mr. graham: i will. mr. isakson: isn't it true that there is nothing with this waiver that prohibits the american manufacturers from doing the development necessary to come up with a material to exceed or meet the rayon made in austria. the problem is they can't produce rayon in the united states of america because the e.p.a. prohibitions and the cost that it is to meet that. mr. graham: thank you, senator, for the question. it is my understanding that the efforts is being made in virginia and south carolina to produce this product here domestically and the concerns that the senator addressed private sector is dealing with and that the ability to produce this material domestically is -- is a viable option and i just don't want to take a precedent in terms of the bury amendment that what i think would change the spirit of the amendment at a time when we have a potential to make this domestically and i think as much as we can do domestically to protect our military and to provide resources to our military, the

mr. graham and his wife, mrs. graham, they were on the board.y attach the bill before congress leaves. and it is passed, and nobody read it. >> and aig theft was consummated last year when we did not exact terms or get fall babacks, and s a bought government? >> remember, the scc, which is the nation's biggest law firm, essentially, was gutted over the past ten years. that's one of the reasons they missed this. >> i know you two have a lot to say. and i have a time monster. we are back with more of the "morning meeting" with karen and barry right after this. every da, transitions lenses are there every da, to help care for my sight. announcer: transitions lenses adjust to changing light to reduce glare and help protect your eyes from uv damage so you can see better today... and tomorrow. live your vision. transitions. healthy sight in every light. when you buy a pair of transitions lenses and register your certificate of authenticity, you could win $100 and we'll make a donation through the transitions healthy sight for life fund. so now we've t

mr. graham: thank you, madam president. i trainin take the floor to infy colleagues on how i intend to vote on the supreme court nominee judge sotomayor. i understand the path of least resistance from me to vote no. anytime you're in a minority party and you lost the election, but i feel compelled to vote yes and i feel this is the right vote for me and, quite frankly, for the country in this case. why do i say that? elections have consequences. i told judge sotomayor in the hearing that if i had won the election, even though i wasn't running, or senator mccain, she would probably have not been chosen by a republican. we would have chosen someone with a more conservative background, someone like a judge roberts or miguel estrada. she is definitely more liberal than a republican would have chosen, but i do believe that elections have consequences and it's not like we hid from the american people during the campaign that the supreme court selections were at stake. both sides openly campaigned on the idea that the next preside

mr. graham: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from south carolina. mr. graham: i'd like it thank the chairman for those kind comments. i have real estate been a military lawyer for a while, but i'm smart enough to know what i don't know, and the bottom line is that the judge advocates to a person have indicated that the procedures, as outlined by senator levin, would be the best way to go. under the civilian classified information procedures act, there's a robust body of cases, military evidence rule 505-b is not used very obvious in court-martials and what we've tried to do is interject into the commissions some reforms that will make the trials go forward in a manner that the courts are likely to approve the work product. i think everybody involved -- military judges, defense counsels, prosecutors -- welcome in change and senator levin and his staff and our staffs have worked with the white house, and i think we've found a way to reform the military commissions that would provide balance when it comes to the admission of classified evidence, protecting

mr. graham? >> aye. >> mr. cornen? >> no, by proxy. >> aye. >> mr. chairman, the votes are 13 yeas and -- >> the name will be sent to the full senate for its action. i ask unanimous consent for thomas mcclellan, christopher schroeder, cranston mitchell, those nominees be considered en banc. without objection, they will be considered en banc. those in favor of those four nominees, signify by saying aye. opposed? the ayes appear to have it. and i would note that we have one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, blah, blah, blah, 15 -- >> boy, let's do this. let's recap this moment. certainly an historic moment. boy, judge sonia sotomayor, her nomination to become the next associate justice for the united states supreme court voted out of the committee in the affirmative. let's get to capitol hill right now and brianna keilar is there for us. and as expected, there was one republican member of the committee, senator lindsey graham, who voted aye for sonia sotomayor. >> reporter: that's right, lindsey graham has said, he's been saying th

graham. >> thank you, mr. chairman. one, i would like to add my compliments to you and senator sessions for conducting the hearings with whatever shortcomings they may have in terms of finding out about the nominee. i think you did a good job of giving us a chance to ask and senator sessions did a very good job. i come to this a little bit differently. you can tell it in my vote. i'm going to vote for the nominee. and i cannot disassociate myself, being a second term senator from what almost happened three or four years ago. i really enjoy politics. it's been a great honor to represent the people of south carolina and to be able to have a say about things that matter in the country in a political forum. i enjoy traveling all around the country, trying to help senator mccain. i failed in that endeavor. everybody has, you know, they don't feel good about this or that. i didn't feel good about the election. but we lost. i feel good about the country. i feel really good about the american people and quite frankly, i feel go

mr. graham: thank you, mr. president.ught this debate went down the side of liberal versus conservative until i got to understand during the confirmation hearings of judge sotomayor that senator feingold is probably one of the strongest gun guys in the senate so i have had to recalibrate where i stand on this issue in terms of trying to pigeon hole people. the point of the amendment, it shunned be oshouldn't be on thee bill. we are talking about a defense authorization to protect our troops and provide them equipment they need and give them a pay raise and now we're talking about guns and hate crimes and i don't know how we got here as a body but we're here. if you had to pick a nongermane amendment to talk about that made some sense that most americans, i think, with like us to be talking about would be something fundamental to our country and i think most americans are a little bit right to center on an issue like this for lack of a better phraseology and most americans believe in lawful and responsible gun ownership an

graham. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i want to compliment you and senator mccain for trying to come up with a new bill. i think it would help the country if we could reform the process. i think we're very close to a bill that we can be proud of. about the appeals, the main thing for the public to understand is that any verdict rendered in a military commission trial will work its way into the civilian courts, is that correct? >> yes, sir. >> so no one will be imprisoned in this country based on a military commission's verdict until they have their day in court? >> yes. >> when it comes to the idea of location, the courtroom at gaunt bay is ue -- guantanamo bay is uniquely set up to do these trials. i'm not so sure after the supreme court decisions treating guantanamo bay as an extension of the united states would matter greatly. so like senator mccain, i'd like to know how location would matter. admiral macdonald, one of the issues we're grappling with is the material support for them. it is not a traditional charge unde

mr. graham. >> aye. >> no by proxy. >> no by proxy. >> aye. >> 13 yays six nays. >> the nominee has been approved by the committee. the name will be sent to the post senate. christopher schroder and mitchell, those four nominees be considered on bunk without objection, those in favor, of those four nominations, say aye. >> aye. >> the aye appear to have it. we have 15 senators in the room. >> mr. chairman, i think there's some concern about some of the nominees but i think our members are committed to go forward. >> i appreciate that. >> please stand in recess. next next week, the full senate will face -- >> next week, the full senate will face the vote for sonya sotomayor. >> you are watching public affairs programming on c-span. up next, president obama takes questions on health care reform at a town hall meeting hosted by aarp. after that, members of the u.s. house talk about changes to the health care system. >> on tomorrow morning's washington journal, we will focus on health care legislation. our first guest is jack the kucinich. after that, we will stick with congressman roy blunt

graham. senator durbin. >> thank you, mr. chairman, judge, good to see you again. >> hello, senator. thank you. and i thank you again for letting me use your conference room when i was as hobbled as i was. >> you were more than welcome there and there was more traffic of senators in my conference room than i've seen since i was elected to the senate. this has been an interesting exercise today for many of us who have been on the judiciary committee for a while because the people new to it may not know but there's been a little bit of a role reversal here. the democratic side is now largely speaking in favor of our president's nominee. the other side is asking questions more critical. and in the previous two supreme court nominees the tableses tab turned. there were more critical questions coming from the democratic side. and there's also another contrast, obvious contrast. the two previous nominees that were considered while i was on the committee as chief justice roberts as justice alito were, are, white males and, of course, you come to this as a minority woman candidate. when we a

mr. chairman. >> thank you, senator graham. and senator schumer. >> thank you, and i want to add my compliments to you, mr. chairman, for the judicious way you have conducted these hearings and i want to say to senator sessions, i thought his questions were sharp but fair, and to all of my colleagues that way. i also want to thank senator graham for that moving and important speech that he just gave in favor of her nomination. mr. chairman, and one final thing, i am sorry to be coming and going here. we have democratic meeting in the finance committee to try and tie things down, so i apologize to my colleagues for that. mr. chairman, i am enormously proud to be able to cast my vote today in favor of the confirmation of judge sonia sotomayor. this is a historic day for america. americans are familiar with the inspiring story that brought judge sotomayor from a bronx housing projects through a prestigious legal education, and now to a nomination to the highest court in the land. it is a great american story. it will inspire americ

graham. senator durbin? >> thank you, mr. chairman. judge, good to see you again. >> hello, senator.n for letting me use your conference room when i was as hobbled as i was yo was. >> there we heard one of the most interesting exchanges of the day. not only exploring the issue of the death penalty and abortion but started it with something that you were talking about yesterday, one of the most dangerous political minefields in this might have been the whole way lindsey graham apromped the temperament issue. the idea that her temperament is not fit to be on the court. a number of critics have written to that extent. the way lindsey graham did that by suggesting do you think you have a temperament problem putting her on the spot responding no, i suggest the way people view this might be pretty critical. >> the issue of temperment came up with anonymous sources. i believe it was in the "washington post" and you had many people who were going on the record, friends and co-workers, who say she does not have a temperament issue. but lets bring in chris cillizza to talk about this. what do

wound up in lindsey graham having to rehabilitate him and saying are you a bigot, sir? and mrs. alito was crying in the background and judge alito, now justice said, of course i'm not. lindsey graham said of course you're not. that was a theme of that man's confirmation hearings. he was a part of the group and barely remembered it. she was on the board of this organization for 12 years, so is this hypocritical? >> not at all. i think there is a difference there. i think there has got to be a higher standard for whites in the majority in an and a lead institution like princeton when you have people acting to somehow say the introduction of women or minorties, blacks, puerto ricans, hispanics, whoever, is somehow not going to be accepted or somehow acting against that, given the history of the country, and i think that is obvious to me. >> two different groups and one deals with whites and the other deals with minorties and it's not hypocritical to focus on one because it deals with white membership and the other because it is minority membership? >> yes. if you're asking me in a c

mr. chairman. >> thank you, senator graham, and senator schumer. >> thank you, and i want to add my compliments to you, mr. chairman, for the judicious way you've conducted these hearings, and i want to say to senator sessions i thought his questions were sharp but fair, and to all of my colleagues that way, i also want to thank senator graham for that moving and important speech that he just gave in favor of her nomination. mr. chairman, and one final thing, i'm sorry to be coming and going here. we have a democratic meeting of the finance committee to try to tie things down so i apologize to my colleagues for that. mr. chairman, i'm enormously proud to be able to cast my vote today in favor of the confirmation of judge sonia sotomayor. this is an historic day for america. americans are familiar with the inspiring story that brought judge sotomayor from a bronx housing project through a prestigious legal education and now to a nomination to the highest court in the land. it is a great american story. it will inspire americans everywhere. americans of all races and creeds and colors to reach furth

mr. chairman. >> thank you. that was great. >> thank you. >> senator graham. >> thank you, mr. chairman. and something i would like to say to you directly and publicly and with admiration for your life story is that a lot of the wrongs that have been mentioned, some have righted, some have yet to come, judge, i hope you understand the difference between petitioning one's government and having a say in the electoral process and voting for people that if you don't like you can get rid of, and the difference of society being changed by nine unelected people who have a lifetime appointment. do you understand the difference in how those two systems work? >> absolutely, sir. i understand the constitution. >> and the one thing i can tell you -- this will probably be the last time we get to talk in this fashion. i hope to have a chance to get to know you better, and we'll see what your future holds. but i think it's going to be pretty bright. the bottom line is, one of the problems the court has now is that mr. richie has a story to tell, too. there are all kinds of stories to tell in this count

graham. senator durbin? >> thank you, mr. chairman. judge -- >> all right so, there he is. that was certainly one of the highlight it is not the highlight so far, the questioning of sonia sotomayor by lindsey graham, especially that very version dramatic moment when she concurred that if he would have said something along the lines, he as a white man, a caucasian felt a wise white man would make better decisions than a latino, for example, we have been over with, his career would have ended, he confronted her with it and she conc concurred, basically, a very, very dramatic moment. lots to digest. we will assess what we just heard from lindsey graham and sonia sotomayor as our coverage of these historic hearings continues. taking its rightful place in a long line of amazing performance machines. this is the new e-coupe. this is mercedes-benz. this is the new e-coupe. there's a big reason to lower high cholesterol... dangerous plaque that can build up in arteries. it's called atherosclerosis--or athero. and high cholesterol is a major factor. but crestor can help slow the buil

mr. lder. an actual criminal invgation toorture? e sotomayor hearings. invitati to an anti-climax. as sator graham says to her, unless youave a complete meltdown you're gointoet confirme and the sarah con woman chronicles she's going to start herwn coervative party with democrats. plus li hnson is now talking about her, quote, stress levels. all that and more now on "countdown." >>> good evening from new yo. the me bush-cheney administration which failed heed warngs from its own cialans from al qaeda, itself, that fled to prevent the wot attack on u.s. soil, that failed to get the perpetrators of at attack is also we learned today thsame administra which failed to come up with a single viable plan for the cia to capture or kill members of al qaeda, spite running an eight-year long mission so secret theice president ordered e cia to not tell cgress about it. "the wall street journal" toy reporting that discussion of pls to kill al qaeda lears tapered within six months ter 9/11. accoing to former intelligence officials saying bush and chen didn't sport a proposal to send special tea after al qaeda t

graham. >> thank you, mr. chairman.i'd like to, one, compliment you and senator mccain for trying to come wup a new bill. i think it would help the country if we could reform the process. and i think we're very close to a bill that we all can be proud of. about the appeals. the main thing for the public to understand is that any verdict rendered in mailtry commission trial will work its way into the silion courts. is that correct? >> yes, sir. >> so no one will be imprizznd in this country based on the military commission verdict that does not have their day in federal court, civilian court? >> assuming they appeal, that's correct. >> now, when it comes to the idea of location, the courtroom at guantanamo bay is uniquely set up i think to do these trials. i would be interested to get your thoughts about how the location would matter. i'm not so sure after the supreme court decisions treating guantanamo bay as an extension of the united states that it would matter greatly. so like senator mccain, i would like to know how

mr. holder. an actual criminal invesgation into torture? the sotomayor hearings. invition to an anti-climax. as senator graham says to her, unless you have a complete meltdown you're going to get confmed. and the sarah con woman chronicl. she's going tort her own consvative party with decrats. plus levi johnson is w talking about her, ote, stress levels. all that and more now on "countdown." >>> good evening from new rk. theame bush-cheney administration which faid to heed warnings from i own officialans from al qaeda, itself, that failed t preven the worst attack on u.s. soil, that failed get the also we learned tay the same administrati which failed to me up with a single viable plan for the cia tocapture or kill members o al qaeda, despite running an eight-yea long missi so secret the vic president orded the cia to not tell congress about it. "the wall street journaltoday reporting that discussionf plan kill aqaeda leaders taped off within six months after 9/11. acrding former intelligen officials saying b and cheney didn't support proposal to send speal teams after a qaeda the way israel got the terrorist

carolina republican lindsey graham went so far as to say she's sure to be confirmed if she doesn't suffer what he called a complete meltdown. so far she hasn't. >> thank you, mr. chairman. >> reporter: it was sonia sotomayor's turn to argue her own case and after introducing family members in the grand and packed senate hearing room -- >> my mom solina sotomayor. >> reporter: the appeals judge who would be the first hispanic on the high court laid out her philosophy. >> the task of a judge is not to make law. it is to apply the law. in each case i have heard i have applied the law to the facts at hand. my personal and professional experiences help me to listen and understand with the law always commanding the result in every case. >> reporter: democrats say sotomayor's record proves she's impartial. >> she's ruled for the government in 92% of criminal cases. she's denied race claims in 83% of the cases. >> reporter: sotomayor's biggest problem is the remark she made off the bench that a wise latina would reach a better conclusion than a white male. some republicans called that disqualifying. >> such an approach to judging means that the umpire calling the gam

graham vs. wily. under the transition period we will keep doing this with back stop authority -- >> mr. barker, you're the true architect of the plan. what you are saying is some of this is still up for negotiation? >> yeah. the boundary issues, that you raised are the same that we got with the legislation at the end of last week. many of the boundary issues, in favor of retaining jurisdiction by the existing commission. i assume that is what this legislation moves forward that is what it is interested in. >> to add to that, the chairman is correct, it is data security issues, identity theft, red flag, all of that would stay at the ftc. the parallel authority for that at the bank agency. the front-end privacy notices that have to do with disclosure would fit in with the new consumer financial protection agency. >> the consumer privacy, would that remain with the federal trade commission? >> with respect to the disclosu disclosure, that would be unified with the regime at the new agency. all the antitheft and other issues would remain at the fcc and the parallel authorities with respect

lindsey graham, orrin hatch, chuck grassley are three republicans that might vote for her confirmation. do you think this is going to stop that, the performance by these two witnesses today, mr. vargas and mr. ricci? is it so compelling it will kill her xans chances -- >> i think it will have no effect. >> i don't know the answer to that. the majority republicans on the floor, a slim majority right now, would vote against -- >> i'm wondering whether she's going to get at least three. i'm of the opinion -- well, i'm not sure. i'm going to watch and see how it plays in the press the next 24 hours. i have a hunch that mr. ricci and mr. vargas were very compelling on the stand and would have been very boring hearings and they may be the only people with personality we've heard from including the nominee, who has been coached so much that she doesn't display any personality, and i think it's hurt her, but we'll see. pat buchanan, thank you. john payton, too much coaching, too much coaching, too much cover-up of the real identity of a person who may be a hell of a lot more interesting candidate than we've seen. >>> is the flap over dick cheney's secret cia plan to assassinate al q

mr. sanford to step down, including 12 of the state senators. senator lindsey graham has said that he would like to see the governor reconcile with his family and complete his term. democrats have been less vocal on this subject possibly because a santa resignation means that his lieutenant governor would be able to serve more than a year in office before running for reelection, giving him a formidable term before running for reelection." good morning, scott. caller: it is my birthday this morning, a great birthday gift. host: how are old are you? caller: 44. first of all, i did not vote for mr. obama and i do not support his plan on the recovery for the economy. but i am going to defend him here real quick. you had a caller from massachusetts who said he is deliberately trying to wreck the economy, comparing it to 9/11. that kind of dialogue does not help anything. i do not think the democrats are out to destroy the economy, i do not think they want to be socialists. i think they are misguided and i think their tax and spend policies are not the way. i understand the

mr. chairman, because you misrepresented, factually, what the -- how the posture of the case. in 19 -- >> i obviously will disagree with that, but we'll have a chance to vote on this issue. >> if yesterday, meanwhile, senator graham could have been credited with a rare republican moment of honesty, today the south carolina senator apparently having eaten a big old plate of crazy at lunch by raising anonymous criticism from lawyers about the temperament of the seemingly always calm, ever-deliberate nominee. >> i do ask tough questions at oral arguments. >> are you the only one that asks tough questions in oral arguments? >> no, no, not at all. i can only explain what i'm doing. which is, when i ask lawyers tough questions, it's to give them an opportunity to explain their positions on both sides and to persuade me that they're right, lots of lawyers who are unfamiliar with the process in the second circuit find that tough bench difficult and challenging. >> if i may interject, judge, they find you difficult and challenging more than your colleagues. i never liked appearing before a judge that i thought was a bully. do you think you have a temperament problem? >> no, sir. >> do i have to compare it to john mccain's

graham said he will support the nomination. jon kyl says he will oppose it. this is a half-hour. >> mr. president every american should be proud that an hispanic woman, one with a very impressive background has been nominated for the supreme court. in evaluating and nominee it is important is that they beat them all aspects of the individual's career and his or her merits as the judge should not make judgments on the basis of gender or ethnicity. it starts with the judge's decisions and opinions. also important to understanding what an individual really thinks about things are speeches, writings and associations. judge sotomayor's most widely known speeches of course are wise latina woman speech, given the various-- over the years. it is clear that the coffin quoted phrase is not the comment out of context but the essence of those speeches. her's central theme of these beaches was to examine whether gender and ethnicity judges a decision. judge sotomayor concludes that they do, that it is unavoidable. to develop this theme throughout her speech, including extending opposing arguments an

mr. nelson: i want to begin my comments on this year's national defense authorization by first thanking all the members of the personnel subcommittee, and i'd particularly like to thank the committee's ranking member, senator lindsey graham. he and i have worked together for several years on this subcommittee, exchanging the chairmanship back and forth, and i've always found that our time on the subcommittee is decidedly nonpartisan, bipartisan, regardless of who currently chairs it. and all of the members of the personnel subcommittee strive to do what's right by service members and their families, and any disagreements we have are minimal, small, and are always focused on how best to serve those who serve us. madam chairman -- madam president, the annual national defense authorization act is one of the most important pieces of legislation that congress passes every year. it provides -- it provides authority for everything the department of defense does, from the ships and planes it buys to the pay and compensation of its service members, to retirement and disability benefits. so i look forward to this year once again passing a defense authorization act for the 48th year in a row. as in past year, the committee has focu

mr. graham proposes amendment 1560 as modified. mr. lieberman: i ask consent that further rearing of the amendment be din dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. lieberman: let me thank senator graham. it is always appropriate to work with him on matters of this kind, more than anyone else in the senate, he knows military law because he practices it in his capacity as a member of j.a.g. and i thank him for cosponsoring this amendment with me. i also want to thank chairman levin, senator mccain, and senator graham for the extraordinary work that they have done in improving military commission system that has been setup. and it is -- it is the basis for the amendment that senator graham and i put in this evening. the fact is that military commissions by one name or another have played a time honored role in our country in bringing war criminals to justice. the use of military tribunals dates all the way back to the beginning of our country. our first president, general george washington, relied on them during the re

with respect to classified information, i think, especially with the graham-mccain amendment, which mr. johnson mentioned in his system which is quite similar to cipa, the classified information procedures act, it is a challenge. you can have situation where is you risk compromising sources and methods. there are ways around that and cipa is the main vehicle for dealing with those kinds of issues, but in a way, i think you point out the larger question here, which is that prosecution itself, whether in a military commission or in an article three court is one way, but only one way. and not always the best way to protect national security. we're focused on protection of national security. we're tie try fog use all the lawful tools to achieve that protection including but not limited to prosecution. >> my time is up. >> thank you very much. senator durbin? >> senator kyl is right. we have this ongoing debate that continues. i would say as far as the presumption is concerned, i think the figures speak for themselves. the fact that over the seven years we had three who were tried before mi