but i did want to mention that this legislation is cosponsored by senator sherrod brown and roland burris. and i was more than aware and very proud that this amendment would have been the first time in american history that a medicare for all single-payer bill was brought before a floor of congress. i was more than aware that that amendment would not win. i knew that. but i am absolutely convinced that this legislation or legislation like it will eventually become the law of the land.

thank you very much, senator burris. madam president, as we approach the final vote, again, i want to thank both senator dodd and senator baucus for a masterful job of shepherding this legislation through the health and finance committees. there is no way we would be here today without the great work of our majority leader. to put it in biblical terms, leader reid has the patience of job, the wisdom of solomon, and the stamina of sampson. senator reid is on the verge of achieving what majority leaders going back nearly a century have failed to accomplish. make no mistake about it. when this final vote is cast tomorrow morning, majority leader reid has earned his place in the senate's history. madam president, as we approach the final vote, we have reached a momentous crossroads just as senators did in 1935 when they passed the social security act, and in 1965 when they created medicare. each of those bills marked a giant step forward for the american people. each was industry dentally opposed by defenders of the status q

burris, aye. mr. byrd? mr byrd? aye ms. cantwell, aye. mr. cardin, aye. mr carper, aye ,r casey? mr. cockburn, know. mr. cochran, ms. collins, no. mr. conrad, aye. mr. courter,no. mr. cornyn, no mr. crepo, no. mr dement, no,. \ mr dodd, aye. mr dorgan, aye, mr durbin, aye mr ensign, no mr enzee, no mr feingold, aye, mrs. feinstein, aye. mr franken, aye. mrs,geillearand, aye. mr graahm, no mr grassley, no. mrñgreg, no mrs, hagan, aye. mr harkin, aye. mr hatch, no. mrs. hutchison -- mr.inhosfe, no. mr noway, aye. mr isaacs said, nope. mr.johans, no. mr. johnson,aye. mr. kaufman,aye. mr. careyaye mr. kirk,aye. mr coles, aye mr. pyle,no. ms landreau, aye. mr lautenberg, aye. mr leahy, aye. mr levin ,aye. mr. lieberman,aye. mrs. lincoln,aye. mr. lugar,no. mr. mccabe,no. mrs. castle,aye. mr. mcconnell,no mr. menendez,aye. mr. merkley, aye. ms. mikulskiaye. mr merkowski, no. mrs. mary,aye. mr. nelson of nebraska,aye. mr. nelson of florida,aye. mr. pryor,aye. mr. reed of rhode island,aye. mr. reid of nevada, [laughter] mr. reid of nevada,aye. [laughter] mr rich, no. mr. roberts,no. mr. r

. >> yeah, i couldn't agree more, senator burris. i want to be clear that we recognize, you know, debt can be a positive thing. the problem is when debt swamps you. and we know the united states can handle the debt. the problem is where we're headed. where we're headed is unsustainable debt. and the goal we've outlined here is to try to prevent that unsustainable debt from becoming a reality. we recognize debt financing is healthy for families and for governments up to a point. the problem we confront is we all know we're headed for a circumstance in which if we stay on the current trend line we will have a debt that totally swamps us. and that's what we have to try to prevent. >> thanks, senator burris. senator conrad, thanks so much. you know, you said at one point, i forgot your exact words, that the process, executive and legislative, seems now to be responding to what you and those of us that support you're asking for and honestly because of all we've said about the process, the only reason i believe it -- well, two reasons. one

burris: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from l i wil i will fro. mr.ris: it is my privilege to stand with these senators and give recognition to those distinguished senators who have put so much heart into drafting this important legislation, to our leader reid and to senator baucus and to senator dodd and to all of the individuals. it is a pleasure for me to be a part of this freshmen colloquy on this major package. over the past several months, my freshmen colleagues and i have taken the floor many times to speak about the need for comprehensive health care reform. so i'm pleased to join them today as we discuss our cost-containment package. this set of provisions will hep reduce efficiency and reduce disparities in our health care system. our amendment will improve the principle of high value, low-cost care that is central to the patient protection and affordable care afnlgt madam president, our amendment will strengthen medicare's ability to act as a payment innovator, paying for value and not for volume. speeding this process, our amendment gives

out there for the amendment that senator brown, senator begich and senator buries and -- senator burris and i are offering. let me read one. this is from the president of the fraternal order of police. these are cops out on the street. most people don't think cops and police officers are getting extravagant health care benefits. this is what he said: "i am writing to you on behalf of the membership of the fraternal order of police to express our support for your amendment which would eliminate the excise tax on high-cost insurance plans. this provision, et cetera, et cetera, is intended to tax the wealth plans for the -- health plans for the wealthiest americans but will also tax the plans of officers who need high-cost insurance due to the dangerous nature of their profession. the fraternal order of police supports your amendment because it should not increase the tax burden who risk their lives to keep our community safe." mr. franken: let's think about these union folks who, again, they negotiated these health care policies and sacrificed in salary. what are they getting? they're get

. >> yeah, i couldn't agree more, senator burris. clear that we recognize, you know, debt can be a positive thing. the problem is when debt swamps you. and we know the united states can handle the debt. the problem is where we're headed. where we're headed is unsustainable debt. and the goal we've outlined here is to try to prevent that unsustainable debt from becoming a reality. we recognize debt financing is healthy for families and for governments up to a point. the problem we confront is we all know we're headed for a circumstance in which if we stay on the current trend line we will have a debt that totally swamps us. and that's what we have to try to prevent. >> thanks, senator burris. senator conrad, thanks so much. you know, you said at one point, i forgot your exact words, that the process, executive and legislative, seems now to be responding to what you and those of us that support you're asking for and honestly because of all we've said about the process, the only reason i believe it -- well, two reasons. one is that the

. >> yeah, i couldn't agree more, senator burris.ear that we recognize, you know, debt can be a positive thing. the problem is when debt swamps you. and we know the united states can handle the debt. the problem is where we're headed. where we're headed is unsustainable debt. and the goal we've outlined here is to try to prevent that unsustainable debt from becoming a reality. we recognize debt financing is healthy for families and for governments up to a point. the problem we confront is we all know we're headed for a circumstance in which if we stay on the current trend line we will have a debt that totally swamps us. and that's what we have to try to prevent. >> thanks, senator burris. senator conrad, thanks so much. you know, you said at one point, i forgot your exact words, that the process, executive and legislative, seems now to be responding to what you and those of us that support you're asking for and honestly because of all we've said about the process, the only reason i believe it -- well, two reasons. one is that the pro

burris: thank you, mr. president. i also would like to make a few comments on this issue that's pending before this body and has been debated and debated and debated, discussed and discussed and discussed, and, mr. president, it's time to bring it to a meaningful and final conclusion. so, mr. president, as i address this chamber today, we stand at the cusp of history. for many years, we have known that the american health care system is badly broken. now after nearly a century of discussion and debate, after 100 years of delays and false starts, this body is on the verge of laying the issue of health reform to rest. this bill represents the culmination of decades of hard work. its course has been shaped by 11 presidents and countless members of the house and senate. it has taken a long and winding path to reach this point. this legislation is a product of compromise and consensus, of give and take on both sides. it is not perfect by no means. it is not perfect. but here we stand. we've come further than any congress i

burris: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator illinois. mr. burris: thank you, mr. president. as a lifelong public servant, i've always believed in the fundamental greatness of this country. i'm sure this is a belief shared by every single one of my colleagues in this body. it's what drove us to serve in the first place. just as it has driven generations of americans to serve in many capacities throughout our history. democrat or republican, liberal or conservative, we're united by our underlying faith in the democratic process and our respect for the people who have come -- people who we've come here to represent. that is what makes this country great, the belief that together we can make progress. together we can shape our own destiny, mr. president, and that is why we gather here in this august chamber to bring the voices of the american people to washington, to the very center of our democracy. earl warren, the late chief justice of the supreme court, articulated this very well. and i quote: "legislators represent people, not trees or acres. legislators are elec

of rule 1, paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable roland burris, a senator from the state of illinois, to perform the duties of the chair. signed: robert c. byrd, presidet pro tempore. mr. durbin: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority whip. mr. durbin: mr. president, following leader remarks the senate will resume consideration of the conference report to aaccompany h.r. 8288, with the time until 9:30 a.m. equally divided and controlled between the two leaders or their designees. at 9:30 a.m. the senate will proceed to vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the conference report under an agreement last night the vote on adoption of the conference report will occur tomorrow, sunday, december 13. mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority whip. mr. durbin: mr. president, does the clerk need to report the bill? the presiding officer: under the previous order the leadership time is reserved. under the previous order the senate will resume consideration of the conference report to accompany 3288, which the clerk will report. the c

burris: thank you, mr. president. over the past several months, mr. president, i've come to the floor of this body many times to speak about the urgent need for comprehensive health care reform. i have said that our bill must accomplish three goals in order to be effective. it must bring competition to the insurance market. competition to the insurance market. it must provide significant cost savings to the ordinary americans. and it must restore accountability to the industry that has run roughshod over the american public for far too long. so, mr. president, i would like to focus this last point with my remarks today. we need real accountability in the insurance market. after almost 100 years of debate about health care reform, this senate stands on the verge of making history. there are many good elements in the legislation that is before us today, but without accountability, any reform measure would be toothless and inconsequential. if we don't give the american people a chance to hold their insurance providers accountable, quality care will conti

burris? >> iowa. >> mr. bird. >> mr. bird? >> iowa. mr. casy, aye. mr. chambliss, no. mr. coburn. mrs. collins? no. mr. conrad, aye. mr. corker? no. mr. connin, no. >> mr. crapo, no. >> mr. dodd? >> aye. >> mr. dorgan. >> aye. >> if you want to continue to hear will roll call of votes, go to c-span ii. willmington, north carole. you are opposed to this bill? caller: absolutely. i do think we need to do some things and how much we can sue. but to push it through like they are without a lot of debate and making sweet heart deals is just wrong. they are still pushing the vote through to the point where they push the the vote down so they can go home. host: what kind of work do you do? caller: i'm a bread vendor. host: we heard your senator there vote against the bill. next call from houston, texas. supportive of the bill. caller: yes. just of the fact that more people can get healthcare coverage is a great thing. not only that, we have seen conditions now that get insured. my sister is in the healthcare field and she doesn't even have insurance because it's not affordable. when they

burris? >> iowa. >> mr. bird. >> mr. bird? >> iowa. mr. casy, aye. mr. chambliss, no. mr. coburn.. collins? no. mr. conrad, aye. mr. corker? no. mr. connin, no. >> mr. crapo, no. >> mr. dodd? >> aye. >> mr. dorgan. >> aye. >> if you want to continue to hear will roll call of votes, go to c-span ii. willmington, north carole. you are opposed to this bill? caller: absolutely. i do think we need to do some things and how much we can sue. but to push it through like they are without a lot of debate and making sweet heart deals is just wrong. they are still pushing the vote through to the point where they push the the vote down so they can go home. host: what kind of work do you do? caller: i'm a bread vendor. host: we heard your senator there vote against the bill. next call from houston, texas. supportive of the bill. caller: yes. just of the fact that more people can get healthcare coverage is a great thing. not only that, we have seen conditions now that get insured. my sister is in the healthcare field and she doesn't even have insurance because it's not affordable. when they said

why did want to mention this legislation is co-sponsored by sure road brown and roland burris, and i was more than aware and very proud that this amendment would have been the first time in american history that a medicare for all single-payer bill was brought before a floor of congress. i was more than aware that amendment would not win. i knew that. but i am absolutely convinced that this legislation with legislation like it will eventually become law of the land and the reason for optimism that the medicare for all single payer bill will eventually prevail and that will be and is the only mechanism we have to provide comprehensive high quality health care to all of our people in a cost-effective way because it is the only approach that eliminates the hundreds of billions of dollars in waste, administrative cost, bureaucracy and profiteering that is engendered by the private insurance companies and that is the simple truth. we are not going to provide comprehensive universal cost-effective health care to all of our people without eliminating the hundreds of billions of dollars in b

senator voinovich, if you would indulge senator burris, he's got to preside.'s asked for the opportunity to ask one question before he goes. ok. good. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i will be very short. i'm asking for a bernl opinion these two distinguished american citizens. i'm just concerned about the commission that would be created and whether or not we should do something about campaign finance reform in reference to the political process? i don't see us being able to get any control of the financing of programs in the federal government unless individuals who have to run for these offices are not beholding to special interests. special groups which drives up the cost of government because they want their program to be in place. i just wondered if you have given any thought, the commission, whether or not campaign finance reform should be a part of this. >> i'll start. first, i think the fiscal future commission with everything on the table which would mean statutory budget controls, social security, medicare, medicaid, other spending, tax reform that's br

burris: mr. president, thank you. i'd like to thank the senator from nevada for that courtesy. thank you, mr. president. as this debate draws to a close and my colleagues and i prepare to vote on a health care reform bill, i recognize the long hours and tense negotiation have left some nerves and tempers frayed. that's why i come to the floor today, although our work keeps us away from our family and friends for much of this holiday season, i see no reason why we can't share good cheers with one another right here in washington. so in the spirit of the season, mr. president, i would like to share my own version of a classic holiday story with my good friends on both sides of the aisle. and it goes something like this, mr. president: it was the night before christmas. it was the night before christmas, and all through the senate the right held up our health care bill, no matter what was in it. the people had voted a mandated reform but republicans blew off the gathering storm. we'll clog up the senate, they cried with a grin. and in the midterm elections, we'll get voted in. the

but i did want to mention that this legislation it is co-sponsored by roland burris and i was more than aware and very proud that this amendment would have been the first time in american history that a medicare for all senior payor bill was brought before a floor of congress. i was more than aware that that amendment would not win. i knew that, but i am absolutely committed that this legislation or legislation like it will eventually be, the law of the land. and the reason for my optimism that the medicare for all single payer bill will eventually prevail is it that that will be and is the only mechanism we have a to provide comprehensive high quality health care to all of our people in a cost-effective way. because it is the only approach which eliminates the hundreds of billions of dollars in a administrative costs bureaucracy and profiteering. that is engendered by the private insurance companies and that is the simple truth. we are not going to provide comprehensive, universal cost-effective health care to all of our people without eliminating the hundreds of billions of dollars in

of rule 1, paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable roland burris , a senator from the state of illinois to perform the duties of the chair. signed: robert c. byrd, presidet pro tempore. mr. reid: mr. president, following remarks of the leaders the senate will resume consideration of h.r. 3590, the health care reform legislation. that will be until 11:30 and for debate only. republicans will control the first 30 minutes. the majority will control the next 30 minutes. any remaining time will be equally divided and controlled between the two leaders or their designees with senators permitted to speak up to ten minutes each. at 11:30 the senate will turn to executive session to debate the nomination of jacqueline nguyen to be united states district judge for the central district of california. the vote will occur at 12:00 noon today. that will be the first vote today. the senate will recess from 12:30 to 2:15 to allow for our weekly caucus luncheons. following the recess the senate will resume consideration of the health care reform legislation. votes

of rule 1, paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable roland burris a senator from the state of illinois, to perform the duties of the chair. signed: robert c. byrd, presidet pro tempore. mr. reid: mr. president? promise the majority leader is recognized. mr. reid: following leader remarks the senate bill resume consideration of the h.r. 35990. there will be time for debate. we can never determine for sure, mr. president, but it appears votes should start between 5:00 and 6:00. the senate will be in recess from 12:45 until 3:15 today for the the weekly caucus luncheons. mr. mcconnell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the republican leader is recognized. mr. mcconnell: mr. president, with americans now really focusing in on the health care debate, it's important to take a step back and recall where we started, because somewhere -l along the way democratic leaders took their eyes off the ball. it's a good time to remember what this reform debate was all about. the goal of this legislation, by all accounts, everyone agreed the goal was to lower the

she will not be bringing any burry monsters that we know of. december 15, the hon.y will discuss the future of the republican party and the need to return to its roots in the fiscal conservatism. on december 21, francis collins, m.d., the director of the nih will discuss biomedical research. i would like to present both of our guests with the traditional and much coveted npc mug. grover does not seem to notthumbs, so -- grover does not seem to have thumbs, will give that to you. how often in your career do you get upstaged by puppets, and also, who is your favorite muppet? >> the answer is often, and grover. >> good answer. [laughter] >> i have been abused by muppets around the world. it is a wonderful job, and i hope we can continue to work with our great colleagues to do great things for kids. thank you for having us today. [applause] >> i would like to thank all of you for coming today, especially our young folks in the audience who gave us such terrific question is for grover. i would also like to thank national press club staff members for organizing today's lu

threat because -- through this resolution because at the time of his passing, frank lived in rocks burry connecticut, where a memorial service was held just a few weeks ago. congressman chris murphy attended that service and would like to be here but had some business back in his district. so i just want to at least convey his strong support for this resolution because of the strong feeling within northwestern connecticut where frank resided and just love and affection that the people of that state, which was his adopted state, had for frank. as the resolution indicates, frank had an amazing american life. he was born in the u.s. but moved as an infant back to ireland, was raised in limerick, which became the subject of "angela's ashes," a book that won prizes from all over the world, was translated into 17 languages, was read in over 27 countries. he later moved back to the u.s., served in the u.s. army, actually through the g.i. bill got his education, became a teacher and then, again, an amazing story of becoming an undiscovered peril as a writer late in life when he published "angela