harkin: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from iowa. mr. harkin: mr. president, i just want to thank our majority whip for, again, telling it like it is, what's happening with health care in america today. we've come too far to turn back. we've made tremendous changes in the way people are going to access the health care system in america because of the affordable care act. look, we all admit, were mistakes stphaeud -- made? were there glitches? yes. but we went from a system in which people were excluded from getting health care. you talked about that, various people with preexisting conditions. kids, people who had no access whatsoever. now they're covered. that is a huge leap in this country. so if we made some mistakes, if there were a few glitches and stuff, we worked those out. our friends on the other side say, no, ditch the whole thing, get rid of everything, turn the clock back. i agree with the senator from illinois, the people of america don't want to turn that clock ba

the senator was tom harkin of iowa. >> good morning. the senate committee on labor and pensions will come to order. this morning is another in our series of airings preparing to reauthorize the higher education act and this hearing will take a look at the whole student loan program. as i said this is the eighth in our series of hearings on this. today our primary focus is strengthening our federal loan process to make sure they're working well for students families. since the passage of the national -- under which i borrowed money to go to college the federal government has played a role in helping students fund their college education through loans. and grants. we certainly have much to celebrate over the last half-century when it comes to expanding higher education access various challenges demand their immediate attention. in recent years several major changes have been made to the freckles didn't loan programs to address structural issues of loan origination servicing and repayment options. in 2007 the income-based repayment was cre

that's 14 million children who would be lifted out of poverty if we pass the harkin bill. and tipped workers, if i asked you, anyone in the street, how much do tipped workers make,, they'd say minimum wage. what most people don't know is the federal tipped minimum wage is -- and i know, madam president, you and i have worked on this -- $2.13 an hour is the tipped minimum wage. and many tipped workers live in poverty and instability. they don't know if they'll make enough to cover the bills. now, what you'll hear is if you pay the full minimum wage, it's too hard not to restaurant owners. i just want to say something. in my state, the tipped workers get the full minimum wage. and that wage is $8 an hour going up to $10 in california. so the tipped workers get the minimum wage amount, every an hour and guess what, our restaurants are going gangbusters, and guess what else -- when you do well and have your minimum wage plus your tips, you can get to go out once in a while to a restaurant. you can go down to the corner store and get something for your children. sandra samoa is

senator mccain and senator harkin and now senator moran from kansas are particularly interested in it and it's an honor to be a part of it and i wish gallaudet a happy 150th birthday. mr. president, i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from arizona. mr. mccain: i want to thank the senator from ohio for his service on really one of the really remarkable experiences one could have at gallaudet university. wonderful loving, caring people who make us all proud of their success, and i thank him for his involvement. i also thank him for honoring our heroes today of long ago and far away when the united states was in great jeopardy. mr. president, i rise today to bring attention to the navy's littoral expwat combat ship. it's a troubled major defense acquisition program if not properly addressed will join a list of failed procurements at the department of defense. from the 13 arduous years that l.c.s. has been in development we've learned yet again an important costly, basic lesson. if we don't know what we really want when we procure a weapons system, we're likely not to ge

harkin. absolutely.the federal regulations require entrance counseling is a prerequisite to disbursement, the initial disbursement but after that institutions are not allowed to require additional counseling for disbursement. we can offer it but we are not allowed to require it and without the ability to require it there is no teeth in it. .. >> $57,000 in 2012. but he said the average indebtedness, you don't have a grudge with programs? you do but most undergraduates. >> darr reported data is the undergraduates of $29,000 sinecures is 30,000 for undergraduates? >> yes. is that the maximum a student can borrow? what i am trying to get to are they simply because the interest rate is 3.8 percent are they bar wing all that they are allowed? why are your numbers about the same? the mcfadyen is a and interesting question the aggregate limit is $31,000. for the independent student is 57,000. >> so they could borrow more. is it your judgment that if he were allowed to students were required with each disburseme

harkin: i thank the presiding officer. but, madam president, we can't just stop there on the paycheck fairness bill. we have to then pass it and then we have to do a few other thin things. we have to tackle the more subtle discrimination that occurs when we systematically undervalue the work traditionally done by women. the fact is, millions of female-dominated jobs, jobs that are equivalent in skill, effort, responsibility and working conditions to similar jobs dominated by men, pay significantly less than male equivalent type jobs. for example, why is a housekeeper worth less than a janitor? think about it. 84% of the maids that clean your room when you go to hotels and stuff, 84% are female of the 75% of janitors are male. while the jobs are equivalent in terms of skill, effort, responsibility and working conditions, the median weekly earnings for a maid are $399. for a janitor, it's $484. truck drivers -- a job that is 96% male, have a median weekly earnings of $730. in contrast, a child care worker, a job that is 93%

first i want to thank senator tom harkin for his leadership on this issue. he's advocated year after year, decade after decade that we need to ensure that we have an economy where workers fully participate in the fruits of their labor. we should not have a society in which all of those fruits go simply to the very few at the expense of a fair wage for those who create that success. so i want to thank senator harkin for leading this fight for this extended period of time on behalf of working families. he believes, as i believe, that we should measure the success of our nation not by the growth of the g.d.p., not by having one eye on the dow jones and one eye on the s&p 500. we should measure the success by the success of our families. that's what this debate about the minimum wage is all about. and this issue matters a great deal to me because i come from a blue-collar family. my father was a mechanic. he employed those skills in a sawmill. he was the millwrite, the person who keeps the mill going. so there's work for the workers and there's certainly success

well the harkin separatists have been jailed the ukrainian government has offered an amnesty to others and hans condone yet. should we guarantee you'll be no criminal prosecutions of people who give up their weapons and leave the buildings should. but there's no sign that separatists and tony asked plan to leave the regional administration complex. after declaring the people's republic of donetsk on monday they're demanding a referendum for the region like the one held in crimea and they won russia's help to make of note happened russia's forces meanwhile are massed on ukraine's border. nato has released the satellite images which it says show tanks and jets their park it. russia denies that the images are new. but nato says it has received such images day after day the board chair. russian president. but amid putin is turning up the pressure. in a letter to eu leaders. he warned moscow could cut off gas supplies to ukraine in kiev doesn't repay billions of years. britain said a supply cut could affect europe too. but nato says it's up to russia to take steps to reduce tensions with th

harkin: madam president how much time do we have left? the presiding officer: there is eight minutes remaining on the democratic side. mr. harkin: madam president in a few moments we're going to vote here in the senate on whether we're going to bring the minimum wage bill to the floor for debate and a vote. in a few minutes it will be clear where each senator stands. who in this chamber is going to stand with millions of americans who work full time for a living but who are left in poverty or the brink of poverty struggling toking to make ends meet. who is going to vote to give these good people a fair shot at the american dream and who's going to vote against them. we're going to find out in just a few minutes. there's no question that working families need a raise. 14 million children in america that's one in every five, is in a family that would get a raise under our minimum wage bill. businesses need a raise. over 600 economists, seven nobel prize winning economists said the lack of demand is what is hurting businesses in america. it'

when senator harkin asked him to come, which you know is a tremendous honor -- >> and there was a caucus there. >> we thought, why not. i had been to iowa a few times before. it was different. >> how was it different? >> it was folks in iowa -- they test you and want you to prove yourself. it is rare that you get such a pouring of enthusiasm. people were so excited to meet him. that day, robert gibbs and i were with him in iowa. this was fun. we were on the campaign trail. we were going to keep the senate, take the house. that's all we wanted to do. it was unexpected. it wasn't like a three-month plan. >> this is 2006? >> september, 2006. >> two years later you win the presidency. and we are now in 2014. and you are leaving? why? >> because i think that, as i tell you these tales over the past nine years, i have had an incredible journey. and i think some body else has the chance to have the experiences i have had. >> the person succeeding you is a longtime veteran. >> she is an old obama person. our downstate director in illinois. >> did he have any hint this was coming when he walked i

so i'll pledge to work it as rapidly as senator harkin can move it through the committee. i'll make my argument and we will come to a conclusion. i appreciate the senator from pennsylvania and west virginia putting a focus on such an important issue, and i look forward to a speedy conclusion to the debate and a passage of an appropriate bill. i just hope it enables instead of mandates. thank you, madam president. a senator: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from massachusetts. ms. warren: madam president, one year ago i rose to speak in this chamber. i rose with a heart heavy with mourning and yet filled with gratitude because one year ago cowards set off bombs in our pwhrofpbd marathon trying -- beloved boston marathon but boston responded with courage. today i rise to commemorate the anniversary of the boston marathon bombing and to celebrate the strength and character of the people of boston. one year ago terror knocked on boston's door. it was not just the momentary terror of smoke and sound, but the terror of uncertainty and speculation, the terror o

this is tom harkin's seat he is retiring in iowa. >> running in the primary to represent the republicanty in the senatorial race. six republicans running and she is number two. >> mccallum is from new jersey and i'm from new york. we heard cutting the pigs and we got a little. >> and jody does look nice. but, i wouldn't want to be around her if e has a knife. >> run for your life. >> if she has a knife. >> martha maccallum, everyone. and we'll have our mad as hell segment usually seen in this spot tomorrow. also tomorrow, the results of our bill o'reilly.com poll. you may remember bernard mcguirk did a satire in the press coverage of the missing airliner. can you see that on bill o'reilly.com if you dare. then we want you to vote. was mcguirk's segment great or awful? tomorrow mcguirk will be here. we will give him the results of the poll. come right back and the stock is the stock market rigged? and your retirement at risk. maria bartiromo on that. and miller roaming up. don't miss it. we'll be right back. if you've got copd like me... ...hey breathing's hard. know the feeling? copd in

did indeed sound like a campaign speech there, but not oall of the the dems ar signing on to tom harkins bill. susan collins has an alternate plan that would raise the minimum wage by a smaller amount. perhaps -- i don't understand why they would need any coverage, 72% of the folks out there support raising the minimum wage, including a majority of republicans. what do the dems in the senate want to push this thing hard and continue trying to message that democrats are the defenders of the working class and the republicans are the defenders of the wealthy? >> absolutely, i think it's a really important issue for democrats. i think it's an identity and values issue. it highlights who we are and what we stand for. we believe that hard work should not live in poverty. and women should have -- 2/3 of the people who earn minimum wage are women. this racing the minimum wage would close the gender pay gap by 5% just right off the bat right there. i think it's a very important thing, i don't think that senators should run away from this, they should embrace it. it's a clear contrast it draws bet

three adult children involved in political life a lot of you folks who think washington is broken harkinback to the data doesn't exist exist anymore and professor quandt knows how big it was to cross the aisle but it doesn't happen anymore. they punish folks for trying to do it. a lot of those young folks are doing -- going local. my daughter working on urban policy and she can see the results of her policy efforts every day she walks to work when she rides the trolley. i think that maybe of course a lot of you guys are going to go or you can say do you know what washington, not so much that here in charlottesville or richmond or lynchburg around the commonwealth for your hometowns and cities around the country you are going to want to get involved at the local level and a great u.k. education. some of you have gotten so competitive will be fortunate enough to get a batten school degree but i think you'll be equipped for the civic life that mr. jefferson originally envisioned and towards that end when i came to do my job talk and i confess i did write up something in this book so there's

systemically discriminated against blacks and latinos in some of the most egregious ways, ways that harkin back to segregation. he refused to rent to them. he asked his staffers to record their edadmicities. if you look at media reports in 2003 and 2006 when the lawsuits came up, people were talking about them and the nba just short of shrugged at the fact that one of their owners was engaging in federal housing discrimination and was settling for huge sums to get it off the table. >> which is, jonathan, a tacit -- it is a tacit acceptance of racist practice. the person we haven't heard from throughout all of this is donald sterling himself. except for on that tape, where he seems to disavow the idea that he's a racist. he keeps saying it's the culture, it's the culture. i'm reminded of cliven bundy who also refused to acknowledge he was a racist. as has been written, racist has become a term monstrous and meaningless. it denotes something so vial and inhumane that no real person might ever meet the standard, which is to say it exists in this other worldliness and even racists themselves c

in fact, it harkins to -- i felt like i was listening to someone from the 1930s, '4 0s or '50s. it's ridiculous. >> tea not surprising. he is re-enacting a very ancient american ritual of white people hating and disparaging black bodies at the same time they're making extreme wealth out of them. slavery. we have sexual encounters with women, we exploit their bodies. all this stuff is normal. for him to have a black girlfriend, i'm not surprised. to work around black players and use their labor for money, i'm not surprised. >> the guy can date whoever he wants, right? just to hear what he said -- no one is saying about interracial -- i don't want people to misconstrue what you're saying. he can date interracially. that's not the issue. >> i don't care if he dates interracially. some people would be surprised that he dates interracially and still doesn't want black people at the game. >> oh, no, it doesn't make you smarter or more immune to it because you don't date someone of your race. i want you to listen to charles barkley and shaquille o'neal responding to this earlier. liste

senate race, and gloves in, and gloves off, she endorsed joni ernst in a crowded field to replace tom harkinsend your reinforcement? and that is joni ernst for the united states senate. and she grew up castrating hogs and she will know just how to make the big spending piggies there squeal. she is not one who will be told to sit down, and shut up, and sit in the corner and let the good old boys do what they have been doing in the recent years. >> let's go to casey who was there in the haul when this endorsement happened. and so go behind the scenes and tell us how the crowd reacted to the former vice presidential candidate. >> well sh, i have spent time w palin and seen her there for half a dozen years and this is one of the stronger crowds, and the people there, they were excited to see her, and people stopped to say, hey, we want autographs, but on the whole, it was not the level of excitement that we are used to seeing with sarah palin in iowa, but she came to endorse senator joni ernst who is moving to the top of the pack of a crowded primary, and palin said she sees her as a kindred spi

after this term, two more populists from west of the mississippi river, tom harkin and tim johnson willlso ride off into the sunset. but the ideology can still be a path to victory. the elections of heidi hidecamp and george tester prove that. popularity has big guy in big sky company. just ask john shuster. he spoke at the dnc in 2008 and again in 2012 when some would say he used what some called his folksy brand of politics to slam mitt romney. >> here's the one that got the burr under my saddle. he quadrupled the fee for a gun license. well, now maybe -- just maybe that's okay for a guy who hunts varmins, but for the rest of us, that dog don't hunt! >> right now montana senator, john walsh, the man appointed to finish max baucus' term is coming up against republican steve dans. he's already got the job but it's tough to tell from his ad since he hasn't rolled out a new one since a week after being appointed. >> washington is broken. too many put themselves, their party, the special interests ahead of us. but i understand what courage really is. it's going to take a lot more than smea

next year, after levin, harkin, rockefeller leave, the number will be down to 24.he last members of what is a steadily shrinking old guard. and again, the idea of having a committy gavel anymore not the same motivation, because guess what, leadership runs everything, and these committee chairs have never felt more powerless. that's the real story of these retirements. >>> up next, the tdr exclusive on the hobby lobby boss' chat with the pope. by the way, this is your last chance to vote who will go to the sweet 16 in our tdr bracket challenge. it's a good one. cast your votes. we'll unveil the winners on monday. we're getting close. remember, the presidential near-misses. live in the same communities that we serve. people here know that our operations have an impact locally. we're using more natural gas vehicles than ever before. the trucks are reliable, that's good for business. but they also reduce emissions, and that's good for everyone. it makes me feel very good about the future of our company. ♪ >>> a pair of potential 2016 candidates on the republican side,

at an event last week with harry reid and he is leading this effort in the senate along with tom harkin. i trust when a bill comes to the floor and push come to shove, democrats are going to support increasing minimum wage. almost all democrats do. there is some question and some democrats' mind about what it should be raised to. i would say this about $10.10. it wasn't picked out of the air. it is a level that will let most people living most places in this country work full time and live. >> why would we debate the timetable on it when it is over three-year period. it seems to me democrats seem to be not full throated on this. you're either with the workers or not. in 10.10, there is a lot that seems to think it should be a lot more. these democrats are afraid to go into red states and say this is where i stand with workers. bob, your take on this. >> you do have some democrats and it is a deeper problem here who think they can pretend that somehow or other, they're not democrats so they don't have to run on health care. they don't have to run on the minimum wage. they can be somethin

i'm the ranking member of that subcommittee and chairman harkin and i held this hearing to raise awareness of the threat to america's health, the impact on the financial well-being of our country and to highlight the groundbreaking research initiatives currently taking place. for example, until 2009, only one genetic variant was known to increase the risk of late onset alzheimer's disease. however, through advances in genome studies and other technology, the list of known gene risk factors has grown substantially. now researchers identified 11 genetic risk factors. the national institutes of health are supporting research that supported methods of testing for buy o markers -- biomarkers for onset disease. changes could be a key to unlocking the causes and progression of the disease. n.i.h. has also made significant progress over the past several years and we continue to support them moving more aggressively toward developing new treatments for alzheimer's. related studies on early stages clinical trials are underway. a sustained federal commitment to research for alzheimer's will improve h

harkin: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from iowa. mr. harkin: madam president, tomorrow about noon we'll be voting on something in the united states senate that i dare say a lot of americans will be paying close attention to. partisan reason they're going to be paying close attention to it is because that vote will affect them and their families in the future in a very big way. that vote will be on whether or not we will actually bring debate to a close and vote on increasing the minimum wage in america. because if we do, if we were to bring it to a vote, if we could pass that, the president would sign something like that in law in six months, the minimum wage would go up by 95 cents an hour. then next year it would go up by another 95 cents and the year after that another 95 cents to $10.10 an hour to where it is now at $7.25. what we're going to vote on tomorrow is going to have a drastic effect on millions of american tpaeplts and it's going -- american families and it's going to have a big effect on our economy because it will boost

president clinton on a similar proposal being made to raise the minimum wage at that time 41% so now the harkinbill that we are going to vote on here shortly proposes to raise the minimum wage 40%. so this is back in 1998. james burling writing to president clinton on a proposed increase of the minimum wage by 41%. so for all practical purposes the same sort of proposal. so this is what mr. spurling wrote to president clinton. he said your entire economic team believes that this approach is too aggressive and our concern that senator kennedy's proposal and senator teddy kennedy's proposal back in 98 could prove damaging to the employment prospects of low-skilled workers. again, that is what the congressional budget office has said about this bill. and he goes on to say as well as to the general macroeconomic performance of the economy. so what are our friends across the aisle proposing we do when the economy grew at .1% this last quarter? to administer a body blow to this anemic economic growth. that is again not just my opinion. this is dÉjÀ vu all over again as i said. and i guess if you are

they will hold a vote to proceed on tom harkins bill that will raise the minimum wage up to $10.10 over 30 months. here is how supporters in the democratck party are framing. it senator booker says we live in a nation that is not fulfilling its promise to the people and anyone willing to play hard and invest sweat equity makes it in the county. harry reid hasn't said if they will change any of the bills. >> we can hear it is pouring rain but you do expect that will not keep them from voting. what kind of republican support does it have? >> you have bob corker who says he might vote to let the debate continue but that is about it. republicans think they have numbers from the non-partisan congressional budget office that show if the minimum wage is lifted it could lift 900 people out of poverty but eliminate half a million jobs as well. >> last week i spend running around my own congressional district and heard the shaame thing i have for five years: where are the jobs. i think the policies coming from this administration are causing the economy not to grow and the number of jobs we need

senator harkin and others talked about the development. i was in the palestine recently and met with technology, japan yours to work with usaid when not only create economic opportunities. you are a good ambassador. senator menendez concerned allow the american budget. the line items going down on the sea there are ten ambassadorial positions unfilled. some of that is on the white house, but some of it is on people languishing on the floor of the senate. the south, region of our defense has been hit very hard by the politics and having to reduce there drag interdictions as a result. the combined message that we seem to be sending, their own explanation, let america is really a place of importance to us. just because it's not a place of points to us doesn't mean it's not to china, ron, russia, russia is doing military exercises in the caribbean. i really worry about this. a just want to echo what the chair said. the committee two weeks ago and the full senate last week passed a resolution, as are to be a four dealing with the largest provid

thomas harkin who is retiring. paul ryan has a combination of anti-poverty and retirement ideas and so you have both sides left and right and we are trying to bring them together. >> host: more households at risk in retirement. in 2010 this big red bar goes up to 50%. what does this mean? >> guest: part of it is from the recession even though the savings rate went up and part of it is that people simply are not taking advantage of the federal programs and programs that work. it is so complex and there are variations of those tax incentives that really and truly most people come and i'm not talking about people who don't care about this. i'm talking about people nearing retirement age only about 46% of people who've access to this take advantage of it. human beings was strange creatures but hope for the future. if you're seeing retirement -- >> host: when you say they are in danger at risk of retirement what does this mean? the average person moves to be 85. 80 to 85 on medical advances retires at 67. you have almos

points we have not touched on was senator marco rubio who was on the floor and gave a speech about tom harkin. talk to us about his foreign-policy and what you see there. guest: if there is one republican that would benefit from a renewed forecast on foreign-policy, it would be marco rubio who did not have a good issue with 2013 that has really found his footing and voice when it comes to talking about foreign-policy. speaking in an interventionist tone with his comments. he spoke a few weeks ago and was one of the few twos focus -- to focus on foreign-policy is the theme of his speech. did not get a great reception with conservatives in the room but registered with the broader elite am especially looking at the 2013 election. he is one of the few candidates that has foreign experience, tenure on the foreign relations committee. he has that under his belt. if there are conflicts overseas and secretary clinton uses this to her advantage, i think you'll see a lot of attention for him for the intervention. host: next up on the line for democrats. caller: hello? what i want to talk about -- can y

president, this legislation is sponsored by senators harkin and merkley. i ask for its second reading and object to my own request. the presiding officer: objection having been heard, the bill will be read for a second time on the next legislative dayment. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent the appointment at the desk appear separately in the record as if made by the chair. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: i ask consent that when the senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow morning, that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the journal of proceedings be approved to date and the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day. following any leader remarks, the senate resume consideration of the motion to proceed to s. 2199, the equal pay bill, with the time until 11:00 a.m. equally divide and controlled between the two leaders or their designees prior to the cloture vote on the motion to proceed to 2199. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid:

i also harkin back to what was said in the clip that you said earlier.le. look at people as individuals who want to have lower taxes, who want to have strong national defense and make sure homeland is provided for and look at them as americans who happen to be of color. those how the republican party will continue our strong outreach to people of color for the party. >> going back to what crystal said, she said that african-americans have to have prominent role within the party instead of black outreach officers. she wants more. she needs more because that would show that the republican party is truly welcoming to minorities. does she have a point? >> she has a point to an extent. i think i would urge her to look at what we've been doing over the last two years. both the chairman and -- >> name an african-american who has a prominent roll in the rnc? >> let me answer the question. we hired key folks within the building at senior levels. we hired key folks to run operations in states. >> who are they? >> are we perfect there? to ron's point and crystal's

socha chairman harkin berg and everyone at the ex-im bank, congratulations on eight years to keep up the great work and have a wonderful conference. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, please welcome chairman and president of the export-import bank of the united states, fred hochberg. [applause] >> good morning. good morning and welcome to the 2014 export-import bank annual conference. i've had the opportunity to welcome you here for five years running, and i couldn't be more excited about today's program and the direction that xm is headed. i'm particularly delighted to be welcoming secretary of state john kerry, who will be joining us at lunch today. i want to begin today by talking about money. not what's inside this bag. i want to talk to you about the dollar sign itself. everybody in this room knows what this symbol means, but i'm willing to bet not many of you know where it came from. historians differ on the exact source of the dollar sign, but the theory that i like best traces it back to the strait of gibraltar. long before columbus and others set sail for the new world, leg

tom harkin of iowa, who is retiring. new chair of the senate finance committee, ron wyden, has a number of ideas. and someone you were talking about earlier, paul ryan, has a combination of anti-poverty and retirement ideas. you have both sides, left and right, we are trying to bring them together. through ant to go couple charts, more households at risk in retirement. this is a percentage line over here, this is 40% right here. bar goes ups red to 50%. what does this mean? guest: part of that is from the recession. even though the savings rate went up. and part of that is that people simply are not taking advantage of federal programs and programs that were where you match a 401(k), for example. or and ira, regular or roth ira. there are incentives in the tax code for people to save money. it is so complex. there are so many different variations of those tax incentives that really and truly most people -- i am not talking about people who do not care. i am talking about people who are nearing retirement age. only about

considering today, senators kasey and senator isaacson, and i also commend chairman upton, chairman harkin and ranking member alexander for making this possible, for the house to consider this bipartisan legislation today. i urge my colleagues to join me in supporting senate resolution 1557 and sending its legislation to the president for his signature and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, i'm very pleased to ask all members to support s. 1557, a very important legislation, with bipartisan support, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass senate bill 1557. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and, without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. pursuan

it is the open tom harkin seat. a retiring senator of many years. democrats only came up with one person, congressman bruce braley, who is in his own hot pot of water for insulting farmers. many iowans have that profession. he was at a fundraiser in texas with trial lawyers making fun of senior senator chuck grassley to saying at least if you elect me, you will elect a lawyer. crazy stuff. the fact that you only have one democratic candidate on that side in their primary has put the party in a box. they need to protect this guy and defend indefensible comments. if that happened on the republican side, i assure you that person's status would be diminished. you are not going to elect you. there is strength in -- you are talking crazy. we are not going to elect you. there is strength in numbers. i don't agree that unify means to rally behind one candidate. we do that in a presidential race constantly and we produce losing candidates. i think the republican party has been paying it forward since the last time he was the nominee. let's get rid of this fo

the leaders of that were senator richard durbin of illinois and henry waxman of california, tom harkin of iowa and john will ofelop -- john rockefeller west virginia. what has been the reaction on capitol hill since these new restrictions have been announced? guest: the authors of that report and some other democrats have said these restrictions do not go far enough. they are concerned about this issue. the electronic cigarette industry and traditional tobacco companies that have invested millions of dollars in these companies as well, are pretty happy so far with these restrictions. they think they are basically fair and balanced. but we will still have to see, come july, with the public comment says. host: here's a statement from one of those companies after the proposed restrictions were announced. cigarettes.ronic "we believe that a reasonable regulatory framework is important to help move the industry forward. today's rule is a step closer to achieving that goal. especially since e-cigarettes have become a significant alternative to smoking." he said mystic will continue to the wi

you should have said you are right senator harkin is a great leader will use support just making transparent that there is a problem with the car to put it out there? no. you can i answer that either. it is my question your people said it cost too much to fix that the code word and the solutions shows an acceptable business case and it was a public document gm gave that overview cannot talk to that you don't know anything about anything. and the chairman who was not here i will ask unanimous consent of turvey says carr and toucans see that without objection of. it is my understanding you are recalling many parts now. thinks people can say please pay for the loader. that is the right thing to do. do you support a law of the recalled cars can no longer be rented or loaned? rebecca if there is a safety issue on the vehicle a major >> data support a proposed law by senator mechanical and myself that would say recalled cars that they cannot be rented or loaned? do you support that proposal ? >> i would like to read the whole build civic you have not read it. >> i have not. >> it has announced a l

harkin: mr. president, i want to take a time this morning to talk about an issue that has been brewing for a long time, is going to be coming to a head here in the senate sometime in the next several days, i hope, and it's one which compels us, compels us to do something. and that is to raise the minimum wage in the united states of america. mr. president, we have waited too long to do this, and so we have to act on it as soon as possible. so i'd just like to point out some of the data and some of the statistics confronting us right now. first of all, why should anyone be afraid of voting to raise the minimum wage? the american people are way ahead of us on this. you look at the polling data. to increase raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour, all voters, 73% -- democrats 90%, independents 71%, and even republicans 53% -- say we ought to be raising the minimum wage. so the vast majority of american people want to do this. here's just, again, a chart from across the country. here's arkansas, h

senator harkin's bill which we're all supporting, will benefit 14 million children, and we have to do it, we have to do it for workers like wendy arellano who works directing vehicles at an airport and she has two other jobs, i say to my colleagues, but she still doesn't make enough to support her two daughters. we should do it for women like sherrica elliott who works as a janitor scrubbing the floors and cleaning the toilets but still doesn't make enough to keep her gets pooch the poverty line and do it for women like nia potts who is working so hard to finish her college degree but is struggling to support herself and her son. i joined nia at a press conference last week. in closing i want to talk a minute about the tipped minimum wage. this is a disscrais -- discrais because the -- disgrace because the tipped minimum wage at the federal level is $2.13 an hour and we all know because it's been studied that there are waitresses and there are waiters, and most of the less expensive restaurants hire women and they don't get big tips. and if it's a storm and suppose they had nobody com

increase in the federal minimum wage and so forth signed by 17 senators as follows: reid of nevada, harkin, merkley, leahy, booker, warren, reed of rhode island, durbin, cardin, carper, coons, nelson, franken, gillibrand, whitehouse, casey, sanders. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum under rule 22 be waived. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: mr. president, following my remarks and those of the republican leader, if any, the senate will be in morning business until 5:30 today, the time equally divided and controlled between the two leaders or her designees. at 5:30 there will be up to four roll call votes. first, confirmation of the friedland nomination, the next a cloture vote on the weil nomination, stob administrator of the wage and hour division of the department of labor, and a confirmation vote on the weil nomination. finally, a vote onccompanying mr. regan, assistant secretary of housing and urban development. today as we convene, i call to the senate's attention today is the commemoration of the holocaust. the holocaust was the systematic g