this legislation is commonly referred to as the farm bill, but it's also a food bill. on that note it falls short. to be clear this is miles ahead of where we started with what i consider a truly heartless republican proposal, and i know that our conferees worked hard to make improvements to this bill, in particular i want to thank collin peterson and the members of the democratic side of the aisle who worked -- who are dedicated to work to improve this bill. but it still leaves too many families behind. the snap cut in this bill may seem on paper -- small on paper, but it's not to the families that it will affect. it's not to the food banks that are already stretched well beyond their means. in new york city, 280,000 households are expected to see their benefits drop under this bill. the benefits that don't go anywhere near far enough to begin with. we see every day in new york city how deep the need for food assistance is. how food banks and community hunger organizations are doing everything they can to provide food to hungry families. and they are joined by citizen

we have introduced a bill with democrats that has been supported on a bipartisan basis. we introduce the senate bill. border security part of that and included the committee passed in the house of representatives security provisions. we try to appeal to the republicans in the house into the republican led homeland security committee to include their component. we think that is a bipartisan bill that could enjoy the majority of the house. i also urge republicans if they do not agree with that, i urge mr. eric cantor to put one of on the floor. we would probably vote against them. if that is their alternative, that we think they ought to move forward on them. or for that matter put the house homeland security bill on the floor. most of us would be and can -- inclined to support that bill. indicated is that he does not want any of the bills to be used as a conferencing device this week. that is unfortunate. hopefully speaker boehner is looking for ways to move his caucus forward on this issue. >> a shift to appropriations. you bought yourself some time last month with the bu

bill. and it has been approved by the house twice as a free-standing bill. indeed, it has been part of bills or amendments sponsored or cosponsored by chairman johnson, senator crapo, senator shelby. i want it thank the authors and managers of the underlying bills for their work. they have are a done an extraordinary job in, wog to in working to e ensure that my amendment quo be considered. i believe that this amendment will add to the goals of the underlying bill and given the bipartisan support thor this concept, i would hope it could be adopted about by a voice -- by a vis voice vote. before i leave the floor, madam president, just another point. another emergencying that is facing up -- emergency that is facing us, unemployment insurance. and i would ask if we could continue this bipartisan dialogue we've had and salute my colleagues on the other side of the aisle who have been principled in their pursuit of this objective and we can move on that issue also. and with that, madam president, i would yield the floor. a senator: madam president? the presidin

it's a bipartisan bill. it's >> lot cheaper to suppres suppress -- it's a lot cheaper to suppress fires at the beginning than to let them get out of control. it's also a lot cheaper to prevent fires from happening in the first place. i want to talk more about that. if you look at current projections, they only suggest that fires are going to increase in intensity and duration and it underscores the need for us to get ahead of this growing threat to our communities. again, not just in colorado but all our country. there are fiscally responsible reforms in this wildfire disaster funding act which would help us confront the skyrocketing threat that modern fires pose to our state's fiscal health as agencies work to protect life and property while being responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars. and that's just one of the many reasons i'm going to continue to lead the fight, it's a bipartisan fight, it's a bipartisan cause to see if we can't get this approach in place. this is a plan that would really help us with

clip a bill to prohibit tax the clerk: a bill to prohibit taxpayer funded abortions. >> madam speaker, i have a motion. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from wisconsin seek recognition? >> i have a motion to recommit at the desk. the speaker pro tempore: is the gentlewoman opposed to the bill. ms. moore: yem, i'm opposed to the bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman qualify the clerk will report the motion. the clerk: ms. moore of wisconsin moves to recommit the bill h.r. 7 to the judiciary where the -- to report the same back forthwith with the following amendment, add at the end of the bill the following and conform the table of contents accordingly. rule of construction. section one. protecting the medical privacy of women including victims of rape and incest. nothing in section 101 shall be authorized to thars any -- authorize any party to violate the medical privacy of -- the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will suspend. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from tennessee seek recognition? >> i reserve a point of order against the motion to r

the omnibus spending bill was a nice exception. my bill would effectuate that task force, the records of the providers in said before going through the providers seeking the connections with a number that it would go through the fis a court and get approval. alas there were an emergency, exit circumstances exception where we go straight to the providers can get the information and the court decides that it was not proper request it would be. that is what my bill would do and is consistent with what the task force recommended. >> the public advocate in the roles of they would play. a former judge has weighed in and says if you put a public advocate person on this court it was slow everything down. >> i would with all due respect think that was a bit of a red herring argument because what the judge was positing there was if we had an advocate in every case before with everyone, i don't think anyone is suggesting that. the we are suggesting is that in these cases where the court, asked not to act like a criminal court that gets a reque

so over 25 years ago i introduced a bill in the u.s. house of representatives to ban smoking on airplanes. hard to believe young people still don't believe it today, there was a time when half the airplane was smoking and half wasn't smoking. in fact, everybody was breathing secondhand smoke. and we were successful. we passed the bill in the house of representatives on a bipartisan vote and it came over here to the senate before i was here. frank lautenberg, the late senator from new jersey took it up, did a great job and the two of us together made it the law of the land. we didn't know what we had done other than to make airplane flight a little more convenient, safe and comfortable. it turns out it was a tipping point. it turns out that when we banned smoking on airplanes, people started asking questions 25 years ago. well, if it's not a good idea to smoke on airplanes, why is it a good idea to smoke on trains and buses and offices and hospitals and schools and restaurants and taverns and every place we go? so today if you walked into

republican leader bob huff has already intrope duesed a bill -- i row duesed a bill -- introduced a bill, banning comparing this to firefighters and police officers who are banned from striking because they provide an essential service. >>> two more bay area residents have died from the flu, bringing the total number to 13. the santa clara county public health department tells us the two people who died were 62 and 61 years of age. officials have not said when they died. the most worrisome strain this year is the h1n1 virus. doctors say they don't believe the flu will match the 2009 pandemic which killed more than 600 californians. more than 30 people have died statewide from the flu this season which early peaks in early february. >>> as flu concerns grow, more people are rushing to get vaccinated. several bay area hospitals and pharmacies are reporting a temporary shortage. this weekend, flu shot clinics were packed. some had lines out the door, many hospitals and businesses are hoping to get more flu shot vaccines, later this week. >>> the foster farms chicken processing plant in cent

i want a farm bill. i want to support the farm bill conference. but from the beginning of this process, i made my position very clear, that i will not vote for a farm bill that makes hunger worse in america. and this farm bill fails that basic test. if this bill passes, hundreds of thousands of vulnerable americans will have less to eat. period. some people will will say, well, an $8 billion cut in snap is better than what the house republicans wanted to do. that's a strange argument, madam speaker. it's like saying, thank goodness the burglar only took the silver because he could have taken the jewelry too. the fact of the matter is, that any cut to snap will be piled on top of the cut that already went into effect last fall. and any cut to snap will result in more americans going hungry and any cut in snap will increase the financial burdens on state and local governments. there are those, madam speaker, who claim that the heat and eat program is some sort of a loophole. it isn't. it's a policy decision

this is not a free spending bill. this is a smart spending bill within constraints so that we're also mindful of reducing our debt over time, mindful about paying down our bills, so that's what's so really remarkable about this and why i'm going to be so proud to support it, and i hope we can get a strong a vote as the house did on this bill to show strong bipartisan support, because while it does address our debt and our deficit, it does so in a smart way with investments in things that we have agreed on really make a difference to the private sector. and i can tell you in louisiana, this is going to have immediately positive effects, io i want to highlight a few of those now in terms of the homeland security bill which i am proud and happy to be the chair of the homeland security appropriations bill. and i want to also say that i have worked very closely with senator carper, my colleague who is the chair of the authorizing committee, and our ranking members, senator coburn and senator coats as we authorize stronger p

the senate has passed a bipartisan conference immigration bill. the senate is debating unemployment insurance. meanwhile, the house has not dedicated a single minute, single second to legislative floor time to any immigration reform bill that would address identity theft. let's move forward, pass bills that matter to the american people rar than political -- rather than political bills that aren't going anywhere. i urge a no vote on the resolution and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. mr. burgess: thank you. i yield myself the balance of the time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. burgess: mr. speaker, one of the questions for people who have been watching this debate, i'm sure one of the questions they have, is there any difference as to how the private sector is treated when -- if and date a breach occurs versus a federal agency? the simple fact of the matter is there is a difference. private sector is governed under state laws and, yes, some federal regulations as well

has -- this bill overall has a huge impact on the u.s. economy, but my subcommittee's part of the bill also has a very significant bearing on the u.s. economy that will continue this recovery, get people back to work, get people focused on domestic jobs and the fact that we make things here and grow things here is critically important for our future. just look, for example, at what it's doing in my home state. if i could, i could go around to each one of these desks in the senate and talk about specific things it's doing in everyone's state, but just in my home state, it's providing funding for many of our universities, including the university of arkansas at fayetteville and arkansas state university in jonesboro to conduct cutting edge agricultural research. it's supporting economic development grants for the delta regional authority, which is in our region of the country, to boost quality of life in the delta region. it's providing our kids with a safe and stable food supply by supporting, again, in our state it's the arkansas children'

enter oh -- [laughter] bill: a year into the second term? polite and nice and not comment on that. bill: at the end of that clip, he said what do you think you say in a concession speech? and you ask, it's finished? >> yes. i know. i always believed he was going to be the president of united states. in my heart i just knew the country needed him, and i believed he was going to be there. i knew he was going to make a huge difference for americans' lives. we've spent so much time on the road, we felt and felt the hurt of so many people that were suffering without jobs, and i really believed mitt was going to be there to really help the country and help the country get back on its feet economically. bill: the fill maker is greg whitely. they did a terrific job, and you gave them incredible access, too, up to the point where he won michigan, and he shows up at the door in a bathrobe. but he was filming your family back in 2006. and you decided not to release anything after the first campaign. but since you believe this is his last -- >> right. bi

that can be done and get the bill passed. it's got a number of items do i support like specialty crops. we've been working on for sometime. i'm pleased there will be or beganics have an opportunity -- organics have an opportunity to get crop insurance. this bill, as i say, takes allegedly the savings from rect payments that have been opposed for years but takes the savings and plows them back in to an enriched crop insurance program. it cuts $6 billion for conservation. yes, there are some improvements in terms of administration, but at the end of the day cuts $6 billion when land and water is under pressure and needs it the most. this is short sided. it's very likely going to caught a lot more in the long run for reasons that my friend from wisconsin pointed out in terms of setting these targets higher. it is more generous in terms of rejecting a provision that was included in both the house and the senate version to limit payments to individual farms to $50,000. the conference committee increases the limit to $125,000 and reopens a lo

this is not a partisan issue, this is not a partisan bill. h.r. 7 reflects the bipartisan, bicameral agreement that our government should not be in the business of subsidizing abortions. this is not a radical idea, madam speaker, it's a commonsense proposal that codifies a long-standing practice. therefore i again urge my colleagues to vote for this rule and h.r. 7. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentlelady from new york is recognized. ms. slaughter: madam speaker, i am delighted to yield one minute to the gentlewoman from california, the democrat leader, ms. pelosi. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. pelosi: thank you, madam speaker. i thank the gentlelady for yielding. i commend her for her long-standing and strong support and respect for women for their judgment, for the size and timing of their families, for women, when women succeed, america succeeds and congresswoman, ranking member slaughter has been a great proponent of that. today the presi

it was in the form of a bill. we have agreed on what the 302 allegation is. the money we will spend on non-entitlement money. that figure is agreed upon at 1.012 trillion dollars. a little over a trillion dollars. my view is that is the number that we ought to have any kind of cr on of any type. the problem is if we do not pass bills in the administration would allocate that money and that is not the congress responsibility to do that. in any event, i will be supportive of a few days extension to give the committee time to get its work done. >> four minutes left. >> if you could give us what can congress truly work on this year that will be able to get done? what are you most confident about? >> congress can certainly get something done if the republicans are prepared to put on the floor pieces that will enjoy bipartisan support will not simply be message bills. we are very hopeful that the unemployment bill gets it done short-term and long-term. e are very hopeful we will address comprehensive immigration reform. we think that can get done. it got 68 votes. i

back on the show soon coming up yesterday with the help of six republicans the senate moved forward a bill that would extend the nation's unemployment insurance program by three months but republicans in the house is willing to extend the buy. a lifeline for millions of the unemployed americans that are more in tonight's lower liberal rumble. look. i would rather as questions to people in positions of power instead of speaking on their behalf and that's why you can find my show larry king now right here on our t.v. question more. i know c.n.n. the m.s.m. b.c. fox news have taken some not slightly but the fact is i admire their commitment to cover all sides of the story just in case one of them happens to be accurate. that was funny but it's close and for the truth from i think. it's because one full attention and the mainstream media work side by side with you is actually on here. and our teen years we have a different breed. ok because the news of the world just is not this funny i'm not laughing dammit i'm not how. you guys talk to the jokes well handled it makes sense that i'm. i. wedne

this is truly a bipartisan bill. as i explained to the republican leader yesterday, i've had a number of republicans come to me to see if there is a way this bill could be moved quickly. it's become a desperate situation with so many problems. construction has been in some areas brought to a halt. hopefully we'll work something out on this in the immediate future. mr. president, following leader remarks and those of the republican leader the senate will resume consideration of the unemployment insurance stupbgs. the time until 12:30 will be divided. the senate will recess from 12:30 until 2:15 as we do every tuesday for our caucus meetings. at 2:30 there will be up to two roll call votes, first a cloture vote on the reed of rhode island substitute amendment. if cloture is not invoked there will be a srebgt cloture -- secd cloture vote on the underlying bill. mr. president, we've had some good discussions. and i'm going to, as i know the republican leader will discuss, if there is a way to move forward on unemployment

h.r. 7, a bill being considered by the republicans on the judiciary committee is a shameful attempt to deny a woman a right given to her under our constitution in pursuit of an ideology that has been repeatedly rejected by the american people. ms. brownley: madam speaker, that this house would even consider a bill that would require a woman to prove to the i.r.s. that she was raped or the victim of incest in order to have access to affordable health care is beneath the dignity of this body. it is beyond my comprehension. it is reprehensible. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from utah seek recognition? the gentleman is recognized. >> madam speaker, here we are entering this sixth year of the obama administration and we have reached a new milestone. it is a shameful and discouraging milestone that directly affects the lives of every working american family. after seven straight years of decline, this great nation has fallen out of the top 10 most economically free nations. mr. stewart: the united states of america, the nati

this is not a perfect bill but on balance it is a good bill and i intend to vote in favor of it and i urge my colleagues to do the same. i want to take a second in bidding a certain early farewell to my colleague, mr. wolfe, to thank chairman wolfe and to thank ranking member fattah for allowing language in their bill which was asked for by the president which was at times a little hanging on the ropes, language that would allow for the first time in 115 years the neesm commonwealth of puerto rico to vote on their political future. i thank personally for that and i stand ready to vote for this bill as soon as it comes up for a vote. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from new york reserves. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. rogers: i yield two minutes to the distinguished chairman of the agriculture subcommittee on appropriations. the gentleman from alabama, mr. aderholt. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. aderholt: thank you, madam speaker. for the time. mr. chairman, thank you for the time. and also madam speaker,

to force people in washington to take action at the federal level way as you know there are a bunch of bills currently being proposed at the federal level not of the past so far the president is considering. some of the changes recommended by his viewpoint i think this is really a way to push the federal government for it on its own review efforts it will be interesting to see what sort of reform efforts are pushed to be made there the president is going to come out at the beginning of this year and announce which of the forty six recommendations has him picked panel came out with which ones he'll support and there seems to be momentum building for stronger reforms in congress that senators like ron wyden and rand paul and congressman like jim crow years just a marsh are pushing as opposed to that weak watered down reform that some of the spy chief so there's a intel committee chairs like dianne feinstein and mike rogers are pushing but one thing that's strange about this law that it's going out in california and it's probably going to be introduced in utah and in other cities own as well ar

it's a prohibitive cost for many families to undertake. this bill ensures that any homeowner who can successfully appeal a flood map finding will be reimbursed by fema for their spence, making the system fair for the homeowner and giving fema an added incentive to get it right. finally, this bill does something very important in creating a flood insurance rate map advocate within fema, someone to educate and advocate for homeowners. one of the complaints my office has heard is that fema has not been responsive to homeowners concerns or questions about changes in their policy. the creation of this position, an advocate, will do several things. the advocate will educate policyholders about their flood risks and options in choosing a policy. the advocate will assist those who believe their flood map is wrong and assist them through the appeals process. the advocate will improve outreach and coordination with local officials, community leaders and congress. my colleagues, senator hoeven and senator heitkamp, have also done great work on this bill to ens

that can be done and get the bill passed. it's got aumber of items do i support like specialty crops. we've been working on for sometime. i'm pleased there will be or beganics have an opportunity -- organics have an opportunity to get crop insurance. this bill, as i say, takes allegedly the savings from rect payments that have been opposed for years but takes the savings and plows them back in to an enriched crop insurance program. it cuts $6 billion for conservation. yes, there are some improvements in terms of administration, but at the end of the day cuts $6 billion when land and water is under pressure and needs it the most. this is short sided. it's very likely going to caught a lot more in the long run for reasons that my friend from wisconsin pointed out in terms of setting these targets higher. it is more generous in terms of rejecting a provision that was included in both the house and the senate version to limit payments to individual farms to $50,000. the conference committee increases the limit to $125,000 and reopens a loop

, but i'm a big fan. bill chris weimann, is here. he's a top fighter, and he's going to tell us what it's like to be number one. bill: and he's tough. jenna: he holdings that american flag -- he holds that american flag, you'd be a fan too. bill: with a growing number of veterans leaving us, national cemeteries are running out of room. a new push to find a final resting place for those who have given the ultimate sacrifice. >> one of the benefits is to be buried with dignity. all veterans are entitled to that. and, again, i think they should have that opportunity, not be a victim of where they live. don't wait for presidents' day to save on a new mattress. sleep train's presidents' day sale is on now. save up to $500 on beautyrest and posturepedic. get a sealy queen set for just $399. even get 3 years interest-free financing on tempur-pedic. plus, free delivery, set-up, and removal of your old set. keep more presidents in your wallet. sleep train's presidents' day sale is on now. superior service, best selecti

then, used a budget tool called reconciliation to ram another bill through the senate with a simple majority to change items in the first bill. now, that's not how madison intended a bicameral congress to work. the next point that madison makes -- quote -- "secondly the necessity of a senate is not less indicated by the propensity of all single and numerous assemblies to yield to the impulse of sudden and violent passions and to be seduced by factious leaders into intemperate and person -- pernicious resolutions. examples on this subject might be cited without number and proceedings within the united states and as well as from the history of other nations, but a proposition that will not be contradicted need not be proved. all that need be remarked is that a body which is to correct this infirmity ought to itself to be free from and consequently ought to be less numerous. it ought, moreover, to possess great firmness and consequently ought to hold its authority by a tenure of considerable duration" -- end of quote. now, that describes what he thought the senate should be, what the s

guest: i want to address his point about passing a jobs bill. e is absolutely correct -- since 2007, 2008, we have not passed in a jobs bill. democrats will say the stimulus was a jobs bill, but that was just a big sinkhole of more debt with very little and results. that is something we did predict will suck you cannot have the government centrally planned how to grow the government. the best thing to do, and this is something that president obama can really ride the coattails on in his last few years of office, last three years in office, and that is progrowth tax reform. he has talked about it, he has got democrats in the senate and in the house who are excited to do it. everybody is on board, but for some reason he will not take the leadership to do it. i think the reason is because democrats want a big tax increase out of it. revenue neutral tax reform, which is what occurred in 1986 with tip o'neill and president reagan, is something we should do again. we can lower the rates, broaden the base, and the economy will i think ito end, and will

the clerk: motion to proceed to calendar number 266, s. 1846, a bill to delay the implementation of certain i guess pros of the biggert-waters insurance reform act of 2012 and for other purposes. mr. reid: mr. president, i would note the absence of a quorum. the president pro tempore: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: +srao*eud mr. president? the presiding officer: the leader. the senate in a quorum call. mr. reid: i ask that it be vitiated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: following my remarks, the senate will resume consideration of the unemployment insurance extension. filing deadline is 3:00 p.m.tained at deadline for all second-degree amendments to the reed styt substitute is 4:30 today. there have been some discussions going on. the republican leader and i have spoken, i have spoken to democratic and republican senators, as i'm sure my frienden shall th the republicar has done. we have one vote at 5:30 on robert wilkins to be a circuit court judge. we will see if we will go afford with the two additional votes on cloture tonight or put them over until tomor

a lot of time. we are planning to do appropriations bill. it will be shocking in washington since web and agreed upon number potential working does. that will take a tremendous amount of floor time so we we lived somewhat with what we can do through the summer so we'll have to be strategic on what we take on through the scheduled. >> that was an excellent conversation. time to wrap up. thank you very much for coming and sharing your thoughts and help lay that made a lot of news. thank you very much for your time. now i'd like to welcome, i think you guys -- we are shuffling right away, stage right. i'm a reporter for a reason. thanks, guys did not like to welcome congressman kevin mccarthy from california and congresswoman debbie wasserman schultz, the chair of the democratic national committee. [applause] >> so it's just me and you. >> good morning. >> how are you speak with very well. >> i've been asking for a one on and are a long time with senator mccarthy. i finally get one and it's on live television. one question we're asking everybody

bill. that's over a period of two congresses. i voted for and supported the bill at every one of those junctures. i believe our country needs a good farm policy, which means of course an adequate and yet limited safety net for farmers because so much about farming is beyond the control of the farmers, and i'm not talking just about natural disasters. without a doubt, our farmers face uncontrollable risk every year. the farm bill provides farmers then with a number of programs to mitigate risk. agriculture remains a changing industry. unbelievable technological advancements are taking place right before our eyes. farmers can now control irrigation equipment and monitor grain bins on the phone from the other side of the world. agricultural technology is progressing so quickly. five years from now when we debate the next farm bill, autonomous trademarks may well -- tractors may well be doing a considerable amount of the fieldwork in america. farm policy has also changed over time. unfortunately, the majority of farm program benefits

, perhaps a particularly similar bill. how important was that to your members? there has been a lot of sort of back and forth about whether this bill would sort of stop the trolls, as people like to say, or whether it would sort of weaken b the judicial system in terms of how patents are concerned. walk us through your thinking on that. >> chairman goodlatte moved tremendously quickly on that with bipartisan support. it is very important. from the shawlest one-person -- smallest one-person company. what we're finding, what we're hearing is that the ceo, the cxo, the executive level, time is increasingly taken up defending threats of litigation. so every company's getting letters all the time, and they're extortion letters. sadly, it's legalized extortion. and it's not good for the competitiveness of the united states. so even those that are patent owners, and almost all my members are at tent ownsers of some type, they say we're getting to the point where we have to do something. this is the strongest, most passionate issue

there is an appetite for pursuing a particularly similar bill. how important was that to your members? there has been a lot of sort of back and forth about whether this bill would sort of stop the trolls or if it would weaken the judicial system. what are your thoughts? >> he held the hearing in the bipartisan way. it is important. 80% of the companies are small businesses. we're hearing the ceo and the top level engineering staff is increasingly taking up defending patent litigation or threats of litigati l litigation. every l every company is getting letters and saying we have to do something. we are getting hit with a troll letter because there is a function on the copy machine we bought. so this is a strong issue i represent our members on. this is equivalent to the card check. >> you mentioned the demand issue. and this was interesting given there were a lot of members of the house that wanted to see the stronger reform provisions in the bill. we will see where the senate goes on that aspect. but one of the concerns people have with that part

when we left here on december 20, we had to produce a bill by january 15. that's tomorrow. that's when the continuing resolution expires. we're asking for a 72-hour extension not to finish the job, but so that we can do our deliberations on the floor in both the house and senate. we worked day and night. i joked and said during the deliberations i wish i was as thin as i am stretched because we really worked at it. over the holidays our staffs and our subcommittee chairmen worked. the only time they took off was christmas eve and christmas day and also -- so we want to thank each and every one of them for their dedication. as i said, this bill required very difficult choices. it meant give-and-take. and it meant more giving on both sides because there were no big takes. we worked under a very tight budget. $1 trillion. it sounds like a lot of money. and you know what? it is. but of the $1 trillion, $600 billion was in the department of defense. $600 billion was in d.o.d.. the other $3 billion was in discretionary spending for all of the domestic agencies. and then it comes o

now, milker bill, first of all, has absolutely nothing to do with the dairy industry. a milker bill is a bill that is introduced by a member of congress, a senator, and the bill is not really designed to pass. the idea of writing the law is not the hope this is going to be good policy or going to change things. it's primarily introduced to milk campaign donations or lobbying contracts for family members and friends of the congressman. so for example, you might introduce a bill that says, we need to raise federal excise taxes on large oil companies. you introduce that bill. what's going to happen when you introduce that bill? you're going to scare the daylights out of people in the oil business, which is precisely what that bill is designed to do. and they're going to come running to that office saying, you know, we're concerned about this bill. what's going on? and in the process of that exchange they're going to end up making donations and may end up hiring family members of that legislator or former aides to serve as lobbyists. the milker bill can be reintroduced again

they brought in a lot of musicians. bill clinton loved music, much like president obama and michelle bringing in various musicians, the clintons did as well. they also turned it into something of a sleepover place. a lot of friends stayed there often. no one actually lived there like under roosevelt. also a lot of big donors would get rewarded with a night in the lincoln bedroom. >> let me take a couple of calls and then we have to talk about the investigations and legal troubles of the clintons as a political partnership. ellie, you are on the air. >> you had a funny look on your face there. this has to do with something that was brought up last week with barbara bush. a person talked about how the bushes put the fear of the lord in the press and they would not get called back to the white house if they printed something that barbara bush was not in agreement with. barbara bush knew her husband had been having an affair and so did a number of the press, but they would not acknowledge that. hillary clinton, she lied that she

if this is a good idea, why is the g.o.p. bill limiting this requirement to only marketplace websites? it's just a missed opportunity. democrats firmly support strong data security and breach notification legislation. if the republicans were serious about the security of personally identical identification on the web, instead of bringing up this bill, they could have reached out to democrats and developed a bipartisan bill. indeed, when democrats were in the majority the democrat-run house passed bipartisan legislation to provide for consumer notification in the event of a breach was introduced in the previous congress, and the republicans are still playing political games. if they want to work with us to bring to the floor a serious bipartisan data security breach notification legislation, then they should simply do it. and the rules committee the other, one of the members asked on the republican side if the administration has a position on the bill. and the administration clearly opposes the bill. they put out an s.a.p. which st

bill: interesting. what impact of agotiation between the security agreement with kabul and afghanistan have on its ability to bring sergeant bergdahl home, jennifer? >> reporter: well, remember, bill, the administration has set now yet another new deadline for this security agreement with the afghan government, with president hamid karzai to be negotiated by january 28th, that's later this month. it does not look like they were going to be successful in those negotiations. president karzai is digging his heels in. he does not want to sign off on that agreement before the an election in the spring. so if they don't get an agreement, a security agreement with the afghan government and all u.s. troops pull out at the end of 2014, bowe bergdahl could be left behind, and it could make it much more difficult in the future for the u.s. military to try and find be him. he's believed to be held in pakistan right now. bill: so difficult for his family to hear that. jennifer griffin from the pentagon on that. martha: now to this o

committee on a five-year farm bill. i know how difficult it is to bring a complex five-year bill to the floor and ultimately to final passage after a conference. i don't in any way diminish the difficulty in that. i know, i have been there, i have done that. while there have been many significant changes in agriculture policies since the 1981 farm bill, which i had the privilege to write, one thing has remained the same -- no farm bill is easy and no farm bill is perfect, but to finalize a farm bill and to make it better than the situation today, the senate and the house have to work together to reach a bipartisan agreement. it means whether you are a republican or democrat, forget the symbolism, start dealing with substance. stop rhetoric, go to reality. the conference committee is making steady progress. chairwoman stabenow, a democrat, chairman lucas, a republican, deserve credit and our appreciation for working closely together to bridge the wide differences between our two bills, and the cuts included will not go un

the omnibus spending bill is a nice exception. ill would effectuate the recommendation of that task force and leave the records to the providers and say before going to the providers seeking the connections with a number, that if we go through the fisa court, we would get approval unless there was an emergency. there would be exceptions where you could go straight to the provider and get the information. if the court decides that was not a proper request, it would be expunged. that's what my bill would do it think it's consistent with what the task force recommended. host: what about the public advocate and the role they would play? a former judge of this secret court has weighed in and said if you put a public advocate person on this court, it will slow everything down. guest: with all due respect to the judge, i think that was a bit of a red herring argument. the judge was saying that if we had an advocate in every case before the fisa court, i don't think anybody is suggesting that. we are suggesting that in these cases where th

if this is a good idea, why is the g.o.p. bill limiting this requirement to only marketplace websites? it's just a missed opportunity. democrats firmly support strong data security and breach notification legislation. if the republicans were serious about the security of personally identical identification on the web, instead of bringing up this bill, they could have reached out to democrats and developed a bipartisan bill. indeed, when democrats were in the majority the democrat-run house passed bipartisan legislation to provide for consumer notification in the event of a breach was introduced in the previous congress, and the republicans are still playing political games. if they want to work with us to bring to the floor a serious bipartisan data security breach notification legislation, then they should simply do it. and the rules committee the other, one of the members asked on the republican side if the administration has a position on the bill. and the administration clearly opposes the bill. they put out an s.a.p. which st

a budget. the farm bill. i think that there is a series of measures that are going to break the dysfunction, at least to an extent. flood insurance. infrastructure. you know, everybody in that congress has railroads and roads and airports and schools. they're all decaying. metro north. and the amtrak line that i'm willing to bet a lot of folks here rode today is a 20th century track. 50, 70 years old in some places. and your train going home is going to break down, is going to stop just like last thursday night in the new haven line, people were stranded out on the tracks in one of the coldest days of the year. soverb has a stake in infrastructure. and there are ways to do an infrastructure bank a railroad trust fund, this is an idea that in the absence of earmarks, i came to congress in the post- earmark era, the senate had abandoned earmarks to the -- over the protests of many of my more seasoned colleagues -- >> would you like them to come back? do you think that would help? >> i think what's needed is mayb

the bill is offset over ten years. it relies on a budget gimmick that assumes that the congress would not raise the nfib cap. the program would delay payment of insurance claims until additional resources became available. so in reality this bill will add another $2.1 billion in debt to the nfip while making no dhiengs addressing affordability issues. even the administration states that delaying implementation of these reforms would further erode the financial position of the nfip, which is already $24 billion in debt. this delay would also reduce fema's ability to pay future claims made by all policyholders. nfip is unaffordable as the current program is already more than $24 billion in debt. madam president, i -- the pending makers a bill to delay the implementation of certain provisions of the biggert-waters flood insurance reform act of 2012 and to real estate form the national association of registered agents and brokers would violate the senate paygo rule and increasing the deficit. therefore, i raise a point of order on this m

bill: they're a little by the ways away. spacecraft, right. >> that's right. bill: there is another craft that drops off of it and that propels forward to what mach 1 1/2 i believe or? >> the spacecraft is the little one that drops off. that is the one that will carry people up into space and bring them back. the big ship you see carrying it, that is the mothership. it will take it to launch altitude, tens of thousands of feet up. it basically gives them a jump-start to get into space. it is easier to get into space from that altitude. bill: you cover this stuff every day. branson is saying it will happen. can you say it will happen. >> in 2004 when sir richard branson announced this it was a pie-in-the-sky. hadn't been built. a very tiny version of this ship made a test flight with one guy aboard. here we are almost 10 years later and they have the, the ingredients for commercial spaceflight. 2 could happen this year. bill: price tag would be what? >> $250,000 right now. branson said that could go down a little bit. bill: a

that is a change versus part of the obama bills we have seen. it is to a lot of folks, it seems like a good government bill. and why wouldn't you do this. and the democrats who opposed it said it is not necessary and so why go a head and do this and why add another recording requirement in the middle of getting the website right. the basic question is, if it is good government why vote for this? and the most important number as you said more than 290 and that is two-thirds. if the administration vetoed it and got through the senate it was why the administration didn't issue a veto threat. it didn't want to be shown up by its own part. >> it would force the administration to give congress weekly updates and as to the status of healthcare.gov and how many people are signing up and democrats are not happy about. this what hhs said these measures are too costly and unnecessary. does it raise the point that this is a republican strategy from now to the midterms and they know they cannot repeal obama care and they will subject it to death by a thousand

this is a side issue that wouldn't have that effect. bill: the hobby lobby case we'll probably get a ruling in june. do any of these challenges on contraception, do they have the potential to derail obamacare? >> i think they have a potential to make it much more difficult to implement. when you have so many exemptions it becomes an inconsistent law and makes it harder to follow. bill: thank you, and happy new year to you. we'll see you on special report, i'm guessing you will be there. >> thanks. patti ann: russian president vladimir putin vowing to take on terrorists. can the government protect athletes and spectators. is inequality in america the new catch phrase for progressives? >> this inequality problem bedevils the entire country and i can tell from you my work, much of the world. bill: firefighters in minneapolis working to get inside a burned out apartment building after a fire rookd three-story structure on new year's day. >> there is no better calling than saving human lives. and today they saved a good deal of human lives. bill:

a great weekend. see you monday. bill: good morning, everybody, a fox news alert. a health crisis after a toxic chemical spill. 300 thousand against 9 counties in west virginia. they cannot bathe or use tap water in any way. martha: the white house declared this a federal disaster. the white house says it's potentially harmful if swallowed and it all started with a peculiar smell. >> it's kind of a sweet smell. it smells almost like candy. >> we are concerned that people -- we have had complaints about eyes burning and things of that nature. it's best to stay inside until we get this taken care of. >> it concerns me a lot. i have children and animals. we swim and tube in the river. we are in the water. martha: the shelves are bare of water, juice, ice. police are standing by to keep order. >> officials say a foaming agent leaked from a plant in charleston, west virginia and ended up in the elk river. it happened at freedom industry which special eyes in producing chemicals for the mining and cement industry. the governor issued a state of emergency after his office

most splendid the deputies also approved a bill on internal affairs authorities in the second reading the document prohibits a policeman to use weapons without warning. we remind that this proposal creates certain risk for citizens and causes many debates among people official party members submitted a bill on state support for small and medium businesses to the government this was imported by the party leader as i've been a wash of everything in the office sent a communication service according to him legislation in our country is focused mainly on small businesses the actual production begins with a medium sized businesses. the deputy prove it by citing information of the statistics agency. on average the ship employed in medium size businesses is twenty seven percent in the final production to sixty four percent. this means that medium sized businesses employ three times less people than the small businesses to produce twice as much as i put a wash of also said that the party members said the deputy inquiry on the introduction o

this is a good bill. it passed the house with strong bipartisan support and i urge a yes vote when we take up the farm bill conference report next week. with that, madam president, i yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: o quorum call: mr. sessions: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from alabama. mr. sessions: i would ask that the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. sessions: madam president, i want to share some remarks this afternoon concerning a very important issue and that is the financial condition of working americans. things are not good for them at this point in time. just a few weeks ago, on january 5, jean spurling, the key economic advisor to president barack obama, appeared on cnn's "face the nation." he said -- quote -- "most of the people are desperately looking for jobs." "you know, our economy still three people looking for every job opening." three pe

and that's a bill to do exactly the opposite: to impose additional sanctions against iran, do it now, and hold it in abeyance. before casting a vote, senators should ask themselves, what would happen if the bill passes and a promised veto by the president is not sustained? i'd like to give you my view. i sincerely believe that the p5-plus-1 negotiations with iran were end and the best opportunity in more than 30 years to make a major change in iranian behavior would go, too. a change that would not only open all kinds of economic opportunities for the iranian people but help change the course of a nation. its destiny, in fact, could be changed. passing additional sanctions now would only play into the hands of those in iran who are most eager to see diplomacy fail. iranian conservatives, hard-liners, will attack president rouhani and foreign minister zarai for seeking a nuclear compromise. they argue that iran exchanged a freeze of its nuclear promise for additional and harsh punitive sanctions. tbhi that. -- think about that. you didn't achieve anything with this agreement. all you g