Congressional Record United States Th of America PROCEEDINGS and DEBATES of the 112 CONGRESS, FIRST SESSION
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E PL UR UM IB N U U S Congressional Record United States th of America PROCEEDINGS AND DEBATES OF THE 112 CONGRESS, FIRST SESSION Vol. 157 WASHINGTON, THURSDAY, JUNE 9, 2011 No. 83 Senate The Senate met at 9:30 a.m. and was Mr. UDALL of New Mexico thereupon vested in EDA, we get $7 worth of pri- called to order by the Honorable TOM assumed the chair as Acting President vate investment. That is why the jobs UDALL, a Senator from the State of pro tempore. are created. This legislation makes it New Mexico. f better. This is a bipartisan bill. Senators PRAYER RECOGNITION OF THE MAJORITY BOXER and INHOFE and their committee The Chaplain, Dr. Barry C. Black, of- LEADER have worked to get this to the Senate fered the following prayer: The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- floor. It increases flexibility for grant- Let us pray. pore. The majority leader is recog- ees, lowers the threshold requirements Almighty God, life of our life, You nized. for grantees to receive an increased have given us this Nation for our herit- f Federal share, and makes more invest- age. Today, we ask that You will keep ments available for planning assist- us mindful of Your favor and glad to do SCHEDULE ance. Your will. Use the Members of this Mr. REID. Mr. President, following We are trying to move through this body to uphold the public interest, to any leader remarks, the Senate will be legislation. Senator SNOWE offered an labor for justice, to love mercy, and to in a period of morning business for 1 amendment. She has not uttered a sin- walk humbly with You. Give them the hour, with the Republicans controlling gle word about that amendment, which wisdom to use their power for the heal- the first half and the majority control- was offered yesterday. This is the same ing of our land. Keep their goals high, ling the final half. piece of legislation that held up our vision clear, and minds keen. And, Lord, we ask Your choicest Following morning business, the Sen- Small Business Innovation Act. We blessings upon our departing page ate will resume consideration of the have had other Senators who have class. Economic Development Act. There are come and offered amendments. I don’t We pray in Your righteous name. currently five amendments pending to particularly like the amendment of- Amen. the bill. We are working to set up votes fered by the junior Senator from South f in relation to these amendments and Carolina, but he came and said, ‘‘I will advise Senators when they are want to offer this amendment, and I PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE scheduled. will agree to a time limit on it.’’ Sen- The Honorable TOM UDALL led the f ator PAUL, the junior Senator from Pledge of Allegiance, as follows: Kentucky, had an amendment he want- I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ed to offer. He said he would agree to a United States of America, and to the Repub- REVITALIZATION ACT short time limit. I didn’t ask for time lic for which it stands, one nation under God, Mr. REID. Mr. President, the Eco- agreements on this legislation. I should indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. nomic Development Revitalization Act not act as the person who determines f is an important bill. Is it the most im- what amendments are offered and APPOINTMENT OF ACTING portant bill we have ever done? The an- aren’t offered. But when someone offers PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE swer is, of course not. But it is an im- an amendment, we should be able to The PRESIDING OFFICER. The portant piece of legislation. It is a very work it to a conclusion. clerk will please read a communication important bill. This bill, as I have indicated, is an to the Senate from the President pro What are the central points of this important piece of legislation. We need tempore (Mr. INOUYE). legislation? For almost 50 years, the to move through it. We are going to do The assistant legislative clerk read Economic Development Administra- that to the best of our ability. We will as follows: tion has helped create jobs and growth have a number of votes today and do U.S. SENATE, in economically hard-hit communities our best to move through this piece of PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE, across the Nation. Reauthorization of legislation so we can move to other Washington, DC, June 9, 2011. this important legislation will help en- bills. There are a lot of things we can To the Senate: sure that the agency is able to help do. We can work on bipartisan pieces of Under the provisions of rule I, paragraph 3, continue creating jobs and investing in legislation. That is my hope today. of the Standing Rules of the Senate, I hereby distressed communities. I suggest the absence of a quorum. appoint the Honorable TOM UDALL, a Senator from the State of New Mexico, to perform Since 2005, EDA has invested about The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- the duties of the Chair. $1.2 billion, and these grants have cre- pore. The clerk will call the roll. DANIEL K. INOUYE, ated more than 300,000 jobs—precisely, The assistant legislative clerk pro- President pro tempore. 314,000 jobs. For every dollar that is in- ceeded to call the roll. ∑ This ‘‘bullet’’ symbol identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by a Member of the Senate on the floor. S3631 . VerDate Mar 15 2010 06:51 Feb 24, 2012 Jkt 099060 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\RECORD11\RECFILES\S09JN1.REC S09JN1 bjneal on DSK2TWX8P1PROD with CONG-REC-ONLINE S3632 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE June 9, 2011 Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, I put it last year, we would need to har- their businesses or those who don’t ask unanimous consent that the order ness traditional sources of energy, his want to give up a single solitary penny for the quorum call be rescinded. continued refusal to issue drilling per- of Federal spending. The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- mits in the gulf has had a devastating But the good of the country is more pore. Without objection, it is so or- economic effect. important than the goals of some polit- dered. On the debt, the President himself ical interest group. We have to rein in f has said, ‘‘If we don’t have a serious our debt, cut spending, reduce taxes, plan to tackle the debt and the deficit, reform entitlements, and grow this RECOGNITION OF THE MINORITY that could actually end up being a big- economy. This administration knows LEADER ger drag on the economy than anything this as well as I do. It is time to act. The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- else.’’ Yet, under his leadership, the So, looking ahead, the key to suc- pore. The Senator from Kentucky is Nation’s national debt has skyrocketed cess, in my view—and in the judgment recognized. 35 percent, from $10.6 trillion to $14.2 of others, including Moody’s—is for ev- f trillion, our deficit is three times big- eryone involved to view the upcoming EDA ger than the biggest annual deficit dur- debt limit vote as an opportunity—an ing the Bush administration, and the opportunity—to reduce Washington Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, I President refuses to put forward a seri- spending now and to save the taxpayers was discussing with the majority lead- ous plan to do anything to bring the trillions of dollars over the long term. er privately the comments he made debt or the deficit down. It is an opportunity to put our fiscal publicly about getting votes. I have So there is a pattern here. The Presi- house in order and to prevent the fiscal talked to my Members, and I under- dent likes to say he is concerned about crisis we all know is coming. We know stand he indicated that most of our the economy and jobs, but his policies what we need to do. The time to do it Members who have amendments are tell an entirely different story. He can is now. willing to take short time agreements. talk all he wants, but he cannot walk Mr. President, I yield the floor. We ought to be able to move forward away from what he has done, and the f and have votes, and the Senate can things he is failing to do right now to function the way it should. create private sector jobs and to get RESERVATION OF LEADER TIME Mr. President, with each passing day, our economy moving again. Chief The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- the American people grow more con- among them is his refusal to do any- pore. Under the previous order, the cerned about our Nation’s future. The thing to lower the debt and deficits he leadership time is reserved. Washington Post-ABC news poll this has done so much to create. week said that by a ratio of 2 to 1, Right now, U.S. businesses are sit- f Americans believe we are on the wrong ting on nearly $2 trillion in cash. Most MORNING BUSINESS track, and 9 out of 10 rate the economy of them would love to invest this cash negatively. Yesterday’s CNN poll found in new products, ventures, and employ- The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- that many Americans expect another ees. Yet they are holding back. Why? It pore. Under the previous order, the Great Depression. is not just the regulations and the Senate will be in a period of morning It is in this context that President mixed signals they are getting about business for 1 hour, with Senators per- Obama has started talking about how taxes or the expectation that all the mitted to speak for up to 10 minutes concerned he is about jobs.