mr. pitts: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, s. 1440, the prematurity research, expansion and education for mothers who deliver infants early re-authorization, or the preemie re-authorization act, would take important steps to protect and improve children's health. the bill includes three important programs. the preemie re-authorization act, the national pediatric research network and the children's hospital's graduate medical education re-authorization. the preemie re-authorization act addresses one of the leading causes of neonatal death and a major cause of childhood disabilities, preterm birth. since its passage in 2006, the preemie act has sponsored important research that has led to improved prevention and care for children born too early. re-authorization will mean the continuation of the program that will lead to even better outcomes for children. the national pediatric research network is a p

mr. jones: mr. speaker, thank you so much. in this very chaotic time for the house of representatives and for the american people, we need to remain focused on the fact that our young men and women are still dying in afghanistan. our involvement in afghanistan has become a confused strategy at best. mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to submit a news article for the record. the title of this article is "afghan peace plan gives u.s. smaller role." with it, mr. speaker, i'd like to submit 1 names of american service people killed recently. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. jones: mr. speaker, it's time for congress to listen to the american people and start acting on their wishes. poll after poll shows that they want to get out of afghanistan now. they want our troops home. they want to stop seeing our young men and women die. the american people want the $10 billion a month being spent in afghanistan to be spent here in america to help all our economic problems. i do not understand wh

mr. smith: mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6620, the former presidents protection act of 2012. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 6620, a bill to amend title 18, united states code, to eliminate certain limitations on the length of secret service protection for former presidents and for the children of forming presidents. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from texas, mr. smith, and the gentleman from michigan, mr. conyers, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. mr. smith: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on h.r. 6620 currently under consideration. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. smith: and mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. smith

mr. dreier: mr. speaker, by direction of the committee on rules i call up house resolution 841 and ask for its immediate consideration. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the resolution. the clerk: house calendar number 170, house resolution 841, resolved, that upon adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to take from the speaker's table the joint resolution, house joint resolution 66, approving the renewal of import restrictions contained in the burmese freedom and democracy act of 2003, with the senate amendment thereto, and to consider in the house without intervention of any point of order a motion offered by the chair of the committee on ways and means or his designee that the house concur in the senate amendment with the amendment printed in the report of the committee on rules accompanying this resolution. the senate amendment in the motion shall be considered as read. the motion shall be debatable for one hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minori

mr. roe: mr. speaker, i object to the vote on the grounds that a quorum is not present and make a point of order that a quorum is not present. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to clause 8, rule 20, further proceedings on this motion will be postponed. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? mr. smith: i move that the house concur if the senate amendment to h.r. 6029. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: ap an act to amend title 18 united states code to provide for increased penalties for foreign and economic espionage and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas, mr. smith, and the gentleman from virginia, mr. scott, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas, mr. smith. mr. smith: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the matter currently

mr. quayle: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i rise today to thank the people of the third congressional district of arizona who put their trust and faith in me to represent them in the 112th congress. the people of our district are good, hardworking americans. they value their family, their country and their freedoms. it was an absolute honor to serve them in this congress. . i would also like to thank my family and friends for their support throughout my life. without them i would not be here today. mr. speaker, i'd also like to thank my tireless staff, both here in washington and back home in arizona, their dedication to our district and to our country was something that was amazing to watch. and over the course of two years, working day and night, they became a lot more than people i worked with, they became extended family. i thank them for that. mr. speaker, i want to finally thank, most importantly, my wife, tiffany, who a few years ago made me the luckiest man on the faith of the earth when she said yes to being

mr. udall: mr. president? the presiding officer: under the previous order, the leadership time is reserved. under the previous order, the senate will be in a period of morning business until 11:45 a.m. with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes each with the time from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. reserved for speeches by retiring senators. the senator from colorado. mr. udall: mr. president, i come to the floor this morning as i have on many mornings to talk about the wind energy industry and the importance of the trucks tax credit. but before -- and the importance of the production tax credit. before i begin i'd like to associate myself with the majority leader's remarks. we do need to extend the tax cuts for the middle class as soon as possible. that's clearly the message the american people sent on november 6 in the nationwide election that we had. i also want to respond to the comments and the conversation between the two leaders over the debt ceiling limit. it's important to rec

mr. higgins: mr. speaker, at midnight tonight the budget control act of 2011 and sequestration will trigger spending cuts of $1.2 trillion over 10 years, including $109 billion in 2013. the $8.24 billion in domestic spending cuts, funding the national cancer institute that supports clinical trials for new cancer treatment. if you're a patient at roswell park cancer treatment in buffalo and you're diagnosed with late-stage cancer, you don't have the luxury of time that these cuts demand. that's what sequestration means to cancer patients in buffalo and throughout the nation. the $55 billion cut in defense spending, what does it mean to my community in buffalo, new york. a leader in motion control technology, with a thriving defense unit, a $2.5 billion company that employs 8,400 people, takes a major hit. that's >> i encourage my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to spend last time and instead pass a -- family, seniors, and small business owners. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro

mr. miller: mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6443 to designate the facility of the department of veterans affairs located at 9800 west boulevard in sunrise boulevard the william kling clinic. the clerk: h.r. 6443, a bill to designate the facility of the department of veterans affairs located at 9800 west commercial boulevard in sunrise boulevard as the william kling florida -- clinic. mr. miller: i yield myself as much time as i might consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. miller: the legislation before us would name the v.a. community-based outpatient clinic in sunrise the william bill kling v.a. clinic. william better known as bill, served as a navy radar technician during the second world war. when he moved to plantation in 1973, he continued his service this time as an advocate for his fellow veterans and spent eight years as florida's commissioner of veterans affairs and 27 years as the president of a broward council on veterans. mr. speaker, at

well mr.cident. no reason why he should be wrong about the figuring he did. be sure you're right, mr. jarrett. mom and dad might run out of money if we're wrong this time. hey, you do a lot of worrying for a little fellow. why shouldn't i? it's my family, whatever happens to mom and dad happens to me too. timmy that's a good way to think. you know more kids should take hold of that idea. say, that spot where lassie is sitting looks interesting. ♪ ♪ ♪ gee, lassie, what if he picks this place and finds water here? boy, won't mr. wilson, be happy? mom and dad will have to believe mr. wilson's divining rod. timmy! i think this is the most likely spot on the farm for a well. of course, it's pretty far from the barn. paul will have to lay a good bit of pipe. you mean, you don't say a thing lassie, not until they dig the well and find the water. then we'll dig up the divining rod and show them. ♪ ♪ well, it's a fine job paul, thanks. i'll have it welded when i finish here. did you decide on a spot ye

mrs. feinstein: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from california. mrs. feinstein: i rise to oppose this amendment and indicate the administration opposes the amendment. we have just four days to reauthorize this critical intelligence tool before it expires. that's the reason for having the house bill before us today. the house bill is a clean bill. it extends the program to 2017, when it would sunset and be -- and would meet another -- need another reauthorization. i believe we must pass this bill now. i believe that 2017 is the appropriate date. it gets the job done. i'm very worried if we do anything else, if we pass any one of these amendments, we will jeopardize the continuation of what is a vital intelligence tool. so regretfully, i oppose the leahy amendment. the presiding officer: the question is on the leahy amendment. is there a sufficient second? appears to be. there is. the clerk will call the roll. vote: vote: vote: the presiding officer: are there any senators who wish to ch

they're full of promise. - mr. nicholson? yes? i'd like you to meet mr. and mrs.t? she was chasing one of those wolves. that's funny. i killed that second wolf this afternoon. did you see lassie? no. no, i didn't, son. well, goodbye, mr krebbs. - goodbye, timmy. and merry christmas. thanks. same to you. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ come on, lassie. i'll take you home. ♪ where did you get this, lassie? ♪ oh, you want to show me, huh? alright, i'll follow you. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ how many you got in there, lassie? ♪ is that all of them, lassie? well, come on. let's go. here, dear. would you give me a hand and put these in the parlor on the table, please? ok, mom. - thank you. take that in for me, would you, dear? - might i help? yes, please, mr. nicholson. thank you. - thank you very much. ♪ ♪ oh, here they come! ♪ merry christmas! ♪ hello! ♪ merry christmas, timmy.

mr. cornyn: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from texas. mr. cornyn: mr. president, i'd ask unanimous consent that the next 45 minutes be devoted to a colloquy between myself and my colleagues on this side of the aisle. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cornyn: thank you very much, mr. president. mr. president, just this last week the house of representatives have passed a bipartisan piece of legislation called the stem jobs act. and for those who are unfamiliar with the term "stem" it stands for science, technology, engineering, and math. the hard sciences that we have too few in terms of graduates from our colleges and universities. this bill passed in the house of representatives with 245 votes, and was originally sponsored by my friend and colleague, lamar smith of texas, and is very similar to a piece of legislation i myself have introduced earlier this year. the goal of this legislation is one that i think is -- enjoys broad bipartisan support, and that is to help t

mr. coats: mr. president, i want to thank my longtime friend -- who i hate to see leave this body -- senator lieberman from connecticut, for his remarks. i didn't have an opportunity to speak after he gave his farewell remarks. i do not to say before i gave into the reason why i came down here -- i'm happy to see him here so i can say this -- it has been a joy to serve with him over the years. i'm in my second life here in the united states senate, and during my first life we served together on the armed services committee. we did a number of initiatives together which i was proud to be associated with him that i believe strengthened our national economy and our security team around the world. but beyond it -- and we worked on school vouchers for d.c. and a number of other initiatives affecting the future of our military and other issues that were of importance to us. most importantly from my standpoint, we worked together to bring values that each of us cherish based on our faith. joe's jewish fait

mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: following leader remarks, the senate will proceed to executive session to consider the disabilities trite. the time until noon will be equally divided and controlled between the two leaders or their designees. at noon there will be a roll call vote on the resolution of advise and consent to the convention on rights of persons with disabilities. we don't do treaties often and there are requests from both --m senators on both sides of the aisle. i think the they're right, becae this is a treaty, the votes will take place from our desks today. everybody should be on notice. following the vote, mr. president, the senate will recess to allow for our weekly caucus meetings. additional votes in resolution to the national defense authorization act are expected during today's session. i'm told that h.r. 6429 is due for a second reading. the presiding officer: the clerk will read the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 6429, an act

mr. smith: i rise -- mr. scott: i rise in support of h.r. 662, because it improves the america invents act. earlier this year, the house passed h.r. 6621 in a vote of 3088-89. the senate passed the legislation with an amendment by unanimous concept. now that the america invents act is law, our focus should be on how it can be improoveed. this is why i support h.r. 6621 because it accomplishes that very goal in several respects. to begin with h.r. 66 1 clarifies and improves provisions to help implement the america invents act, it clarifies provisions dealing with patent term adjustments, derivation proceedings and terms of the patent public advisory committee. the senate amendment to this bill makes one change to the house-passed bill by removing the provision requiring the patent office to prepare a report on patent applications pending before the office for over 18 years. although this provision has been removed, we must continue to study ways to improve the patent system and make sure there are not delatos

mr. ryan: mr. speaker, i give myself a minute. . . hardly the kind of draconian cuts that the gentleman seems to suggest. what we would be saying with these programs is you need to be eligible for the actual benefit to receive the benefit. that's not asking too much. if we can't put commonsense reforms like this in place, we'll never get anywhere in dealing with this debt crisis. the gentlelady from the financial services committee says it's wrong to submit the consumer financial bureau protection agency to the appropriations process. i find that an amazing critique. i yield myself another 30 seconds. this is an agency that gets its money from the federal reserve without ever having to go through congress. when we uphold the constitution to take office, let's never forget that the power of the purse lies in the legislative branch. all these executive agencies should have to go through the appropriations process. that's not gutting a program. that's bringing accountability to a program. and with tha

and mr. cohen held the seat for quite some time and when he was not reappointed by the board of supervisors earlier this year 5 members of the board, two of whom are sitting here in this committee today, voted to reappoint him and i don't recall this issue being brought up. so i'm surprised it hear it being brought up today from someone who under san francisco's own definition of low income undisputiblely qualifies as low income. so i do support mr. wolff and colleagues i ask for your support. >> thank you, supervisor wiener. supervisor farrell. >> to both candidates, thank you very much for coming forward. much appreciated. will looks like we'll have a split here. i associate myself with some of supervisor wiener's comments. you know, to me this is a seat where it's a low income seat but that's a qualification to sit on this, not that you have to be working as your vocation in that community necessarily. and i do believe i am very familiar with the lgbt center, i'm very supportive of that an

mr. huff! mr. huff! mr. huff! you can run faster than i can lassie. come on melody. come on. we were taking the short cut to the creek when that mean dog came at us. what's the trouble lassie? lassie, wait!! ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ouch. oh. oh. help. help. that you lassie? go get somebody. i am blind, them needles. go on lassie. i need help, go get somebody. good girl lassie. but you go get help. help. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ lassie! lassie! lassie, come here. come here girl. lassie now you come here girl. oh that's a good girl. now lassie you go get me that calf. go get that calf, lassie. go get her. oh! ♪ well i sure do thank you lassie. you know i don't know whether i could have chased her any longer or not. i am about tuckered out. well now what do you want? what's the trouble? well i know you're trying to tell me something, but what? you want me to go with you? sure. come on. n

mr. cantor: mr. speaker, i say to the gentleman he is correct in assuming that the defense bill will not be ready. we don't know for sure but probably likely by wednesday or after. so without complete surety i will say to the gentleman, likely a suspension debate on the floor on tuesday. mr. hoyer: i thank the gentleman for that information. moments will find that helpful. -- members will find that helpful. the majority leader mentioned last week and reiterated this week that we will not adjourn the 112th congress until we averted the fiscal cliff. i think the american people would share that view and would hope that was the case. i hope it's the case as well. on the fiscal cliff, one of the things, of course, in the fiscal cliff, one of the items of concern we had a debate upon on the floor today and the majority leader and i have discussed it again, last week and the week before that, part of the negotiations are with respect to the 98% of americans who fall into the category we seem to have agreem

mr. mcconnell: mr. president, are we in a quorum call? the presiding officer: the republican leader. mr. mcconnell: mr. president, i rise to pay tribute to senator kay bailey hutchison who will be retiring at the end of the year. senator hutchison has been a dear friend and colleague for a long time. she has always been ready to offer wise counsel, and i have usually listened. it's truly bittersweet saying goodbye to kay. on the one hand, i understand her desire to spend more time with bailey and with houston. we're all glad she will now be able to cheer from the sidelines at the soccer games. on the other hand, we'll miss seeing them practice their corner kicks on the second floor of the russell building. by the way, if you have ever been with kay on one of her early morning power walks, you know her kids -- you know where her kids get their energy. i'm told kay has worn out multiple members of congress, several staffers and quite a few others on those walks. and it's a fitting metaphor for her career.

mr. wilson: mr. speaker, yesterday speaker boehner sent a letter to the president in response to his unreasonable proposal to how congress can avert the fiscal cliff. shortly after the election, the house republican leadership presented the president with a balanced framework of coupling spending come cutlers and reforms. it also states, quote, regrettably the proposal outlined on behalf of your administration contains very little in the way of common ground. the proposal calls for a $1.6 trillion in new tax revenue, twice the amount you supported during the campaign. end of quote. house republicans understand the necessity of finding a reasonable solution. we have made it very clear, we're willing to work with the senate leadership to find middle ground legislation. it is my hope the president will begin these -- taking these negotiations seriously and work with the house republicans to find a balanced approach to this challenge. in conclusion, god bless our troops and we will never forget september

mr. session: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i'd like to remind the gentleman that the republicans have already passed the bill for the middle class tax cut on august 1 of this year and passed 256-171. we are now waiting for the senate to act on that. i reserve my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves his time. the gentlelady from new york. ms. slaughter: mr. speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from california, the vice chairman of the democrat caucus, mr. becerra. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized for two minutes. mr. becerra: i thank the gentlelady for yielding. if you're in the middle class, shouldn't it feel like you're in the middle of america? yet the politics of extremism is pushing the middle class to the very edge. the very edge. our house republican colleagues continue to ignore the calls from the american people to extend middle class tax cuts now . that politics of extremism is threatening to raise taxes on the middle class by the amount of about $

mr. hatch: mr. president, i want to join in thanking kay for her great service here in the united states snavment i've worked very closely with her on a wide variety of issues and i have to say there's no more fires advocate. in fact, i have to say that all of our women senators are fierce advocates and we've been greatly benefited by having them herement and kay has parved the way for -- has paved the way for autumn in of senators, both male and fe female, to become better senators. kay bailey hutch song is a great senator. she worked her guts out the whole time she was here -- and she's still here, but she's going to retire this time. and she represented texas well. and all i can say is that she's been my friend all this time, and when i needed help from her, she was always there. i tried to be there for her when she needed help as well. and i have to say, she has been not only a delightful person to be around, but a very intelligent lawyer and person who fought for what she believed in, most of w

mr. latham: mr. speaker, i want to say thank you to congressman boswell and wish him and dody the very, very best in the future and with that, mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. under the speaker's announced policy of january 5, 2011, the gentleman from arizona, mr. gosar, is recognized for 19 minutes as the designee of the majority leader. mr. gosar: thank you, mr. speaker. thank you, mr. speaker. today i'm here to remember the sacrifice of an american hero and the bravery of those who served with him. two years ago this saturday, our nation lost one of our own who was serving to protect our country by securing the arizona-mexico border. on december 14, border agent brian terry, william costano, timothy keller, began patrolling an area west of the town of rio rico, arizona, tasked with preventing violent criminals from sneaking in the united states. at 11:00 p.m., december 15, the team was alerted to five suspects in their interdicti

mr. thune: mr. president, i come to the floor today to talk about the debt crisis facing this country and why i believe that any deal to avert the fiscal cliff must address serious entitlement reform. we should not let the discussion around taxes, which is sort of dominating the airwaves here in washington, distract us from the fact that washington has a spending problem, not a revenue problem. every independent expert who examined america's long-term structural fiscal dilemma comes to the same conclusion. entitlement programs are the drivers of our national debt over the long term. those who argue that we can dig our way out of a $16 trillion debt -- and counting, by the way -- by raising taxes are ignoring reality. according to the congressional budget office's most recent forecast, under the current tax rates, revenues over the next ten years will average roughly 18% of g.d.p. in other words, federal revenues will return to their historical average without raising taxes on anyone. i will repeat t

mr. cardin: mr. president? the presiding officer: under the previous order, there will be 30 minutes for debate equally divided and controlled in the usual form. mr. cardin: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. mr. cardin: mr. president, i am pleased to join with senator mikulski in recommending to the senate the confirmation of judge paul william grimm of maryland to be a u.s. district judge for the district of maryland. i'm very proud of the process that senator mikulski has instituted for us making recommendations to the president to fill judicial appointments. i believe that under this process, we have reached to get the very best to recommend to the president and then to our colleagues for confirmation, and judge grimm clearly falls within this line. the senate judiciary committee favorably reported judge grimm's nomination by voice vote on june 7 of this year. judge grimm was nominated to fill the vacancy in maryland that was created when u.s. district judge benson e.laig took

mr. sires: mr. speaker, today we mourn newtown, connecticut, and the sandy hook elementary community. my thoughts and prayers go out to the victims of this horrendous tragedy and their families. on friday, 27 people, including children, had their future stolen from them as a result of another sense of act of violence. my heart breaks for their loved ones and the community of newtown. unfortunately, this is the fourth mass shooting that our nation has endured in as many years. this tragedy in particular hits home for millions of parents across america because victims were elementary school. children who were expected to be in a safe and secure environment. we must begin to have a meaningful discussion, not only on gun control, but the security of our schools as well as the access to mental health care services. while one bill won't work, congress must use to work to improve the safety of our citizens. i'd like to conclude by honoring our teachers, those day in and day out nurture our children and in

mr. wolff coming here a second time as well and want to thank you for deepening your commitment and your response to our questioning here at the committee. i'm actually very impressed with mr. steen's, his work in the past and his current work as well, he has not stopped his commitment i believe to working with and on behalf of low income people and i feel that he better represents the interests of what this seat is about and he's talking about a lot of things that i think are a big concern of mine as we're seeing san francisco move in a direction that is working more for the wealthy when he clearly hits the notes i want to hear when he talks about making sure we have the perspective of folks that are not getting the advantage that many others are getting in the city. that's something we have to look for as a city and i want to appoint people to bodies that look at our land use from that perspective, so i would like to support mr. steen in this position and would like to motion that. >> o

mr. coons: mr. president, i rise today to join with my colleague senator paul to discuss the life and work of an exceptional american, dr. sandy greenberg, who is here with us today in the senate gallery along with his wife sue and his sister brenda even as we speak. sandy in my view, is an honorary delawarean because he spends a month out of every year at one of our most beautiful delaware beaches, rehoboth beach. but he's much more than that, a successful businessman and if i than throw pivot -- philanthropist, he has a wide array of business interests. he's a pioneer in the use of technology and medicine and helped bring telemedicine to rural health care facilities as chairman of the rural health care corporation. he was appointed by president clinton to the board of the national science foundation. and as a young man, he took a break from his studies at columbia where he roomed with art garfunkel to work in the nixon white house. all of this makes a substantive, meaningful contribution to our co

mr. cardin: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes each. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. cardin: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that on thursday, december 6, at 2012 at 11:45 a.m. the senate proceed to executive session to consider the following nomination, calendars 761 and 828, that there be 15 minutes for debate equally divided in the usual form, following the period of debate on the nominations, the senate proceed to legislative session to resume consideration of h.r. 6156 as provided under the previous order, and following the disposition of h.r. 6516 the senate resume executive session and vote without intervening agency ax or debate on clemedz 621 and 818 in that order. the motion are to be considered considered, no further motions be in order and any related statements be printed in the record, the president be immediately notified of the senate's action

mr. speaker, it's taking time, but the british economy is healing. [laughter] after the biggest financial crash of our lifetime, people know that we face each problem at home and abroad. at home we live with the decades of debt and the failure to equip britain to compete in the modern world. and we face a multitude of problems from abroad. the u.s. fiscal cliff, the slowing growth in china, above all the eurozone now in recession. people know that there are no quick fixes to these problems, but they want to know that we are making progress, and the message from today's autumn statement is that we are making progress. it is a hard road, but we're getting there, and britain is on the right track. >> will the chancellor resume his seat. now, look, let's be clear about this. the house knows well enough by now that i will afford a very full opportunity for questioning of the chancellor. but the more interruption, the greater the noise, the longer the session will take, and that cannot be right

>> thank you, mr. chairman. mr. secretary, you've earned many happy birthdays for your long service to the united states in many capacities. >> thank you. >> first, i want to commend you and this administration. when i said let's get started, you got us started. you moved us off the dime. you've got 151 projects, they're all obligated. yes, you have some states divided, and, um, when they are divided, i think you're doing the right thing, take back the money. and look what you get, you get a bonanza of other jurisdictions. if florida and california are still debating whether or not they want to become second class states, be my guest. there will be many other states that move forward. and this is a country of jurisdictions. and some will come later -- all will come, and those who come early will be ahead. now, i indicated when we began that my concern is to produce -- intent on this project about a train to nowhere is unfortunately. but let me indicate one way that i think we could get over that. i think that hag --

mrs. jones: it's all right, my darling. shh. no one can resist a baby, mrs. jenkins, but mothers can be fierce when they think their child is threatened. was only "dicky birds." i know. "dicky birds." just little 'uns. it's a hard time of year to spend too much time alone. can you tell me where you live? we can send someone to look in on you, to make sure you're being properly taken care of. she doesn't look well. old age. poverty. chronic malnourishment and exhaustion, i suppose. why doesn't she accept help? who knows what brutality she knew when she was young? help then didn't mean what help means now. once more unto the breach and all of that. it's simply a matter of scaling things up. i just waylaid brown owl at the bus stop and we're combining forces now, so there will be 8 angels, a female mary, a full compliment of cattle, and quite the sizeable flock of sheep. chummy... it's the parish hall, not the london palladium. well, that sort of attitude will get us nowhere. [sighs] [train whistle blowing] [sighs] [bicycle bell rings] lynette. oh, hello, nurse

mr. reid: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the call of the quorum be terminated. the president pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. reid: mr. president, i have here in my hands a letter from brian schatz, the lieutenant governor of the state of hawaii, and that letter is a resignation letter. i ask unanimous consent that the senator-designee schatz resignation letter be printed in the record. the president pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. it will be printed in the record. the vice president: the chair liz before the senate a certificate of appointment to fill a vacancy presented by the death of the late senator daniel inouye of hawaii. the certificate, the chair is advised is in a form suggested by the senate. if there is no objection, the reading of the certificate will be waived and it will be printed in full in the record. if the senator-designee will submit himself to the desk the chair will administer the oath of office. the vice president : do you solemnly swear th

mr. leahy: and, mr. president, i ask unanimous consent in behalf of senator inouye that karen carrington and mike hansen, leblg laiflegislative fellows do the committee on appropriations, be granted privileges of the floor during the fiscal year 2013 disaster assistance supplemental. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: and, mr. president, just so senators will know, it is my understanding the first nominee, fernando olguin of california, will be a voice vo vote. and the second one for mr. dirkin will be a roll call vote, which i understand from the senator from iowa, which is, of course, perfectly acceptable to the democratic side. mr. president, i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from iowa. mr. grassley: would it be appropriate if i ask for a roll call vote on judge dirkin? presiding officer: the senator is correct mr. grassley: i ask for a roll call vote. the presiding officer: is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. the yeas and nays are ordered. mr. gras

[shouting] >> mr. speaker -- mr. speaker, today's fall in unemployment and rise in employment is welcomed. [cheers and applause] >> part of the challenge remains with some high level of long-term unemployment. does the prime minister agree that remain a fundamentally important not just for the people are out of work, of the country as a whole? >> i absolutely do agree as a mention in my first answer that long-term unemployment remains high. the good news about the figures today is that long-term youth unemployment is actually down by 10,000 this quarter, so that is encouraging. but long-term unemployment for others is still a problem. that's why the work program in getting the work program right is so important. clearly there's more to do. i welcome his tone not least because he said on the 18th of january adequate, over the next year unemployment will get worse, not better under his policies. perhaps you would like to withdraw that? [shouting] >> mr. speaker, i'm glad the prime minister recognized a long-term unempl

mr. cochran: mr. president, let me join with the senator from maryland in commending all senators for the expeditious way we've been able to move this bill but particularly the chairwoman herself, who's provided strong leadership, capable leadership, fairness, a sense of fairness for all senators, and i thank her for the honor of serving with her on this committee. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the senate senatorses can attend the weekly caucus meetings. this morning they approve and extension of the farm intelligence v it allows the government to continue intercepting overseas communication. it extends legal immunity phone companies that help the government wiretap the domestic phone calls. president obama plans to sign the bill. when the senate is back we are expecting senators to continued work on the $60 billion hurricane sandy relief package. negotiations continue on avoiding the so-called fiscal cliff. both parties head to the white house today to discuss the fiscal cliff with

mr. cantor: mr. speaker, along those lines, the gentleman tas about the 2001-2003 tax cuts. he's talking about mostly the 98% that he refers to that continue to need that tax cut and i'd ask the gentleman if he's now saying if we need to pay for that tax cut? mr. hoyer: i absutely believe we need to pay for that tax cut over that 10-year plan that we came up with to get us to a place that we can agree on being the objective in 2022 or 2023 as to where we want to be as a country in terms of fiscal sustainability. a credible plan that will get us from here to there, including taking cognizance of the costs of those tax cuts. yes, i'm saying over the longer term we ought to pay for it. right now the economy is struggling. the reason none of us wants to raise taxes on the average working men and women of this country is because the economy is still struggling. we are going to have that issue in terms of the payroll tax cut. we did the payroll tax deduction which is controversial and hasn't been a lot of

mr. honda. mr. honda: thank you, mr. chairman. mr. speaker, it's with heavy heart but with great that i rise today and thank my departing california colleagues whose service will end at the end of 112th congress. pete stark is well-known for speaking his mind and standing up for what he believes in while giving a voice to the concerns of many who often feel as though they have none. he has helped millions of americans keep their health insurance coverage after leaving their jobs. ensure people who visit emergency rooms receive help regardless of their ability to pay and help in the affordable care act. he enacted legislation to increase the number of computers in our schools. he's been a champion on broad environmental issues like battling ozone depletion, carbon emissions and has been a proponent of peace. i am honored to gain work in fremont and hope his legacy. and his son, fish, who wrote and was published as an on ed piece independent -- op-ed piece indicating the true side, the real side of pete stark, his father. howard berman

mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: i move to proceed to h.r. 6516, which is the russia moll did a have a trade agreement. the presiding officer: the clerk will report the motion. the clerk: motion to proceed to calendar number 552, h.r. 6156, an act to authorize the extension of nondiscriminatory treatment, normal trade relations treatment, to products of the russian federation and moldova and to require reports on the compliance of the russian federation with its obligations as a member of the world trade organization and for other purposes. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from -- mr. mccain: i thank the -- the presiding officer: the senator from arizona. mr. mccain: i would like to thank the majority leader for his patience in allowing this legislation to be completed. i would note that there was 145 amendments, and many recorded votes and good debate and discussion over very important issues, and i thank the majority leader

mr. reid: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the armed services committee be discharged from further consideration of h.r. 139 -- i'm sorry. 1339. we now proceed to this matter. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: h.r. 1339, an act to designate the city of salem, massachusetts, as the birthplace of the national guard of the united states. the presiding officer: is there objection to proceeding to the measure? without objection. mr. reid: i further ask the bill be read a third time, passed, the motion to reconsider be considered phaeupbd laid on the table, with no intervening or debate and statements related to the measure be printed in the record at the appropriate place as if read. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent the committee on commerce be discharged from further consideration of h.r. 4212 and we now proceed to this matter. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: h.r. 4212, an act to prevent the introducti

mrs. feinstein: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from california. mrs. feinstein: mr. president, i'd like to make the opening statement, at least as the committee chair, on the bill that is before the snavment this bill is a simple bill. this is a house bill that extends -- reauthorizes the foreign intelligence surveillance act called the fisa amendment section 702. it the reauthorizes it until -- for five years until december 31, 2017. that is all it does. without senate action, these authorities to collect intelligence expire in four days. they's the reason it's the house bill before us. and that's the reason why i urge this body to vote "no" on all amendments, send this reauthorization -- well, it goes right to the president, if we accept the house bill, and get it signed. if it goes past the 1st, the program goes down, the program is interrupted. so this is important. it has the support of the director of national security, jim clapper, the attorney general eric holder, and other nat

mr. merkley: mr. president, just following up on the comments of my colleague from alaska, he has laid out some very important thoughts regarding the farm bill, regarding the debt ceiling, regarding social security, and i applaud him for coming to the floor and sharing his thoughts with his colleagues and with the american public. mr. president, these are big issues that we're wrestling with here in the u.s. senate. the farm bill is something that was passed in a bipartisan nature through the senate. it is over in the house. it will have to come back through here. we have a proposal from the republican leader put forward this morning that we were ready to vote on and that he objected to himself at the last second. but the debt ceiling is an important issue because it involves paying the bills on the decisions that have already been made and implemented by the u.s. government. it's not about spending more. it's about paying the bills on the spending that's already taken place, and it should be debated

mr. reid: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that a time determined by the majority leader with the concurrence of the republican leader, the senate proceed to the consideration of calendar number 502, h.r. 8. the presiding officer: is there objection to the request? without objection. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent that following leader remarks on sunday, december 30, the senate proceed to executive session and consider calendar numbered 518 under the previous order. further, that the use or yielding back of the time, we would proceed to consideration of calendar number 909 and proceed to vote on calendar number 909 and calendar number 518. that there be two minutes for debate equally divided in the usual form prior to each vote, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid on the table, no further motion in order be in order to the nominations, any statement to the nominations be printed in the record, that president obama be immediately notified of the senate's action and the sena

and mr. william walker who just spoke again just now. so thank you to the other applicants who are here again today. supervisor campos. >> thank you, madame chair. and thank you to all of the applicants who have come out. and for your interest in serving the city and county of for instance. it's always hard when you have more applicants that you have seats. i think any one of these applicants would do a great job in this position. so it's unfortunate that we only have six seats for nine applicants. so my hope is that whatever happens if for some reason you are not celebritied or appointed that you will continue to be engaged. people's schedules change, and their ability to do this may not be there. so i would keep -- i would hope that people would remain involved. i do have a quick question through the chair to the city attorney. is it possible if someone applied for a seat to appoint that person to a different seat at this point? or is that someone that would require us coming back? >> deput

mr. broun: mr. speaker, we've reached the fiscal cliff, not because we taxed too little, but because we spend too much. we're focusing on whom to raise taxes and by how much. this debate really should be about outrageous spending. many people believe that what's happening in greece cannot happen in the united states. but think about it. greece kept borrowing and spending until eventually they couldn't pay their public workers, take care of the elderly or the poor or deliver any of the services promised to their people. the united states is headed down the very same path. we'll be right back here having this same debate very soon if we don't cut spending. instead we'll be discussing the top 2%, next time it will be the top 50%. and so on. until we're all being attacked, every one. but spending so much that we still cannot meet our only gations -- obligations. this debate should be about spending, not taxes. so that we can give the american people what they want, a strong economy and a guarantee that

mr. harkin: mr. president, i understand we're in morning business. the president pro tempore: the senator is correct. mr. harkin: mr. president, i was disturbed to read in "the washington post" this morning that some kind of agreements are being made here. somehow that democrats have agreed to raise the level of, from $250,000 to $450,000, and that somehow there's been an agreement reached that we would keep the estate taxes at the $5 million level, at 35%. mr. president, this is one democrat that doesn't agree with that at all. what it looks like is it looks like all of the tax things are going to be made permanent, but all of the other things that the middle class in america depend on is extended for one year, maybe two years. one year or two years at the most; but the tax system is made permanent. i think that's grossly unfair. grossly unfair. and then again, we're going to lock in forever the idea that $450,000 a year is middle class in america? need i remind people that at $250,000 a year, that'

mr. chesapeake bay fets: mr. speaker, in -- mr. chaffetz: mr. speaker, first let me thank my colleague, mr. towns. this very well might be the final bill that is introduced that will pass this body. he is a good and decent gentleman. as a freshman when i came here four years ago, he was one of the most gracious and great people to work with. he was the chairman of our committee. i was a fresh newbie there and yet he helped me in every way with a great deal of respect across the aisle. i congratulate him on an amazing experience here in the congress. this is another example of a good bill. this gentleman is putting forward. i wish him nothing but the best in his -- the rest of his career and life and everything else. we need more good people like mr. towns participating in this congress. i congratulate him on this bill. urge the passage of this bill. and thank him for this work. mr. towns: will the gentleman yield? mr. chaffetz: i'm happy to yield. mr. towns: you're right this is probably my final bill. it's been great serving here in this congre

mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: following leader remarks we'll be in a haoerd of morning business for an hour. the majority will control the first half. republicans the final half. following morning business we'll resume consideration of the motion to proceed to s. 3637. the senate will recess as we normally do on tuesdays from 12:30 to 2:15 to allow for our weekly caucus meetings. at 2:15 there will be a cloture vote on the motion to proceed to s. 3637. there could be additional votes today. mr. president, i would note the presiding officer today, i have have -- i had the good fortune to come to the floor last week and talk about the presiding officer's tenure in the senate, some six years and talk about some of the accomplishments in that relatively short period of time as we call senate time. but i'm reminded again having spent on friday about an hour with bob kerrey. bob kerrey and i reflected back on his experience here in the senate and one memor