our senator kristin gillibrand is very sympathetic and supporter of the dream act. we believe our efforts are not going unnoticed. we need more colleagues in the senate and congress to support people like gutierrez, chuck schumer and kirstin gillibrand and others so i feel like our efforts are being heard. >> just just follow-up on the numbers again. i spoke to an official at the white house this morning about those numbers and the one thing that stood out from what they said is, well, you also have to consider that some of those numbers were for the first part of the fiscal year '09 which, president bush was still in power, you know. obama only came in power in january. so that's their argument, some of those numbers reflect the outgoing bush administration. and also, the point about

so gillibrand -- i mean, gillibrand is -- you met her last week. you had coffee. >> i did.e had an off the record lunch. we went to a wine bar near capitol hill at 11:00 in the morning. a strike in the good column from the get-go. >> but you liked her. >> i did. i think she's tough. i think she's actually being underestimated by some people at this table. >> i'm not one of them. >> when she comes on the show, she speaks for herself. >> why do you always do this to me? >> just eat your frosted flakes. >> mike's going to like her, you're going to like her. >> you're going to like her and you're going to also say, wow, okay. >> i've got to say, though, and we just report what we hear out there because we go to things behind the scenes and people say one thing. then they get on tv and then they say another. everywhere we go, you've had time to talk to her. i have only met her a couple times. but nobody seems really impressed with her. >> well, i talked to her about that. >> they say she's not that strong. i hear the same thing wherever i go from republicans, democrats, independ

one had to do with you in that you decided not to take on senator gillibrand and challenge her senate seat this fall. you wrote an op-ed explaining your decision. the cruel twist of course is that the party boss who is tried to intimidate me so i wouldn't even think about running against senator gillibrand are the same people responsible for putting democratic control of the senate at risk. talk about a shot across the bow. what are you talking about? >> my party needs to understand there is growing, if not a crescendo of concern about job, taxes and the economy. there is great concern even with 36,000 jobs lost which is less than months before but there is a concern at the platform, the growth platform going forward that will create new jobs and provide economic security for families is not there. i want everyone to have health care but i can assure you someone who spent two months traveling a state that is vital to the nation's economy i would argue the global economy, new york city, new york state, voters are more concerned about their own checkbooks, their pocketbooks and wallets.

so i -- i thank senator gillibrand for her diligence. mr. gillibrand: i thank the chairman. a senator: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from arkansas. mr. pryor: madam president, i'd like to just speak on my amendment here for a few minutes. really somewhat in response to senator sessions but really more to just ask my colleagues to please consider voting for the pryor amendment. this reminds me of a conversation i had a few years ago with a friend of mine in arkansas and he's kind of a member of the deficits don't matter club. and he just -- this is probably six years ago, i was a pretty new senator here and he -- he just -- i said, look, we have to start to get this thing turned around, some of the, you know, policies that we've done here just are not good, not sustainable for the country. and i mean, he told me back then that deficits don't matter. and where i disagree with him or i disagree with others like that, i said look, any time any of us walk in to a bank or some other financial institution and want to borrow money, the first question they ask i

our senator kristin gillibrand is very sympathetic and supporter of the dream act. we believe our efforts are not going unnoticed. we need more colleagues in the senate and congress to support people like gutierrez, chuck schumer and kirstin gillibrand and others so i feel like our efforts are being heard. >> just just follow-up on the numbers again. i spoke to an official at the white house this morning about those numbers and the one thing that stood out from what they said is, well, you also have to consider that some of those numbers were for the first part of the fiscal year '09 which, president bush was still in power, you know. obama only came in power in january. so that's their argument, some of those numbers reflect the outgoing bush administration. and also, the point about you not being satisfied with what they have done so far. in terms of border enforcement and other law enforcementment measures inside the u.s., the argument is that, to satisfy those conservatives that are pushing for tougher enforcement, to get them to come to the table and come to a

we've also learned that harold ford will not be mounting a primary challenge against kirsten gillibrand in new york state. did the party at the national level weigh in on either of those decisions and will you? >> the answer is, we have not weighed in on either of the decisions of harold ford or lieutenant governor harter. in harold ford's case obviously a strong democrat. i think with a great future in the democratic party. my sense is, you know, he went around and surveyed and found that while people felt strongly about him, senator gillibrand had a very, very dedicated group of supporters within the state party and, you know, i think he made the decision that discretion was the better part of valor in that instance, but i think he's going to continue to be a real strong voice within the democratic party. i just learned within the last couple hours about the situation in arkansas and haven't really dug into that one very much. i do know that today at the white house robert gibbs talked about the president's support for senator lincoln, that she's worked closely with him, and, you know

i think the one that surprises me more pitachi could defeat gillibrand if he runs, but it is not certaineady. we'll go back to show you what the john mccain campaign has put forth and follow that with the response from j.d. hayworth. >> obama is completely illegitimate for u.s. president not only for -- for two reasons. not only because he didn't provide the place of his birth but because he has to be a u.s. citizen. >> obama knows he was adopted in indonesia. if he had a hawaiian birth certificate, we would have seen it now. >> for every race across the country it would be great if people can confirm who they say they are. >> the sad fact is, questions continue. until president obama signs his name and in fact has the records revealed, the questions will remain. >> the only difference between these people is that only one is running for the u.s. senate. john mccain character matters. >> citizens across america are rising up, standing up for liberty. from townhalls to thejx+ nation mall. we the people took a stand in new jersey, massachusetts and won. now the torch of liberty comes to ar

host: senator gillibrand is up for reelection for a full term? guest: she was appointed by governor paterson, who himself emerged from being lieutenant governor. she has not stood before the voters yet. and she had a problem in that she was potentially facing a primary challenge, and a lot of observers thought she could potentially be weak. but she caught a break. harold ford, former tennessee congressman, he thought about it and he dropped out. so she might get a pass. host: is new york a one-party state? guest: was looking like it for the last couple of years. democrats had the state senate, the governorship, and the number of house democrats jumped way up from a majority to a super strong majority. but there are plenty of republicans in new york, including upstate, where republicans traditionally have been strong. mayor bloomberg from new york city, he used to be a republican but now he -- host: and he used to be a democrat. guest: sure did. the republican party is also reeling in new york as nationally. host: what about governor pataki? guest

gillibrand. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: the senator from nevada, mr. ride, for mr. sanders and others proposes an amendment numbered 3353 to amendment numbered 3336. mr. reid: i ask the reading of the amendment be waived, mr. president. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: i would ask the clerk call the roll. there appears not to be a quorum present. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: mr. mcconnell: the republican leader is recognized. the presiding officer: are we in a quorum call? mr. mcconnell: i ask that further proceedings on the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection, so ordered. mr. mcconnell: mr. president, most americans breathed a sigh of relief in january when it looked like the democrats' partisan plan for health care was done for. most people saw the outcome of the massachusetts senate race as an opportunity to start over on what they wanted, which is a step-by-step plan that would target costs without raising taxes or insurance premiums, without cutting medicar

we need people to support people like gutierrez, chuck schumer and kirsten gillibrand so i think our efforts are really being hurt. >> just to follow-up again, i spoke to an official at the white house this morning about those numbers, and the one thing that stood out from what they said is, you also have to consider that some of those numbers were for the first part of the fiscal year 09 which president bush was still in power. obama only came in power in january so that is their argument, that some of those numbers reflect the outgoing bush administration. and also, the point about you not being satisfied with what they have done so far in terms of border enforcement and other law enforcement measures inside the u.s., the argument is that to satisfy those conservatives that are pushing for tougher enforcement, to get them to come to the table and come to, find a common ground, and then go ahead and talk about legalizing the undocumented population, so would that be a f.a.i.r. enough compromise? you make a concession in terms of border enforcement and other law enforcement measures

president, i did just want to say that this amendment, as of now, is supported by senator dodd, senator gillibrand, senator leahy, senator whitehouse. we look forward to more support. this concept is in the president's budget, and the president has been very clear about the need to go forward with a $250 payment. this amendment -- again -- this amendment that we'll be 0 offering tomorrow is supported by the aarp, the american legion, the veterans of foreign war, the national committee to protect social security and medicare, the disabled veterans of america, older americans league, and many, many other organizations. so we will be offering an amendment which simply says we are not going to leave america's seniors out in the cold. we're not going to leave america's disabled veterans out in the cold. and while there is no cola this year, we are at least going to do what we did last year and provide them with a $250 emergency payment. not a whole lot of money in the great scheme of things but, trust me, having just met with seniors on monday, a lot of seniors in this country today are finding it very

rule 1, paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable kirsten gillibrand of new york, to perform te duties of the chair. signed: robert c. byrd, presidet pro tempore. mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: following morning -- senators permitted to speak up to 10 minutes each. the republicans will control the first 30 minutes, the majority will control the second 30 minutes. following that morning business the senate will resume consideration of the f.a.a. bill. and debate concurrently until 11:30 with the mccaskill amendment and the pryor amendment with the time equally divided between senate and pryor or their designees. additional roll call votes in relation to f.a.a. amendments are expected throughout the day. announce morning business please. the presiding officer: under the previous order the leadership time is reserve. under the previous order there will be a period of morning business for one hour with republicans controlling the first half and the majority controlling the final half. are you leaving? >> no,

dream act and the efforts are not going unnoticed they just need to support gutierrez and kirsten gillibrand i feel the efforts are being heard. >> i spoke to an official of the lighthouse this morning about the numbers and that is the one thing they said is that you have to consider some of those numbers for part of the fy 2009 when bush was in power and obama just became in january that some of the numbers reflect the outgoing business administration. also the point* you're not being satisfied with what they have done so far in terms order enforcement and law enforcement measures inside the u.s.. the argument is that it satisfies the conservatives pushing for tougher enforcement to get them to come to that table and find a common ground in thin talk about the undocumented politician. is that a compromise? you make a concession in terms of border enforcement in return for comprehensive immigration reform. but there is the return that is the problem that has been no return on this enforcement but more enforcement. it is either the numbers that happened before january than what happens to the

hundred. çó many of you heard this morning that harold ford has decided not to challenge senator gillibrandy. he has an op ed in today's "new york times" on why he is not running for the senate. try have examined this race in every possible way and if i run, the likely result will be a cruel and how the-democratic primary. pennsylvania, laura on the verge republican line -- on the republican line. caller: your guest is no longer there from the naacp? host: that is right. what is your question? caller: i think democrats and republicans agree on some basic things, but the objections from the house are those brave pro- life democrats who refuse to give up the stupak amendment language. they do not want reproductive rights and abortion, killing unborn babies, in this health bill. over 40% of americans are pro- life. that is the gallup poll -- over 50% of americans are pro-life. that is the gallup poll from last year. the obama white house wants this agenda to be radical left and they want to give up health care for all because they want that to be part of the language. host: joining us on the d

gillibrand, a senator from the state of new york, to perform te duties of the chair. signed: robert c. byrd, presidet pro tempore. mr. reid: madam president? the presiding officer: the leader. mr. reid: following leader remarks, the senate will resume consideration of the tax extenders legislation. today we'll continue work through the remaining amendments to the bill. senators will be notified when votes are scheduled. there should be some this morning. mr. mcconnell: madam president? the presiding officer: the republican leader. mr. mcconnell: madam president, the american people are asking us to start over on health care. they are asking us to scrap the massive bills democrats have been trying to force on them. they want us to focus on cost instead. that has been their clear message now for over a year. but yesterday, democrats in washington said they know better. the president and his allies in congress made up their minds to turn aside any pretense of bipartisanship and plow ahead on a partisan bill. a partisan bill, by the way, that americans don't want. in a la

and we got president -- senator kristen gillibrand, another great american. and we have other senators joining every day who say we are not going, we are going to break free of this strangle hold that's been around the u.s. senate and we are going to really do something good for the american people. i just want to say hats off to them and say i appreciate the hard work that they're doing. mr. speaker, i got another board that i want to show to the people here. and this one is quite sobering, quite sobering. it's another big number, mr. speaker. and it's the kind of number that really, really, really -- we almost don't want to have to mention it but if you don't mention it you do a disservice to the memory. this board right here -- i want to put it in the camera shot. says 45,000 -- 45,000 americans die every year because they're uninsured. now, think about -- this number -- think about this number as you think about this number. 2.7 million americans lose coverage. because of no coverage, 45,000 americans die every year. so people are literally dying because

president the following colleagues -- chairman lieberman, chairman levin senator gillibrand, senator udall, senator wyden in introducing legislation to repeal the military don't ask don't tell policy. a policy which is discriminatory outdated, and detrimental to our national security. let us start by addressing every serviceman and woman to those who have served in our armed forces in the past. let's give them a big shout out and a big thank you mr. president. this nation honors the service and sacrifice of all of our veterans and those who are still serving today. let me say that the day of serving in silence their days are numbered. this legislation will recognize that every soldier sailor, airman and marine is equal to every other warrior so that no one will be forced to lie about who they are if they wish to serve this country. now i know that there are some who believe that this is too big a change, that it isn't right we need to wait. to them, i would say that the -- it did boil down to basic fairness mr. president. i would remind them that the united states military has made p

and that is why i'm offering today, along with senators dodd, leahy, whitehouse, gillibrand, lautenberg, begich, stabenow and menendez, an amendment which will provide over 55 million seniors, veterans, and persons with disabilities $250, a onetime payment, in much-needed emergency relief. this $250 emergency payment is equivalent to a 2%, 2% increase in benefits for the average social security retiree. and it is the same amount that seniors received last year as part of the recovery act. 2% -- that is not a lot of money, but it will in fact provide much-needed help to millions of people who are demanding that we not turn our backs on them. mr. president, this amendment is supported by a wide array of senior and veterans organizations representing tens and tens of millions of americans. let me just give you some of the organizations who are supporting this amendment. the aarp, which is the largest senior group in america; the american legion, the largest veterans group in america; the veterans of foreign wars, the national committee to preserve social security and medicare, the american