inhofe: thank you, john. announcer: the government shutdown now in day two will continue past christmas as the senate and house have both adjourned with no legislative

john: jim inhofe. thank you for your time. announcer: the government shutdown will continue past the christmas holiday as the senate and house of ended their session. no business scheduled in either body until next thursday. as always, watch live house coverage on c-span and the senate on c-span two. ♪ announcer: the united states senate, a uniquely american institution, tearing out constitutional duties since 1789. on wednesday, c-span takes you inside the senate, learning about the body and its workings. we will look at his history of conflict and compromise with interviews. >> arguing about things and taking them around and having debates is american. announcer: key moments in history and access allowing us to bring cameras into the senate chamber during a session. follow the evolution of the , tote into the modern era the role in impeachment proceedings and investigation. the senate, conflict and , a c-span original production, exploring the history, traditions of this uniquely american institution, premieres wednesday, ja

inhofe: i have six of them. you want me to run over all of them? host: go ahead. sen. inhofe: ok. well, the first one, there is this document right here. this is the best one in the years that i've been there. this is the document that is implementing what the president is trying to do and what he says his priorities are. this actually does it. what is good about this is it was put together by democrats and republicans, all experts who made this thing up. when they put it together, they swore that they would tell the truth for a change. just what our condition is. and just give you an example because this comes right from this manual here. such quotes as the commission. this commission says unequivocally the national defense system is not adequately resourced. america is very near the point of strategic insolvency. america's military superiority has eroded to a dangerous degree. america's combat edge -- you know, all these things we knew. the reason we knew them is that we have had people all during his administration talking about how bad the -- our military is now behind. host:

inhofe: yeah, yeah. there's a program that was started, i guess it was under the first bush administration, that gives us -- people from the services, i rotate mine. i always keep one -- in fact, one is with me here in the audience today. and that is a great program. letting people in the military know how things are really run. it's a shock treatment to most of them when they get up there. but it's great. when they leave -- during the time frame they are there i'm talking about the military it fellowship program, where they'll come in for a year, you fall in love with them during that year. you defend on them during that year. when they leave, they go back and they tell the truth about what the problems are and why. for example, they'll wonder -- they'll serve in an office where defending america is not a priority. but they get back before they can actually talk -- i can't think of anyone that will be better informed. there are probably some here in this audience that have gone through that program. we

five former inhofe staffers now work beside wheeler at epa, including his chief of staff, his principaladministrator, his assistant administrator for enforcement and compliance, a senior adviser for policy, and an associate administrator for policy. all former staffers of the senator who believes climate change is a hoax. >> the epa is stocked with former inhofe staffers, and this is reflected in the types of policies that you see coming out of epa right now. >> so, do you think the goal is to just destroy epa flat out? >> i think that the goal is to undermine climate protections to roll back existing rules and to erode fundamental environmental laws. >> reporter: what is wheeler's response? >> just one question? >> reporter: we're waiting. >> drew, that means we still do not really have an answer as to why it's okay for a coal industry lobbyist to now run an agency that regulates the coal industry. >> reporter: certainly not from wheeler himself. he's not answering our questions. but we did hear back from his staff at epa. they wanted to point out a couple of, i would call them finer p

inhofe: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from oklahoma. mr. inhofe: mr. president, i ask consent that no with withstanding previous house message today's motions and amendments remain in status quo and the earlier motion to concur in the motion to refer with instructions and amendments 1923 and 1924 be withdrawn. the presiding officer: without objection. morning business is closed. under the previous order, the senate will proceed to executive session and resume consideration of the following nomination, which the clerk will report. the clerk: nomination, office of the director of national intelligence, joseph macguire of florida to be director of the national intelligence terrorism center. mr. inhofe: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from oklahoma. mr. inhofe: i further ask unanimous consent to complete my remarks. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. inhofe: i ask also that at the conclusion of my remarks senator paul be recognized for up to 15 minutes

. >>> republican senator james inhofe of oklahoma is facing all kinds of criticism today for purchasingock with a defense contractor just days after successfully pushing the trump administration for more defense department spending. a senate financial disclosure report revealed inhofe listed a purchase of 50 to $100,000 to defense contractor raytheon. he spoke exclusively to lauren foxx today. >> this is a group that has who are than 900 people and they invest -- i intentionally did this so i don't have any decision, any voice, in what they invest in. neither do any of the other 900 people that are out there. and this way -- in fact, i don't even know who they invest in. thousand that's the truth and i know that people thpeople don't want to believe that, that's fine. >> inhofe said he told his financial adviser to reverse the transaction when he was aware. "the daily beast" went in deep and noticed that the documents' meta data indicated it was created 20 minutes after the news outlet reached out for comment. with me from the former office of government ethics, he's also a cnn contribu

and more live coverage on c-span 3, senator james inhofe talks with students at the national defense university about his priorities as chairman of the senate armed services committee. at 1:00 p.m., the coast guard addresses why the u.s. presence in the arctic is important to national security. and then joint chiefs of staff chair general speaks about how the pentagon is modernizing the armed forces. >> defense secretary james mattis and russia attempted to interfere with our 2018 midterm elections and that the u.s. relationship with russia has worsened, secretary mattis spoke at the annual reagan national defense forum at the reagan presidential library. after his speech, he sat down for a conversation with bret baer of fox news about global hot spots, the defense budget and his future with the trump administration. this is just under an hour. >> this morning marks an anniversary for our keynote speaker. exactly two years ago today, president trump announced to the nation his intention to nominate james mattis as our nation's 26th secretary of defense. having met and interviewed wit

inhofe: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from oklahoma. mr. inhofe: mr. president, we've talked about this recently more than we have in quite sometime. you know, defending america needs to be our number-one commitment. to many of us, it is and has always has been. that's why we've been coming down to the floor and talking about the national defense strategy, the armed services committee. we had the honor and privilege of hearing from, you know, some of the really well-informed people, members and people from the outside, and they look and they see the threats that we are facing. now, they don't always agree with each other, but i really believe that we're in the most threatened position we've been in as a country in the years that i've been here. and that'll come as a surprise because people, they know that we've had threats. we've been at war for two decades. and we still have the threat of terrorism. it's out there. they've seen dangerous behavior of rogue states. i like the idea that the administration came up with. we're looking at our peer competito

and fiscal solvency and strategic solvency we say can coexist, a plaintiff jermaine thornberry and inhofe made in at the top priority is this the troops cutting defense will not close the deficit but suggesting doing so would be a disservice to the troops and the american people they serve and protect because we all know here today that america can afford survival. we are in an era of great power competition but as president trump has said, competition doesn't mean hostility nor does it inevitably leads to conflict. it won't if we continue to invest in strength. this is true of the relationship with china we see a constructive results oriented relationship with beijing but we do not accept predatory economic practices or coercion of smaller states. no one nation can on its own change the international order or veto other nations diplomatic economic or security positions. alongside our alliess and partners we will defendas our interests, show respect for other nations sovereignty and uphold our values we exercise that had been recently turned as constructive vigilance. we are americans, we

fiscal solvency and strategic solvency we say can coexist, a point that chairmans thornberry and inhofe made clear in a recent op-ed when they said, our top priority is the troops. cutting defense will not close the deficit, and i would suggest doing so would be disservice to troops and the american people they serve and protect, because we all know here today that america can afford survival. we are in era of great power competition, but as president trump has said, competition does not mean hostility, nor does ite inevitably lead to conflict. it won't if we continue to invest in strength. this is true of america'ss relationship with china. we seek a constructive, results-oriented relationship with beijing, but we do not accept predatory economic practices, or coercion of smaller states. no one nation can, on its own, change the international order or veto other nations' diplomatic, economic or security decisions. alongside asean and with our allies and partners, we will defend our interest, show respect for other nation's sovereignty, and uphold our' values as we exercise what has bee

the second point they want to make is, yes, andrew wheeler was a proud member of senator inhofe's staff, but andrew wheeler did not write any of those speeches that senator inhofe now somewhat famously gave on the senate floor. two finer points, but to answer your question, no, we don't have an answer from andrew wheeler yet about how it's possible that epa's administrator could have been a coal industry lobbyist. anderson? >> yeah, all right. drew griffin. drew, thanks. we'll continue to follow that. the news continues now. we want to head to chris for "cuomo prime time." chris? >>> thank you, anderson. i am chris caromo and welcome to "prime time." we will soon know more about the mueller probe, and i mean as in starting tomorrow. we're going to learn who's been helpful to the special counsel, who's been lying. there is a pattern to the filings by mueller, and we're going to show it to you and show you why it suggests that the president has good reason to be worried. >>>-happ happy hanukkah to all jewish brothers and sisters. let's get after it. >>> now, before we start tonight, let m

this week on "newsmakers" we will talk to senators on two key committees in 2019 -- senator james inhofe who chairs the armed services committee and senator chuck grassley of iowa who will take over the finance committee in the new year. senator grassley chairs the judiciary committee for the past four years. he'll move over to finance, where the committee has jurisdiction over taxes, tariffs, social security, medicare, and medicaid. two previous chairs of the committee, daniel wester and henry clay. it was formed in 1815. senator chuck grassley, you have been the chair for the 115th congress and for the 116th you will be chairing the finance committee. why did you decide to make the switch? sen. grassley: it's crazy rules of the republican caucus that you can only be chairman of a committee for six years. i've chaired the finance committee four years so i got two years left. to chair that. now, if i could predict in 2122, we'd still be in the majority, then i could have finished my

been having gulf biden's violent protests for some people describing them as being the host riots inhofe a century. and they've actually been some specifically into the injuries caused as a result of rubber bullets with many civil liberties groups just saying that they shouldn't be used now a group of u.s. academics published a study in december of last year saying that fifteen percent of people who were injured by rubber bullets specifically actually ended up with permanent injuries with the majority of people moving. so late they said three percent of those injured specifically by rubber bullets actually went on to lose their lives so the question is why is the french government still deciding to go with using the flash tools which have been proven in some cases to be deadly and still wilting to spend more than two million euros on its vision of protecting the state. of the common stereotype that we sometimes hold of terrorists is being challenged by a study in the united states after nine eleven the so-called average terrorist was often portrayed as being a muslim of arab descent with

oklahoma senator jim inhofe is chair of the armed services committee. live coverage here on c-span2.

been in gulf by these voile a process for some people describing them as being the worst roi it's inhofe a century and they've actually been some specifically into the injuries caused as a result of rubber bullets with many civil liberties groups just saying that they shouldn't be used now a group of u.s. academics published a study in december of last year saying that fifteen percent of people who were injured by rubber bullets specifically actually ended up with permanent injuries with the majority of people losing their sight they said three percent of those injured specifically by rubber bullets actually went on to lose their lives so the question is why is the french government still deciding to go with using the flash tools which have been proven in some cases to be deadly and still wanting to spend more than two million euros on its mission of protecting the state dozens of protesters were arrested in paris but city officials say the new year's celebrations will go ahead despite the unrest. started back in november against a fuel price hike continued even after the government make

accepted said julian assange is welcome visitors to the ecuadorian embassy in london for the first time inhofea year to german and pays met with the whistleblower to express their solidarity and hopes of finding a legal solution to the situation and a sad check and picks up the story. m.p.'s from the german bund to stop and its committee on foreign affairs who authored a letter in support of the q leaks founder julian assange signed by dozens of m.p. . he's been visiting him here at the ecuadorian embassy in the british capital they are demanding that the u.k. provide assurances that the songs would be able to leave this embassy without being extradited to the u.s. we see the next step in this ever lasting case is the responsibility the united kingdom united kingdom has to take the measures now. to thank you solution which is in the frame of international law and not in the frame off the u.s. at new station who is against international law and against actually the u.s. will i mean against the first amendment they are taking measures like the protection of journalists and freedom of speech and

the wake of nationwide protests the ten comes off to paris witness three weeks of the west riots inhofe a century. well it seems that opinion polls show that most people are favorable to those concessions given by the government and announced by the french prime minister today but as with many of them have said this is not enough and they will push for that tax reductions and it looks like the protests that was planned for this saturday will still go ahead so what did the prime minister announced in total well first of all he announced a moratorium on fuel tax hike that was due to take place in a month's time in january and said that that will be suspended for six months he also announced that there would be no increases to utility bills so that's gas and electricity in the hope that will help and many working class british people who say that they just struggling to live with the high costs of living here in france let's take a listen now to water it literally you say post has been this fiscal measure for six months and introduce it onto has been discussed with. no taxes worth putting

levin, chairman mccain, a wonderful ranking member, jack reed, who is with us here today, chairman inhofe -- being able to advocate for those service members is one of the most amazing responsibilities we could have. that they have everything they need. they're mostly in their 20's. they're defending freedom in every corner of the globe. they give us the ability to be safe, to live in our houses. i remember going to coast province in afghanistan right by the pakistan border. and the indiana national guard was there. and i said, what message do you want me to take home to your families? and they said, tell them we got this. we know how to do this. and tell them we're going to make sure that they're safe. that's what these men and women were about. i had the privilege of going to iraq with kiersten. same message from amazing people who gave everything they have -- everything. and i think of the first eight months i had in congress. it was in 2007 and things were in flames. and our district in indiana, as many of our other states are, we have a lot of people who serve. per capita, we're abou

levin, chairman mccain, a wonderful ranking member, jack reed, who is with us here today, chairman inhofe -- being able to advocate for those service members is one of the most amazing responsibilities we could have. that they have everything they need. they're mostly in their 20's. they're defending freedom in every corner of the globe. they give us the ability to be safe, to live in our houses. i remember going to coast province in afghanistan right by the pakistan border. and the indiana national guard was there. and i said, what message do you want me to take home to your families? and they said, tell them we got this. we know how to do this. and tell them we're going to make sure that they're safe. that's what these men and women were about. i had the privilege of going to iraq with kiersten. same message from amazing people who gave everything they have -- everything. and i think of the first eight months i had in congress. it was in 2007 and things were in flames. and our district in indiana, as many of our other states are, we have a lot of people who serve. per capita, we're abou

inhofe will get pushed.said publicly he doesn't see his role as much as an oversight, he sees it as giving the military the tools they need. there will be people underneath him who are very upset. confirmation hearings for those who replace james mattis will be intense and you'll have pressure from hawks who are still over there like lindsey graham, marco rubio, rubio is an interesting case. he doesn't talk to the national press very much. he sought us out last week to complain and light up the president on decision on syria. i'll be curious to see what role mitt romney would play. he could be a bullet proof never trump figure. as popular romney is in utah and the president is not he could come in and be a disruptive force in that way if he so chooses. so there will be opportunities to see if any of these younger i guess folks try to rise up a little bit in a republican controlled senate. we were talking about gray beards. those folks made their designates not to be the ones to walk down pennsylvania avenue.

oklahoma senator jim inhofe is chair of the armed services committee. live coverage here on c-span2. [inaudible conversations] >> the committee meets today to consider the nominations of general frank mckenzie for central command and general richard clarke to be special operations command. of course, we appreciate very much your many years of service and will expect when you are recognized for your opening statements that you recognize your families. it's a very important part of your being here today. we do have a-- some required questions and i'd ask you to answer these questions so that-- audibly so we'll be able to hear your response. the first one, have you adhered to the laws and regulations governing conflicts of interest? >> i will. >> i will. >> all right. do you agree when asked to give your personal views, even if those views differ from the administration in power. >> i will. >> have you assumed any duties or undertaken any actions which would presume the outcome of the confirmation process? >> no, sir. >> no. >> will you ensure that your st

i know that senator jim inhofe and congressman matt thornburgh are going to have a discussion with themn the subject tomorrow. here's the issue, martha. we made a down payment two years of defense increases. we need a defense buildup similar to what reagan did in the early '80s. why is that? the devastating cuts of c sequestration has have, and i spent a year looking at our national defense strategy and we are saying the united states is more at risk than we've been in decades. we could struggle, struggled to win a war and possibly lose it. the people of this commission are not prone to being alarmist. we run war games to make sure we understood what's actually happening here. i think, clearly, director mulvaney of omb told the president, everybody in the government should take the hit. the fence is only 15% of the budget. you don't continue to build up -- the money you would save giving defense a haircut is so small in terms of helping the deficit, is not going to make much progress. what you have to make certain you do is provide the resources of the american people are secure and saf

inhofe: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from oklahoma. mr. inhofe: i ask unanimous consent at the conclusion of my remarks, that my friend from iowa, senator grassley be recognized. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. inhofe: mr. president, i don't know how but a lot of the people back home have got in their heads that defending america is a complicated issue. and, you know, it's the kind of issue that's going to be decided in washington by a lot of smart people and all that but nothing could be further from the truth. the reality is that defending america is just common sense. it's called priority, something we didn't have in the last administration, and we all -- every american citizen needs to be responsible for our own national security, so i'm going to be coming here each week to outline the common sense for our common defense. and we are working here in washington for families back home. now, today i'll talk about how we face the -- an urgency in funding our nati

. >> reporter: wheeler is also a former top aide to climate change denier senator james inho inhofe.roposal would roll back an obama era rule that required most newly built coal plants to drastically reduce their emissions. the agency's new proposal flies in the face of a recent trump administration report that urges swift action in curbing greenhouse gases to avoid catastrophic flooding, drought, economic recession, and extreme heat due to climate change. is this the sort of situation where you are ignoring this government report because it clearly said that we urgently need to curb emissions? this proposal seems to do the opposite. >> we're not ignoring the government report, we're still looking at the report itself. >> reporter: the report warns the economy would lose hundreds of billions of dollars by the end of the century. >> i don't believe it. right now we're at the cleanest we've ever been, and it's very important to me. >> reporter: the trump administration wants to roll back yet another environmental law, just as another new report warns that global fossil fuel emissions a

. >>> next senator jim inhofe talks to students about the national defense university in washington. he shares thoughts on u.s. defense strategy and how it compares to other countries like china and russia. lord we in the free world each of us ask you that you do we help us to use their great american for model in our prayers and lives in country that is our fallen hero, george hw bush, we ask this in jesus name . >> what a great guy he was i would be surprised if most of you did not see the funeral yesterday, he had quite a career. this is the first time i've been here, and i've been here a lot of years but have not been out here. it's a pleasure to see here -- to see you and respond to your questions. it is fitting that we are gathered here and i say this i say this with a show of hands, to all the students who are here. i can see it by the uniforms, anyway, you may be shy but you won't be when you get out of this thing. it anyway you folks know about american heroes and about george bush and what we went through yesterday and about lincoln and washington all of our heroes but ther

and more live coverage on c-span 3, senator james inhofe talks with students at the national defense university about his priorities as chairman of the senate armed services committee. at 1:00 p.m., the coast guard addresses why the u.s. presence in the arctic is important to national security. and then joint chiefs of staff chair general

mitch mcconnell, jim inhofe, tom cott cotton, conservative senators went along. we're not going to fight this now but kick it down the road until february 8th. if you are a serious conservative trump-supporting senator right now you think this guy is totally out of control. he's responding to three people on twitter and two talk radio hosts and two random republican congressmen? we just took a vote that might hurt us a little bit. we did it. they didn't take a roll call vote. by unanimous consent. and i just think the degree to which he might pick up a little with some of the people listening to rush limbaugh out there. among actual people in washington who follow this who have been disposed to at least give him the benefit of the doubt, people we've criticized all these months and years are giving him so much benefit of the doubt. this is a moment of, are you kidding me? i just voted for this last night and you're pulling the rug out from under me? >> he's succumbed to pressure on this front but he's facing pressure on the syrian front from republican senators a

inhofe: you, senator reed. we are proud to walk him our -- to welcome our witnesses here. they have had many years of service to security of this country. we appreciate the hard work they have put in to this commission. we would like to start with opening statements. we will start with you, ambassador, and your entire statement will be made a part of the record. we are anxious to hear your statement. >> thank you, chairman inhofe and thank you, senator reed. is a pleasure to be here again. i have testified a number of times and it is always a great experience. i am glad you have got our statement and i will let that speak for itself. i am on the going to make a brief opening remarks and invite admiral roughhead who has been my cochair, to revise and extend my remarks if i get anything wrong. first, i think we owe you a tremendous debt of thanks. that is to say, you, mr. chairman, senator reed, senator mccain when he was chairman, also chairman thornberry and ranking member smith, for nominating to this commission a great group of americans who approach these issues in a to

his words, what impact, whether james inhofe, the military hawkish republican types. >> it will be interesting how they handle this when they come back. bob corker is gone. he is on the way out, he is probably so happy now that he's on the way out. his replacement is jim rich who hasn't criticized the president, stands by him. it will be interesting to see how that committee deals with it. but i will say trump is an isolationist in every sense of the word. >> he was in company and business. he is the only one. he doesn't listen to other people, doesn't care about other people's advice, he follows his instinct and gut. >> who is going to take this job, howard, who is going to take this job after reading that mattis letter. >> somebody that studies donald trump closely, covered him since he began the campaign and before. i bet one of the things he is thinking is if we get out of syria and get out of afghanistan and they don't give me money for the wall, that money is going to come out of the pentagon. now, he said this, he has said this. he said the money will come from the pentagon. and we're g

host: this week on newsmakers we'll talk with senator james inhofe who chairs the armed services committee and senator chuck grassley of iowa who will take over the finance committee in the new year. senator grassley chairs the judiciary committee for the past four years. he'll move over to finance where the committee has jurisdiction over taxes, tariffs, social security, medicare, and medicaid. two previous chairs of the committee, daniel wester and henry clay. it was formed in 1815. >> you have been the chair for the 115th congress and for the

. >>> next senator jim inhofe talks to students about the national defense university in washington. he shares thoughts on u.s. defense strategy and how it compares to

we spoke with senator grassley and senator inhofe after that. you can find it on c-span.org and he talks about his priorities for the committee. also other issues you and others might care about. yesterday, the president talked to the troops and again repeated that under his administration, troops have seen a pay raise. trump iraq troops pay raise, from -- trump boasts a fictional pay raise. -- about he had delivered them one of the biggest pay raises you have ever received while falsely saying it was the first pay raise they received in decades. they go on to say according to the defense department, military members have seen a pay raise in each of the last 10 years ranging from 1% to 2.9%. at the last time there was not a pay increase was 1983. only because the date of the raise was moved forward from october to january. military personnel received day 2.4% raise in 2018 and it will raised by 2.6% in 2019 as a result of the national defense authorization act signed by the president in august. despite the 2% increase already being the largest i

inhofe: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from oklahoma. mr. inhofe: mr. president, this is centered a lot of discussion, and it is a little con confusing. i think there are a lot of things that everyone agrees with but how we're going to express ourselves has to come down on all possibilities of the options that are there. i want to start off by saying that i oppose the sanders-lee provision. i think it, the resolution would have us find that since march of 2015, members of the united states armed forces have been introduced into hostilities in yemen between the saudi-led coalition and the houthis, including providing to the saudi-led coalition aerial targeting assistance, intelligence, and sharing in midflight aerial refueling. if enacted, lee-sanders could ultimately pull all u.s. support from the saudi-led coalition in yemen. the sanders-lee resolution is, i think, fundamentally flawed because it presumes that we are engaged in military action in yemen. we're not. we're not engaged in military action in yemen. there's been a lot of discussion about ref

inhofe: i have bad news and good news. the bad news is i was -- it was suggested to me that there is some type of a rule at a time like this where the senior person in the chamber speaks next and that's me. the good news is, it's short. and the reason is because i didn't really think about this until i came down here to watch senator hatch. i can remember it so well long before i was in the house, orrin, long before that, you were the guy i always listened to. you'd get phone calls from some obscure state senator out in oklahoma who is complimenting you and you might even remember one time you and i put something together where we were going to balance the budget and pass an amendment that we knew would pass because we were going to confirm everything before we got it passed. and that was a brilliant idea that didn't work. but nonetheless, we talked quite often about things and you were the one that i looked up to. the same thing happened. you had a way, when i was in the house, that would see more than anyone else during

inhofe: mr. president, are we in a quorum call? the presiding officer: the senate is not. mr. inhofe: mr. president, i want to finish up where senator kyl and i started off this morning in elaborating a little bit more about what the responsibilities are concerning the nuclear modernization program. you know, defending america should be our number one priority. and in most all of the administrations throughout the years, it has been our number one priority. and today we'll talk about the modernization of nuclear forces. the reason i think this is important, there are a lot of people who say the nuclear forces are a relic of the past. this just flat is not true. some in washington believe we don't need to modernize our nuclear forces or cut off one of the three legs being the i.c.b., the bomber and the submarine. it's just not true. our nuclear triad has got to be kept intact. our arsenal is aging. most of it hasn't been modernized since it started in 1960's. then in the 1980's, the last moderniza

after speaking with the chairman of the senate armed services committee, now senator inhofe, it is mile understanding that he in fact -- it is my understanding that he in fact has a plan to carry out this legacy of senator mccain and to hold a series of combreeftions -- briefings early next year on these technological issues so our members will be better able to evaluate the kinds of things that will help our military have superiority in the future, and i'm happy to have some small part to play in advancing that. there are a couple more specific things that senator mccain didn't work on but which bear his name, and i wanted to mention one. i cosponsored and helped secure passage of senate bill 728, a bill to hem reauthorize the morris k. udall and stuart l. udall foundation at the university of arizona. this was something that senator mccain helped to create and to foster throughout his career. but i am also pleased to announce that this legislation names the foundation's environmental conflict resolution center after the late senator john mccain. and i'm pleased to make that announceme

inhofe: thank you, john. announcer: the government shutdown now in day two will continue past christmas as the senate and house have both adjourned with no legislative business scheduled in either body until next thursday. more on this with white house budget director mick mulvaney and assistant senate democratic leader dick durbin from this orning's news shows. >> i met yesterday with the vice president and mr. schumer met throughout the day as your story indicated with some republican members to talk about where we were in the discussions. we had given an offer, counter offer to mr. schumer late yesterday afternoon and immediately i think thereafter the senate went into recess until at least thursday. that doesn't mean it would be thursday before we could hear something back but i don't think things are going to move very quickly for the next couple days. >> are we talking a week? talking until the new congress comes in january 3? >> a couple different things. it is sunday right now and governments shut dow

senator inhofe and i offer this amendment to reassure israel and our regional partners -- the presiding officer: the senate will be in order. mr. cornyn: we offer this amendment to reassure israel and our regional partners that the united states intends to honor our commitments as the leader of the free world. the presiding officer: who seeks recognition? mr. sanders: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. sanders: i just want to clarify with senator cornyn so that there's no confusion. his amendment deals strictly with israel and not regional allies, am i correct on that? that's what the text of your -- mr. cornyn: the amendment says nothing in this joint resolution shall be construed to influence or disrupt any military operations or cooperation with israel. mr. sanders: with israel. right. thank you. the presiding officer: question is on the amendment of -- question is on the amendment. is there a sufficient second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote: vote: the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber wishing to vote o

orrin is so famous for encouraging, as we heard from the senator from oklahoma, senator inhofe and senator lankford, he's famous for being an encourager. and i can't think of any one of us that hasn't had orrin hatch come up to us at some point during the day and say you're doing a great job. keep it up. actually the joke was orrin has told so many of us that he loved us that one of our colleagues said, well, he told me he loves me most, hoping we would be jealous, i guess. but the truth is orrin's got a heart as big as all outdoors. he is at a time when people wonder about the future of our country and the character of the people who serve our country in government. he is a shining example of exactly what should cause them to keep faith for the future of this country. as long as we have men and women of the character of orrin hatch serving in the united states government, we have nothing to worry about. so let me just say to my friend orrin, thank you for being my friend. thank you for being a great example for all of us to emulate. there is nothing more powerful in life than a good examp