>> i don't think so. who knows. >> thank you. >> for free transcripts or to give us >> a british prime minister david cameron taking questions from members of the house of commons. senate floor debate on the government shutdown and the debt ceiling deadline. at 11:00 p.m., another chance to see q&a with josh bolten. on the next washington journal, steve bell reviews the options of the treasury department. meeting the obligations of the united states debt limit.

j will be looks at the number of people signed up on the health care exchanges since they opened on october 1. the differences between the state and federally run exchanges. amtrak president and ceo as of portman talks about ridership. washington journal, live at 7:00 a.m. eastern on c-span. the lou henry hoover house here on the campus of stanford university. it is significant because this was the primary residence of the hoover's and it is significant as it relates to hoover because she was the one who designed it. she had such a strong grasp of design and how she wanted the house to look even though she was not an architect. we're lucky to have a lot of the original drawings and documents corresponding to the design and construction. lou henry's influence came from her travels in the southwest of

the united states. also from her travels in north africa, when she traveled with herbert hoover. it is a great legacy of lou henry's because she designed the house, she created it. it was inspired by her ideas and she had very close involvement in all aspects of the house's creation. >> meet first lady lou hoover hyundai night live at backlog eastern on c-span. >> david cameron and members of the house of commons returned to parliament after a three-week recess for their party conferences. the prime minister talked about a range of topics are in question time including increasing childcare benefits, rising energy prices and the upcoming commonwealth conference. time,before question prime minister cameron offered condolences to the six british nationals who were killed in the

attack in nairobi. this is about 35 minutes. >> questions to the prime minister. one, thank you mr. speaker. i am sure the whole house will want to join me in offering our condolences to the families and friends of those people who lost their lives and the appalling terrorist attack in nairobi, in particular the six british nationals who lost their lives. this was a despicable attack that demonstrates how we must continue to do all we can to defeat international terrorism. i am sure the house will also want to join me in paying tribute to andrew duncan who died on the 21st of september while on duty. a reminder of the sacrifices that police officers make on our behalf every day. the house will wish to congratulate professor peter higgs who is chairing this year's nobel prize for physics.

it is a richly deserved recognition of his lifetime of research and attribute to u.k.'s world leading universities where this research was carried out. i had meetings with colleagues and in addition to my duties, i shall further such meetings later today. >> mr. speaker, can i associate myself and my constituents with the victims of terrorism in nairobi and andrew duncan? and of course, accolades to professor higgs. mr. speaker, can the prime minister confirm that less than a third of families will benefit from is tax break? >> what i can confirm is that all married couples paying basic rate tax will benefit from this vote. it is not about the money. it is about the message. i think marriage is a great institution and i think we should be supporting marriage through the income tax system.

minister, with the disappearance of the minimum practice and crumb -- income death not by a thousand cuts but by one cut. they serve elderly residents and indeed a number of children. will he investigate this issue and ensure that my constituents will not be isolated and that they will continue to receive the excellent service that they do from their doctors? >> i will look at the application -- case that he makes. a large rural constituency. i think it is a k-fed many more doctors are operating many more services. we want to see a growth of that to make sure people can go to surgeries rather than emergency

units if it is a gp unit they need. >> mr. ed miliband. minister ine prime sending my condolences to the friends and families of the british nationals murdered in nairobi. and all of those killed in the cowardly act. it was an act of terrorism that reminds us the importance of combating terrorism at home and around the world. i wish to join him in paying tribute to andrew duncan. his death is a terrible tragedy. it reminds us of the bravery shown by our brave policemen and women day in and day out on our behalf. i send my condolences. on a different note, i join him in celebrating a tremendous achievement of peter higgs in winning the nobel prize. he is a great british scientist. happy birthday to the prime ministers. [applause]

on monday the prime minister said "there is a certain amount you can do while the chancellor said -- us, is freezing energy prices a good idea or a communist plot? [laughter] i will leave the communist party of him. [laughter] first of all, can i thank him? can i thank him for his kind remarks? there is nothing i would rather be doing on my birthday than this. what this government is doing is legislating to put people under the lowest energy carriage. that is a real step forward. on this issue, promising a freeze is a classic case of saying one thing and doing another.

policy after policy, regulation after regulation, target after target, all of which put energy prices up. answer on labor's energy price freeze. what is clear is it won't happen under him but it would happen under a labor government. mentioned his policy on terrorists and he says that his explain why ate least 90% of the country will get no benefit from his policy? >> first of all, let us deal with labor's energy policy. let's spend a little bit of time on it. let's examine the fact that he is committed to a new decolonization target -- de carbonizing target that would

add to everyone's bill. 12did mention the fact that hours after making his pledge, he said he might not be able to fulfill it because of international wholesale gas prices. isn't that the case? what he is promising is a price increase before a promise, a broken promise and a price increase after a promise. one price increase, one broken promise, another price increase. that sounds like every labor government since the war. he is floundering around and he has no answer to labor's energy price freeze. benefit 90% of the country. he has no idea. he wants to bring energy prices down. can you confirm that energy prices have gone up by 300 pounds since he became prime minister? >> energy prices doubled under labor.

let me make this point. there is one thing government can control. that is the international wholesale price of gas. i know he would like to live in some sort of marxist universe where you can control all these things but he needs a basic lesson in economics. perhaps he should remember what labor's industry minister has said. this is what he said. appeal to tribal socialism and a minority in the country, he is put at risk millions of jobs. he has put up a sign, don't invest here. that is the new left-wing labor party. speaker, i do suggest he goes and tries to work out his position on the energy price freeze. onsays the policy -- he said

monday that it struck a chord. that freezing energy prices could make a difference. he has no idea what he think about this policy. why are under the prices so high? he didn't answer the question. i want to remind him of the words of a previous leader of the opposition. when gas prices go up, they rushed. when gas prices are coming down, we wait a very long time before we see anything coming through on our bill. mr. speaker, that was him that said that. he changed his mind? what we need is a more competitive energy market. >> what he seems to be separate from is complete amnesia that he was the energy secretary. let me remind him of one of the first acts this government type. we inherited an energy policy from him that would have put 179 pounds on every single bill

because of his renewable heat initiative. that was his policy. while we are dealing with quotes, but have a guest who said this. to deal with the problems of climate change, energy bills are likely to rise. who said that? the last energy secretary. everyone wants low prices. we will get them by dealing with the causes of the low prices instead of a gimmick that collapsed after 12 hours. >> mr. speaker, he says he wants lower prices but prices are going up on his watch. that is the reality. can he confirm that while his energy policy benefits almost nobody, a fact he didn't deny, a 20 month freeze in bills would save money for 27 million households and 2.4 million businesses across this country?

12 hours later, he said he might not be able to keep his promise. this is a gimmick. the reason it is a gimmick is he is in favor of a decolonization arbonizationc target that would add to everybody's bill. he hasn't got an economic policy anymore. he told us over and over again that if you cut spending, you damage public services. even the bbc disagrees with that. and over again, if you cut spending, the economy will grow. let me tell you the best birthday present i could have, the shadow chancellor staring in the shadow cabinet. >> is just bigger, -- mr. speaker, he says he doesn't want

to talk about an economic policy. he wants to talk about the cost of living. doesn't that say all? he doesn't realize that an economic policy is about the cost of living. whatever you say about him is true to form. we have a cost-of-living crisis in this country. energy bills are rising and the energy companies -- we have a prime minister who stands up for the wrong people. we know what his cost-of-living policy is. more spending, more borrowing, more debt. that would lead to higher taxes and higher mortgage rates. that is the double whammy that would hit every family. >> but not only have i got the birthday present of the shadow chancellor staying in post. have this special birthday treat which is the shadow chancellor yesterday,

revealed the election campaign. he said it all depended on the two of them together because "they would win because of their experience, their track record, and their credibility." say, thatne i have to is like the captain of the titanic running on its safety record. thank you, mr. speaker. this contract is due to expire in 18 months time. it is vital for these people that either the post office continues after 2015. i hope the government will ensure that it does. >> the post office card account has been a great bonus for many people. it has helped not only our post offices but elderly people.

i will look carefully at what he says. interventionket and mortgage is ok but in the energy market is not? >> intervening in the mortgage market because banks are failing to provide mortgages so that young people can get on the housing ladder. intervening by putting everyone on the lowest energy tariff. what the opposition can control is international gas prices. he needs a basic lesson in economics and it sounds like the honorable gentleman does two. chemicals are used in a variety of pills which are banned for human use but widely advertise on the internet. does my friend agree with me that action needs to be urgently taken to prevent the importation

of these substances in capsule form where they can only be planned for human consumption? >> there have been some extremely serious cases of young people suffering from these sorts of medications that you're able to order on the internet. i will look carefully at what she says. >> why does the prime minister takeaway 7 billion pounds a year of support to children up to 2015? >> we are putting in more support for children. we are providing the childcare offer for two-year-olds. we have introduced for the first time a pupil premium so children from the poorest homes are going to get more money to get into school. he shakes his head.

he should be sitting there in shame at the report that came out yesterday that showed that after a lifetime in education under labor, our young people are bottom of the league in terms of results. >> it is time the house heard from john randle. [applause] cannot draw my friends attention to the recent report by imperial college about the detrimental health effects of aircraft noise and could he make sure that when the governments , that health and environmental considerations are paramount? >> my honorable friend hasn't had the chance to speak from the back benches. i look forward to hearing other

contributions from him. he brings a huge amount to this house. he is right to raise the issue of environmental noise. that will be included in the howard davis report and he will be making a speech about this issue soon. >> does the prime minister think that it is acceptable that since he came to the office, the number of people claiming jobseekers allowance for more than two years has increased by 390%? >> what has happened is the -- the numberers of households claiming benefits has gone down. if she looks at what is actually happening in the northwest, 18,000 more people in implement, 45,000 more people employed in the private sector, on implement has fallen in the northwest by 7000 since the election. bykers households down 26,000. she should be talking of her

region instead of talking down. >> i wonder if the prime minister has seen today's bbc report showing that despite reductions in spending, a majority of people think that services provided by the -- does he agree with me that this shows you can get more for less? >> when i woke up this morning and heard that the bbc was reporting you can cut public spending and make public services that are, i thought i had died and gone to heaven. it is worth looking at. it is one of the many peddlers of labor's policy that has collapsed. they thought that public spending cuts would lead to lack of economic growth. they thought that public spending cuts would lead to worse services. the bbc has told them that is wrong. that is what has happened today. does the prime minister

agree? >> we are helping working parents and that is what the tax relief on childcare that this government will be introducing will be all about. constituents were tragically killed when they were hit by a driver who had 10 previous convictions for dangerous driving. people have signed a position -- petition calling for the law to be changed so that drivers convicted of dangerous driving should repeat sets -- received tough sentences. does he agree the law should be looked at? >> i will certainly look at the petition that he talks about. i would like to join my friend in offering my condolences. this is the most appalling crime as he says.

someone with 10 previous convictions who is disqualified driving dangerously and killing two people. the sentence was 10 years. i understand that the maximum sentence available is 14 years. the government has introduced a new offensive. we are looking at this whole area. secretary has asked to the sentencing guidelines for serious driving offenses and i think we should look at this case in the light of that. a family in my constituency are paying a massive 3200 energy bill. why is the prime minister siding with energy charging inflating prices? >> i want to see energy bills come down. that is why we are legislating to put people on the lowest tariff. we are going to go through and

see what regulations and rules put in place by the leader of the opposition, what we can change to keep those down. that is why we need a competitive market. making promises that you yourself admit you cannot meet the next day, that is not proper politics. does the prime minister agree with the general that whether you are a small, medium or large business, you have to grow as a business and invest and hire taxes don't do that? >> my friend is entirely right. what we have heard from labor's conference is that they are going to put up taxes on some of britain's biggest at most successful businesses. their message to business is, don't invest here. don't expand here. go somewhere else. we want to fight some petty socialist campaign against successful bigness. that is absolutely wrong for our

economy. >> closed question. to the written a letter prime minister of economic development. >> the regional growth fund is helping to create some 66,000 jobs with an investment in the northeast of 330 million pounds. we don't want to go back to the previous administration system. the cabinet committee brings together secretaries of state from all key departments. >> is the prime minister aware that the department of health are consulting on changing the funding formula for health care and the northeast and cumbria which is the affect of taking some 230 million pounds out of the health care budget for the region? >> the whole government stands up for the northeast of england.

got thewhy -- you have new train plant, expanding and sunderland, there is plenty of good news in the northeast. let me answer his question about nhs funding. this year for some funding for the northeast clinical commissioning group is going up by 170 million pounds. that is a 2.3% increase. that is happening under this government. under the labor plan, health spending would be cut. , thehadow health secretary man they decided to keep in the shadow cabinet has said that increasing health spending "is irresponsible." that is the labor view. we don't agree with that. we are spending money in the northeast. >> i congratulate the government on ending the unfairness on free school meals for 16-18-year- olds. will the prime minister look to end the similar unfairness were

colleges have to pay schools ? >> i think it is good that we are going to have the same system on free school meals for colleges and secondary schools. infantthink children in school won't have to pay for school meals as well. i will look carefully at the point that he makes. >> thank you, mr. speaker. will know inister am a proud member of a trade union which seeks to stand up for the public and private sector. sacrifice -- we are all in this together. i am sure that just as i welcome -- mccluskey is

delighted with the reshuffle. they wouldn't call it a reshuffle. they would call that a purge because they have all gone. the fact is, it has been tough in our country. it has been difficult because of the appalling deficit and debt that his party left in government. >> mr. david morris. >> in my constituency, there is a school that is a threat to being closed down. i spoke to the education secretary about this. it has been over four years. with the prime minister look into the ridiculous subject given that the county council education portfolio holder has said the school should close? >> i will look at the case that

he makes. under our education reforms, there is greater opportunity for schools to gain their independence and for new schools to establish themselves. i hope to look at all of the structural changes that we have made education. thender this government, charter is rocketing while wages have stagnated. families are facing nursery costs rising faster than wages. when does the prime minister going to take action to extend free nursery provisions? >> we have extended the hours that people get when they have four-year-olds. for the first time, we have introduced childcare assistance when people have two-year-olds. that has changed under this government. we are also introducing proper tax relief on childcare so that people who work hard and do the right thing can get help with their childcare. i hope when it comes to vote on

it the party will support it. installedth ago, i coal blocking technology. this has shown in the last month 65% of the coals have been nuisance calls. will the government do all it can to look at whether telephone providers should be profiteering by charging to provide information vital to trace these calls? >> my friend makes the important point. he has advised his constituent about the service where you can stop some of the calls that are coming through. it is a real pain in some people's eyes. i am sure we can look further. >> does the prime minister agree that allowing time for greater diplomatic discussions to take place over syria was preferable to rushing

in and bombing the country? >> the fact that america was so clear that it would take action is what brought about a change of heart on behalf of the syrian government. that is the real lesson we should learn. thank you, mr. speaker. the cost of mortgage. can the minister tell us what will be the effect on mortgage rates if the government were to increase poverty? >> my friend is absolutely right. one of the most important aspects of people's bills is the mortgage payment they have to make. the shadow chancellor is not right. if you borrow more, you risk interest rates and mortgage rates going up. families across the country understand that. --y understand, you only get

if you a proper economic plan. >> my constituent was brutally murdered and his girlfriend gang raped whilst on holiday in sri lanka. justice continues to be denied. the key suspect is a close ally of the sri lankan president. is the prime minister comfortable meeting this president at the summit next month and what will he say to him? >> i am grateful for the question. it is right for the british prime minister to go to the commonwealth conference because we are big believers in the commonwealth and making that organization work and work for us. i think it is right, and going to the conference we should not hold back in being very clear about those aspects of the human rights record in srinagar that

we are not happy with. -- in sri lanka that we are not happy with. are points- there you can make if you can't go. >> will the prime minister welcome the scrap metal dealers act? >> it has got the support of the church. extra taxes will boost treasury revenues. it will make the trains run on time. can you say that about any other piece of legislation? to the honorable gentleman what pleasure it gives me today to refer to him as my honorable friend. an honor he fully deserves. i welcome the scrap metal bill which has helped to bring revenue into the treasury. it is also helping to deal with the scourge which is a crime that we have seen grow in recent years, because of the price of growth and the price of metals. the lead off the church roof was stolen and i know this is going

to help make sure that doesn't happen again. 83% of the beneficiaries of the government's proposed marriage tax break will be men. 17% will be women. why does the prime minister have such a blind spot when it comes to women? >> i think it is worth supporting marriage through the income tax system. let me make this challenge to the party opposite. in government, they gave a marriage tax break through the inheritance tax system. they give a married tax breaks to the rich. i want to give a married tax break to everybody. >> thank you, mr. speaker. does the prime minister believed that when the european union forces my constituents to buy 20 cigarettes at a time rather than their current 10, it will reduce the number they smoke? a veryoesn't sound

sensible approach. i wasn't aware of this specific issue. let me have a look and get back to him. >> thank you, mr. speaker. why has he told members of his party behind closed doors that forcing through same-sex marriage legislation was a terrible mistake? >> i haven't. i am very proud that we passed same-sex marriage in this parliament. i am proud of the role i played in bringing it forward. i think marriage is a wonderful thing. that goes whether you're a man or a woman or a man and a man and a woman and a woman. i am proud of it. it makes our country fairer and i hope that is clear. with even now admitting that his airport plan has no support, does the prime minister welcome the howard davidson statement that some plans will not even past third base and very mentally?

>> i don't want in any way to interfere with what howard davis is doing. i think he is the right person to carry out this report. it is important we try to build cross party consensus on the base that it is a good report, a thorough process and that all parties will be able to endorse it. >> order. order.f >> can i just go back to the prime minister's answer on the marriage tax break? when asked whether it was true that one third america was would benefit, the prime minister said that all married couples would benefit. that is just not true. the honorable gentleman has made his point. i allow the feminist or to respond.

-- prime minister to respond. order. [shouting] >> the point is that the married couples allowance is available to every basic rate taxpayer. that is something to celebrate in our country. i stand up for marriage even if he wants to talk it down. can i thank him once again for his tenacity even though he has been proved wrong on every major economic question? he is a great collection winner for us. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] >> you have been watching prime

ministers questions from the british house of commons. weston time airs live on c-span two every wednesday at 7:00 a.m. eastern and on sunday nights at nine a clock p.m. on c-span. watch anytime at c-span.org where you can find video of pressed questions. >> next, senate floor debate on the government shut down and that ceiling. at 11:00 p.m., q&a with josh bolton. >> there is very legitimate ways and reasons why there should be disputing patents. organizations are suing everybody they possibly can without any justification and i think this piece of legislation would go a long way in protecting those and making sure we get the legitimate lawsuits to the courts. >> i think most americans were

really surprised when the library decided they couldn't unlock the cell phone they owned without going to their carrier. that is not right. there is really no copyright involved. it is just a way for monopolies to exert their monopoly control after somebody has purchased a piece of equipment. >> it is the practice of putting unauthorized third-party charges on telephone bills. in other words, charging consumers for supposed services that they never ordered and never received. even when they notice, they have to pay. ,> the communications issues monday on the team indicators at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span two.

>> the senate was in session today for debate on the government shut down and the deadline to raise the debt ceiling by this thursday. here is a portion of the debate with mary landrieu and bob corker. it is about half an hour. >> the senator from louisiana. >> thank you, madam president. i want to follow-up on the words of my distinguished colleague from hawaii and also comment on a few points that the senator from wyoming made in this important debate that is happening in washington today, a debate that is happening all over our country. i want to associate myself with the effort underway by senator collins from maine and senator -- from minnesota and others on both sides of the aisle that have been working throughout the

evening, the night, early morning hours, talking, trying to find a way forward. forank both leaders blessing that effort and trying to find a way forward. this is a very dangerous situation. despite the fact that there are members on the other side of the capital in the republican party, not in the democratic party, that continue to doubt that there will be any ramifications from default -- i hate to say it, but they are going to be sorry they uttered those words. , very serious situation. the u.s. treasury bond is the safest investment in the world today. let me repeat, the safest investment in the world today. think about it.

if you have a little bit of money, would you invested in , china --udi arabia where would you invested? the government of the united states isn't perfect, but relatively speaking, in all aspects of the world, what is the safest group that is likely to pay their debt? that would be the united states. it has been that way for over 225 years. the republicans in the house have decided to put that on the line. to put that on the line because they don't like the affordable , or they put all of that on the line because they the way the budget process is working. say,then doubled down and

not only are we going to put the full faith and credit of the united take that risk, -- states at risk, we are going to shut the government down while we do that until we get our way on a specific piece of legislation. i know that they are principled -- there are principles that are worth debating. how big the size of government should be, how much they should spend, how much local government should spend. what level of revenues should be required to pay for it? who should put up those revenues? those are important things to decide. we try to make those decisions every day. for a group of 80 republicans, three of whom are in my own state, sorry to say, three representatives signed a letter saying, if we don't get exactly what we want from the affordable care act -- which by the way past the congress, was upheld by

the spring court -- supreme court, we are going to put the full faith and credit of the united dates -- united states at risk. the ramifications of this are too massive to describe. so, we have only a few days -- we are already feeling the results of this hostagetaking by if you republicans -- a few republicans in the house of representatives. i am praying and hoping that my colleagues in the senate will live up to the great hope of the senate. walk back from the ledge, reason together and find a way forward. i see my good friend from tennessee here and i think if there is anyone that can help us do that, he would be one that

could along with senator mccain and senator graham and others who have been there, who understand how you can get wound up. it is important to wind down and figure this out. i will yield in a minute to the senator if he has a question but i do want to say because my argument is not with him, that when senators come to the floor to say that democrats haven't wanted to go along with the regular process, i want to again -- i came to the floor earlier as an appropriate or. the first step in and appropriations process is to get a budget. wereemocrats amazingly able to get a budget. .e got a budget two completely different approaches. how much money should be raised?

it is two different approaches. it is two different parties. we have a democratic party controlling here, republicans controlling their. that is the first step. they are very different. we need to go to conference on that budget. the democrats here have asked our republican colleagues that sit right across the aisle, please let us go to the budget committee 21 times. i will put this into the record. we started on april 21, senator reid requested unanimous consent. not going to read them all. to may 14.d senator warner asks unanimous consent to the to conference. senator mcconnell blocked. in june, senator mary asked for unanimous consent. senator rubio blocked. go to july 17. senator murray asks again.

senator mike lee blocks. they blocked going to budget because the tea party years -- partiers in this party said, we will go to budget but you can't talk about raising any revenues in budget. we will try to solve the budget problems but you don't -- democrats cannot talk about raising revenues. the only thing we want to talk about is cutting. cutting, cutting, cutting. they look at anything. they will cut headstart, education, the epa, that is all they want to do is cut. we said, you can't solve a problem with just one side of that equation. we don't know where the revenues might need to come from but there has got to be a balance. we have to start paying down our long-term debt. i don't want anyone in this do thinkt or world

that democrats aren't concerned about the debt. we are concerned about the debt. we don't like the debt being this high. we want to find ways and we have reduced -- produced -- reduced spending trillions of dollars. the senator from tennessee to his credit -- i have supported a lot of what they have done. i have supported a lot of that. to his credit, he has really tried. to pay downountry its long-term debt and a smart way that strengthens our economy and does not pull the rug out from underneath us. because the senator from texas, senator cruz, because senator lee from utah said no, we can't go to budget.

unless you democrats agree before you even get to the negotiating table that we can't raise every revenue. -- any revenue. negotiating't start the individual bills. my responsibility is to negotiate homeland. i am very proud of my colleagues . he and i were given a number by our leadership. we have completely put our bill together with virtually no disagreement. we had to cut a lot of things. and, we were asked by some a $700can leaders to add million project that i had to absorb into my budget because of something that the republicans asked for. it but thebig fan of

president and the republicans wanted it so i had to compromise and put it in my bill without any additional money and take some things out to make room for it. that is what we do around here. that is what we used to do. we are not doing it much right now. so for anyone to come to the floor to try to say to democrats, you are the ones that want to go to regular order. we will go to budget. patty murray, the senator from washington could not be working any harder. she is one of the most respected members in this whole body. i am not just saying that. she is very humble. she is very smart. she is very much willing to negotiate and the senator from maryland is probably one of the most popular senators that has ever served in the senate literally. everyone likes her.

she is not difficult to work with. she is tough. she is not difficult to work with. so we have got really two extraordinary people here trying to work through this. not so muchare being blocked by our side on the senate even though they have blocked 21 times. they are being run by a group of extreme radical party members on their side that have now gotten the republican party in complete disarray. that is not good for them. it is not good for the democrats and it is not good for the country. now we have to figure out our way forward. i have run into my 10 minutes and i am happy to wrap this up. to recap, i am willing to be part of the common ground to find a solution. i will not allow, as long as i am on this floor today and i will be here for a couple hours, for anyone to suggest that

democrats have been holding up the process. we have been trying to get to a budget committee for six months. we have been trying to negotiate appropriation bills. norove not be held hostage the people or the businesses or nonprofits -- because republicans can't even go to negotiation until they get 100% of their way. or until the government is shut down, it can open. or until we default on our debt, we cannot negotiate under those terms. we can negotiate on terms where the hostages are freed and we sit down like grown-ups and work this out. i am hoping we can do that. i yield the floor and i thank the senator for his patients. >> the senator from tennessee. >> i want to thank the senator from louisiana for her desire to seek a solution. i appreciate the many ways we have been able to work together

on so many issues. i don't like to blame either side. one, the effort that was taking place in the house regarding the health care bill was not an effort that was going to lead to a conclusion. it was an overreach. i know that. you know that. they know that. the country knows that. we have ended up where we are. in fairness, what has happened over the last couple days is, on the other side of the aisle -- we had a group of folks that had an idea. i thought it was a good starting place. six republicans and six democrats. we had an idea of a way to move beyond this. let's face it, we all know what happens around here. two nights ago, the white house weighed in and leadership on the

democratic side pulled back hair. the fact is, we are where we are. let me say this. with theectly happy two leaders negotiating a deal. i went to support the leaders in negotiating a deal. at the end of the day, what has happened is we have had a little bit of a pullback where house republicans overreached. no question. what has also happened over the last couple of days is there has been a little bit of a push to overreach and undo what happened with the budget control act in 2011 where budget caps were put in place. the president signed it. it passed the senate. it is just as much a health care law -- this also is law. what we have had over the last

few days as a little bit of a pullback. i hope that it is temporary. what i would say is, at this moment in time, we have had a little bit of a problem on both sides of the aisle. i think we got an opportunity over the next 24 hours for that to be worked out. what i would do is, i would leadership to continue on this pace. it takes four days to move anything across the senate floor. i think we all know the debt ceiling is this thursday. what i hope is going to happen is that both sides will admit, there is a little bit of an issue here on both sides. there is a strong desire by the vast majority of our caucus to do something that is a pragmatic good government step. at the end of the day, these

events have always been used in times when you have tremendous concerns about our financial situation. they have always been used to hopefully negotiate some reforms. because we have been on the wrong page for so long, which i just admitted to, we are not even in the right book. we have been on the wrong page. we are finally on the right page. we are not only on the right page, we are focused on fiscal the debtlative to ceiling and a continuing resolution to fund the government. not only are we on the right page, we are finally on the right paragraph. we are focusing on discussing reforms. we're on the right subject. we have got the two leaders that are now talking to each other. i think the six democrats and six republicans that came together have helped that

effort. there was a little bit of a pullback. i do think the white house encouraged. let's see if there is some we can bus to the sequester. in fairness, i am pretty sure that happened. there has been some concerns about some appropriators. it but it is the law. i hope what will happen is we end up with an agreement. the time is so short we are not going to be able to do anything substantial. i think we all know that. i hope we will end up with an agreement that at least sets the framework for us to move ahead, move this behind us as we should , but sets the framework to really move into dealing with the mandatory issues in such a way as they need to be dealt with. i think it is unreasonable to ask people on our side of the

aisle to have a trillion dollar debt ceiling increase and not put some kind of framework in place to look at some of the mandatory issues that we know are driving our country into the ground the way they are. i think there ought to be some framework for that to be discussed over the next 60, 90 days. the house has looked at six weeks. some people have said that is too short. it seems to me, doing something for the short-term to get government up and the threat of the debt ceiling behind us, doing something over the short- term gives us some time to harness that energy that the senator from louisiana was just alluding to. the presiding officer has intimated some of the same things. the fact is, we haven't. a big part of it is being on the wrong subject for a long time. we are finally on the right one. let's come to a place where we

can now focus on the things we should have been focused on all along relative to debt ceilings and cr's. i don't think anybody that i have heard has been doing this. this is a moment where we really do need to resolve this issue. this is not a moment to take shots at each other. this is a moment -- we know the path we have been down. it has been in the wrong direction. we are now in the right place. let's let these leaders work it out. i hope that they will. i hope that while the democrats say this is settled law, the thath care bill, i hope democrats will also say -- and republicans -- that the budget control act is settled law. we have agreed to some caps.

there is a more intelligent way of getting to those caps. i think there is probably 70 people in this body that agree. mandatoryo some reforms and substitute those for some of the discretionary cuts and still end up at the same levels of spending that are in this bill and it would be more intelligent for our nation and it would make our nation much stronger -- i think there is a lot of desire to talk about those kinds of things. there is all kinds of mandatory reforms. they are not the same. the senator from alabama who just came into the chamber made out of that yesterday. there is all kind of mandatory changes and they are not the same. we need to look at those. we need to honor the trusts that have been set up. i think we finally have gotten to a pretty good place. i really do. sides are a little

bit at fault. discern one being more than the other. it is time for all of us to focus on the right page, the right paragraph, to get this done and i think we can as long gain thisdon't try to out into which gets a bigger win.