majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i'd like to take a moment this morning to discuss events in southeast kentucky. because of heavy rainfall over the weekend residents are enduring widespread flooding in several counties. homes have been evacuated. a number of people have been forced to relocate to temporary shelters. even where the flood waters have begun to recede, a number of roads remain blocked because of water or mudslides. we're thankful that no injuries have been reported at this point. my staff in eastern kentucky is working closely with local officials, monitoring the situation and receiving updates. as always we're deeply grateful to the emergency responders who rescued a number of people from their homes or their cars, helping their fellow kentuckians through this hardship, they've again earned our thanks. on an entirely different matter, yesterday the senate took an initial step toward considering proposals to address daca, border security, and other immigration issues. this...

mr. schumer: maybe one day. i ask unanimous consent the quorum be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. schumer: thank you, mr. president. now last night the senate took up a neutral bill on immigration to begin debate on legislation to protect the dreamers and provide additional border security. it's a debate upon which the lives of the dreamers depend. they were brought into this country as kids through no fault of their own. for many of them, america is the only country they remember. they learn in our schools. they work at our companies. they serve in our military. they're stitched into the very fabric of our nation. this week we have the opportunity to offer these dreamers protection and the chance to finally become americans. and this is supported in every state throughout the nation. 80% of americans, a majority of democrats, independents and republicans all support allowing the dreamers to stay here and become american citizens. and we have an...

the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. mcconnell: i ask consent that further proceedings under the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: now, mr. president, for months senators have been clamoring for a floor debate on daca. border security and other urgent issues pertaining to immigration. we certainly had ample time to prepare. now the week we set aside for this debate has arrived. the week my democratic colleagues insisted that we dedicate to this issue. the clock is ticking but the debate has yet to begin. that's because our democratic colleagues have yet to yield back any of their postcloture time so we can begin this important debate. if we're going to resolve these matters this week, we need to get moving. in my view, the proposal unveiled yesterday by senator grassley and a number of other senators offers our best chance to find a solution. i've committed that an amendment process will be fair and both sides will have...

of further amendment. mr. schumer: mr. president? the presiding officer: is there objection? mr. schumer: reserving the right to object. the presiding officer: the democratic leader. mr. schumer: mr. president, i appreciate the process the majority leader agreed to this week, but the proposal he just offered does not address the underlying issues of this debate, why we're here. it doesn't address dreamers nor does it address border security. as i said this morning, the senate must focus on finding a bipartisan solution that addresses those two issues, dreamers and border security. rather than the partisan proposal offered by the republican leader, i suggest we consider two proposals inside the scope of debate. one for each side. let the republicans offer the president's plan in the form of legislation carried by the senators from iowa and arkansas, which the leader supports, and the democrats will offer the bipartisan coons-mccain bill, narrow legislation that protects the dreamers,...