dorgan: i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be vacated. the presiding officer: we're nolt in a quorum call, senator. mr. dorgan: we are hopeful, as i indicated earlier, that we would be able to reach conclusion on this bill. we were hopeful perhaps of doing it tonight. that was not possible. but we expect to have final passage on the f.a.a. reauthorization bill on monday at 5:30. let me describe the discussions that we have had more recently with senator kyl and senator warner and many other colleagues, senator hutchison. there remains very little to be done on this bill. we have 17 amendments that have been agreed to both sides that would be offered en bloc. we weren't able to offer those until we were able to resolve another issue or at least begin discussion of another issue. and then there is an issue dealing with slots and perimeter rules for reagan national airport. it has been controversial in the past, for many, many years, and some colleagues on both sides of the aisle have offered amendments dealing with slots and the perimeter r

dorgan: madam president, we're on the f.a.a. reauthorization bill, and let me just -- i want to comment on t the -- my colleague from arkansas's discussion but i'll do that briefly. i did want to say before that, however, we really threaten to lose this bill. we've been on the floor now five days. we've got a number of amendments. we're going to vote at 2:00 today on a couple of amendments that are -- they're properly filed and -- but they have nothing to do with the underlying bill. we have some other amendments still waiting that have nothing to do with the underlying bill. and then we have this issue of slot rules and perimeter rules with national airport, which is unbelievably complicated. i think we have eight amendmen amendments. and my hope is that we can convince people not to offer those amendments, we'll try to deal with them in conference because the house has a couple of provisions. but if -- if we don't complete this bill today, after five days, i mean, i worry very much we'll never get back to it. and once again, t

dorgan: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator north dakota. mr. dorgan: mr. president, earlier today we passed some legislation in the senate that is important and will create jobs in our country, and i wanted to indicate that i had filed an amendment that was not considered. i didn't know that was the case with many amendments on the bill. one of the amendments that i filed that was never considered, unfortunately, i hope will be considered in the future. it deals with the recommendation that the president made during his state of the union address. the state of the union address had the president speaking about jobs and said one of the things that we ought to do to try to preserve and to keep and create jobs in our country is to shut down or eliminate the tax loophole that rewards companies for moving jobs overseas. the president specifically asked in his state of the union address for the congress to eliminate that tax loophole. i have tried to eliminate that loophole, i think, on

our first guest, north dakota senator byron dorgan, a democrat.l hear him explain why he's leaving and what he thinks needs to be changed in the nation's capital. >>> winter games have come to a close. what vancouver moments will you be talking about? we're counting down our top three. >>> plus talk about a lawsuit. ron goldman's father wants the clothes off of o.j. simpson's back and he's going to court to try to get them. appetizers. [dinner bell chimes] simple high quality ingredients like wild alaskan salmon, white meat chicken, or sea bass and shrimp in a delicate broth, prepared without by-products or fillers. fancy feast appetizers. celebrate the moment mine too. my cut's all better. [ female announcer ] 'cause sara's mom discovered neosporin® with patented technology that heals cuts two days faster than store brands. neosporin®. heals faster than store brands. and over probably isn't giving results you want. introducing neosporin ® lip health™. shown to restore visibly healthier lips in just three days. new neosporin ® lip health™. rethink

as you know, i'm sure, and as senator.org ann has said -- dorgan has said, we are paying double, triple and quadruple the price for some of the most popular drugs here in the united states than people are paying all-around the world. now i'm sure that causes you great concern and arouses your strong interest. as head of the f.d.a., you can play a pivotal role in helping us bring these drugs to the american consumers for an equivalent price people are paying around the world. is that one of your missions? >> you know, very much front and center is a mission to be able to assure access to safe and effective medicines for the american people. this is a very, very challenging area, though, in terms of being able to assure safety. and for the f.d.a., that is, honestly, the issue that motivates our actions and concerns. i am not the first f.d.a. commissioner to raise these issues. f.d.a. commissioners, regardless of administration over many years now have echoed these same concerned, and it does reflect the complexity of trying to assure, especially in the world of internet sales, that the pr

dorgan: mam president, i ask consent that the quorum call be waived.thout objection. morning business is closed. under the previous order, the senate will resume consideration of h.r. 1586, which the clerk will report. the clerk: calendar number 36, h.r. 1586, an act to impose an additional tax on bonuses received from certain tarp recipients. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the time until 11:30 a.m. will be divided equally between the senator from alabama, mr. sessions, and the senator from arkansas, mr. pryor, or their designees. mr. dgan: madam president, the title of the bill just reported is the correct title of the bill. however, the legislation we're discussing inside that bill does not relate so much to the title. this is the f.a.a. reauthorization bill, reauthorizing a wide range of programs within the federal aviation administration. this is the fifth day we have been on the floor of the senate. senator rockefeller has been managing the legislation. he is necessarily absent now and asked me as chairman of the aviation panel t

dorgan: we will report the f.a.a. reauthorization bill shortly.elieve senator rockefeller will be on his way shortly. he is chairing the commerce committee hearing right now and i will go over and chair the hearing when he comes to the floor. prior to bringing you the bill to the floor today or prior it making it the order of the day, let me just speak in morning business and ask consent that my presentation be included in the consideration of the f.a.a. reauthorization bill when we get to the bill. madam president, i wanted to talk just for a minute. yesterday i talked about what is in the f.a.a. reauthorization bill. and much of what we will discuss today is about commercial aviation, getting on an airline someplace and flying across the country or the world. but i wanted to mention that there's another component to this and that is what is called general aviation. general aviation is a very large and increasingly important component of air travel in this country. a state like my home state of north dakota, which is a very large state and one th

dorgan aye. the presiding officer: on this the ayes are 68, the nays are 29, the motion to table is agreed to. without objection. there are now two minutes of debate -- the senate will be in order. the senate will be in order. there will now be two minutes of debate equally divided prior to a vote in relation to amendment 3470, offered by the senate from -- senator from wisconsin, mr. feingold. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from wisconsin. the senate will sus -- the senator will suspend. the senators will remove their conversations from the well. mr. feingold: rescinds any earmark that sat on the shelf of the department of transportation for more than 10 years without more than 10% of it being obligated or spent. it also requires a report by the o.m.b. on how many of these old, unspent earmarks are at all federal agencies, this would save an estimated $626 million in the first year and more down the road as other unused earmarks hit the 10-year milestone. i know man

dorgan: mr. president, first of all, i am pleased with the work that the chairman and the ranking member of the commerce committee have done. i'm chairman of the aviation subcommittee and have worked closely with them to produce a piece of legislation that i think is bipartisan, is a very important and urgent piece of legislation that will strengthen this country's system of air travel. and i want to talk some about that today. a couple of things this legislation will do. i'm not going to repeat everything that my colleagues have said. but it will advance aviation safety, which i think is very, very important. it will accelerate modernization of the air traffic control system t.'s going to support -- it's going to support jobs by investing in aviation infrastructure. that is airports and runways and the kinds of things that accommodate our air travel system. it will ensure that rural communities in states like north dakota, my home state, have access to the nation's aviation system. so i'm very p

working with senators dorgan -- obviously senator hutchison being the key with senator dorgan, terrific chairman of the aviation subcommittee, absolutely tear rifnlgt and also senator demint towards a vibrant, strong aviation system so fundamental to our country. so i urge my colleagues to give the f.a.a. the tools, the resources, the direction, and the deadlines to make sure that the agency can provide effective oversight of the aviation industry. this is a big-ticket item. it appears not so dramatic, at s events of the recent days but over the course of our country, it is extraordinarily dramatic. so i will at the proper time urge my colleagues to support reauthorization. as i say, we've put this off now 11 different times. and this will last for two years after conference, maybe three years. i'd take more than that, myself. but we can't afford to wait any longer. i thank the chair and yield the floor. and i note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: mrs. hutchison: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from texas. mrs.

dorgan: mr. president, to my colleague, thank you for your forebearance. senator reid has asked that i announce to senators that there will be no further votes this evening and there will be no votes tomorrow. we expect the next vote to be monday at 5:30. and i will explain in a few moments the circumstances. we do expect finally that we are near an agreement by which we would be able to finish this f.a.a. reauthorization bill with a final vote monday evening. and that's our expectation. as i indicated, i'll explain more about that following the remarks of senator reed. mr. reed: mr. president? e esidg ofcer: the senator from rhode island is recognized. mr. reed: mr. president, i would ask, if it's appropriate, unanimous consent to have my remarks immediately following senator whitehouse's. the presiding officer: without objection, so ordered. mr. reed: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, i want to join my colleague and friend, senator whitehouse, in paying tribute to an extraordinary american, an extraordinary rhode islander, george peneeches. senato

dorgan: mad president? the presiding officer: the senator from north dakota. mr. dorgan: madam president, the legislation on the floor of the senate is the f.a.a. rebill, and senator rockefeller is here, senator hutchison has been here and we are working now trying to find a way to move the legislation. it has attracted a lot of amendments that have nothing at all to do with the subject. it's as if some believe this is not urgent or important, and, of course, nothing could be further from the truth. there is an urgency to this legislation. i know it's not, perhaps, the highest-profile legislation in the congress these days, but we have a requirement to reauthorize the activities of the federal aviation -- the f.a.a. and we have now failed to do that and instead had to extend their authorization 11 successive times. but because we extend it, we then don't improve the authorization and do the things that are necessary for improving airline safety, the things that are necessary to include the passenger bill of rights, which is in this bill, airport improvement funds,

dorgan: mr.resident, i ask that the quorum call be vacated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. dorgan: mr. president, i just visited with senator rockefeller and, of course, we, along with senator hutchison is trying to pass an f.a.a. reauthorization bill. this is not as easy as it sounds. this is not one of the most controversial or difficult or passionate issues that divides america. we have plenty of those issues around. this is about modernizing our air traffic control system, about reauthorizing the airport program, airport safety. a wide range of issues. still, anything that is brought to the floor of the united states senate these days slows down way, way, way down and that is the case with this bill as well. i've described it as walking through wet cement trying to get something through congress. we have amendments pending dealing with school vouchers, with putting discretionary caps on budgets, eliminating earmark -- or earmark reform. things that have very little or in most c

senator byron dorgan, counting his years in the house and senate, stands to get more than $116,000.gg, average of $63,000. senators bond and bunning both taking a way $58,900 in annual pensions. >> unlike state and local pension plans the federal congressional pension system is simply a direct line into the taxpayers' wallet. there's no investments that need to be made, no fund balances that get worried about. whatever the liability is for a given year taxpayers cough up the money for it. >> reporter: we called the senators to get a response. our calls were not returned. the congressional retirement system was reformed in 1984 to make the system less generous and more in line with that of other federal workers. still representative howard cobble says the system is broken. he has tried repeatedly to reform the pension program which he says hasn't won him many friends on capitol hill. >> well, it's too lavish. to generous when you compare it with pensions across the country. i elected to refuse the pension on the ground taxpayers are subsidizing my salary now. i figure when i leave th

we'll talk to senator byron dorgan about why he's retiring and what he sees going on in washington.s after this. boss: come a long way, that's for sure. and so have you since you started working here way back when. gecko: ah, i still have nightmares. anncr: geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. i am a wife. i am a mom... and i was a pack a day smoker for 25 years. i do remember sitting down with my boys, and i'm like, "oh, promise mommy you'll never ever pick up a cigarette." and brian looked at me at eight years old and said, "promise me you'll quit." i had to quit. ♪ my doctor gave me a prescription for chantix, a medication i could take and still smoke, while it built up in my system. [ male announcer ] chantix is a non-nicotine pill. in studies, 44% of chantix users were quit during weeks 9 to 12 of treatment, compared to 18% on sugar pill. it's proven to reduce the urge to smoke. seeing how chantix worked, i wasn't so afraid to try quitting again. [ male announcer ] talk to your doctor about chantix and a support plan that's right for you. some people h

senator dorgan? >> mr. chairman, thank you very much. i've been sitting here thinking about it.s ago i responded to a want ad and purchased 2003 camry for my daughter who is an upper classman in college. i did that because the want ad seemed appealing to me and i knew that toyota was a car with quality and reliability. and i have to tell you that as i've read and studied what has gone on in this issue, i am enormously troubled by toyota's response going back some seven or eight years to this issue of acceleration, unintended acceleration. i just think the customer and certain the federal agencies would expect more of and expect better of your company. mr. ditlow, you said in your testimony of the 2002 to 2010 camrys linked to unintended acceleration, the unrecalled camrys have twice as many fatal crashes and deaths as those who have been recalled. >> that's correct, senator. >> are you confident with those numbers? >> yes, i am. i expect that the numbers will increase as more investigation is done. we have two other cases right now that we're looking into. >> if mr. ditlow is co

senator dorgan is going to chair.ç >> first of all apologies to you. we have the f.a.a.billç that this committee has written on the floor of the senate, so a number of us are will and other hearings as well. i appreciate very much the witnesses on this panel coming to the committee to testify. we have mr. brian roberts chairman of comcast. i believe senator rockefeller has properly identified all of those on this panel so i will not do that again. why don't we begin with you, mr. roberts. as has been the case with all witness witnesses, the full statement will be made part of the permanent report and we would ask the witnesses to summarize. mr. roberts, you may proceed. >> thank you, mr. chairman. it is a privilege to come here today and talk about comcast plan joint venture with g.e. regarding nbc universal. my father ralph started comcast almost half a century ago with a single small cable system and we have been able to build a national cable broad band and communications company employing nearly 100,000 people. i'm proposing to combine with nbc universal we are taki

as you know, i'm sure, and as senator.org ann has said -- dorgan has said, we are paying double, triple and quadruple the price for some of the most popular drugs here in the united states than people are paying all-around the world. now i'm sure that causes you great concern and arouses your strong interest. as head of the f.d.a., you can play a pivotal role in helping us bring these drugs to the american consumers for an equivalent price people are paying around the world. is that one of your missions? >> you know, very much front and center is a mission to be able to assure access to safe and effective medicines for the american people. this is a very, very challenging area, though, in terms of being able to assure safety. and for the f.d.a., that is, honestly, the issue that motivates our actions and concerns. i am not the first f.d.a. commissioner to raise these issues. f.d.a. commissioners, regardless of administration over many years now have echoed these same concerned, and it does reflect the complexity of trying to assure, especially in the world of internet sales, that the pr

chairman dorgan and members of the commission, thank you for inviting google here today and thank you for your commitment to a free and open internet. and thank you for your very supportive comments just now. they are very meaningful to our company at this time. haass summer a woman was shot on the streets of tehran during protests during the iranian elections. no film crew witnessed her death. no reporter was there to cover her story. but a bystander with a cell phone captured it on video. that video was posted on youtube, and it was watched by literally tens of millions of people around the world. despite the government crackdown on communications, nada's tragic death became a galvanizing force for international outrage. this is the essence of expression online. unexpected, unpredictable but capable of capturing the minds and hearts of millions of people around the world. it is for this reason that growing restrictions of speech online demand a commitment from companies, civil societies and governments together to protect internet freedom. i'd like to make three points. first censor

senator dorgan -- senator dorgan is going to chair.sations] [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] >> why don't begin. first of all, apologies to you. we have the essay builds that this committee has written on the floor of the senate and so a number of a further in other hearings as well. but i appreciate very much the witnesses on this panel coming to the committee to testify. but mr. brian roberts ceo of comcast. i believe senator rockefeller has identified although some channel so i will not do that again. why don't we begin, mr. roberts, which you and has been the case with all witnesses, the full statement will be made a part of the permanent record and would ask the witnesses to summarize. mr. roberts, you may proceed. >> thank you, mr. chairman. it's a privilege to come here today and talk about contest planned joint venture with ge re: nbc universal. my father, ralph, seated behind me started comcast as we heard almost of a century ago with a single small cable system in mississippi and together we been able to bu

this is certainly not a partisan amendment of why was it offered by my colleague, senator dorgan? it was offered because these five states are at the bottom in medicare reimbursement and have been for many years. they are the most rural states in the nation. and the way the formula works, those states have been penalized. let me just say, in my state, to treat the exact same illness, the hospitals in my state get one-third to one-half as much as the more populous states in the country to treat the exact same illness. and when we go to get technology, we don't get a rural discount. in fact, we pay more because we are buying in smaller order quantities. and when we go to attract a doctor or nurse, they don't say to us, "well, gee, because you get one-third or one half as much in medicare reimbursement, we'll only charge you one-third or one half as much to come to your state or to stay in your state." that isn't what happens. i have had the major hospital administrators in my state come and say unless as health care reform you get this fixed, we are going to begin to have to lay off

dorgan: madam president, the vote just taken was unanimous, which is interesting. we were able to work on this for five days here on the floor of the sena -- floor of the senate. but i also wanted to say that we always talk about good staff work. we really do have a an exceptionally fine staff on the commerce committee. and i want to say that senator rockefeller's work and senator hutchison's work was exceptional in order to move us to this place to get this completed. but i think they would agree as well that the staff director, ellen reskvie, galley swayzey, and anne begiman, staff director, and tom jones, senator demint, it really is a fine staff. and this piece of legislation, the reason i wanted to say a word about it -- i just got off an airplane myself, just came back from north dakota -- but i wanted to say that this piece of legislation, while not getting the attention that some other pieces of legislation are getting these days -- notably health care, among others -- is a very important piece of legislation and it has some very important, critical changes

senator dorgan will be taking my place for a while. and he's also going to chair the second panel, which i won't be able to because i will be on the floor. and so you can give your statement that or you can give it now. >> mr. chairman, i will go to the floor when we start the faa reauthorization discussion over there, and then i'll come back and be happy to cheer for the second topic i will be glad to make a statement at that point in time if you want to go to the witnesses now. >> as i said we really have two of the most important people in government, and two of the smartest people in government and anywhere, and i really mean that. this is a perfect first panel, and julius genachowski, of course, is head of the little agency called the federal communications commission. and christine varney does antitrust, at a very high level for the department of justice. so, mr. genachowski, we turn to you, sir. >> thank you, mr. chairman and members of the committee. thank you for the opportunity to address the role of the fcc in reviewing prop

senator dorgan will be taking my place for a while. so -- and he is also going to chair the second panel which i will be able to because i will be on the floor. you can give your statement then or now. >> mr. chairman, i will go to the floor when we start the faa reauthorization. i will be happy to chair for the second panel. >> we have two of the most important people and government. two of the smartest people in government. i really mean that. this is a perfect first panel. de julius ganachowski, of course, is head of distillates and sick of the federal communications commission. and christine varney does and does just that a very high level for the department of justice. so mr. ganachowski, we turn to you, sir. >> thank you, mr. chairman and members of the committee. thank you for the opportunity to address the role of the sec in reviewing proposed mergers and the communications industry including the contemplated transaction involving comcast and nbc. the commission approaches these matters mindful that the timing of vibrant, innov

generic drugs in my duty to provide important opportunity to lower health care cost with senator dorgan was referring to and to which he so much dedicated and getting these as quickly as possible is important to respond to the high-priced drugs that we have on the market today. the budget includes a proposal for the user fees for generic drugs that were the result in the hiring nearly 880 i'm sorry new reviewers and inspectors of the generic java applications. he had been talking about the industry with user fees to have a post in the past. can you give an update on this, how soon can we hope to decrease if not eliminate the backlog in generic drug applications. >> as you point out generic drugs are very important in being able to get lower priced safe and effective drugs to people who need them thanks to the work of this committee we have been able to increase our staffing and our opportunities in the office of generic drugs and review process but getting those generic user fees would make enormous difference. just a few weeks ago i addressed the generic pharmaceutical association's an

chairman dorgan and members of the commission, thank you for inviting google here today and thank you for your commitment to a free and open internet. and thank you for your very supportive comments just now. they are very meaningful to our company at this time. haass summer a woman was shot on the seets of tehran during protests during the iranian elections. no film crew witnessed her death. no reporter was there to cover her story. but a bystander with a cell phone captured it on video. that video was posted on youtube, and it was watched by literally tens of millions of people around the world. despite the government crackdown on communications, nada's tragic death became a galvanizing force for international outrage. this is the essence of expression online. unexpected, unpredictable but capable of capturing the minds and hearts of millions of people around the world. it is for this reason that growing restrictions of speech online demand a commitment from companies, civil societies and governments together to protect internet freedom. i'd like to make three points. first censor s

. >> thank you very much, senator dorgan. >> thank you very much, mr. chairman.e a lot of loyal customers in minnesota and group that hasn't been mentioned today, a lot of loyal auto dealers who have been, of course, hurt by this as well and are doing everything to meet the requirements of the recalls. and want to do that. do you know, mr. inaba, how many vehicles have been recalled so far and how many remain to be fixed? >> well, talking about two recalls related to this unintended acceleration, we have about in total of 5.3 million customers. and we have done more than 1 million. we are doing them as quickly and as conveniently as possible with the dealers really fully backing us up. and i'm really they are doing. >> and do you know how many remain to be done? >> obviously, there are about 4 million. and we like to do it as quickly as possible. >> okay. thank you. and then i -- my major focus this morning was, as worthy as a discussion is about what you're going to do to fix these cars, which is incredibly important, how are you going to deal legally with some

i also want to thank my good friend senator byron dorgan. in 2009, senator dorgan became the chair of the aviation subcommittee just a year ago, but he has attacked it with such ferocity and intensity typical of him that it seems like much more than that. he has been a magnificent chairman of that subcommittee. his laser-like focus on making our aviation system safer has become the cornerstone of this bill. he held, for example, eight hearings on aviation safety over the last 15 months. eight hearings in 15 months doesn't seem like a lot, but given our schedule around here, it is. totally focused. what happened in buffalo, all other aspects. as with every issue in which he has engaged -- and there are many of them -- he has made a lasting contribution. i personally regret that he has chosen to retire at the end of this year. not only will i miss him as a friend, but the people of north dakota and this country will lose one of the most passionate and effective advocates. he should be enormously proud of his work on this bill. i know i am. i w

dorgan: mr. president, we don't yet have a script with respect to a unanimous consent on the monday 5:30 vote, but just all of us are understanding that we want to conclude this legislation monday beginning with the 5:30 vote. i think that's a good result. as senator hutchison indicated, this is a big bill with many important parts -- taste, modernization, so many issues. i am frustrated as is everybody at the pace of the senate. this is the fifth full day on this bill, but monday at 5:30 now we will understand we will finally resolve this issue, and it will be good for the country. we will have done some good things by passing this bill and get to conference with the house. mr. presiden iield the floor and make a point of order that a quorum is not present. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: quorum call:

dorgan: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from north dakota. mr. dorgan: mr. president, let me ask consent -- my understanding is following my presentation, senator gregg is going to be recognized or a republican speaker and i would ask consent that following the republican speaker, that senator stabenow be recognized on our side. and i do that -- the presiding officer: without objection. mr. dorgan: mr. chairman, i wanted to discuss two amendments, one of which i have piled and one of which i will file shortly. but before i do that, i do want to say that i've spoken with senator inouye and senator feinstein and some others about something that is very important. it's the settlement of the cobell law suit, the cobell suit has been in the court system for 15 years. after a long period of negotiation with the interior secretary and other parts of our federal government and the plaintiffs in the cobell lawsuit there is a settlement that has been reached, $3.4 billion going back well