mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from south dakota. mr. thune: mr. president, i call up amendment 2437. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: the senator from south dakota, mr. thune, proposes an amendment numbered 2437. mr. thune: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the reading of the amendment be dispensed with. mr. president, in -- the presiding officer: the senate will be in order. mr. thune: mr. president, in the years 1994 to 2003, the united states congress appropriated over $36 billion in ad hoc or emergency assistance for farmers and ranchers across this country above and beyond the normal farm program payments. let me say that again. $36 billion in the ten-year period between 1994 and 2003, above and beyond normal farm program payments. since the emergence of the crop insurance program we have seen those disaster ad hoc emergency bills go away. the crop insurance program is the centerpiece of this farm policy. that's what the entire -- this entire farm bill is built around, what farmers and producers said they want

mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from utah. mr. lee: mr. president, i stand to raise a concern that i have with regard to the conference committee report to accompany h.r. 4348. pursuant to paragraph 9 of rule 28 of the standing rules of the senate, we're supposed to have adequate notice of a report like this before we've the opportunity to vote on it. the provision states that it shall not be in order to vote on the adoption of a report of a committee of conference unless such report has been made available to members and to the general public for at least 48 hours before such vote. now, the current version of the committee report was filed, as i understand it, at 8:07 p.m. last night. it's not even close to the 48 hours required notice. what we have ultimately, mr. president, when we look at this is the fact that we have a highway bill that was sent to conference, but it came back from closed-door negotiations with a student loan bill and also with a flood insurance bill attached to it. we were neither given the chance to debate nor given

mr. president. i yield the floor. ms. mikulski: mr. president? he presiding officer: the senator from maryland. ms. mikulski: mr. president, this is the time allocated for both republicans and democrats to speak, and we invite our republican colleagues to come and even within the republican party we know there are those who agree with us and those who don't. for those who agree, we'd love to hear their voices. and for those who don't, well, let's have a debate. let's take a look at what are some of the issues being raised in -- as a criticism of the bill. we're ready to talk about it. i have heard some of the most outrageous things on cable tv about why we shouldn't pass this bill. one was accusing us that this will undermine small business, and what i would like to be able to say is that small business has protections under the equal pay act. under the existing law, which this would not change, the -- already -- the equal pay act already exempts small business that makes less than $500,000 n annual revenue per year. so it keeps the equal pay act

mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from west virginia. mr. manchin: to lighten the mood a little bit today, i rise to recognize -- the presiding officer: we are in a quorum call. mr. manchin: i ask the quorum call be vitiated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. manchin: again, to lighten the mood a little bit today, mr. president, i rise to recognize west virginia's united way as a special organization as it celebrates its 125th anniversary. the united way was founded in 1887 by community leaders in denver, colorado. the renown organization originated through a group of individuals who came together with the drive to improve community conditions. since then, the organization has grown to 1,800 community-based uniteunitedunited ways and remae largest privately supported nonprofit raising nearly $5 billion annually. in our little state of west virginia, united way has touched the lives of so many, so many people. united way volunteers have clocked thousands of hours of community service through health services, senior assistance progr

mr. president? mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the leader. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent there be four minutes equally divided of debate prior to the vote. the presiding officer: the leader. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent there be four minutes of debate prior to the vote, time controlled by senator stabenow and -- the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection, so ordered. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from kentucky, and there will be order. mr. paul: our system of helping ensure that no one goes hungry in our country is a noble one, but we're now asking to spend $750 billion on food stamps. when we ask this, we need to remember that recently a woman in chicago faked the birth of triplets in order to receive $21,000 in food stamps. we need to remember that millionaires, including larry ficke, who won $2 million, are still receiving food stamps because he says he has got no income. he has got $2 million but no income. the presiding officer: order, please, and restore some of the senator's time. mr

mr. president. just such a terrible waste of our time. there are two bills at the desk due for a second reading. the presiding officer: the clerk will read the titles of the bill for the second time. the clerk: s. 3268 to amend title 49 united states code to provide rights for pilots and for other purposes. s. 3269 pmption a bill to provide that no united states assistance may be provided to pakistan until dr. shakil afridi is freed. mr. reid: i would object to any further proceedings with respect to these two matters. the presiding officer: objection is heard. the bills will be placed on the calendar under rule 14. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent nathan engal a fellow in my office be granted floor privileges for the consideration of s. 3240, the farm bill. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: would the chair announce the business of the gay. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the leadership time is reserved. under the previous order, the time until 10:30 a.m. will be e

mr. president. mr. thune: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from south dakota. mr. thune: i ask unanimous consent that justin posey be granted floor privileges for today's session of the senate. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. thune: and i ask to engage in colloquy with my republican colleagues for up to 30 minutes. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. thune: i came to the floor -- i come to the floor with senator ayotte to talk about national security. reductions amount to $984 billion to be distributed evenly over a nine-year period, or $109.3 billion per year. what we're talking about is $54.7 billion in reductions will be necessary in both the defense and non-defense categories despite the fact, despite the fact the defense funding constitutes just 20% of the budget. as my colleague, senator mccain, and ayotte are well aware, the sequester disproportionately affects defense spending putting our security at risk. it has been almost a full year since the act was passed and congress needs an understanding from this administration as to the ful

mr. presid? the presiding officer: the senator mississippi. mr. wicker: i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. wicker: and i ask consent to speak as if in morning business. the presiding officer: thank you, sir. mr. president, i rise today -- the presiding officer: without objection. mr. wicker: thank you, sir. mr. president, i rise today to express my serious concern about a matter of national security. it is a matter that is increasingly more visible with the american people. it's a matter that they are more and more concerned about as they hear more. it's an issue that is not going away until it's properly investigated by the executive branch of this government. and that, of course, is the recent news publications that discussed details of counterterrorism plans, programs, and operations of our government. these publication publications o specific counterterrorism military and intelligence activities that are among the most classified and highly sensitive national security op

mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from new mexico. mr. : i would ask to vitiate the quorum call that's currently pending. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. udall: thank you mr. president. i would also ask unanimous consent to speak for five minutes as if in morning business. the presiding officer: without objection, the senator from new mexico is recognized. mr. udall: thank you. mr. chairman -- or, mr. president, i also, as my colleague, senator whitehouse did, i want to thank chairman barbara boxer for her hard work and her leadership to protect our air and our public health on this crucial vote that's going to come up later this month. and i rise in opposition to the resolution of disapproval that we expect senator inhofe to offer. this resolution would permanently block the e.p.a. from reducing mercury and toxic pollution from power plants in the united states. the standard is called the maximum achievable control technology standard utility mact. by blocking this standard, this resolution is bad for public health. this res

mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from utah. mr. lee: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be suspended. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. lee: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from utah. mr. lee: mr. president, i rise today to express my support for senate joint resolution 37 and to express my deep and profound disapproval of the obama administration's handling of the utility mact rule. let me first address what this debate is not about. this is not about a debate between one side that supports clean air and another side that does not. we all support and understand the importance of maintaining our pristine environment, maintaining the quality of human health and the ecosystem. in my state, the great state of utah, holds some of the greatest land resources in the country and some of the most beautiful landscapes. they are all a source of pride for all americans and especially for all utahans, and they provide a significant economic benefit for my state in the form of tourism dollars. i woul

mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from illinois. mr. durbin: mr. president, i want to thank the majority leader and especially senators boxer, inhofe, as well as their counterparts on the commerce committee, banking committee, who have put so much time in this bill, so much effort. we are trying now to get this important and complex bill right and then to secure the support of both sides of the aisle to move it forward. there has been a lot of work going into it. everyone is working hard to try to accomplish what the majority leader has spelled out exactly where we stand today. i'm sure he will tell us if there are any developments. i'd like to ask consent that the statement i'm about to make be placed at a separate part in the record from my previous remarks the presiding officer: without objection. mr. durbin: mr. president, often -- for some time -- off and on for some time, i have come to the floor to speak about an issue that doesn't receive a lot of attention. it's the issue of political prisoners in foreign lands. journalists in cameroon and

president. i yield the floor. mrs. madam president, i'm pleased to be here to join my colleagues in talking about why it is so important to pass this transportation bill. and i thank senator whitehouse for his efforts in organizing us. you know, in new hampshire we understand what senator klobuchar was saying about the importance of getting this bill passed, so we can get our construction season under way, because we have a limited amount of time. but in only 17 days this nation's surface transportation programs are going to shut down unless congress acts to reauthorize them. in march, nearly three hft quarterquarter -- nearly three-s of this senate voted to pass a bipartisan transportation bill that maintains current funding levels and avoid ans increase in both the deficit and gas taxes. this legislation is important as we look at roads and bridges and mass transit that are going to be -- have support. it is important as we look at the jobs in the construction industry and manufacturing businesses that depend on our t

mr. president? mr. kerry: mr. resident, i have eight unanimous requests for committees to meet during today's session of the senate. they have the approval of the majority leader and the minority leader. i ask that these requests be agreed to. and that they be printed in the record. the presiding officer: without objection. cane mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from arizona. mr. mccain: mr. president, over the last two weeks several members of this body and i have raised serious concerns about a series of leaks that recently appeared in several publications concerning certain military and intelligence activities, activities that the authors themselves cite as among the nation's most highly classified and sensitive. these enormously troubling leaks have raised concerns amongst both democrats and republicans in congress, including leaders of our intelligence, armed services, foreign relations and homeland security committees. according to senator dianne feinstein, who chairs the senate select committ

mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from maryland. ms. mikulski: mr. president, i ask that the call of the quorum be vacated. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. mikulski: mr. president, i now yield five minutes to the gentlelady from louisiana, senator landrieu, who has been -- who chairs the small business committee and really knows the impact, the economic issues related to the empowerment of women, has worked on a bipartisan basis and also i think will -- hopefully will comment on how this bill will have no negative impact on small business. i yield the floor to the senator from louisiana. the presiding officer: the senator from louisiana. ms. landrieu: thank you, mr. president. let me begin by acknowledging the leadership of the senator from maryland and the other senators that have come to the floor this morning to speak on behalf of -- of a bill whose time has come, and some might say a bill whose time has passed. it's been almost 50 years since the original gender equity in the workplace bill was passed, and this has not been modernize

mr. president. i ask unanimous consent the bennet-crapo amendment 2022 which is cleared by both sides be in order. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. ms. stabenow: thank you. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from california. mrs. boxer: i ask the quorum call be dispensed with -- the presiding officer: we're not in a quorum call. mrs. boxer: i ask the time on the motion to proceed on s.j. res. 37 be in order even though the motion will not be made until wednesday's session. the presiding officer: without objection. mrs. boxer: mr. president, i am going to make a unanimous consent request that senator carper open this debate, and i give thanks to senator inhofe, for allowing that, for eight minutes and then senator inhofe will use 15 minutes at his discretion, then we'll go to senator shaheen for up to ten minutes, then back to senator inhofe for another 15 minutes from his side, and then our side will be lautenberg for ten, mercury for ten and whi

mr. president, mr. freedman said he just returned from seattle where he saw a stunning amount of innovation. he said it filled him both with exhilaration and with dread. the question was: is the united states prepared to deal with the innovation that we may be seeing around the world over the next decade? yesterday i heard robert zell lech's retiring president of the world bank brief a number of us about the problems we were going to have at the end of the year, whether the united states congress and president can rise to the challenge of governing so that we can show the rest of the world that we're capable of that. mr. zelleck says he travels a lot, an understatement, but he said two-thirds of the growth in the world over the last ten years have come from developing countries and that advanced countries like japan, europe, to some extent the united states, have been stagnant or drifting. mr. freedman's column says that we should try to remember the things that made us great and preserve as much of tho

mr. president? >> well, the first movie i ever saw more than once was "high noon." >> right. >> and i was still living in hope, arkansas, when it came out. i was 6 years old. you could go to the movies for a dime. and i would get 20 cents and i could buy -- i think you could get a coke and a candy bar or something for a nickel. i bet i seen it 20 or 30 times. the only other movie that i can watch over and over and over again and not get tired of is "casablanca". >> you know, "high noon" was a movie directed by fred zineman and produced by a very political producer and activist, stanley cramer. they have an award, stanley cramer award even today because of movies he made of that nature. >> fabulous movie. >> did you know at the time -- i guess -- >> no clue. >> later on did you realize that was an anti-mccarthy movie? >> yes, i did later on. when i read some books about the movie. i figured if i was going to see something 20 or 25 times, i ought to know more about it but i liked it because it wasn't

mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from montana. mr. tester: thank you, mr. president. i rise today in strong support of a bill we'll be taking up very soon to reauthorize and support the national flood insurance program. nine months ago the senate banking committee passed long-term flood insurance reauthorization with overwhelming bipartisan support. five months ago senator vitter and i along with 39 members of this body wrote our leadership urging that the bill be brought to the floor. mr. president, today this week, we will finally consider this much-needed piece of legislation and i want to thank senator reid for his willingness to bring it to the floor. i want to first and foremost thank chairman johnson, ranking member shelby for their excellent work in drafting this bill, commend them for their efforts to build consensus on this important piece of legislation. and i want to thank my colleague, senator vitter, for his leadership and partnership in working with me to help influence this bill in a way that reflects broad bipartisan support. together we added a numbe

mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from indiana. a senator: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be vitiated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. coats: mr. president, i come to the floor today to speak about the supreme court ruling on health care. obviously, we were all glued to the television set this morning and watching this historic and momentous decision. i was deeply disappointed with the ruling. i respect the court and its work, but i was disappointed the court failed to strike down this law, as many had anticipated that they would. i was disappointed because i believe that the law has been deeply and fatally flawed from the -- from the very beginning. it became a major issue, of course, in the 2010 election as people watched in 2010 this being passed through without bipartisan support. it was -- procedures were worked around and violated in order to pass it through. the stories are rampant about how, against really the will i think of the majority of the american people, this 2,700-page monstrosity, so inf

mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from massachusetts. mr. brown: i ask the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. brown: thank you, mr. president. i rise today to speak about something very serious. that issue is about sexual assault in the military. in support of the shaheen amendment which i cosponsored in the senate armed services committee markup, today i wrote a letter to house majority leadership expressing my concern for this issue and asking that it be addressed immediately. the senate armed services committee recently considered and passed the national defense authorization act for f.y. 2013, and it awaits full consideration of the senate. as we all know, our troops need the tools and resources to complete their mission. it's imperative that it gets brought up right away. as a member of the committee, i join with members of both sides of the aisle in supporting this amendment which would ensure that women who serve in our armed forces and their families are provided access to abortion services in

mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from georgia. mr. isakson: could i be recognized for one minute to honor the chaplain of the day from georgia. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection, so ordered. mr. isakson: it is an honor for me to introduce to the senate reverend ron mccrary who just gave the prayer for the day. reverend mccrary is a great individual from my home county of cobb county, he is the chaplain to the fourth largest county in georgia. he is a great preacher, a great leader and a great chaplain. he was recommended to me by sheriff neil warren who allowed ron to come to be with us today. ron is a father, minister and a great witness. he witnessed through the campus crusade for christ. he witnessed aes a pastor by ministering to churches. he witnessed to the community by delivering great sermons, one of them about voting in honor of coretta scott king delivered in 2006, where he empowered everybody to honor coretta scott king's life's work by making sure they participated in the political system. it is a

mr. president? >> well, the first movie i ever saw more than once was "high noon" and i was still living in hope arkansas, i was 6 years old and you could go to the movie for a dime. and i would get 20 cents and i think you could get a coke and a candy bar. the only other movie that i can watch over and over and over again and not get tired of is "casablanca". >> i have the stanley kramer award even today. later on did you realize that this was an anti-mccarthy movie. >> i did later on when i read some books about the movie. i figured if i was going to see something 20 or 25 times, i ought to know more about it but i liked it because it wasn't your standard macho western. >> did you feel when you were the president, that you also were the sheriff abandoned like garry cooper is and all the town's people run and hide and there you are to face the enemy all by your lonesome? >> sometimes, but it's really important when you're president. the equivalent of that is an opinion poll. today i help mexico, 81

mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from oklahoma. mr. inhofe: mr. president, i think i have time reserved now for up to 30 minutes. and would like to first of all say that the subject we just have been listening to is -- is life-threatening. it's critical. that's not why i'm down here today because we have something else that's very important. so, mr. president, i've come to the floor today with some breaking news. the momentum to stop president obama's war on coal is now so great that some of my colleagues, senators alexander and pryor, are going to introduce a countermeasure to my resolution, my resolution would put a stop to the second most expensive e.p.a. regulation in history, a rule known as utility mack which is the obviouser of the chair is very familiar with. it's a cover vote, pure and simple. while my resolution requires the e.p.a. to go back to the drawing board to craft a rule in which utilities can actually comply, the measure that senators alexander and pryor are offering would keep utility mact in place but delay the rule for six yea

mr. president. it is disturbing that mitt romney that is called the unconstitutional arizona law a model for immigration reform. anyone who thinks such an unconstitutional law should serve as a model, their national reform is clearly outside the mainstream and the united states supreme court agreed with that today. today's partial victory affirms the obama administration ras right to challenge this law. and it is a radio minder that the fix rests with congress. instead of allowing 50 states to have 50 different enforcement mechanisms, we need a national solution that continues to secure the border, punishes unscrupulous employers who exploit immigrants and undercut american wages, and requires 11 million people who are undocumented register with the government, pay fines and taxes, learn english, work, pay taxes, stay out of trouble and about to the end of the line to legalize their status. democrats are ready for that challenge and we have been willing to craft a commonsense legal solution to this

mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: mr. president, i now move to proceed to calendar number 341, s. 2237. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: motion to proceed to calendar number 341, s. 2237, a bill to provide a temporary income tax credit for increased payroll and extend bonus depreciation for an additional year and for other purposes. mr. reid: mr. president? i made a commitment to proceed to a five-year flood insurance bill following the farm bill, and we've done that. it's the right thing to do. it is an extremely important piece of legislation. so that commitment i have lived up to. i had hoped that the broad support we have for this extremely important bill will allow us to reach an agreement and finish the bill in a relatively short period of time. as everyone knows, the senior senator from arkansas has had some issues with the bill. i have suggested they've a vote -- that he have a vote. in talking to my republican friends, they don't have a problem with that, to give him a vote. unfortunately,

the presiding officer mr. whitehouse: i ph now ask for a second reading and object to my own request en bloc. the presiding officer: objection having been heard, the measures will be read for the second time on the next legislative day. mr. whitehouse: i ask unanimous consent, mr. president, that when the senate completes its business today, the senate adjourn until 9:30 a.m. on thursday, june 7, following the prayer and pledge, the journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, and the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day; and the majority leader be recognized. that the time until 10:30 a.m. be equally divided and controlled between the two leaders or their designees, further, that l fog the cloture vote on the motion to proceed to s. 3240, the next hour be equally divided and controlled between the two leaders or their designees with the republicans controlling the first half and the majority controlling the final half. the presiding officer: wit

mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from kansas. mr. moran: i ask the quorum call be lifted. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. moran: i ask to be recognized to address the senate. mr. president, thank you very much for the opportunity to be here this morning. we have got a lot of news in washington, d.c., and across the country over the last few days. a decision from the supreme court regarding immigration laws in arizona. we're expecting and anticipating a decision by the supreme court later this week in regard to the affordable care act. front and center are issues that are important to the country. we were successful last week in -- in approving here on the senate floor a so-called farm bill with a agricultural bill, again, that has an impact upon many in our nation. i want to make certain that we don't lose sight of what remains in my view that should be front and center. all the things that people ask government to do and all the things they want to accomplish in their own lives can only occur if there is a good and grow

mr. reid: madam president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid reid: is the senate ine process of calling the quorum? the presiding officer: that is correct. mr. dreed: i would ask -- mr. reid: i would ask consent that that quorum call be vitiated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent that a stabenow-roberts perfecting amendment which is at the desk be agreed to, the bill as amended be considered original text for the purpose of further amendment, that the following lee motion to recommit with -- and four amendments to be first amendments and the motion to recommit in order to the bill with no other first-degree amendments or motions to recommit in order until these amendments are disposed of. these amendments and motion are disposed of. and that would be paul 2182, shaheen 2160, coburn 2353, cantwell, 2370, and lee motion to recommit. that there be 60 minutes of debate divided equally between the two leaders or their designees on each of these amendments and the lee motion, that upon the use or yielding

mr president has any merit in fact. every issue that we have discussed he left nothing to me nothing for me to comment on. apart from. the fact that we discussed. each of these issues in much detail. both of our bilateral relations and international issues security issues the only thing my french. is now is the missile defense issue that we have also discussed. i have to tell you that on many issues when you mine we seem to have an understanding at least we are capable of listening to one another and hearing what we're saying if you know you and i believe that. to go in accordance with our longstanding tradition we are capable of negotiating and dealing with france and coming to terms on many issues including some very complex ones our conversation was open and candid. and what you would have its level it was going to be very friendly for which i'm. thankful to mr president when i see you. not only did we discuss. an opportunity of mr president visiting russia but i but i actually invited him with them and we hope to se

mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from new hampshire. mrs. shaheen: thank you, mr. president. actually, mr. president, i'm not here to play the blame game. i am here to talk about a place where we in the senate have found real bipartisan consensus and it's an issue that is critical i think to us in the state of new hampshire and to all of the senators here. because in 23 days, our countr country's surface transportation programs are going to shut down unless congress can come to an agreement on critical legislation. nearly three months ago, 74 senators voted to pass a measure that would reauthorize these programs through the end of fiscal year 2013, providing much-needed certainty to our states and to private industry. and here in this chamber, senators from vastly different ideologies were able to lay aside those differences and to come up with bipartisan ways to pay for this bill, to streamline federal programs and to make our transportation investments more efficient. so that we spend leses on less n overhead, more on roads and bridges and transportation projects.

mr. president? >> well, the first movie i ever saw more than once was "high noon" and i was still living in hope arkansas, i was 6 years old and you could go to the movie for a dime. and i would get 20 cents and i think you could get a coke and a candy bar. the only other movie that i can watch over and over and over again and not get tired of is "casablanca". >> i have the stanley kramer

mr. president, i suggest -- oh, i -- may i say, mr. president, that i ask unanimous consent at the end of his statement that senator chambliss and i be -- engage in a colloquy. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. chambliss: i thank my good friend -- the presiding officer: the senate will come to order. the senate will come to order. the presiding officer: the sergeant at arms has -- [inaudible] the presiding officer: the senator from georgia. mr. chambliss: getting back to the matter at hand... i want to thank my friend from arizona for his very direct comments on this very sensitive issues, and as vice chairman of the senate select committee on intelligence, i can say without a doubt that these ongoing leaks of classified information are extraordinarily harmful to our intelligence operations. every day we ask our intelligence officers and agents to be out there on the front lines, putting their lines in harm's way, gathering information, meeting sources and using a variety of highly sensitive collection techniques. depending

mr. president. thank you, mr. n cutting federal spending and growing the economy. we are working on these jobs, it would be a good place to start. honestly, we believe in the energy policy, which includes approving the keystone pipeline, which would help the situation dramatically as well. we are ready to go to work, but unfortunately, two summers, after the recovery summer, we still have chronic high unemployment, now 40 months, over 8%. we have an anemic, sluggish economy, which shows no signs of improving anytime soon.Ñ >> the vice president and the secretary of education are meeting with a number of college presidents right now about the cost of college.ñó÷ó what they are failing to address is the significant costs of health insurance for a number of these students, as a result in consequence of the president's health care law. many colleges are facing the choice between sharply increasing the cost of insurance that students get through those colleges, or dropping the insurance altogether. now, remember, it wa

mr. reid: madam president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. eid: i move to proceed to -- the clerk: motion to proceed to s. 1940, a bill to amend the national flood insurance act of 1968 and so forth and for other purposes. mr. reid: i have a cloture motion at the desk and wish to be reported. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: we the undersigned senators in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate 0 hereby move to bring to a close the debate on the motion to proceed to calendar number 250, s. 1940, a bill to amend the national flood insurance act of 1968 to restore the financial solvency of the flood insurance fund and for other purposes. signed bid 17 senators as follows: mr. reid: madam president, i would ask the consent of the chair that the names not be read. the presiding officer: without objection u. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum required under rule 22 be waived. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: followings leader remarks today, the

mr. president. no longer will americans live in fear of losing their health insurance because they lose a job. no longer will tens of millions of americans rely on emergency room care or go without care entirely because they have no insurance at all. soon virtually every man, woman, and child in america will have access to health insurance they can afford and the vital care they need. passing the affordable care act was the greatest single step in generations toward ensuring access to affordable, quality health care for every person in america, regardless of where they live or how much money they make. mr. president, unfortunately republicans in congress continue to target the rights and benefits guaranteed around this law. i would like to give the power back to the insurance companies, the power of life and death back to the insurance companies, but our supreme court as spoken. the malt is settled. no one thinks this law is perfect. the presiding officer doesn't, i don't. but democrats have proven

mr. president. president chiu: ladies and gentlemen, we are adjourned. >> the public wants to access particular information about your house or neighborhood we point them to gis. gis is a combination of maps and data. not a graphic you see on a screen. you get the traffic for the streets the number of crimes for a police district in a period of time. if the idea of combining the different layerce of information and stacking them on top of each other to present to the public. >> other types of gis are web based mapping systems. like google earth, yahoo maps. microsoft. those are examples of on line mapping systems that can be used to find businesses or get driving directions or check on traffic conditions. all digital maps. >> gis is used in the city of san francisco to better support what departments do. >> you imagine all the various elements of a city including parcels and the critical infrastructure where the storm drains are. the city access like the traffic lights and fire hydrants. anything you

mr. president what, about some retail opportunities. >> tyler sullivan went to see president obama give a speech last friday and the president offered to make sure tyler didn't get an unexcused absent. >> he came up and he asked me if he wanted an excuse note since i was missing school friday. >> jon: boom! and an extra 20 bucks gets that kid out of gym for the rest of the year. ( laughter ). mr. president, you're a likable guy with a lot of talents, and if you want to remain president, you're going to have to exploit all of them. >> is that balm rock? >> it sure is. >> well, turn it up. >> obama rock with all the president's tom hits. "let's stay together." "sweet home chicago." "let's stay together." and who could forget "sweet home chicago." >> smooth. hey, how much is obama rock? >> those two song fragments can be yourself for just $2,500. >> you mean the statutory limit for individual limit limits to a candidate for federal office for election. >> make check or money order care of: send your money now. >> ike right now. balm rock. ( applause ) >> jon: w w ( cheers and applause ) >> j

mr. president. president chiu: ladies and gentlemen, we are adjourned. >> when the new california academy of sciences opened in 2008, it quickly became one of the top tourist magnets in the city. part of the cal academies' astronomical success is the weekly nightlife party. >> i am joined by helen, who is here to school me on all the nocturnal activities that are getting ready to take place here. tell us a little about what we can expect to see at nightlife. >> we open up the doors every thursday night at the california academy of sciences. there are certain things you can see every week you can go to the museum, visit the planetarium, and we bring in bars and a deejay or band. it is a different feel from during the day, something different every week. tonight , we have beer and music. -- tonight we have great beer and music. it is beer week. we have a dozen local brewers in african hall. we have a deejays to set up throughout the museum and a live performance at 9:00 p.m. tonight. >> what has been y

mr. president. mr. president, this is the first time i am taking the floor before the general assembly since her election as president of the assembly. therefore, i am pleased to extend to you and to your sisterly country, qatar, my warm congratulations on the confidence of international community and i would like to offer our adversities and to the distinguished die with which you run the affairs of the assembly and i wish you success in these difficult circumstances. the same token i would like to express my thanks to the excellency, ban ki-moon can the secretary general of the united nations for all his affairs, streaming assessors to achieve a solution to growing crisis. by the same token, would like to extend my thanks to mr. kofi annan come in the joint special envoy of the united nations and the league of arab states, who along with his team to play as many as hers. and i hope you will succeed. mr. president, the council of the league of arab states adopted the resolution on the second of this mon