it is time to say yes, to give a fair shot to the american dream, to being a part of the middle class, to alicia mccrery and millions of hardworking but low-paid americans. the time has come to raise the minimum wage. madam president, i yield. if there's any time back, i yield impact remaining time. -- yield back the remaining time. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: cloture motion, we, the undersigned senators in accordance with provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, hereby move to bring to a close the debate on the motion to proceed to s. 2233, a bill to provide for a federal minimum wage and to amend the internal revenue code of 1986 to extend increased expensing limitations and the treatment of certain real property as section 179 property. signed by 17 senators. the presiding officer: by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. the question is: is it the sense of the senate that debate on the motion to proceed to s. 2223, a

bill to provide for an increase in the federal minimum wage, and to amend the internal rev of knew code of -- internal revenue code of 1986 to extend increasing expensing limitations and the treatment of certain real property as section 179 property, shall be brought to a close? the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: are there any senators wishing to vote or to change their vote?

there being none, on this vote the yeas are 54, the nays are 42. three-fifths of the senators duly chosen and sworn not having voted in tea firm tiff, the motion is not agreed to. the majority leader. mr. reid: i move to reconsider the vote by which cloture was was not invoked on s. 2223. the presiding officer: the motion is so answered entered.

a senator: mr. president i ♪ notice the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

quorum call:

the presiding officer: the senator from oklahoma. mr. inhofe: i ask unanimous consent the quorum call in progress be vitiated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. inhofe: mr. president, today marks the 225th anniversary of george washington's inaugural address to the nation. i -- i don't think anyone's said anything about it. that's a major thing for us to think about each year.

it's the 225th anniversary. it's reported that more than 10,000 people -- this is way back 225 years ago -- gathered on this day in 1789 to hear from a man who won a war, who is now ushering in an era of's and freedom in our new nation. there's a historian, peter loback, he pointed out -- and i read his book recently -- about our first president, washington, knew that everything he was to say in the first inaugural address would set a precedent for all that was to come after him in establishing our nation. it's why americans should take a note at how washington weaved in the international -- intentionality of his belief in the omnipotent. washington said -- and this is a quote -- he said, "it would be

prospectlpeculiarly improper ton this first official act my fefb yofervent suppocations to that almighty being who rules over the universe." further quoting now, "no people can be bawnd t bound to acknowlr ignore the invisible end which conducts the affairs of men more than the people of the united ey step by which they have advanced to their -- to the character of an independent nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of prof dispen providenti" we're hear because of the hand of god. washington's leadership was grounded in god and his leadership was god's gift. and as we reflect on the anniversary of washington's speech, it's important that we're reminded as a nation what our founding fathers sought to establish in this same inaugural

speech, washington said -- and i quote -- "the destiny of the republic model of government are justly considered as deeply, perhaps as finely state to the experiment entrusted to the hands of the american people." washington's conviction was that we as americans are entrusted by god to preserve basic freedoms established in the constitution, such as the freedom of speech and the freedom of religion. the secularist culture that we see our nation embracing today would seech to censor such words from a leader like washington. their intolerance fails to acknowledge that it was washington's convictions and our founding fathers' faith values that gave us the public square. on september 27 last year, i talked about this issue on the senate floor, about how

oklahomans regularly ask me -- and i don't really think this is unique just to oklahoma. i think it can be in almost any state -- but how they regularly ask me why we have an administration that suppresses our judeo-christian values while praising islam. as i said then, i find it sad that our nation does not have the same belief today that we had back when washington was president. we've become arrogant, inwar inward-focused individuals rather than submit to god's authority, we define truth, justice and morality by what feels good at the time. today instead of having leaders that protect the church from government, we have leaders that believe it's government's job to impose on churches what should be universally upheld as truth. as leaders, we should be protecting americans' freedoms to practice his or her religion. it's only appropriate that on this anniversary that we

consider the words of washington's farewell address in 1796, where he said that the pillars supporting our republic are morality and religion. he said -- and i quote -- "let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of particular structu structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious princip principle." we've got to restore that morality of our nation given to us by the founding fathers, as he articulated 225 years ago, and that morality is found in the judeo-christian values railroad particular lated by not just washing -- values articulated by not just washington but by all our founding fathers. as my son likes to say, wowd wit

god, the constitution is nothing but a piece of paper. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor and i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

quorum call:

quorum call:

quorum call:

ms. warren: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from massachusetts. ms. warren: are we in a quorum call? the presiding officer: we are. rein reason i ask that the quorum call be lifted. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. warren: it has been seven years since the congress last increased the minimum wage, seven years since congress stood up for working families, seven years since congress gave america a raise. earlier today the senate had a chance to do something about that when we voted on whether to increase the minimum wage. earearlier today we had chance o give raise to the parents of at least 14 million children, a chance to lift nearly a million full-time workers out of poverty. a majority of senators tried to do that today. 55 senators supported raising

the minimum wage, but republicans filibustered the bill, so it didn't pass. this is outrageous. for nearly half a century, as we came out of the great depression, the people of this country lived by the basic principle that we all do better when we work together and build opportunities for everyone. for nearly half a century, as our country got richer, our people got richer, and as our people got richer, our country got richer. you know, the basic idea was that as the pie gets bigger, we all get a little more, even those who make only the minimum wage. i know this story because it's my story. like a lot of folks, i grew up in a family that had ups and downs. when i was 12, my daddy had a heart attack and was out of work for a long time. the bills piled up. we lost our car and we were right on the edge of losing our

home. my mom was 50 years old when she pulled on her best dress and walked to the sears to get a job. it paid minimum wage, but back then a minimu minimum-wage job s enough to keep a family of three above water. and that's how it was for us. that's one of the ways our country built and protected america's great middle class. but that's not how it works anymore. in 1968, the minimum wage was high enough to keep a working parent with a family of three out of poverty. in 1980, the minimum wage was at least high enough to cape a working parent with a family of two out of poverty. today the minimum wage isn't even enough to keep a fully employed mother and a baby out of poverty. something is fundamentally wrong when millions of americans can

work full-time and still live in poverty, and something is fundamentally wrong when big companies can get away with paying poverty-level wages and then stick taxpayers when the cost of their full-time workers end up on food stafn stamps and medicaid. i understand that some big businesses might like to keep things the way they are, but i really don't understand this republican filibuster. there's nothing conservative about leaving millions of working people in poverty. there's nothing conservative about expanding enrollment in government assistance programs. and there's nothing conservative about preserving a sweetheart deal for companies that would rather milk the taxpayers for more corporate welfare than compete on a level playing field. so i'm disappointed about what

happened today, but i am also hopeful. a majority of the united states senate, democrats in the united states senate, voted to honor work, to honor the people who get up every day and bust their tails to try to build a better life for themselves and for their children. this is an uphill fight, but it isn't over yet. it took us four months and many republican filibusters before we finally convinced a handful of our republican colleagues to support an extension of emergency unemployment benefits. but we passed that bill in the senate, and we will pass this bill, too. because, after seven years, with millions of our working families struggling to get by, with millions of children depending on a mom or dad who works long hours for low pay, it is long

past time to increase the minimum wage. mr. president, i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

quorum call:

mr. king: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from maine. mr. king: i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be suspended. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. king: mr. president, i rise today to take just a few moments to talk about jon david levy, who is a nominee for the federal district court in maine who will be voted on this afternoon. senator collins and i have come to the floor together to talk about this nominee and his extraordinary qualifications for this position. my history with jon levy is kind of interesting. he was one of my very first appointments to the bench when i was governor of maine in 1995. and the important thing that i

want to get across is i didn't know him. he wasn't a crib tor, a -- a contributor, supporter, political ally in any way shape or form. what he was at that time was a really smart lawyer with a judicial demeanor. he was recommended to me. he was discovered, if you will, by a nonpartisan judicial selection committee. i interviewed him, met him, liked him and appointed him to the maine district court, which is our lower court of sort of general jurisdiction where it's really the people's court. he excelled in that court both he in terms of his decision-making skills, but also his demeanor and his ability to interpret and apply the law in very real and practical circumstances. he was so good, as a matter of fact, that as i was leaving the governorship in the last year or so, i had the opportunity to appoint him to maine's supreme court. in fact, i believe it's true

that he's the only person to have gone directly from our district court to the supreme court in our state without stopping in the middle at our superior court court of general jurisdiction. because he was so outstanding and proved himself as an appellate judge as what we hoped to be the case, thoughtful, deliberative, very much sensitive to the real needs of the people who are appearing before the court. he's never forgotten that the law is about serving the public. and so i think he is uniquely qualified. perhaps not uniquely but especially well qualified for this position because he's been a trial-level judge and an appellate judge and now is being considered for a federal trial level court, where i think he will be an outstanding judge. i don't think he will be. i know he will be. the other thing that i think is

so important, and it happened just a few years ago, i was in our supreme judicial courtroom watching a ceremony where young lawyers were being admitted to the bar. it is a ceremony that happens every year. and of course to the judges it's fairly routine. to the young lawyers, it's the biggest deal in their lives thus far. it happened that the day i was there to move the admission of a young friend of mine, justice levy was presiding. and it was an opportunity for me to watch him interact with the members of the bar and the public -- of course a lot of members of the public were in the courtroom that day -- and his whole demeanor was so thoughtful, dignified and yet warm and not intimidating. having practiced law myself, my least favorite judges were those who tried to intimidate members of the court. i remember vividly at one point

being in a trial and making an argument to a judge and it wasn't going very far, and i said, judge, i really feel like i'm batting my head against a brick wall here. and after a slight pause, the judge said, mr. king, i know of no one in maine better equipped for that venture. you know, i wasn't all that thrilled by that response, although he was probably right. justice levy has a wonderful demeanor. he has that wonderful combination of high intelligence and yet at the same time a warm and thoughtful demeanor that's not intimidating but allows the litigants, the lawyers and the witnesses to get their stories out, to get their, to get the record complete so that he or the jury can make the best decision. i think he's a judge's judge. he is a judge's judge.

and in fact, in seeking comments about his appointment to this position, i think one of the most telling comments came from our chief justice of our supreme court where he has been now for some ten years, and her comment was, "you tell angus i'm going to get him for this," which meant she doesn't want to lose him. and i think that's pretty high praise that he has been such a valuable member of that court that his colleagues thought that highly of him. jon levy is, as i say, a judge's judge, a really, a model of what we should want on our federal bench. i'm delighted that he went through the cloture process yesterday, thanks in part to my senior colleague. he received more than 60 votes, and we had -- in other words, a significant amount of bipartisan support.

he was reported out of the judiciary committee on a bipartisan, strong bipartisan basis. and i'm just delighted to be able to rise today and urge my colleagues to support this really extraordinary gentleman who will grace the federal bench in maine and will, i believe, make us all proud for having supported such an outstanding jurist who has yet many years of service to his state and his country. and i believe that this is a great appointment by the president and look forward to his performance on the bench. and with that, mr. president, i would yield the floor to my esteemed senior colleague. ms. collins: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from maine. ms. collins: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, i'm very pleased to join my colleague from maine, senator king, in supporting the

nomination of justice jon levy to the united states district court for the state of maine. as senator king has pointed out, justice levy has had a long career as an attorney and as a judge in our great state. his experience makes him well qualified for maine's federal district court. he was appointed to the bench by my colleague, senator king, when he was governor, and justice levy currently serves as an associate justice on the maine supreme judicial court, a position that he has held for more than a decade. justice levy's legal skills have been evident for many years. after his graduation from law school where he was an editor of the law review, he clerked in

the southern district of west virginia. later he was appointed to the position of special monitor in the u.s. district court for southern texas. in 1982, jon and his wife had the good sense to relocate to maine, and jon entered private practice in new york. although his practice spanned a range of civil and criminal matters, he quickly distinguished himself in the area of family law. jon literally he wrote the book on family law. he's the author of maine family law, a key resource on this issue for maine's attorneys. as both an attorney and a judge, jon has remained very active with the local bar association

and several state committees working to improve the administration of justice in maine. he has served as president of the york county bar association and received its outstanding member award in 2006. he was also honored with the maine bar association's family law achievement award in 2001. mr. president, justice levy has been an advocate for civil justice in maine. he has championed initiatives to approve pro bono representation for maine's low-income elderly and affordable representation for other mainers in need of legal assistance. in the same vein, he helped to launch the katotin council recognition program, an annual statewide program that honors maine's attorneys who provide

more than 50 hours of pro bono service per year. he's also advocated for these efforts nationally and recently joined the american bar association's standing committee on legal aid and indigent defendants. he's worked with maine's juvenile drug treatment court in maine's york county, which has seen numerous successes over the years. mr. president, the combination of experiences that justice levy brings to the court, his experience as a private attorney i think is so important, his experience as a state judge is critical, his experience in family law in pro bono representation makes him a well-rounded individual to serve on our courts. many times our judges are chosen

just from the ranks of either academia or because they have been previously served on the bench. he brings both private sector and judicial experience to this important post, and i believe that he will serve the people of maine and the nation with distinction, intelligence and integrity. so i urge my colleagues to support this nomination when we vote later today. again, i want to commend my colleague from maine for having the good sense to start justice levy on this path which i believe later today will lead to his confirmation as a federal judge. thank you, madam president. madam president, seeing no one

seeking recognition, i would suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

quorum call: ms. collins: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from maine. ms. collins: madam president, i ask unanimous consent that proceedings under the call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. collins: thank you, madam president. madam president, i want to comment on the vote that we took earlier today on whether or not to proceed to a bill that would increase the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour.