Floor Statements

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand in adjournment until 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, September 20. I further ask that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved, and the Senate proceed to a period of morning business for up to 30 minutes with the first 15 minutes under the control of the Republican leader or his designee and the final 15 minutes under the control of the Democratic leader or his designee; further, that following morning business, the Senate resume consideration of the motion to proceed to H.R. 6061, the Secure Fence Act, with 1 hour of debate equally divided between the two leaders or their designees, followed by a vote on the motion to invoke cloture.

Mr. President, today we passed the Oman Free Trade bill by a vote of 63 to 31. I am pleased that we were finally able to proceed to a vote on the confirmation of a very important nomination, and that is the nomination of Alice Fisher to be an Assistant Attorney General. Tomorrow we will have a cloture vote on the motion to proceed to the Secure Fence Act, a bill on border security. That vote will occur at approximately 11 a.m., and this will be the first vote of the day. I hope that cloture will be invoked, and if it is invoked, I would hope that we could begin the bill as quickly as possible.

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

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding passage of H.R. 4954, the Menendez amendment No. 4997 be modified with the changes at the desk.

Mr. President, we are back this afternoon to return to the consideration of the United States-Oman trade agreement. Last week, we reached an agreement for debate on this past Friday and today, with the vote occurring tomorrow. On Tuesday, there will be 30 minutes for closing remarks prior to vote on passage. We expect the vote to occur prior to the Tuesday policy meetings.

Also on Tuesday, following the policy luncheons, the Senate will proceed to executive session for the consideration of the nomination of Alice Fisher to be an Assistant Attorney General. There will be 5\1/2\ hours set aside for the debate on this nomination, although we don't anticipate that all of that time will be necessary.

There are other legislative and executive items we will schedule this week in addition to those I just mentioned. We are consulting with a number of colleagues as we schedule these matters, and I will have more to say after those conversations are concluded.

Mr. President, yesterday, September 17, marked the 219th anniversary of one of the most significant events in U.S. history. On September 17, 1787, 219 years ago, 39 brave men signed the U.S. Constitution.

We are all familiar with the Preamble of the Constitution:

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more

perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic

Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the

general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to

ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this

Constitution for the United States of America.

Today across the nation, children in each and every classroom are celebrating the birthday of our Constitution. Very likely, they are reciting this very same Preamble. Many are, no doubt, struggling through this seemingly archaic syntax to come to distill its purpose. These children are asking themselves the same questions we in the Senate face each day on the Senate floor: What does it mean to establish justice? What does it mean to ensure domestic tranquility; to provide for the common defense; to promote the general welfare; to secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity?

In the midst of debate, it is temptingly easy to mire ourselves in the intricacies of legislation, and we spend hours in committees negotiating a phrase or a single word. But let's not forget the purpose behind our debates. Mr. President, 219 years ago, 39 men fulfilled the promise, fulfilled the vision of the Declaration of Independence by signing the Constitution. Today, the legacy depends on us. As citizens and as Senators, it is our duty to ensure that the values and purposes embodied by the Constitution continue to be the values that define our daily life.

Over the past few months, we have had many opportunities to do just that: the PATRIOT Act, Defense appropriations, border security, the Voting Rights Act, the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act, pension reform, and just last week, port security.

But too often my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have inhibited the fulfillment of our duty. They have relied on obstruction and thrown up roadblocks at every opportunity. They have let politics get in the way of sound policy and purpose. That is unacceptable.

We have only a few days left in this session. This week, we will vote on the nomination of Alice Fisher to be an Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division at the Department of Justice. But it has taken months and months to get to this point--months and months of obstruction. We have other key national security nominees who need to be confirmed. These are positions vital to our continued safety and security, but at every turn we find obstruction instead of confirmation.

As we move forward, I urge my colleagues to review our Constitution's Preamble, to consider anew our purpose here in the Senate, and to let that purpose guide our debate and action here on the Senate floor.

I yield the floor.

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

Mr. President, we will be closing down shortly, but I have a few items of business, and I have had a chance to talk to the Democratic leader about this next item.

Mr. President, I now proceed to Calendar No. 615, H.R. 6061. I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. President, I ask that the mandatory quorum be waived.

Mr. President, last week we passed the Port Security Improvement Act. Indeed, that means we are one step closer to plugging the hole in our port security. We are one step closer to securing America's more than 300 maritime ports of entry. That is progress.

This port security bill that we passed was about vigilance. We are in the midst of a war with radical ideologues, militant extremists who will stop at nothing to destroy our Nation. They search for our weak spots and they seek ways to exploit them. On 9/11 we learned just how creative our enemy can be. Just last month we saw it again with the plot in Great Britain among terrorists to carry out what has become known as Gatorade bombing; that is, the destruction of aircraft and human life by using liquids.

We share a 1,951-mile border with Mexico. It doesn't take much creativity to imagine how terrorists might seek to exploit that border. It is time to secure that border with Mexico. That is why just a few moments ago I filed cloture on the motion to proceed to the Secure Fence Act of 2006.

The overwhelming majority of people who violate our borders do so in search of jobs--but not all of them. Some cross to deal drugs and commit crimes. Intelligence reports show that even al-Qaida considers our borders a key vulnerability. Without effective border control, we can't tell those looking for honest work from those bent on mayhem. Under the Secure Fence Act, Customs and Border Protection will take responsibility for securing every inch of our border with Mexico. Engineers and construction workers will erect two-layer reinforced fencing along the entire border. Hundreds of new cameras and sensors will be installed. Unmanned aircraft will supplement existing air and ground patrols.

The resulting finished network will give us complete operational control over our entire border, and it will go a

long way toward stopping illegal immigration altogether.

But border barriers alone won't solve our problems. Congress still needs to address the illegal immigrants already in the country and provide a viable means to meet our Nation's labor needs. While I would have preferred coming to an agreement on a comprehensive solution this year, I have always said we need an enforcement-first approach to immigration reform--not enforcement only but enforcement first. This bill is that next step in strengthening our national security and the next step in making America safer and more secure.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate's action on H.R. 503 be vitiated and the Senate agree to the request of the House to return the papers.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand in adjournment until 9:45 a.m. on Tuesday, September 19. I further ask unanimous consent that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved, and the Senate proceed to a period of morning business for up to 30 minutes, with the first 15 minutes under the control of the Democratic leader or his designee and the final 15 minutes under the control of the majority leader or his designee; further, that following morning business, the Senate resume consideration of H.R. 5684, the Oman free-trade bill, for 30 minutes under the previous order, with a vote on passage to occur at 12 noon; further, that any additional time until the vote be counted on the bill, with the time equally divided between the two leaders or their designees. Further, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate stand in recess from 12:30 until 2:15 to accommodate the weekly policy luncheons.

Mr. President, tomorrow we will make final remarks on the Oman free-trade bill. The vote on passage of this bill will be at noon tomorrow. This is the first vote of the week. Tomorrow afternoon, at 2:15, we will take up the nomination of Alice Fisher to be Assistant Attorney General. Under the time agreement, there will be 5\1/2\ hours of debate; however, I do not believe all the time will be necessary. Senators will be notified once that vote has been scheduled.

Just a moment ago, I filed cloture on the motion to proceed to the Secure Fence Act. That vote will occur on Wednesday unless an additional agreement is reached.

I have reminded our colleagues off the floor and will continue to do so on the floor with regard to the fact that next week will be a very busy week. We will complete our business next week. It means in all likelihood that we will have votes on Monday and Friday of next week. Although I don't know exactly when we will finish next week, I think it is important for people to keep their schedules flexible on Saturday. Our intention is to finish--in fact, we will finish--our work by the end of next week.

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

Mr. President, this morning, following a brief period of morning business, we will resume consideration of the port security bill, with an hour of debate equally divided, followed by a vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the bill. That cloture vote should occur at approximately 11 this morning, and that will be the first vote of today's session. I anticipate that cloture will be invoked, and I encourage all Senators to vote in favor of cloture. The bill managers have been diligently working through the amendments and working through the bill. If we invoke cloture, we expect to complete the bill at a reasonable time today. I encourage all of our colleagues to help the managers so we can finish that bill sometime in the late afternoon today. It means not doing our usual thing of trying to talk and spend a lot of time and then voting later into the night. We really do want to finish this late this afternoon. Senators are reminded that rollcall votes are likely throughout the day and that the filing deadline for second-degree amendments is 10 a.m. this morning.

Mr. President, for this month's session of 4 weeks on the floor of the Senate prior to our recess for the elections, we have focused and will continue to focus on the safety and security of the American people.

There are a lot of issues that need to be dealt with that we are dealing with in committees and in conference, but the focus on the floor very much is the safety and security of families listening right now, and to our colleagues and their families. We know, having seen what had come close to happening with the events in Great Britain in terms of the terrorist attacks and the plot there that was foiled, we are at risk in this country. Therefore, it is our obligation to address these issues and to do it in a way where we know we are equipped to both obtain information that can undercut these plots and foil the terrorists in whatever activity they are dreaming up.

In addition, we have a challenge that is being addressed in committee today, was addressed in committee in the House yesterday, in terms of the terrorist tribunals and military commissions. It needs to be understood by my colleagues and the American people that the detainees we have today--the enemy combatants, people who have wished us harm, people who planned the 9/11 attack--until we act in Congress, in this Senate, they simply cannot be tried. They cannot be brought to justice. That is where we are today. That is why there is so much appropriate focus on making sure our Government, our military personnel, our intelligence officers have the tools they need to keep us safe.

So those two issues, the surveillance issue and the military commissions and tribunals, are issues we are addressing, again, in committee. The President has placed a bill before this body. I introduced it about a week and a half ago. That language is available, and I encourage my colleagues to study that.

Mr. President, that brings me to the issues of security that I mentioned in terms of surveillance, the detainees

who are at Guantanamo Bay. Senator McConnell and Senator Specter and I actually visited that naval base last week and learned a lot.

We have border security we are addressing in the Department of Defense appropriations bill that we passed a week and a half ago that is in conference and in our Homeland Security appropriations bill, both of which aggressively address border security. So we have border security. We have port security. We have the military commissions that are being addressed for those individuals at Guantanamo Bay. We have support for our troops in terms of maintaining our security through the Department of Defense appropriations bill that is currently in conference. And then we have the whole issue of surveillance.

Today we are going to finish on port security. We all know--and we are reminded by the events surrounding our reminiscences of 9/11 with that fifth anniversary--we are fighting a war against radical ideologues. These are militant extremists, and they have a single- minded goal of destroying our Nation. Increasingly, people are realizing that, but it is taking these reminiscences and the remembering of the great tragedy of 9/11, coupled with the reality of what very well could have happened to hundreds and, indeed, thousands of Americans if that plot had not been uncovered by the British.

We know the terrorists are not going to stop. And it is not just a war in one part of the world, it is a war against an ideology. They are not going to stop at anything. The enemy is creative. I mentioned the attacks that could have emerged out of the plot which was uncovered by the British. Who would have ever deemed imaginable a day when business travelers could not be carrying contact lens solution in their carry- on. It is because of an attempt with a ``Gatorade'' bomb.

The terrorists are always thinking. They are always thinking of how they can stay one step ahead of even what our imagination is. They are searching for our weak points. They are seeking ways to exploit our weak points. That is why we have to remain vigilant, and that is why we have to address these issues on the floor. The substance of the bill that is on the floor does just that, the port security bill. That is vigilance.

Nowhere is it clearer to me that we have to be vigilant than at America's 300 maritime ports of entry. We talk about border security. Well, part of border security is port security. It is a border we have to close and appropriately monitor to prevent the terrorists from doing us harm.

These ports are economic centers. As economic centers, our more than 300 sea and river ports are targets in and of themselves. For people who want to hurt us, want to hurt our economy, they can become a target. These ports become even more attractive when they are close to urban centers. These ports facilitate the rapid dissemination of cargo from around the globe to each of our cities and towns. Thus, we know the terrorists, when they want to hurt us, would potentially address these ports.

We have done a lot to secure our ports, but the fact remains, they are too porous. That brings us back to the importance of this bill. The bill before us plugs the holes that exist. It toughens security standards for all cargo. And it strengthens and improves programs designed to screen cargo at foreign ports and secures the international supply chain from the very start to the very end.

Technologies have advanced. We have developed more accurate detection tools. But we are not using those tools throughout our system. We are not using them universally. Terrorists have access to stealthier weapons, and that is a huge vulnerability just asking to be exploited if we do not keep up, if we do not keep pace. That is why we must pass this bill tonight.

The bill establishes a risk-based grant program to help assist ports with training personnel and implementing new security standards. The men and women who operate our ports are our first line of defense. We have entrusted these stewards of security with a serious, with a grave responsibility.

Accordingly, the bill ensures that the Department of Homeland Security will move forward with background checks for all port workers so we know who is on the ground at these critical facilities. It sets up procedures for resuming port operations and trade safely and quickly after a terrorist attack to help minimize any effect or any shock to our economy. It establishes the appropriate protocols to ensure that if a terrorist does strike, our ports are not closed longer than necessary.

And importantly, we also need protocols in place so we do not reopen ports too early. An incident at a port could be a red herring, a distraction to disguise other, more damaging terrorist activities.

These are just a few of the highlights of the Port Security Improvement Act. At its core, it is a multipronged approach to plugging the holes that exist in port security. It institutionalizes multiple and redundant security layers. From the factory of origin to cargo container, from cargo container to port warehouse, from port warehouse to cargo ship, from cargo ship to the port of calling, and from the port of calling to the final destination, at each step this bill toughens our standards. We are making it harder for a terrorist's dirty bomb to hide anonymously in a cargo container. We are making it harder for terrorists to tamper with cargo containers. We are making it harder for terrorists to use our ports as target practice. And we are making it harder for terrorists to use our ports to stealthily gain access to the rest of our homeland.

The terrorists we face have a radical agenda. They are ever-vigilant in monitoring and assessing our weaknesses and always looking for new ways to harm us. We must be ever-vigilant in identifying our weaknesses and minimizing and eradicating them. That is what this Port Security Improvement Act does. It is my hope my colleagues will join me in supporting it and in passing this important piece of legislation this afternoon.

Mr. President, I yield the floor.

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