network and are the president and congressional leaders willing to find a solution to defense sequestration in order to fulfill the mission if more resources are required and more resources will be required, mr. president. addressing these questions is important to understand the specific goals and aims of the president's strategy which are yet to be fleshed out. americans and congress deserve this clarity. congress has the responsi -- responsibility to provide the resources the u.s. military needs for its missions. we do this through appropriations, through the power of the purse and the national defense authorization act, which has garnered bipartisan support for the past 52 years. under the capable leadership of chairman levin and ranking member inhofe, the armed services committee approved a bill more than three months ago. so has the full house house.

it's passed its authorization act. i hope that even at this late date, majority leader reid will allow our country's major defense policy bill to come to the senate floor for consideration soon. an annual blueprint of the military priorities is vital to making sure that our troops have what they need to protect our national security interests at home and abroad. this year's bill, for example, includes a provision to stave off drastic cuts to the u.s. army, which would put troop strength at levels not seen before world war ii. well-trained units like the 155th heavy brigade combat team in my home state of mississippi should not be jeopardized by shortsighted and ill-considered proposals by the obama administration. instead, under the committee bill, an independent commission would have the opportunity to make recommendations on force structure and size before the

national guard personnel could be cut or the apache attack helicopters could be transferr transferred. another provision of the bill would allow for the u.s. navy and marine corps to modernize their amphibious warships. these incredibly versatile ships signal to the world that america's fighting forces can respond to threat rapidl rapid s rapidly. currently our ships, many of them, are near the end of their service lives. the defense authorization bill, as passed on a bipartisan basis by the committee, would authorize the construction of a 12th l.p.d.17 warship, ensuring that the men and women who defend us in perilous quarters of the globe have world-class hardware for their missions. i believe it would be a fitting tribute to senator levin, who is

retiring at the end of this year after decades of distinguished service, for the senate to take up this bill in regular order and pass it as a tribute to our retiring chair. in conclusion, mr. president, we have work to do. the senate armed services committee and the house of representatives have passed the defense authorization bill. it's time for the senate to follow suit. america has the most formidable fighting force in the world and this presence must remain resilient as dangerous groups like isis put our interests at risk. the rapid rise of these barbaric terrorists is a wake-up call for u.s. leadership. now that the president has declared his intention to degrade and destroy isis militants, we must ensure that the mission is fulfilled. thank you, mr. president.

and i hope the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

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a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from rhode island. mr. whitehouse: i assume we're in a quorum call and may i ask

that the pending quorum call be lifted. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. whitehouse: let me begin with a unanimous consent request for a committee to meet during today's session of the senate. this request has hast the approval of the majority and minority leaders. i ask unanimous consent that the request be agreed to and that this request be printed in the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. whitehouse: thank you, mr. president. i rise today for the 78th time in my time to wake up series to urge my republican colleagues that it is long past time, long past time to wake up to the growing threat of global climate change. for those who still deny the science and believe it or not, that's where some of our colleagues still are, i remind them that virtually every credible scientific authority

and no, the ones funded by the big carbon polluters don't count -- virtually every credible scientific authority has moved beyond the question of whether our climate is changing or whether carbon pollution drives these changes, to now how it's happening, where it's happening. climate change is no longer a forecast. it's happening before our eyes all around us. the latest reports from the intergovernmental panel on climate change made up of the world's top climate scientists called the fact that our earth is warming -- quote -- "un equivocal." just last week, the secretary-general of the world meteorological organization said

and i'll quote -- "we know without any doubt" -- i'll repeat that -- "without any doubt the our climate is changing and our weather is becoming more extreme due to human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels." "without any doubt." well, it's actually evident to our own eyes now. from observations, measurements -- not projections or predictions -- of increases in global average air and ocean temperatures. widespread melting of snow and ice. and rising global average sea level, a phenomenon that means a lot to my coastal state of rhode island and to the presiding officer's coastal state of maine. back home, our constituents, our neighbors get it. on our coasts, they brace

against the unrelenting rise of the seas and watch mist flyingifying changes in fisheries they'd been familiar with for generations. on the plains, they toil to raise crops under unprecedented drought. in the mountains, they watch as ancient acres of forests are killed by the spread of invasive pests. yet here in washington we do nothing. in rhode island, the waters of narragansett bay are getting warmer. three to four degrees fahrenheit warmer in the witness just since the 1960's. long-term data from the tide gauges in newport, rhode island, just off naval station newport, show an increase in average sea level of nearly 10

inches since 1930 and accelerate ing. sea level rise is contributing to erosion and brings storm surges and waves further inland. while washington fiddles, rhode islanders act. early this month more than 200 rhode islanders came together in providence for my annual rhode island energy and environment day. the event brings together rhode islanders in renewable energy and sustainable development businesses, in community development nonprofits, brings together state and local officials, advocates, and academics, to share ideas with each other and with national leaders and federal agencies on promoting green energy, improving resiliency and

combating climate change. the innovation taking place in my ocean state was on full display this year. rhode islanders are leading the effort to improve our environment and develop clean technology and energy and prepare for the changes that carbon pollution has looming over us. the director of sustainability for the city of providence was there to discuss the recently released sustainable plan for making our capital cleaner around greern. it include these actions benefit public health and the environment and they create economic opportunity. these aren't job killers. these are job builders. you can't send efficiency upgrades or solar panel

installation jobs overseas. those are rhode island jobs, american jobs. grover fugate is executive director of rhode island's coastal resources management council. he was there to discuss the collaboration they have with the rhode island realtors association to create a rhode island coastal property guide. we need a rhode island coastal property guide because climate change is loading the dice for more frequent and more severe storms and hurricanes that put businesses and homeowners along the shore at risk, from flooding, erosion and wind damage. stormy sandy  was a harsh warning. this property guide helps residents and business owners understand the risks and the costs that they now face both today and in the future because

of the carbon pollution that we're doing nothing about. extreme precipitation, rain bursts, heavy rains, or snows have increased 74% in the northeast between 1958 and 2010. rhode islanders have always cared a lot about our narragansett bay. we love our baiment w bay. we want to protect it. but now these heavy rains, these sudden ranger rains, these rain, what they do is they provide nutrient rich runoff that might otherwise be captured or filtered straight into the bay where it can close beaches and harm the bay's marine life. climate change, the carbon pollution, means we will have to work harder in rhode island and

invest more dollars in storm water and waste water infrastructure, and it's not cheap. our rhode island narragansett bay commission, our waste water utility, is overhauling its sewer and storm water collection to address that overflow during big storms. when big storms hit now, the underground storage tunnel that was completed in 2008 stores up the sewer and storm water until the extra water can be processed, until the capacity in the treatment plant is there to pouch it out and -- to pouch it out and ross it. as a result of the first phase of the combined soothe overflow project, the commission estimates that through 2012, 4.6 billion gallons of mixed storm and waste water that would have been dumped directly into

narragansett bay untreated were instead processed at the fields point wastewater treatment facility. one of our small towns, the town of tiverton, rhode island, has recently received funding through the usda to help pay for a upgrades to the town's water system making thousands of reserve dents now on inefficient systems to a town sewer. will he roy ken driks, the chair of the waste water district, told our group that these improvements will protect the seconnet river and mt. hope bay from mounting levels of pollution. we had julia gold there. she is the climate change program manager at the rhode island department of health. julia explained haw the department of health has teamed up with the division of elderly affairs to focus on the effects of climate change on the elderly, collaborated with the departments of environmental

management and transportation to pilot a lyme disease presentation program for outdoor workers, those ticks spread more widely in warmer weather; and partnered with the brown school of public health to examine correlations between rising temperatures and rising hospital admissions. you may have seen a segment in the documentary series "years of living dangerously" on the deaths in los angeles from heat-related conditions worsened by climate change. this work with brown university is similar and is showing similar results. these were just a few of many stories told in rhode island at energy and environment leaders dame not only don't rhode islanders connect with one another there but we also have the chance to share our work with national leaders and to hear their perspective on the

one hand regional and national trends. the first of three keynote addresses came from renowned marine scientists and "national geographic" explorer in residence sylvia earl. she is truly a remarkable woman and a legend in oceanography circle. her passion for our living oceans is just about as deep as those oceans. she reminded us that the oceans are the cornerstone of our human life support system. indeed, the oceans are the life support system for all creatures on our planet, not just the aquatic ones. and that our oceans bear witness to the unprecedented changes that carbon pollution is causing. her bad news was that these threats are grave.

her good news was that never before have we -- we humans -- been as well-equipped about knowledge about our earth and our climate. the oceans indeed are sick. but we have the power simply by changing our behavior to help them heal. in a happy coincidence, in sylvia's latest program, it was playing the night before at the newport festival. sill visa witsylvia went there k about a film about the oceans 50 years from now. it will be based on what we do mao. our possibilities are tear riffic. here is another thing that she said. "the good news, sounds like bad news, but the good news is that

we know that it's happening. we're the only creatures on earth with the capacity to dive back into time, put ourselves into perspective and plan a future based on evidence, based on knowledge." end quote. so, what are we doing now? well, congress snoozes in the snug embrace of the big polluting interests, and president obama has stepped into the vacuum. his chief lieutenant in this effort is e.p.a. administrator jena mccarthy, and she delivered our second keynote. "climate change" she told our group, "is perhaps the most difficult, complex, and necessary issue for us to face."

she reminded us that e.p.a. is, at its heart, a public health agency. so when it comes to the carbon pollution that increases smog and rates of asthma or increases the storms and floods that batter our communities, she says this: "e.p.a.'s job is to protect those who are most vulnerable from this pollution. so it is our job to take action on climate." period, full stop. end of quote. administrator mccarthy has led an extraordinary effort to put e.p.a.'s proposed rule for the first time limiting carbon pollution from our country's largest source -- our power plants. the rule is re revolutionary in many ways, particular any its adaptability, allowing states and regions to reach their own goals their own way.

it's the product of an intensely collaborative process and an enormous amount of gived and take. the rollout has been viewed by those -- well, those outside fossil fuel boardrooms as a real achievement, and i commend administrator mccarthy on moving that rule forward with so much energy. i wish her and that rule godspeed. the road ahead offers many obstacles, as our third and final keynote speaker reminded us. jeff goodell, as reported on the energy industry and our changing climate for "rolling stone" magazine where he is a contributing editor. his many books have explored the inner workings of the fossil fuel industry and the most far-reaching proposals for avoiding catastrophic global warming, among other top iefnt .

jeff has firsthand knowledge of the complex appara apparatus ofy denial supported by the big polluters. the fossil fuel producers are bankrolling entire political campaigns and phony front organizations peddling scientific misinformation. as jeff pointed out, these misinformation efforts even involve not just the same strategies but the very same scientists who were involved working for the tobacco indust industry. the scientists for hire who worked for the tobacco industry in its decades' long venture to hide the dangers of tobacco from regulators and the public. they're still at it, but now

it's denying climate change be, not denying that tobacco is harmful. not only do these polluter stall tactics stand in the way of responsible action to cure climate change, jeff reported they also hold back progress in our energy sector and in our economy, particularly in states and regions that have long relied on fossil fuel jobs. and he called on us -- he called on his home country to finally take steps to move these communities into the 21st century economy. mr. president, the environmental and energy challenges facing our nation can seem daunting, but when we join together to share ideas and experiences, as we do each year at rhode island energy and environment leaders day, it's clear: there is a path

forward. rhode islanders understand this and they see the challenge, and we're up to it. we're all up to it as americans. one thing rhode islanders will be doing is later this month, hundreds of us will board buses and head down to new york city for what will be known as the people's climate march, september 21, new york city. organizers expect as many as a million people will take part in the historic citizen action to call attention to the global crisis of climate change. marchers from rhode island, from california, from all across our country, from different organizations, from different industries, a patchwork of america will be there to demand responsible leadership in the

fight against carbon pollution. i, mr. president, will be among them. i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

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the presiding officer: the senator from california. mrs. boxer: i ask that the quorum call be dispensed with, please. the presiding officer: without objection. mrs. boxer: mr. president, what is the order? the presiding officer: the senate is in a period of morning business. mrs. boxer: until what time? the presiding officer: 5:30 p.m. mrs. boxer: thank you. mr. president, in just a few minutes, we're going to have a procedural vote on the paycheck

fairness act. and if h we really do believe tt men and women are equal and should be paid equally, this should be an overwhelming vote. the women held a press conference -- the senate women -- after the last vote. the republicans gave us the first procedural vote so we were able to get to this point. but now we have to have 60 votes in order to move forward with an actual vote on the paycheck fairness act. and we all know what this vote is about. it's very simple. it's about women in america having the same opportunity for success as their male counterparts. no one should be paid less just for being a woman. and this issue was brought to us front and center by lilly ledbetter, who was a manager at a goodyear tire plant in the south and discovered just by

happenstance, that although there were five managers doing the same thing, four men and her, she was getting considerably less money. and to make a long story short, the courts were stacked against her. at the end of the day, lilly ledbetter was told by the supreme court that she was too late. she didn't know about this. it took her a long time to know about it; therefore, she had no case. and we fix that problem and we said no more. we're not going to put a statute of limitations because you may never find out about this unfair situation for many years and you shouldn't be disqualified from justice. but now we have more problems. we have testimony of people being harassed because they simply want to know where they're getting paid fairly. so i'm so grateful to our colleague, senator mikulski from maryland, for introducing the paycheck fairness act which will

help close the wage gap. now, you may say, really, is there a wage gap? well, yes, there is, and we know what it is. women get paid 77 cents for every dollar made by a man for the same work. now, that's not every woman, but when you average it all up, that's what you get. now, i want to say what this means in terms of a yearly -- yearly pay, and it's $11,000. and i think we ought to really look at this. $11,000 less a year. what could you buy your family for $11,000? well, we've looked it up. you could get a year of groceries. in many places, you could get a year of rent. in many places, ubd get a year of day care or a used -- you could get a year of day artificially or day care oryou y for community college.

so what does this mean? it means because the woman is not getting paid fairly, her family suffers. her family suffers. whether in the quality of their housing or the quality of the food or the quality of the day care, the quality of their car and certainly the ability of that woman to get an education and move up the scale. so looking at it from a year -- or a yearly standpoint i think is important. but i asked my staff, let's look at it over a lifetime. and what is the loss to this woman and her family in a lifetime? mr. president, $443,000, almost half a million dollars in a woman's lifetime if she gets 77 cents instead of the full dollar. now, what could you do with that? well, you could pay off one or

two mortgages for that. you could send three kids to the university of california. you could buy 8,000 tanks of gas. you get the point. and what we don't say here is you'd have more security. and economic security today is so critical as, thanks to science, we are living longer and we know it gets more expensive. so if i were to tell one of my republican friends on the other side that somebody came up to a woman, knocked her on the head and took a half a million dollars and stole it, they'd be horrified and they would remedy it, they would bring in the law. well, i'm asking them to simply vote for the paycheck fairness act. just vote for it. and make sure that women in this country earn what they deserve to earn. the wage gap not only hurts our

families, it hurts our economy. if you add it all up, it's $200 billion a year in income that would be spent at the grocery, that would be spent at the gas station, that would be spent on vacation, that would be spent on local restaurants or in better housing. so, you know, the history of our nation we've had a lot of fights before over the issue of discrimination, and we know that you can't discriminate on pay because of race, disability or age. and what we're saying is you shouldn't be able to discriminate based on your gender. it's wrong. and i would just say if it was reversed i'd be here standing here fighting for the men. it's not right. people have to be paid based on the work they do. and if the work they do is similar to the man or the same

as in the case of lilly ledbetter, they should be paid the same. and so what the mikulski legislation does, it prohibits employers from retaliating against an employee who shares information with their coworkers. right now, if you're around the cooler of your corporation and somebody says, oh, my god, i can't afford to, you know, get a babysitter for my child, i need a raise and somebody says, well, what do you make? and they say i make x. believe me, you could be fired for asking those questions. it's wrong. and we've seen it happen. and we want to make sure that there is a disparity in pay, that it's warranted. sure, if a woman is doing less than a man in a different job, of course not. we're saying if you're doing the

same work, you got to get paid the same. we have hundreds of personal stories from all over this great nation from people who have face ed pay discrimination. now, i have many of these stories from california, one of them, a woman from my state had an identical advanced degree as her husband. and she landed the exact job as her husband, but they were at different work sites. her husband was offered $5,000 more in starting salary for the same job, with the exact same resume. same job, the woman gets paid $5,000 less. then there's a health care worker in long island. she discovered she had been earning $10 an hour less than her male colleagues with the exact experience. when she brought this up to her superiors, which you'd expect her to do -- you got to fight for yourself, don't we tell people that? stand up, have respect.

but as the right questions. so she brought it up to her superiors. she was reprimanded. she was reprimanded and told not to discuss any type of wage gap. then there's a female employee from a major corporation in florida. she was told when she was hired that if you disclose your salary to other workers, that was grounds for dismissile. -- dismissal. here is somebody who is well trained, great, and talking to your friend in the workplace, mention your salary, she was told in advance, grounds for dismissal. so this bill is a major step in the right direction. and i just call on my republican friends, we don't need that many of you, five. that's it, right, to go to get to 60 if everyone is here. we need a handful. stand with women. stand with families.

stand with their children. stand for equality. stand for justice. stand for what's right. don't play games with this. don't take the side of a boss who is exerting all kinds of pressure on a woman to tamp down her salary. and i think clearly if we do this together tonight -- and i always remain hopeful if we do this together tonight, what we're going to see is an america that is fairer, an america that is just when it comes to our women. and i'm really glad one of my colleagues is here to discuss this from her perspective, but i do want to say my kids would say to me, mom, this is a no-brainer. and this is really not complicated. equal pay for equal work. we stand for that as democrats and we're going to keep on fighting for it. and tonight is that moment in

time when we will see whether our republican friends stand with us to give a fair shot to the women in this country, a fair shot, or they will block us as they have done before. and i hope maybe they'll see the light tonight. ayotte a that -- i don't think anyone i said will influence them, but i hope that it might because i do think it's in their interest as well as the interest of the women in this nation to stand united with the democrats on this. equal pay for equal work, fairness and justice to the women of this nation. they deserve it. and with that i yield the floor. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from minnesota. ms. klobuchar: mr. president, i rise today to speak about the importance of closing the pay gap for women, and i thank my colleague from california, senator boxer, who has been working on this issue on the front line for so long, was a leader on the lily bed led -- lilly ledbetter act and is a

leader again. i'm is a cosponsor of this bill and i urge my colleagues to join me in support of the paycheck fairness act. people deserve a fair shot at the american dream. people deserve a working wage. that's why we need to raise the minimum wage and equal work should get equal pay. that's why we need to pass the paycheck fairness act. i'd like to thank the dean of the senate women, senator barbara mikulski for leading this effort for equal pay for equal work from the passage of the lilly ledbetter fair pay act to keeping the focus on the need to pass the paycheck fairness act. in 2009, we passed the lilly ledbetter fair pay act to make sure workers who pace pay discrimination based have access to the courts. there doing so we restored the original intent of the civil rights act and the equal equal

pay act. now it's time to prevent it from happening in the first place. women have made strides in this economy mr. president. women are getting advanced degrees, starting new businesses, leading major corporations. the fortune 500 now has 24 women c.e.o.'s. 24 out of 500, still a lot of work to do but that is so much better than where we were decades ago. and we now have a record 20 women in the united states senate. yet despite the progress that we've made and all the gaps we've closed, women still make less money than men do. the pay gap has real consequences for american families and our entire economy. two-thirds of today's families rely on the mother's income entirely or in part, and in more than one-third of families, the mother is the main breadwinner. but women only earn more than men in exactly seven of the 534

occupations listed by the bureau of labor statistics. that's only seven occupations and i know there's disputes of what the pay disparity is and if it's just based on other factors, but the truth is when you look at that list of the occupations, in only seven do women make more than men. as senate chair of the joint economic committee i released a report showing how this pay affects women's financial security. a lot of time people are focused on the here and now, what that means, wages, differential, what that means in the workplace. this report shows that lower wages impact women all throughout their working lives and these lower lifetime earnings translate into less security in retirement. so you have the fact that women live longer yet they have less money to begin with. women live longer than men on average and are more likely to spend part of their retirement living alone because they live longer. so women need to actually have more money for their years in

retirement. according to our report, the average annual income -- this is average annual income for women age 65 and older -- is about $11,000 less than it is for men. that is $11,000 less each year to buy groceries, to pay heating bills, to be able to see grandchildren. lower lifetime earnings results in lower retirement benefits. retirement security is often described as a three legged stool, social security, pension benefits and personal savings. a woman's social security check is 78% of a man's check on average. those are the facts. or, again, -- there, again, it's about 80% of a man. the median income from company or union pensions for women is 53% lower than for men. finally, lower earnings also affect the ability of women to contribute to their own retirement plans. women have less income to put

aside and are less able to save money for their own retirement. they have smaller paychecks, they have smaller social security checks, smaller pension checks and less savings in their retirement plans. they live longer and they worry all the time that they're going to outlive their savings. all of this contributes to less retirement security. the pay gap puts an especially large burden on anymore the sandwich generation who are often juggling jobs, caring for their kids and looking out for their aging parents at the same time. when two-thirds of the caregivers for aging parents are women, we need to make sure that they have financial security. so make no mistake. the pay gap impacts women. but my point today is that it impacts women through the entire arc of their lives and if anything, it impacts older women who for now decades have been making less money and in even greater way than it impacts

them when they're younger. about 70% of our economy is consumer based and if we don't have fair pay, don't have enough pay for middle-income families, they're not going to buy things. that is yet another argument for not only having adequate minimum wages but for addressing this pay gap. this legislation builds on the promises of the equal pay act and the lilly ledbetter fair pay act and gives women tools and protections to guard against pay discrimination. i want to get this done but i also, mr. president, want to work on the issue of long-term savings and how we can make it easier for women and men to save their money when they're working a job so that they can help themselves as we move forward as they're living longer which is a great thing, but we know it's going to get harder and harder. it was the late senator paul wellstone of minnesota who famously said "we all do better

when we all do better." i still believe that's true. and so do my colleagues who have joined me today. we need to be focused on how we can help more women share in the economic dream because if we do, we will all be doing better. i urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the paycheck fairness act. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor and i note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from california. mrs. boxer: i ask that the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. the presiding officer: morning business is closed. the cleric clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. the clerk: cloture motion:

we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereby move to bring to a close debate on s. 2199, a bill to amend the fair labor standards act of 1948 and so forth and for other purposes signed by 17 senators. the presiding officer: by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum has been waived. the question is, is it the sense of the senate that debate on s. 2199, a bill to amend the fair labor standards act of 1938 to provide more effective remedies to victims of discrimination in the payment of wages on the basis of sex and for other purposes shall be brought to a" -- close quote close? the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

three-fifths of the senate not having voted in the affirmative, the motion is not agreed to. mr. reid: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the next two roll call votes be ten minutes in duration. the presiding officer: without objection. under the previous order, the senate will proceed to executive

session the clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. the clerk: cloture motion. we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate hereby move to bring to a close the debate on the nomination of jeffrey martin baran of virginia to be a member of the nuclear regulatory commission signed by 17 senators. mrs. boxer: mr. president? parliamentary inquiry. do i have a minute to speak in favor of this nominee? the presiding officer: two minutes equally divided. mrs. boxer: okay. i don't know if anyone is on the other side, but if we can have order. the presiding officer: the senate will come to order. mrs. boxer: thank you, colleagues. i just want to talk about these two nominees that are coming back to back, and i want to thank senator vitter for allowing us to move these forward and i want to thank the majority leader for bringing them up. we are down on the membership of the nuclear regulatory

commission. we need to fill these positions. one of the nominees is stephen burns -- i'm sorry, jeffrey martin baran is the one -- the presiding officer: the senate will be in order. please take your conversation out of the well of the senate. the senator from california. mrs. boxer: thank you. i'll be quick. mr. baran has had more than ten years of experience, including his current role as staff director of energy and commerce on the house energy and commerce committee, where he actually oversaw the n.r.c. and he staffed 13 hearings overseeing the n.r.c. and the other nominee, mr. burns, has served in many roles, most recently as general counsel to the n.r.c. from 2009 to 2012. a wide range of experience in policy and enforcement issues. as long as i have been around, i have not seen two more qualified nominees, and i urge my colleagues to vote aye on cloture and then when we vote tomorrow yes on the nominations themselves. the presiding officer: is there

further debate? by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. the question is, is it the sense of the senate that debate on the nomination of jeffrey martin baran of virginia to be a member of the nuclear regulatory commission shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote: .

the presiding officer: have all senators in the chamber voted? if any senator wish to change his or her volt? -- vote? if not, on this vote, the ayes

are 52, the nays are 39, and the motion is agreed to. the presiding officer: the clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. the clerk: cloture motion. we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, hereby move to bring tie close the debate on the nomination of stephen g. burns of maryland to be a member of the nuclear regulatory commission. signed by 17 senators. the presiding officer: there will be two minutes of debate equally divided. mrs. boxer: madam president, i urge -- the presiding officer: the senator from california. mrs. boxer: i urge an eye vote. i yield back all time. the presiding officer: all time is yielded back. by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. question is: is it the sense of the senate that debate on the nomination of stephen g. burns of maryland to be a member of the nuclear regulatory commission, shall be brought to

a close? the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote:

vote:

the presiding officer: have all senators voted? does any senator wish to change his or her vote? if not, on this vote the yeas are 54, the nays are 37, and the motion is agreed to. the clerk will report the nomination. the clerk: stephen g. burns of maryland to be member of the nuclear regulatory commission.

ms. mikulski: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. ms. mikulski: madam president, parliamentary question, has the senate returned to legislative discussion? the presiding officer: we are in executive session postcloture on the burns nomination. ms. mikulski: well, thank -- madam president, i ask unanimous consent that i could speak as if in morning business. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. mikulski: thank you very much, madam president. well, there's the senate. there they go again. whenever we women fight for fair pay, we're either sidelined, redlined, or pushed aside. we moving for paycheck fairness feel the way women feel every single day in the workplace when they're trying to get equal pay for equal work, they're either notland to or there's some kind of reason to make sure the discussion never comes up.

once again, because of eight votes separating we could not debate paycheck fairness. paycheck fairness is a bill that would finish the job that we started with lilly ledbetter. madam president, this is not right. when women are out there trying to earn equal pay for equal work , they should have the opportunity to do so. and now they feel stymied. in lilly ledbetter, we took the first step to right this wrong, but it was not the only step. paycheck fairness closes the innumerable loopholes that prevent women from being able to get equal pay for equal work. and all we wanted to do was bring the bill up to debate it, to amend it, and then vote on

final passage. we could not get cloture on the filibuster. those are wonky parliamentary words that said we could have unlimited debate. well, madam president, if we had gotten cloture under our rules, there would have been 30 hours of debate. i think that's enough time. 30 hours of debate. there could have been amendments, but guess what, they had to be germane, that is , pertinent to the bill, or they had to be relevant or pertinent to the bill. what's wrong with that? that's an gag rule. that's not muzzling everybody. no, it wasn't good enough. and you know why we didn't get cloture. they don't want to bring this up for a final vote or amendments. they're hiding behind parliamentary procedure. you know, like our paycheck fairness bill was so simple and

so straightforward, you know what it would have done, it would have prevented retaliation against workers for sharing information about their wages. right now, the most secret thing in our country is not only our national security, but what you make. you can't tell the person next to you to discuss wages. so if a woman was trying to figure out what the guy next to her was making and he wanted to tell her -- you know, men of quality also support we women as we seek equality. if he wanted to tell her, both could have been fired. her for asking, and him for telling. we wanted to close that loophole. the other thing the bill would do, it would prevent employers from being able to use almost any reason to justify paying a woman less. for years, employers have

exploited loopholes in the equal pay act, inventing any number of reasons why a woman should be paid less. it would also prevent women from being limited to just back pay when they are discriminated against. those were the three major issues. now, in the united states of america when we said all men and women were created equal, gout to be able to be equal. and one of the most important places that you are equal is in the workplace. so if you're doing the same job, you want to get the same pay. that's -- you ought to get the same pay. that's the american way. but once again, we were stymied. once again, they tried to push us back. well, i want to say this today on behalf of myself, the majority of the women in the

senate, and many of the great guys in the senate. they want to make sure that today's vote doesn't say we're stopping this fight. once again, we're going to reach out to the grassroots, particularly to the women of america, to join in the fight to change the federal lawbooks so women can get change in the family checkbooks. so they can try to stop us on the floor, but they cannot stop our movement. so once again, as i've said before, when we have had a setback, we're going to fight, we're going to fight on the senate floor, we're going to take this to the people out there in the country, we're going to fight it through the elections, we're going to fight it through educating the community, and i'm going to say for every single person in the united states of america, be

part of this, and a special message to the women. let's suit up. let's square our shoulders, let's put our lipstick on and fight for equal pay that won't be stopped. we're going to do it, we're going to fight today and we're going to fight tomorrow, and i am combat ready. madam president, i yield the floor. ms. mikulski: madam president, as i look about, i note that there's not a quorum, so i note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll.

quorum call:

quorum call:

the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: i ask that the quorucalof the quorum be termin. officer without objection. mr. reid: last thursday, announced that nevada would be the new home for its gigabattery. just a few days later nevada state legislature unanimously approved the incentive package to finalize a new economic boost for nevada. tesla's gigafactory will spur

economic development in nevada. it is expected to pump $100 billion into nevada's economy, create up to 22,000 jobs. this development is good news for nevada, but it didn't happen by accident. it's a direct result of public-private partnerships and smart federal and state policies. as a result of nevada being seen as the hub for renewable energy, innovative technologies, mr. president, this project, as big as it is, will be powered with solar and geothermal, nothing else. that's going to power this whole big project. i've worked here in the senate to promote legislation that encourages investment in clean energy and innovation at all levels. in 2007 we passed the energy independence and security act which created the advanced technology vehicles manufacturing program. under this program, the department awarded a $465 loan guarantee to tesla for the construction of a manufacturing facility in california.

so the question everyone has, mr. president, was that loan a successful investment in tesla? the facts speak for themselves. tesla repaid the loan in full nine years early. tesla is the company it is today because of this loan. the availability of lithium, which ultimately helped attract tesla to nevada, also has its roots in federal legislation. in 2009, with the economy in deep recession and thousands of nevadans losing their jobs, beesed the america recovery and investment act, better known as the stimulus. many good things for nevada and the country in that legislation. for example, millions for education, millions of dollars for renewable energy development, and tax breaks for the middle class. also in the stimulus was a program to incentivize advanced battery manufacturing. through this program, $28.4

million grant was awarded to rockwood lithium of nevada, which was to help expand and improve the only operating domestic lithium facility in the country. it's located in the historic mining town near -- near the mining town of goldfield, a place called silver peak. nevada only has 17 counties, mr. president. esmeralda county has less than 1,000 people in it. so this mine is really important for our country. we're the only lithium mining facility in america. because of the stimulus, tesla will then have access to lithium, which is mined in nevada, as i've indicated, in production of these batteries. by in order to truly promote innovation, we must as a congress create opportunities for consumers to invest in advanced technologies, and that -- and we haven't done that yet. we need more tax incentives for that. in 2008, we encouraged america

to invest in the growth of the electric car industry with tax credits for qualified electric vehicles. we expanded that in the america recovery investment act in 2509 to ensure that while americans recovered from the recession, they did so investing in new technology that provides lasting economic growth. investing in tesla shows what's whpossible. in the 21st century, this is how public-private partnerships should work. and, mr. president, it is so important to realize that through these grant, loans, and private-sector working with states of nevada, california, and the federal government, we were able to accomplish this. this is a blueprint for success. federal, state, and local leaders must clear obstacles, though, that stymie innovation

and incentivize technologies. we must make it easier for industry to invest in our communities not just in nevada but all across america. elan mus knchts the genius who has done spacex, paypal, tesla, and so many other things, mr. president, said just the other day, quote, "what the people of nevada created was a state where you can, where you are very agile, where you can do things very quickly and get things done. it is a real get-things-done state." mr. president, i want the record to be spread with my public appreciation on behalf of all nevadans to governor sandoval. his patience and diligence made this possible. i congratulate him because the work he did here was just terrific.

it appears, mr. president, that there is not a quorum present, so i ask the quorum call be initiated. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

quorum call:

the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent the call of the quorum be terminated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: i now ask unanimous consent that we proceed to a period of morning business. during that period of time that senators be allowed to speak for up to ten minutes each. the presiding officer: without objection.

mr. reid: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that following the vote on confirmation of executive calendar 1004, the senate consider calendars number 594, 546, 958, 960, 963, 784, 870. prior to each vote. upon use or yielding back of that time the senate vote with no intervening action or debate on the nominations in the order listed, any roll call votes be 10 minutes in length, if any nomination is confirmed, the motion to reconsider considered made and laid on the table, with no intervening action or debate, and no further statements be in order to the nomination, any statements related to the nomination be printed in the record and the president of the united states be immediately notified of the senate's action. the senate then resume legislative session. the presiding officer: is there

objection? without objection. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent that the help committee be discharged from further consideration of h.r. 5134 and the senate proceed to it at this time. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: h.r. 5134, an act to extend the national advisory committee on institutional quality and integrity and advisory committee on student financial assistance for one year. the presiding officer: without objection, the committee is discharged and the senate will proceed to the measure. mr. reid: i ask the bill be read a third time, passed, the motion be considered laid on the table and there be no intervening

action or debate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: i ask the senate proceed to s. res. 544. the clerk: s. res. 544, designating the year of 2014 as the international year of family farming. the presiding officer: without objection, the senate will proceed to the measure. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid on the table. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent that when the senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow morning, september 16. following the prayer and pledge, the morning business be deemed expired, the journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day. that following any leader remarks, the senate proceed to a period of morning business until 12:30 p.m. with senators permitted to speak for up to ten minutes each. that the senate recess from 12:30 until 2. 156789 to allow for the weekly caucus meetings. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: the next roll call votes will be at 2:15 on

confirmation of the baran and burns nominations as provided for under the previous order. if there is no further business to come before the senate, ski that it adjourn under the previous order. the presiding officer: the the presiding officer: the i didn't really expect to spend the day watching tv but i caught the end of the key west program and started checking what was coming and i couldn't turn it

off. it was really terrific. i hope it's okay that i recorded it. there is so much information and i like the opportunity to see parts of it again. i don't have a computer but at any rate it was a wonderful program. thank you for it. >> i watched c-span covers last night at the irs hearings. it was like a three-hour little editorial piece. i was stung by the moments that were picked out over all the hours, interviews and committee meetings and investigations and hearings. i was stunned to see that all the moments that were paid for when the democrats were attacking the republicans, accusing them of witch hunting and hatred and bigotry and stupidity un-american,

unpatriotic, whatever. that was three hours of c-span propping up the democrats and protecting barack obama. i have only been following c-span for a couple of years. i have always known there was a liberal bias. you'd have to be stupid not to see if it but last night was absolutely stunning. c-span obviously, obviously through that three-hour debacle that i listened to last night, obviously c-span supports the democrats, the irs, the union union and barack obama, no question about it. shame on you. >> i just want to say that programming especially on the weekends on c-span2 and c-span3 is everything somebody with some brains could hope so. with all of the junk on tv it's fantastic. thank you so much and i also enjoyed c-span in the morning. thank you again. you are doing a hell of a job. i hope you continue for years to come.

>> now the white house briefing from today including an update on u.s. action against isis. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations]

>> show we have somebody do another two-minute? 30 seconds? we will do it now. giving the now signal? there are a couple. if you guys could make it, it would be fun. [inaudible conversations] >> there you go. happy monday everybody.

hopefully the rest of the briefing will be characterized by better education than the tube map warning did. >> i had a couple of questions on the administration's response to the islamic scene starting with conversations were having with the help on the title x authority. first of all if you could read out any conversations the president is making with lawmakers and briefings for the hell either one of those and do you feel we are making progress in getting the hell to bring title x to see our? >> i think the best way to evaluate this and to review the public statements from members of congress as it relates to this title x authority. we have seen public statements from democrats and republicans in senior positions in the house in the senate. they indicate they support giving the administration the necessary authority to ramp up our assistance to the syrian opposition by training and equipping them.

.. but if there are members of congress said to have questions about the kind of authority this program what intel there would be a senior administration officials happy to discuss with them. i said, this is a priority. we believe this is a priority because what we have seen from our partners in the region is a willingness to join with us in this effort. and the president believes it is

important to strike while the iron is hot here and began to ramp up this program as soon as possible, particularly now that we have commitments from regional governments his cooperation is essential to this program. >> a sense of what the title x authority and the weaponry you are looking to give to the syrian rumple to the rebels, how the american personnel would be involved in the training mission. >> i do not have a lot of those details in front of me. the department of defense may be able to provide you additional information. the goal is to ensure that we have or that there is a fighting force on the ground in syria that can take the fight to isil in syria. the president has ruled that the use of american combat troops for that purpose. the alternative is to enhance the capacity and capability of syrian opposition fighters so that they can take the fight to isil in their own country, and we do have partners.

saudi arabia has a announce their willingness to host some of these preparations. and this administration wants to work closely with regional governments and other allies who have made commitments to us. and so we are eager to get this program up and running, and that is why we are hoping and police to seek bipartisan support for giving the administration this authority before the end of the week. >> moving on to the airport to the efforts of the coalition, there have been statements of support from countries in europe and in the middle east for a broader effort . details about what these countries are willing to commit. you know, u.s. officials talk vaguely, but we do not really have any specifics. do you have specifics, commitments from countries for action, not just a broad statement of support for what the u.s. is going to do ? >> there have been intensive diplomatic conversations between senior administration officials and our counterparts in the region but also across the

globe. the president was gratified, as he reported at the end of the nato summit, by the response that he got from the leaders of allied nations signaling their willingness and support for the effort to combat isil. secretary carry sense than has been traveling in the region and was just in paris over the weekend meeting with his counterparts from these regional partners and allies. discussing commitments that they are prepared to make to this effort. the thing that is important to understand is that we want to try and do this in an integrated way that is as efficient as possible so we don't just sort of want people to announce one of commitments without making sure that they are announcing those commitments in a coordinated way. we want to make sure that we have all the box is checked in terms of our needs. and part of what the united states is doing in terms of

this coalition is assessing what contributions are necessary, and then this will be our role for general allan to play, is to match up those needs with a capacity and willingness of partners to fill those needs, so this is not just a matter of getting people to issue a news release and make some kind of public commitment to do something. we want to make sure that their commitment matches what is actually needed and that we are not duplicating efforts and that the country that is in the best position to fill a specific need is the one that actually follows through and fills that need. so a lot of this is the conflicting, making sure we are not doubling up on specific requests of letting some requests go unfilled. we are trying to do this in a systematic, integrated way this will be the responsibility of general allen who is meeting with the president tomorrow to update him on this process. so there are no specific public commitments for me to make from here right now, but i do anticipate that

based upon the favorable response that the secretary of state and others are receiving from allies in discussions, we will at some point be able to announce important commitments from our allies and from regional governments who, as we have said before, in some ways have an even greater stake in the outcome that we do. >> last week and i'm wondering if now the secretary perry and others have had conversations over the last couple of days. will the u.s. be launching air strikes alone, or are there other countries who will be launching airstrikes alongside the u.s.? >> the cl will provide for funding from the federal government through december december 11th 2014. the current rate of 1,012,000,000,000,000 has agreed to under the budget. this will also give the chairman from kentucky the

time that i believe he needs to get an agreement with the senate to fund the government for the entire fiscal year 2015. chairman rogers for a couple of years, and an open communication with the senate and has agreed that there -- this signing will allow him the necessary avenues to get that done. >> chairman rogers, i wanted thank you for your and our work that you continue to -- i know that obviously you're ranking member being here tonight is important and that she is always welcome, are content and delivery is welcome. and as she spends the hours necessary to make sure she is up to snuff on the things that are occurring also.

so i want to thank you for being here once again this evening. additionally the committee will hear testimony on proposed amendments authorize the secretary of defense to train, equip, and that syrian opposition. this amendment speaks -- seeks to help protect the united states and our allies from a threat posed by terrorist groups like isil. it also strengthens congressional oversight regarding our plans in the region. we plan on having this panel and then a second panel for the amendment. both of you are here, i'm delighted. as always, anything you have in writing will be entered into the record. before we get started, i would like to defer to the ranking member of their rules committee to make a statement. >> i thank you, mr. chairman i do have a brief statement that i would like to get. when james madison declared that that congress' power over the purse in the

federalist papers is the most complete and effectual weapon he warned of this honorable stagnation which i fear we have achieved. not a single regular appropriations bill has been signed into law in the four years as the republicans have controlled the house. today we have brinksmanship, stopgap measures, massive omnibus bills, near defaults on national debt and government shut down. this continuing resolution may avert a crisis in short-term buy funding the government until september 11th of this year, but it is a clear demonstration as to how the majority failed to do the most basic job. they have been so preoccupied with their obsession with suing the president, investigating the nine existing scandal and benghazi and holding more than 50 votes to repeal the affordable care act that they have not done their routine work of congress, funding the government. not only will the majority

procrastinate on finding long-term solutions, a house majority will propose another closed rule. in fact, just last week the 75th closed rule, the most closed rules in a single congress, which makes this their diamond jubilee. and each time that they pass a closed rule they stifle debate and impede the work of this chamber. half of the country's representatives have been silenced by the house majority. even though democrats received over a million more votes than republicans in the tantillo collection for the house we have a republican majority. our nation's districts have been so gerrymandered that our representative democracy has been skewed beyond recognition. and while i am pleased with some provisions in the continuing resolution, i cannot stress enough the need for long-term appropriation. instead of investing in research and development, fixing our nation's crumbling infrastructure, building a high-speed rail,

the majority it lurches from stopgaps to stop gap. the strategy has caught up with us now commands you cannot possibly run the united states government in three months. the continuing resolution extends funding for operations of federal agencies, programs, and services until december 11th of this year . the ability of the state department and u.s. aid to the united states ran a national development to respond to the ongoing crisis in ukraine. congress and the united states must continue their support to the iranian. ripleys to welcome the president to rod chamber later this week. in addition the continuing resolution contains an amendment rig -- involving the islamic state or isil

command and disappointed to the process that led to this continuing resolution and last week we would not do it i am pleased that the house will have a debate on at least one portion of the president's plan. we need to debate if or how we armed rebel forces in syria as well as other tactics in the broader effort. i have deep reservations about the ever louder drumbeat toward war. wars in iraq and afghanistan claimed the lives of 6,640 of our men and women in uniform and wounded, grievously wounded 50,450. we have done our part to. the true cost of war is not just in dollars but in live stake in and destroyed, and i urge my colleagues to seriously consider this path before us. with his continuing resolution we can avoid short-term crisis, but if we continue to postpone

long-term appropriations, the nation's economy will be at risk. and i yield back. >> the gentleman yield backer time. want to thank the gentlewoman for her comments and will tell her that tonight we are going to do exactly the same things that she is really in favor of. first of all, we will talk about how we're going to fund the government, lead by doing that. secondly, we are going to have a separate panel are be will talk about any action that would be necessary to protect the united states of america through military means. so we will give her a chance to look at what i believe is the leading edge authority of the united states military and the united states congress and be prepared for -- so with that said, chairman, welcome. thank you for taking time to be with us. as always, that but needs to be pushed. >> well, thank you, ranking

member, members. we are pleased to present h.j. res 124 short-term continuing resolution to keep the government open and operating after the end of the fiscal year on september september 30. and i join the ranking member in at pouring cr. it has been my goal since taking this job to try to get the train back on the track and to individual bills the old-fashioned way. the reason we are here with the cr is because the senate refused to act on our bills. we passed 11 of the 12 bills through committee. we took them to the floor and passed seven on the floor has sent them to the senate for action. and they have never been brought up for discussion or a vote. this and it's just sits

there. that is the reason that we have to pass a cr. henhouse is doing its work. the senate refuses. and mr. chairman, i. [silence] a cr as much as anyone, but it is the only thing left open to us since the senate refused to act. this critical measure will prevent a government shut down. funds the government programs and services that the current fiscal year 2014 rate. this is in line with the budget agreement approved by the congress last year. my committee sought to draft a bill that is irresponsible and restrained, free of controversial riders and does not seek to change existing federal policies. the underlying bill does make a few very limited adjustments to prevent catastrophic or irreversible

damage to government programs or to address national or global crises that have arisen in recent months. these include provisions that, one, extends the authority of our critical department of defense activities that provide rewards for helping captured terrorists and continue current counter drug programs. to, it increases the funding at the department of veterans affairs to help with disability claims, processing, and investigations into weightless allegations. three, it boosts the funding for ebola research in response according to what the white house requested. fourth, it meets border security needs by providing funding, flexibility within customs and border protection and immigration and customs enforcement. five, it continues a surge in funding for state department programs to

counter regional aggression toward ukraine and other former soviet union countries. the bill also extends the authority of internet tax freedom act through the duration of the cr and the export import through june 30 of 2015. all of these provisions are funded within that total level of discretionary funding in the legislation. however, this temporary measure does not reflect the overall changing, budgetary needs of the nation the same way regular appropriations legislation does. that is why i am irritated that the senate will not help us do our job. clearly, it would be my preference to have an actual line by line appropriations bills before the end of the september 30 fiscal year, and we made great strides in the house toward completing

that vital work. in fact, we passed, as i said, 11 of the 12 bills through committee and seven of them through the house before the august work timeframe. unfortunately, the senate has yet to approve or even take out a single one of these bills. and as this deadline closes in we have to make necessary -- take necessary step -- necessary steps to ensure the federal government does not shut down and to buy as thee to complete appropriations legislation. that means that we have to pass this continuing resolution in short order so that we can send it to the senate for their swift approval as well. is my hope that in the future we will no longer need to resort to the lurching, short-term funding bills that punt on the tough budget decisions and heightened uncertainty in our government and our economy.

but for now, mr. chairman, we must pass this bill as soon as possible to avoid causing any additional harm to this nation. this is our best path forward, and i urge my colleagues to support it on the floor. .. >> to fight against isil. this is a critical issue and i believe in our national security interest were congress to act

quickly and provide the authority. therefore, i support a rule that allows this amendment to be considered by the full house. before yielding back, i would like to mention we have asked for an amendment on three small technical changes. one is related to the selection of recreational fees by the department of interior and the forest service. this is at their request. this change will ensure park passes can continue to be available. and another corrects a reference to the 14th appropriation. and the funds related to address the ebola outbreak would be modified to address technical issues raised by the administration. thank you for hearing us, mr. chairman. i want to thank the chairman and the members of this committee. this is the second hardest

working committee in the house. i admire your perseverance and hard work. >> thank you very much. that was very clear and i app c appreciate it. welcome and we are delighted you are here. your representation, i think you know, your district and your party and thinking is most appreciated and respected here. >> i thank you, mr. chairman. you always provide a warm welcome. it is a pleasure to be here with so many friends on the committee and thank you for inviting me to testify with my good friend. it was my sincere hope we would have completed action on all 12 appropriation bills before the end of the fiscal year, i understand the chairman's desire to quickly pass the cr and prevent another government

shutdown. this continuing resolution gives the house and senate appropriation committees three months to reach agreement on each discretionary bill and the important programs they fund. of grit importance is the funding levels in the labor health and human services and education bill. unfortunately, it has the dubious distinction of being the only one not even brought to the committee for markup and denying members on both sides to offer amendments and have a full open debate about the critical programs. today all of the democratic members of that subcommittee introduces our version of the bill we hope will help clarify our priorities for the process in the coming months. the cr contains much-needed

funding to address crisis like the spread of ebola and ensuring work on treatment and a vaccine. the majority of the proposal reverts to one of the worse mechanisms to reduce scoring with an across the board cut. this goes against one of the most fundamental responsibilities of the committee. it is misleading to the public and creates an illusion that program levels remain at last year's level when in fact they are lower. in addition, the majority didn't originally ininclude the administration's request for a narrow and specific title 10 authorization to work in partnership with our allies to deminish the dangers isis poses to the region and american interest. the president spoke directly with the american people last

week. members have had many briefings on the growing throat. while the political terrain is complicated and evolving there is no civil bullet. we all expect the president to use the power of the greatest military in the world and work with an international coalition on aggressive targeted strategy aimed at degrading and destroying isis. that is why i ask the rule considers the president's request and the rule and technical changes to the language on the ebola funding and recreational fees. mr. chairman, obviously no approperator wants a cr but none of us want to repeat a shutdown. if this cr is enacted, it is my hope week use the coming months -- we can -- the craft an

agreement on all 12 bills by december 11th. there is no reason to punt our responsibilities into the new year and new congress. thank you, mr. chairman. >> i have a quick question. you refer to the technical language to be included in the bill. is that included? are you saying it is not included? or are you saying you support it being included? >> it is included. >> that was my point. i didn't understand. >> i make a mistake? >> mr. chairman, there are three amendments that we are talking about for these items. and they are pending before the committee. >> we are talking about when i reference ebola. >> go back it the statement about the technical requirements. >> technical changes to the language so we can talk about

ebola, heap, and recreational fees. >> so you want those specifically enumerated in the rule to have time to discuss those? or technical changes? >> mr. chairman, there is one amendment. >> are you asking for help? >> i think we are both in agreement. >> as i said in my statement, there is one amendment we have offered that has three small technical changes >> are you in agreement with those? >> yes. >> i thought you were saying you were not. >> no, no, i support it totally in those three areas. >> thank you. that is what i want to clarify. mr. rogers has made statements to us he was trying to work with you on these things and you won. >> we worked very well together. in fact, if it were up to chairman rogers and ranking

member lowy we would produce a big omnibus today. >> thank you for that. mr. chairman, thank you for bringing this to us. i must tell you that you can hear harsh words about the work that all of you done in appropriations. i am proud of the work you have done. i am proud of the simplicity of moving forward, the honesty of trying to work with the senate, working together on a bipartisan bases and i think you have done a great job. as those harsh words come your way bat them off and i hope you will do that together and know i think you are doing a great job and delighted you are here tonight. >> ms. potts? >> thank you, mr. chairman and thank you colleagues for being here. i agree with the chairman that the better thing to be doing would be to be passing all our

appropriati appropriations bills individually and i hope ms. lowy would produce that way and not produce an omnibus to us but instead presenting each bill. i appreciate their hard work. it is always a pleasure to have them here and we appreciate your kind comments mr. chairman about our work. we hope you will go out and spread the word. thank you very much, mr. chairman. i yield back. ms. slaughter? >> i will let my statement speak for itself. i will not have questions. >> gentlemen, mr. bishop. gentlemen yields back time. questions on military action? >> that is the second panel. i will hold off.

>> do you have request for time? any other member that has request for time? i have to say something good about my chairman and ranking member when they are here because i am exceptionally proud of the way they together and conduct their committee. i do want to disagree with some friends on the other side about the cause. i will echo what chairman rogers said. no one on the appropriation committee wants to be here but when the other body doesn't pass a single bill we don't have a chance to do anything else and their dysfunction impacts what is going on on our side. they have 11-12 bills through the full committee. i applaud my ranking member for putting out what she wanted to do. i think we would have done better -- at some point from

talking to leadership it is like why with we wasting time on this when the senate isn't passing bills. the inability of the senate to get its work done is what impacts us adversely. luckily we have the chairman and ranking member here and with all due credit they are examples of being able to work together, which they did last year, and present an omnibus and i very much hope we are able to do that in november and december. it is a team that shown if the rest of congress let's them do their job they will get it done. but the failure to get more done in appropriation rest completely on the senate side. until they are willing to put the bills their own committee passes on the floor they will ruin their work and impact ours adversely because it is hard to

convince people to take a bill of the field, under an open rule, and cast dozens of votes when they know there is not a senate bill that is passed. you cannot get that much floor time to do. our friends in the other body need to do their work. it was aalluded we have not passed an appropriation bill but the reality is the senate is the one that fails each and every year. they fail to get it done. >> as an example of what you said about the senate, i am told there is one senator there serving his first term, almost through with his first term, and he hasn't voted a single amendment in his career.

almost six years in the senate. what does that tell you? >> i was going to yield back my time. >> i thank you. i want to understand what you say. you mentioned passing 11 bills but only 7 went to the floor. is that correct? >> that is correct. >> it doesn't count if it isn't talked about on the floor. >> you are proving my point. bringing them down there doesn't make sense when there is no senate companion. there is only so much time on the floor. when the senate shows it will not pass their own bill, forget ours, but their own bill it becomes difficult to work. that is where the dysfunction and process lie. >> i don't think we can make any point since we are noted as the congress that got nothing done that we didn't have time to take the other four bills to the

floor and pass them which was our job. >> reclaiming my time again, it takes two to tango and we don't have a dance party in the democratic senate and that is the reality. yield to my friend. >> i thank you. the democratic senate, would my colleague agree with me, that when we refer to the senate, that some of their very old rules allow the third measures that cannot pass and that is not only the fault of maybe not putting it on the floor by the democratic majority but always the number of things including incr incredibly the fact we have a hold up on the ambassador appointments and judicial

appointments. so i am talking about democrats and republicans when i talk about the senate in this form: >> reclaiming my time. i would agree with that point. their rules are in impediment to getting things gone. that is their choice. but i think their attitude is, too. we take a lot of bills to the floor with unlimited, open amendments knowing they are going to be difficult. the senate hasn't chosen to do that. and i don't think there has been an effort to keep them from the floor. i mean a minory effort and the minority invited them to bring them too floor. my friends have to cast difficult votes on the open rule votes and i have to cast them

and we all do because anyone can bring any amendment down there and score political points. we have been willing to risk that in the house and our friends in the senate have not and that is the root -- >> continue to yield? >> certainly. >> i think my perspective -- i made a speech over the weekend where i said most of the senators when they awake in the morning and look in the mirror are seeing the president of the united states. >> my friend has been here longer than me so who am i to dispute that. i yield back. >> when we talk about things not getting done i don't want to miss the opportunity to brag on what you did together. i was elected in 2010, and there

was unified control of the house and senate but only two appropriations bills passed the house. there has never been a time under the leadership of the gentlemen from kentucky we did worse. we have done better and better every year. when i look at the two of you there and hearing talk about if only the two of you were in control what could we have done. i am going back and looking at what you put together. the commerce justice science bill and 321 votes you put on the board. that is the will of the house. putting the defense bill -- 340 votes you put on the board for not a republican or democratic product but the house product. and you know but you are not willing to brag. ledge branch -- 402 votes you put on the floor back in may.

>> gentlemen yield? >> we carried that bill. i would like to give due respect to the cardinal for doing the work. >> 402 votes back in may and the senate gave it no consideration nor provided an alternative of their own military constructions and veterans affair. you put 416 votes on the board. only one no vote in the entire u.s. house of representatives and you did that back in april and yet our service men and our veterans have been operating in a period of uncertainty because they could get no activity at all on the senate side. i am impressed. i don't want to be an approperator. i know it is hard. but in this environment of finger pointing and blame game you all got it done and i hope

that not just here on this committee but throughout the body and across the nation folks realize this isn't political non-sense and this is serious legislation and if we had a partner we would succeed. >> gentlemen yield? >> we have an opening for press secretary. are you available? [laughter] >> gentlemen yields back his time. i think the words the gentlemen have spoken is what i think you deserve and the credit and hard work you have done. if you are the most hard working committee you ought to be able to prove and i think exhibit a was given now. i am going to stand up to we are hard workers. dr. vergis.

>> thank you. we talk about the power of the purse and it is difficult to exercise that without our regular appropriation bill. and when you made statements at the beginning of the year and returning to regular order i rejoiced and thought it was welcome and giving the house a chance to work its will on each and every bill. we have done that through many nights and i only regret we didn't get a chance to do each and every one and i regret to see the senate didn't take up a single one. let me ask you a bit on section 136 dealing with the department health and human service and the monies made available for fighting ebola. if i am reading correctly, $58 million from the public health and social services emergency fund and an additional $30 million from the cdc global

health fund. is that correct? >> that is correct. >> is this money that is being repurposed from within existing monies or are these new dollars coming to the ebola fight? >> these are new dollars for the ebola effort. but it is offset. >> offset from? >> from other accounts. >> mr. chairman, i want to offer the observations there is buried deep within the resources of the affordable care act something called the prevention public health fund. it is a slush fund available to the secretary of health and human services that goes to fund all manner of things like pet and neutering and smoking cessation and all things that may be good

endeavors but if there is ever a place this fund should be used it is against ebola. this is one of the scariest things i have seen as far as a public outbreak. >> that is a billion dollar fund. and we allocate those funds in the regular bill. >> the billion fund from the department of health and human services? >> yes. >> again, i just point out to my friend on the appropriation committee there is money buried deep within the act that is monies for the secretary to use however shes fit but it is labelled the prevention and public health fund. this is a self-replenishing fund

of $2 billion every year. it seems this would be the appropriate use of a fund when starring down at an unprecedent unprecedented epidemic in africa that could end up in our backyard. >> if the gentlemen would we can talk about this after the session and dig into this with staff to help understand what you are talking about. and do you want to respond? >> i was going to say we can have these discussions but as far as i understand and recall that part of the bill is allocating money to very good causes. you may think one is better than the other or a third is not as good so we can have further discussions about it. but as long as you turn the m e

mic microphone to me -- are you complete? >> yes, mr. chairman, i will yield back. >> if the gentlemen defers his time to the gentlewoman. >> i was just going to thank my good friends on this side of the aisle for all of the compliments. we do work together and i hope by december 11, after the cr is enacted hopefully this week, we cannot punt our responsibilities and we will not punt our responsibilities to next year in that we can complete our work and not be here for christmas eve. i think we can do this and we know we can do this by december 11th and i look forward to presenting all of the bills to the house and making sure we have all of rules in order. thank you for your compliments. it is a pleasure for me to work with my chair.

> >> same here. >> i would offer december is a lovely time to be in the nation's capital. >> i thank the gentlemen. are there any other questions for this distinguished panel? i want to thank you both for taking the time to be here and provide not only the information of your hard work but also continuing to work together that is a part that i believe the american people want and need and i appreciate it a lot. i think this committee offers that alkalaid to you. >> mr. chairman, let me thank you and your staff and committee members for the hearing and i want to thank you all for your nice compliments. i am about ready to concede this is the hardest working committee. but i think the bottom line mr. chairman is when you come up here you bring a product that is

well vetted and we can continue to work through and we have a a lot of things on our plate but thank you for taking time to be here. i know it is a little bit late in the evening but we appreciate it very much. i would now like to go to the second part of this. we would like to welcome matt thornberry. he is from texas and is a regular visitor not only to the committee but also very wise. i want to thank you for being here. the substance of your talk is on the mckeene amendment and that authorizes the second of defense with the secretary of state to

train, equip and vet elements of the syrian military. we are delighted you are here and the gentlemen is recognized. >> thank you, mr. chairman and ranking members. i appreciate the opportunity to be with you this evening to discuss the proposed mckeene amendment to the continuing resolution. the chairman because of the time change had a family commitment that was difficult to break so he asked me if i would appear on his behalf. with your permission he has a short opening statement that i might briefly read and be delighted to respond to questions. thank you for meeting to consider my amendment to house joint resolution 124 the continuing appropriation

resolution for 2014. isis is a clear threat across the middle east and the united states. in this time of crisis the president has asked were the authority to train and equip appropriately vetted syrian military to prevent attacks by isis and protect the united states. my amendment would provide the president with this authority. this authority is necessary because none of the existing department of defense authority in law fit the position requested to train and equip non-government entities fighting in non-united states operation. the president didn't state the funding so my amendment would strengthen congressional oversight by requiring detailed progress reports on the plan, the vetting process and the procedures for monitoring unauthorized in-use of provided

training and equipment. it would also require the president to report on how this authority fits within a larger regional strategy. it would allow the department of defense to submit request should the president require this. and permits the secretary of defense to accept foreign contributions and nothing in the bill constiitutes authorization for the introduction of united states armed forces on the ground. the president hasn't asked for such authority. my amendment is focused on training syrian opposition fighters to counter isis. this was drafted with the national committees and chaired with minority and the language of the amendment has been

reviewed by the department of defense. this training period is necessary but it is only one part of what should be a larger strategy. it must be part of a larger effort in syria and iraq and across the region. let's also remember it will be the men and women in uniforms who will be conducting the training and we continue to ask more and more military yet their funding continues to be cut. this isn't sustainable and must be addressed. thank you for the opportunity to testify and i appreciate the committee's consideration of my amendment to house bill 124 and request it be ruled in order. >> thank you very much. the question i have is to simply ensure i have the same idea i believe perhaps you will. i had a premeeting with several memberoffs the rules committee and we had a discussion about the amendment. i think it is important all members have a chance