr. Von Eschenbach personally, and I can't think of a more qualified man at this time to be confirmed to this position. I hope the Senate will vote cloture and we will confirm Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach as requested by the President. I thank the Chair.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 5946 which was received from the House.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Stevens amendment be agreed to; the bill, as amended, be read for the third time and passed; and a motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Mr. President, I wish to correct my vote on rollcall 271, the motion to waive the Congressional Budget Act point of order on Senate amendment No. 5205.

I am recorded as ``yea'' to waive the Budget Act point of order. It was my intent to uphold the point of order. Therefore, I ask unanimous consent that the record be changed so I will be recorded as voting against the motion to waive the budget point of order. The record should reflect my vote as ``nay'' on amendment No. 5205. It would not change the outcome of the vote.

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

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

Mr. President, I believe it is time to close morning business.

If my friend from Hawaii has no further comment to make, I ask for the yeas and nays.

I move to reconsider the vote, and I move to lay that motion on the table.

The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. President, again, I thank the 2 people primarily responsible for the bill being so well put together, Sid Ashworth and Charlie Houy, respective assistants for Senator Inouye and me. It has been a good period dealing with this bill. This is the largest bill we have ever provided for the Department of Defense.