mr. coburn: mr. president, may we have order. the presiding officer: the senate will be in order. please take your conversations out of the well. mr. coburn: this is an amendment both senator durbin and i have offered. it's not nearly as severe as what the g.a.o. recommendation was for this program. the very wealthiest of farmers in terms of income in this country are the people most likely to buy less crop insurance, not more, and yet we sub enterprise them at the same -- subsidize them at the same rate as lower income. if you want to save a billion dollars, tackle the debt, here's a way that will allow to us save a billion dollars and not put anybody at risk. highly capitalized farmers don't insure at the same rate as lower capitalized farmers and the very thought that we -- we should -- this will be the only program if this amendment doesn't pass that doesn't have a payment limitation on it in terms of adjusted gross income. so there should be no question that we should do this just in terms of fairness of all the sacrifices we're going to ask everybody else in this country to

mr. coburn, and you know that when you evaluate a project for a client like mr. hamm, if you ever had such an outstanding person as your client, i would simply say if you ignore the price of energy, if you ignore the dynamism of our economy and the energy independence that's going to result from the new structure of oil prices in the world economy, you're fired. you're no longer mr. hamm's accountant, if he's done project analysis ignoring energy prices, and that's what we need to absorb. our market-based economy is working. it's working toward energy independence, and it's working toward a more effective allocation of energy resources toward the domestic sector, which you've emphasized in your question, senator coburn. >> just -- if the chairman would allow me. we have the opportunity to see oil prices go down if we become totally independent of outside resources, which gives us another boost in terms of our productive capacity. >> thank you, senator. senator menendez. thank you, mr. chairman, thank you, gentlemen, for your testimony. senator nickles, you know,

mr. coburn: mr. president, in -- the presiding officer: the senator from oklahoma. mr. coburn: -- in response, i take the leader to his word, and i will go back to my caucus and explain that. i will object to this group of bill. but i would also note that we did put two amendments out of the way. the one amendment for sugar wasn't the one that wthathad tht the one we chose. never have we given up our rights to give the majority leader the right to decide what amendments will be voted on or offeredment for the last three days we could have had a great, open process of having the floor open for amendments and moved eight or ten amendments a day. i i understand the conflict and the political roomifications of what he's trying to do. i will go and the seek the counsel and guidance of my caucus and return and give you a message. with that, i object. the presiding officer: objection is heard. mr. reid: before my friend leaves the floor, i also look with -- oh, what's the word? -- i look back at those days as recounted in caro's book and as we've heard here, to the days when th

mr. coburn: mr. president? the presiding officer: under the previous order, the senate will now resume legislative session and will resume the consideration of the motion to proceed to s. 2340, which the clerk will report. the clerk: motion to proceed to calendar number 415, s. 3240, a bill to reauthorize agriculture programs through 2017 and for other purposes. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the motion to proceed is agreed to. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from tennessee. mr. alexander: thank you, mr. president. i thank the majority leader. i want to say i did not object to a voice vote for mr. hurwitz because i wanted to make this statement. last night i voted for cloture because when i became a senator, the democrats were blocking an up-or-down vote on president bush's judicial nominees, and i said then that i would not do that and did not like doing that. and i've held to that in almost every case since then. i believe nominees for circuit judges in all but e

mr. hamm. >> senator coburn. >> thank you, mr. chairman, and thanks to the individuals testifying. i'm having trouble getting this. senator enzi and i are the only two accountants on this committee, and the thing that i can't figure out is what we -- what the obvious is not being seen. you eliminate intangible drilling costs, actually you decrease revenue to the federal government and here's why. you take away the capital for exploration. you thereby decrease the amount of revenues and the exploration in this country. if you -- if you had no change in exploration and no change in discoveries, the tax revenue to the federal government would be the same over ten years as it is with intangible drilling costs. there's no difference to what the government takes in. one is a delayed tax versus a fully captured tax at the time of the expensing, so i don't get what the debate is. what i don't understand is why when we're sending $400 billion a year out of this country and we have the potential to have a stimulus in this country of $400 billion a year by having the money that would have bee

mr. coburn: thank you. and i assume we're in morning business.because we're in morning business, i'm going to use that time to talk about four amendments that i have to the agricultural bill. i want to make one really, i think, acute observation to the american people on what's going on in washington. and the four amendments that i'll have on the agriculture bill, they're a symptom of the disease that's in front of our nation. this year we're going to run about $1.3 trillion deficit. at the end of this fiscal year, we'll have $16.25 trillion worth of debt. i'm 64 years of age. my children and grandchildren are going to pay back my portion of that debt. i'm not going to be paying it back. the question in front of our nation is: one, how did we get to this point? and number two is what are we going to do about it? and what you're going to hear today as we begin voting on the amendments, what you're going to hear from the senate is why we can't cut spending, why we can't limit our appetites kwr-rbgs -- why we can't end subsidies to some of the riche

caller: i was watching mr., and i believe senator tom coburn made four proposed amendments. what would they be? and i would like to know if it were included in the farm bill, and if there were not, could you please explain why. guest: we have four amendments. jermaine amendments relate to agriculture or itself. a number of amendments that go to finding savings and efficiencies in the farm bill, and this will be voted on today. he has a non-germane the amendment that would reduce $36 million in funding that now goes to the republican and democrat convention. on your tax return, when you check the box that you want dollars to go to the respective conventions, that is about 18 million for each of the conventions. his amendment would repeal that. he has for amendments, and that is generally what they relate to. that is what we will vote on today. host: 73 in total being debated by the senate. the cost is over a 10-year time. this is a five-year bill. waldorf, maryland. darnell on the democrat line. caller: i am thinking this is a big giveaway to big agricultural companies and co

coburn captured her portrait, to keep dolley safer and exhibiter in london. he also took her seat cushion and among, some of the pleasantries too vulgar to repeat, he wished to warmly recall mr. madison's seat. four days later when they returned they found their capital city in ruins and a sight at the white house that most effectively affected the pair. nothing was left of the executive mansion but it's cracked and blackened walls. dolley could never speak of that first sight without emotion, and in that moment spying a passing american soldier, dolley wished "that we had 10,000 such men, sink or enemy to the bottomless pit." friends described the president as miserably shattered, heartbroken and dolley inconsolable, much depressed she could squarely spees without tears. dolley later confessed to mary latrobe she was so angry she wished she had stayed and fired on the troops. i confess i was so unfeminine to be free of fear and willing to remain in the castle with a cannon. i love that picture of dolley in the window with the cannon. it seems dreadfully sad and unfair to stop our story with the james and dolley weeping amongst the smoking rune, but what i'd like to do, sum

mr. chairman. i appreciate all the witnesses. it has been informative. i associate with tom coburn of oklahoma. i was proud to be an american last night, how your family acted and how the obama family acted. i also do not think you are old school. i think you believe in the plain meaning of the constitution. it is the greatest document to prove exceptionalism. it is the first time goes values came together in the same place and i hope we never lose sight of that. i want to focus on my colleague, mr. waxman's comments. he has some questions to answer. we are at a crossroads for the heart and soul of this nation. i was intrigued by his use of the term rules of the road, as if that is what one of the groups around here wants to do and as if the other group wants to engage in anarchy, which could not be further from the truth. there is a need for government to have reasonable elations. this is about how much control is a program for the government to have over an individual. i participating in something called red tape rollback. it is 1 congressman's attempts to roll back the boots of the federal g

coburn 2214, murray 2455, mccain 2162, and rubio 2166. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection, so ordered. ms. stabenow: than stab thank you, mr. president. i also have 12 unanimous consent requests for committees to meet today during today's session of the senate. they have the approval of the majority and minority leaders. i ask unanimous consent that these requests be agreed to understand that these requests be printed in the record. the presiding officer: without objection, so ordered. ms. stabenow: thank you, 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

coburn, who has been instrumental in planning west virginia's first honor flight. she is representing her father, francis fluhard, an air force aerial photographer on a b-24 liberator during world world wa. mr. president, thanks to charlie, dreema, bob denver, pam and the help of others, 31 veterans will be traveling to washington tomorrow on this very special journey. i commend them for their dedication and for giving west virginia just one more way to say thank you. thank you to our veterans for their service and sacrifice. i've always said that we owe our men and women who have served more than a debt of gratitude. showing our appreciation is something we should do each and every day. but tomorrow is a special day where we can pay tribute to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our great nation. i'm so pleased that i'm able to greet some of our most courageous west virginia veterans who are all heroes. i ask the senate to join me in honoring these 31 veterans and welcome them and their close friends and family to washington, d.c. tomorrow. thank you, mr. president. and i yield the floor and i notice the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. q

mr. coburn: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from oklahoma. mr. coburn: i address my comments to amendment 228. the presiding officer: order, please. the clerk will report. the clerk: mr. coburn proposes an amendment numbered 2289. mr. coburn: i'd ask that the amendment be considered as read. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. coburn: this is an amendment that falls in line with what the recommended -- recommendation of the administration is as well as every outside group that's ever looked at this program. the department of agriculture has five marketing programs. this is just one of them. the administration recommended a 20% reduction. we have put forward an amendment to reduce it by 20%. we spend $2 billion over the next ten years on market access. american contribution to total world agricultural products is on the decline in spite of these program, and the waste in these programs, if you look where the money is spent, is unbelievable. i reserve the balance of my time. the presiding officer: the senator michigan. ms. stabenow: thank

mr. coburn, for himself and others proposes an amendment numbered 2214. mr. coburn: i yield minute and a half to the senator from colorado. the presiding officer: the senator from colorado. mr. udall: i want to thank the senator from oklahoma and rise in support of this important amendment. i'd also like to note this provision is included in larger bill i introduced this week to reform our presidential public financing system and i'd welcome support for that broader initiative. this is a bipartisan short-term step that we can take to preserve more money for publicly funded candidates who are running for president regardless of using -- instead of using that money to fund what we know now as extensive parties in our conventions. so i'd urge a yes vote. this is a way to get our fiscal house in order, it's a small step but an important step. i thank the senator from oklahoma for his leadership in this matter. mr. coburn: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from oklahoma. mr. coburn: 99% of the american public has no idea when they check the box th

moran 2403, moran 2443, vitter 2363, toomey 2247, sanders 2310, coburn 2214, boxer 2456, johanns 2372, murray 2455, mccain 2162, rubio 2166. mr. reid: rubio 2166, that at 2:15 tomorrow, tuesday, june 19, the senate proceed to votes in relation to the amendments in the order listed, alternating between republican and democratic-sponsored amendments. that there be no amendments or motions in order to the amendments prior to the votes other than the motion to waive points of order and the motion to table. that there be two minutes of debate equally divided in the usual form between the votes, that all after the first vote be ten minutes. that toomey 2247, sanders 2310, coburn 2214, boxer 2456, johanns 2372, murray 2455, mccain 2162 and rubio 2166 be subject to a 60-vote affirmative vote threshold, that the clerks be authorized to modify the instruction lines on amendments so that the page and line numbers match correctly. that upon disposition of amendments, the bill as amended be read a third time, that there be up to ten minutes equally divided in the usual form prior to passage of the bill as amended if amended. finally passa