Senate the Senate Met at 9:30 A.M
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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 111 CONGRESS, FIRST SESSION Vol. 155 WASHINGTON, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 17, 2009 No. 91 Senate The Senate met at 9:30 a.m. and was Mr. UDALL of New Mexico thereupon We passed the lands bill, the most called to order by the Honorable TOM assumed the chair as Acting President significant environmental legislation UDALL, a Senator from the State of pro tempore. in more than a quarter of a century, New Mexico. f creating more than 2 million acres of wilderness, 1,000 miles of scenic rivers, RECOGNITION OF THE MAJORITY PRAYER hundreds of miles of trails, and many LEADER The Chaplain, Dr. Barry C. Black, of- other good things in this very impor- fered the following prayer: The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- tant legislation. Let us pray. pore. The majority leader is recog- We passed the Lilly Ledbetter legis- Almighty God, eternal and unchange- nized. lation equalizing pay between men and able, we pray for this Nation, its peo- f women. ple, and its institutions in these chal- SCHEDULE We passed the Children’s Health In- lenging times. If we have forsaken You, surance Program which had been ve- Mr. REID. Mr. President, following do not abandon us. If we have sinned, toed by President Bush on several oc- leader remarks, we will be in a period forgive us. If we have been mistaken, casions. Now more than 14 million chil- for the transaction of morning business correct us. Lord, let Your grace be suf- dren can go to the doctor when they for an hour. Senators will be allowed to ficient for all our needs. Lift the efforts are sick or hurt. speak for up to 10 minutes each. Repub- of this body into the higher reaches of We passed the economic recovery licans will control the first half and Your kingdom, guiding and strength- package. Twenty-five percent of that the majority will control the second 30 ening our Senators in the discharge of money is out. The rest is coming. minutes. Following morning business, their duties. Bless their work as You We passed the omnibus spending the Senate will resume consideration strengthen them by Your spirit to bill—very important legislation which of the motion to proceed to the Travel honor You. had been held up by the Bush adminis- Promotion Act postcloture. Following We pray in Your great Name. Amen. tration. We spent $1.2 trillion of the adoption of the motion to proceed to f the travel bill later this afternoon, we people’s money within a period of 3 PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE will turn to the emergency supple- weeks. Why did we do that? We did it because Mark Zandi, among others, The Honorable TOM UDALL led the mental appropriations conference re- port. Senator MCCAIN’s chief economic ad- Pledge of Allegiance, as follows: viser, Republican economists, and I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the I am disappointed that we are again wasting time on a heavily bipartisan Democratic economists told us we had United States of America, and to the Repub- to do this to stop a worldwide depres- lic for which it stands, one nation under God, bill, the Travel Promotion Act, which indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. has wide support by both the Demo- sion, and we have done that. As Chair- man Bernanke said, the crops have f crats and Republicans. But the Repub- licans forced us to have a vote on clo- been planted and the shoots are now APPOINTMENT OF ACTING ture to allow us to get on the bill. All appearing out of the ground. PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE the Republicans voted for it. They are We went on to pass a procurement The PRESIDING OFFICER. The filibustering things they even agree bill—extremely important—to rein in clerk will please read a communication with just to stall for time. This is 30 the excessive expenses of what has to the Senate from the President pro hours we could use to do a lot of good. taken place in years past with the Pen- tempore (Mr. BYRD). I don’t know what would be the ration- tagon, overspending money we give The assistant legislative clerk read ale for wasting this time. Maybe they them; that is, something is supposed to the following letter: don’t want President Obama to com- cost this much and winds up costing U.S. SENATE, plete more legislation through us. It is twice as much. PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE, beyond my ability to comprehend why We were able to pass national service Washington, DC, June 17, 2009. we would waste this time. legislation, allowing 750,000 people in To the Senate: It has been written and talked about America to be involved in public serv- Under the provisions of rule I, paragraph 3, that this is the most accomplished ice, dealing with the environment, of the Standing Rules of the Senate, I hereby Congress since the first year of the health care, the poor. During the 7,000 appoint the Honorable TOM UDALL, a Senator from the State of New Mexico, to perform Roosevelt administration. I don’t have hours they volunteer, they get a small the duties of the Chair. before me all the legislation we have stipend. When they finish, they get an ROBERT C. BYRD, done, but I am going to try to recall amount of money to help with their President pro tempore. some of the things we have done. college education. ∑ This ‘‘bullet’’ symbol identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by a Member of the Senate on the floor. S6669 . VerDate Nov 24 2008 03:55 Jun 18, 2009 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\A17JN6.000 S17JNPT1 wwoods2 on PRODPC68 with SENATE S6670 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE June 17, 2009 Credit card legislation—so impor- leaders, should not be unwilling to all we hear from the Republicans these tant—we finally were able to do it. work together. The challenges we face days. Instead of debating facts, Repub- After years of talking about doing it, have left no one unscathed. We are all licans have committed themselves to a we did it to stop the ripoffs of these in this hole together, and the only way strategy of misinformation and mis- credit card companies and what they we climb out of this hole is by doing so representation. were doing to hurt Americans—all together. We have different priorities. We are Americans. When the American people spoke last committed to lowering the high cost of We passed tobacco legislation. I can year, they gave us, above all, a man- health care, ensuring every American remember, when I was working in the date for bipartisanship. It was in that has access to that quality, affordable Capitol of the United States going to spirit that I wrote my Republican col- care and letting people choose their law school, the Surgeon General came leagues this spring. In that letter, I own doctors, hospitals, and health out with the first report that smoking said one of the best ways to lift our plans. We are committed to protecting was bad for you. Some people thought economy is to keep down health care existing coverage when it is good and that was the case, but the Surgeon costs. Almost 50 million Americans improving it when it is not and guaran- General of the United States said it have no health care, and the problem teeing health care for millions, includ- will kill you. We have been trying ever grows worse every day. ing 9 million children who have none. since then to get control of tobacco. Every day, more Americans go bank- I don’t believe doing nothing is an After all these years, we did it. rupt or lose their homes just trying to option because the costs of doing noth- We have been able to work on other stay healthy. Even those fortunate ing are too great. We must pass health important pieces of legislation—finan- enough to have insurance pay a hidden care reform this year. As we said at the cial fraud, reported out of the Judici- tax for those who do not. What does start of this year, at the start of this ary Committee, which stops scams tak- that mean? It means 50 million people, work period, at the start of this debate, ing place on people who are about to when they get sick or hurt, go to the we will continue doing our best to begin foreclosure, taking advantage of nearest emergency room. That emer- work with Republicans and pass a bi- people who are in a time of distress. We gency room may be across the street or partisan bill. passed a lot of housing legislation that 50 miles from where they are, but that In spite of the past, I remain opti- is important to allow people to stay in is where they go. That increases the mistic that both Republicans and their homes. Have we stopped it all? Of cost of every one of our health insur- Democrats recognize how urgent this course not. But we have done a pretty ance policies, it increases the cost of health care debate is. The health of our good job at that. the doctor bills we get, the hospital citizens and our economy is at stake, We are now arriving at a point where bills we get, and indigent taxes.