mr. kennedy's committee will engage in negotiations with mr. baucus and then the democrats must guide the passage of the senate floor. on saturday president obama devoted his weekly address to the issue, saying that fixing health care is a necessity we cannot postpone any longer. we will show you in a moment the comments from newt gingrich on health care. iowa on the democratic line. caller: yes, my comment is basically, and i go back to 1992 when the debate between perot, bush, and clinton ran. perot knows a lot about health care from the blue cross companies in the software. his comment is that we should take a look at them and find out which one is the best inand apply it to the u.s. -- i think that should be used. host: the former speaker was asked about the administration's proposal. here's his reply. >> "the new york times" let out the cat this morning. the government will decide whether or not you live and severe restrictions on health care. a government plan so the government can take over and run the whole system. if you think the gove

mr. kennedy would be interested it's called the informed choices, senator rockefeller has endorsed it in the senate commerce woman schwartz and i have introduced here. it provides a label which would streamline and it would make a consistent what was being offered so people could understand what's being offered. second it creates a federal office of health insurance oversight to deal with the oversight regulation obviously the states have a major portion of that the federal level it would be helping monitor to that effort. i would love to get your thoughts and take conceptually at whether or not this is something that can fit in with the health care debate. let me move quickly to food safety. and i know you've had a little bit of time to settle into the department and you do cchair the food safety working group. i was wondering what you see as the most important goal and objective. how do you believe we ought to measure the success. a final comment is you know where i stand on the issue of food safety functions and taking them out of the fda in an agency that has its own commissioner a

mr. kennedy. it's not helpful to hold up a brief and say stipulation number 59. we don't -- if you want to make a point, make it so we can all understand it.

mr. oberstar, thank you for your leadership. but let's say to senator kennedy. this has been part of his life's work. he's worked on this for a very long time. of itself the tobacco and smoking issue and then just as with mr. dingell the larger health issue for america. today in passing this legislation, letting -- enabling the f.d.a. to regulate tobacco we are taking a giant step forward in making america healthier. thank you all for your leadership. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from indiana. mr. buyer: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. buyer: it is with great disappointment that i hear the words of the speaker because she is in truly endorsing a 7% success rate as an acceptable level of success for those trying to quit smoking. also, if we really wanted to help children, then she should have endorsed what i sought to do and that is put tobacco on equal plane as alcohol as illegal to possess. but w

mr. kennedy created in november. we are going to take a short break. when we come back, congressman phil gingrey will join us to give us his perspective on the health-care debate. senator bernie sanders. "washington journal" continues in a moment. >> how is c-span funded? >> private donations? >> taxpayers? >> i do not really know. >> i do not know where the money comes from. >> federally? >> helices been funded? 30 years ago america's cable companies created -- how is c- span funded? 30 years ago, americans cable companies greeted c-span. no government mandate, no government money. >> the congressional directory with information on house and senate members, the cabinet, supreme court justices, and the nation's governors. how to contact committees and caucuses. it is $16.95 on line c-span.org -- at c-span.org/products. >> "washington journal" continues. host: we want to welcome congressman phil gingrey, the co-chair of the republicans doctors congress. good morning. guest: good morning, steve. host: where do you come down on the health care debate? gue

mr. chief justice may i start with the extra that had reference when justice kennedy said can we begin with jurisdiction first and mr. boies says yes of course the reason being he had real target sitting on that bench in front of him. kennedy and o'connor. he knew going in this was a 5-for court because the court had taken the step of issuing a stay on the accounting procedures in florida. that was done on saturday. arguments were on monday. the issuance suggested there were already five votes stacked against mr. wise and vice president gore and if he was going to persuade anyone he had to focus his attention on kennedy and o'connor and if justice kennedy says could we start here there is only one response and that is yes, justice kennedy let's start and discuss that. in fact what eventually happened was the five votes but ultimately decided this case preferred not is a decidedly election that was the carry over for the florida numbers resulted in some people think the election was only decided by nine people ultimately it came down to justice kennedy, justice o'connor and the three much mo

mr. chairman, amendment number 3. the kennedy bill does not explicitly require the school-based health senators to follow state laws requiring notification of the reporting of child abuse, child molestation, sexual abuse, rape or incest. this amendment clearly states that the school-based health clinics shall follow any such state law and that any provider of services found to be in violation of such state law shall not be eligible to receive additional funding under this section. now some might say why is this even needed? why is it necessary? children are one of the most vulnerable populations in school-based health clinics. will be in a unique position to help protect these young patients from inappropriate contact. it's essential that school-based health clinics entrusted to provide care to our nation's children and adolescents adhere to the state laws that have been put in place to protect them. taxpayer dollars should not support programs that did not comply with state law that protect our nation's children and adolescents.

mr. dodd: and further unanimous consent that a statement from our colleague, senator kennedy, be made a part of the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. dodd: and that these letters of support for h.r. 1256 and the list of over 1,000 supporting organizationing be made a part of the record as well. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. dodd: madam president, let me just take a couple of minutes. i know my colleague and friend from wyoming, senator enzi, i think is coming to the floor as well. i think senator coburn is going to be here to make a point of order. i'll keep an eye out so i don't exceed the time. but i wanted to point out to my colleagues that this is now -- we're down to the last few votes on this matter. i had hoped, madam president, that we would have been able to consider some of the other amendments that were being offered. but as my colleagues, i think, are probably aware, one of the amendments to be considered was an amendment offered by my colleague, senator lieberman. there was an objection to that amendment coming up. and as a result, we couldn't

mr. grossman on to compliment you on the nimble response to the chairman of the kennedy and i would first welcome mr. hutcheson back to the committee and thank all the witnesses for your testimony and first i would like to ask mr. hutcheson and was always able to hear most of the testimony and review some of it in print and look back over the history of the country and wonder when it is i've been alarmed that the state secrets doctrine or executive privileges cause someone to lose their rights or privacy or made the nation less safe or was their anything in history we need to know about that we were not able to learn from because it was rolled up in an executive privilege? the bottom line and my question is, mr. hutcheson, what are we trying to fix? >> i'm not coming to this hearing in a critical fashion. others have had different experiences. i am coming to this from the standpoint that regardless of the history of it we have responsibility to make sure that the potential for abuse is minimized by systems of checks and balances and i commend this as a conservative. i do not believe in an

mr. chairman. let me acknowledge that you and others have, senator kennedy's unwav unwavering personal and professional commitment to try to address the issue of healthcare in this country, making sure all americans have adequate healthcare. and obviously it is with considerable reyet he is not here today to participate in this because he is an exceptional force on this issue and somebody we all admire. i also thank you, mr. chairman for picking up the mail and getting on this issue a

mr. chairman and first let me echo the comments i think all of our colleagues to say that senator kennedy is not only of the ship but inspiration is with us tonight. of particular in the want to thank you mr. chairman because you have been conducting of the last several weeks significant efforts to discuss and reach out and do the things necessary to start in this off the list of the bipartisan discussion in this is a bipartisan process. this is a time we have to began. we know the status quo cannot be sustained a huge amount of money and house of budget devoted to health care is estimated that within a few years almost half of of the average middle income family will develop their money to health care of thinking get it. huge public issues, senator alexander refer to the impact in states, medicare and and medicaid on us, the status quo is not sustainable and we've got to begin in this frankly is the beginning. and we have had discussions over the last several days. i think they have been productive and certainly principled and i think principally senator enzi for his contribution to this

mr. alexander: and executive summary of the impact of the 2009 affordable health choices act kphrao*eted by the h.s.i. network released june 13 which estimates that the kennedy bill may be closer to $4 trillion. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. alexander: an article from "the wall street journal" yesterday talking about state budget gaps which shows in what dire straits many states are. the presiding officer: without objection, the senator's time has expired. mr. alexander: i thank you, madam president. i yield the floor. mrs. boxer: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from california. mrs. boxer: i ask unanimous consent that morning business be extended until 15 minutes from now when we have our vote. the presiding officer: without objection. mrs. boxer: thank you. i also ask unanimous consent that jonathan colacant and matthew long of senator bingam bingaman's office be granted the privileges of the floor during the pendency of the travel promotion bill. the presiding officer: without objection. mrs. boxer: thank you very much. madam president, i decided to come to the floor to talk about a couple of things. one, health care re

mr. begich? >> i want to refer the kennedy to the report, the interesting part of the report is it was stimulated by this committee. it does address all these issues we are talking about. the panel was staffed by experts from the field, training, operating, and so all of these issues have been addressed. specific recommendations were applied to the ntsb, faa industry in general and congress. >> very good, mr. scovel? >> i will note in the committee asked my office to investigate the matters and training will be the first phase of the ongoing review. >> i appreciate that and also i know senator snowe and i have a bill focusing on some of the inspections and relationship with faa we hope to be included in the reauthorization and we can talk about that and the cooling off period at another time. >> thank you. >> senator klobuchar, thank you. senator from? >> thank you mr. chairman and gentlemen appearing before us today. i just want to follow-up with mr. rosenker if i can be read in your testimony the back pilot of coal and air 1407u quote the captain had a history of faa disapproval involving fligh

mr. president, our bill goes farther than the kennedy-waxman legislation by banning -- banning -- the use of terms like "light," "ultra light" or "medium," and bans the use of candy, fruit, or alcohol descript terse, on cigarettes even if not characterizing player. in addition, the risk reduction center is required to establish a relative risk ranking for tobacco and nicotine products annually and disseminate that information to the public. this preempts any unsubstantiated lower or reduced risk consumer communications by a tobacco manufacturer. in other words, we will require under 1256 the f.d.a. does not have to inform the public about the relative risk of the products that they regulate. so they're not going to share with the american people that if you smoke unfiltered cigarettes it is 100% rifnlg if you smoke filtered cigarettes, it is 90% rifnlgt but if in the substitute that's being offered, we actually require the harm reduction center annually to print a list of what the risk of the products are that are tobacco-related that they regulate. fourth complaint by the campaign for to

mr. president, yesterday in the "help" committee's markup of the kennedy-dodd health care reform bill, we had a very good discussion about the proper use and the objectives of something called government-conducted comparative effectiveness research. now, i know that's getting in the weeds in regards to health care language and health care acronyms. it's called c.e.r. -- remember that term, c.e.r., it's going to be around for a long time because it's become quite controversial in regards to our health care discussion and what eventually passes. c.e.r. is research that compares the relative outcomes of two medical treatments for the same condition to determine which one is better. that's a good thing. it's a good thing to disseminate and to inform doctors, and everybody in the health care delivery system -- nurses, health care providers, pharmacists, et cetera, et cetera -- it's a good thing. but the first problem with c.e.r. is that not every patient is the same. what is better for one patient may not be better or could actually be worse for another. for this reason, doctors and patients m

mr. press? >> i appreciate the opportunity to communicate with the kennedy and provide this information.it's been a good learning experience. this will be good communication going forward. i don't know if i am looking forward to the performance review when i come back but i guess this would be the form to do that. .. >> thanks for letting become i think i have a story and everybody here who is here today has a story. it is not a happy time. thank you very much for listening to me. >> i will close with a rhetorical question that will be with all of these closings will other makers go to these institutions that have facilities available and pre-unfair new products and convey them to the public instead of the established makers? take you very much. >> thank you very much that concludes our questioniquestioni ng and hearing. thank you to our witnesses and testimony that committee rules that the committee members have 10 days to submit additional questions for the record. all of the exception of one and three be entered into the record and any redacted a permission proprietary to law-enforcem

mr. press? >> i appreciate the opportunity to communicate with the kennedy and provide this information. it's been a good learning experience. this will be good communication going forward. i don't know if i am looking forward to the performance review when i come back but i guess this would be the form to do that. .. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i appreciate the opportunity to be here on behalf of 19,000 car dealers in the country. in this difficult moment, we now difficult the economy is. if a dealer is able to keep his door opened, make the payroll, keep his customers coming in, i know there are other elements that play into it, but that is important to remember once we look at this. >> thank you for giving me the opportunity today. >> thanks for letting me come. i think i had a story, and i think everybody here today has the story. it is not have the time. thank you very much for listening to me. >> i would close with a rhetorical question, and that would be, with all these closings, will other makers go to these institutions that have facilities available and bring their new products

mr. press? >> i appreciate the opportunity to communicate with the kennedy and provide this information. it's been a good learning experience. this will be good communication going forward. i don't know if i am looking forward to the performance review when i come back but i guess this would be the form to do that. ..

fact, there are some provisions in the kennedy bill that would make things worse, in my view and the view of others and i think if there's one thing we should do, mr. president, that is tip the hippocratic oath, the same oath that medical practitioners take, to do no harm. we should take a legislative hippocratic oath to, first, do no harm as we undertake this massive reform. for example, in the kennedy bill it describes a plan called -- quote -- "a public health insurance plan operated by the federal government with a payment scale that is set in statute and based on medicare." mr. president, i believe medicare for all or a government-run health plan is a disaster in the making. and millions of americans, and the millions of americans who will depend open us to get this right. let me explain why. first, a government listen run plan will take away the health insurance that people have right now. last year, president obama campaigned on the promise if you like what you have, you'll be able to keep it. i agree with him, that ought to be our goal. but with a so-called government plan, that will not happen. we all know that government is not just the

mr. chairman i don't know whether this can be done in the kennedy or not but since we've got some encouragement on section 211 is it possible to divide the amendment? >> we might but i think rather than trying to do this at this moment i suggest there be some effort to do that if tom coburn is willing but other than that we ought to vote on this and this is a long process. >> mr. chairman i just want to make a comment because it sounds to me like not many people have read this. this is about the effectiveness, efficiency and quality services. that is the commission is about. the outcome of health care services and procedures, clinical practice, primary-care practice, oriented practice oriented research practice oriented that means patience with real disease, personal health care technologies, facilities and equipment, health care cost productivity and market, health promotion and disease promotion, epidemiology and medical liability. and you know, so i want to characterize that accurately. this does everything you want to do in your quality section does it for less cost with a whole lot less re

>> host: first of all the endorsement of senator kennedy at american university in late january of 2008, why did that come out? >> guest: at the time mr. obama told me that was the most emotional time he had on the campaign. it meant a huge amount. why did it come about? for caroline kennedy and her conversation with her children. again, children talking to adults about the election cycle. that was a fairly unique thing and of course the passing of the torch aspect for someone who idealized the civil rights movement as obama did he wanted it to be a community organizer because he dreamed of a civil rights movement in that era and was too late. so it was emotional for him in doubles a huge deal not just because it was the kennedys, but because you're the party establishment was saying this is back in the primaries a long way from being over. the relationship of the is the extended. caroline kennedy played a critical role in the vice presidential selection. she grew very close to senior figures in the obama circle including david axelrod and then candidate and of course ted kennedy now i think there is the determination really to get he

mr. buyer: thank you. i'd like to congratulate henry waxman and senator kennedy and others with regard to their tenacity and persistence over the years. what is unfortunate is that we were not able to incorporate harm reduction strategies. it is also unfortunate that we are continuing to place more burdens and responsibilities upon f.d.a. what i had sought to do is to regulate tobacco. i do not smoke, i don't encourage anyone to smoke. the health risks associated with smoking i believe are -- people recognize them. it's cognizant. tobacco is an adult product. it's legal. and we are faced with this question of moralism versus pramat -- pragmatism. what i sought to do is to choose the pragmatic side of the equation and to incorporate a harm reduction strategy with the abstinence approach in the kennedy-waxman legislation. while the authors of the bill, madam speaker, would say that, well, steve, we have harm reduction in the bill. well, it is mentioned in the bill but there is a two-tier standard in the bill that has been cleverly written in a manner to be an entry barrier to new innovative tobacco products.

mr. diehl had to leave the. dr. hamburg, as you probably know, senator kennedy and senator durbin have introduced a food safety billon the senate side and has a the administration and doors to that bill or hasn't endorsed this bill or endorsed any

fourth, the kennedy bill would impose a medical advisory council. i always get a kick, mr. president, out of the innocuous names given to some pretty sinister stuff up here. i would say that if you -- it's sort of like calling the former soviet union's poe lit bureau row and -- politburo an advisory council. this council would dictate decisions over personal health decisions to unelected and unaccounted bureaucrats. i don't think anybody who thinks that's a good idea. certainly nobody i've talked to. and this kennedy proposal, withual due respect to our friend and colleague from massachusetts, is chockful of bad care policies. but the worst part is they will not lower health care costs for people who have health insurance now, and in fact they will make our debt burden and the debt burden of our children and grandchildren much, much worse. well, mr. president, the price tag on government programs just keeps growing and growing and growing here in washington, d.c. in fact, the president's proposal for his budget this year projected a -- quote -- "down payment on health care

kennedy and u.s. ambassador to new zealand under president johnson. mr. speaker, my thoughts are with jack's family and the millions of americans, most of whom never knew him, who earn a livable wage, work under safer conditions and are able to take their child to the doctor because of the tireless passion of ambassador jack henning. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from florida rise? mr. stearns: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. stearns: mr. speaker, as president obama begins to wait into the israeli-palestinian conflict, he must remember who our friends are. israel is the most reliable and only democratic ally in the middle east. yet in his speech last week in cairo and in statements by his administration, president obama seems only to want to pressure israel while not requiring similar concessions from the palestinian and other arab states. starting with the british partition plan in 1937 when they were offered the western

i want to thank chairman kennedy and ranking member mike enzi for their work on the nominations. i recognize mr. enzi. >> i have comments and it's been cleared on our side. >> all those in favor of the nominee say ayes. the nominees are confirmed by the committee and we report it accordingly. let me go back to senator murkowski until the amendments have been cleared. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i want to just say to the committee we had a good day yesterday. we accepted 17 amendments, and very few from their side, but as the other side of the aisle offered suggestions and we can either accept them because they did approve the bill. senator enzi, comparative effectiveness were very constructive and we voted on two of them. i believe we can finish quality today or certainly finish quality on monday. let me get to what we could accept overnight. i have four amendments that we can accept. number one, we can accept murkowski number 9 which adds physician assistant to providers who may be part of a community health team. we can accept 9 which makes an excellent ak mendment and hatch 21 as modified an

legislation senator kennedy has and among the things being discussed in the senate finance committee, as well. we need to draw a line here, put patients first, not put the government first. now, mr. president, since -- i think i will have a little bit more time on the republican side, but if i have colleagues that wish to speak i will be happy to finish here for a moment. i'll go for a little bit longer on another subject. we've had kind of a running debate here on the question of closing guantanamo prison. this is a subject that the senate has spoken on by an overwhelming vote, i think, 90-some senators voted not to close gitmo and the american people are 3-1 opposed to bringing gitmo prisoners into the state and 2-1 in opposition to closing guantanamo prison. this is not something on which there is a little bit of doubt. the american people are very much opposed to closing guantanamo prison and bringing those people to their own states. nevertheless the assistant majority leader and five other democrats voted for the proposing of money or the -- actually, the appropriation of money -- to close guantanamo and acknowledge that it would require bringing many of those people to th

mr. chairman, i do want you to know we have been working with several members on both sides of the kennedy and to have an amendment i hope will be agreed on after we deal with this amendment when senator schakowsky returns it modifies the original proposal so that we do keep 18% interest rate for the first six years to keep people in the program and then reduce overtime so that we make sure people are also afraid to go into these, they do see some kind of willingness to be flexible. but that we don't create such that no one goes into the professions. i think it is a really great modification and i want to thank senter schakowsky and her staff for working hard to do that with the amendment before us would eliminate the entire program and mr. chairman, i think one of the things we have heard over and over is we have a crisis in primary care and we know the severe shortage of primary-care providers prevent americans from accessing high-quality care. i first hear it in rural communities and now he read in my urban areas. we have to encourage students to go to primary care and decrease expense

kennedy? >> aye by proxy. >> the vote is 13 ayes, 10 neys. >> the amendment is agreed to. >> thank you, mr. chairman. and, you know, you kint of sit back and listen to the colleagues on both sides and i think you said it senator enzi. we're all in agreement on it about 80% of what we're talking about is always in the details. but the goal is certainly there when we talk about prevention. we all recognize this will be integral to whatever plan we put forward. and the hope truly is that we'll see a reduction in costs. i appreciated your comments, senator dodd, about the differences that we see throughout the country and that in one part of the country thicks athic things are going to be a little bit different. this is where i have real heart burn when you talk about a public plan which is kind of a one size fits all approach to health care. and what works for you in connecticut or you in iowa or you in maryland really may not work well for a state like alaska that is exceptionally rural, remote, and suffering from a lack of access to providers. the amendment that i want to bring up for discussion today

mr. president. >> what is her name? >> i have some people here from work -- >> no, i am serious, what is surname. >> her name is kennedy. >> that is a cool name. i am going to write to kennedy's teacher. what is your question? >> i work and help system, and we work with employers, payers, and brokers, everybody, to try to lower costs for hurt -- for employers. we have clinics and emergency department. everybody's trying to do something now, but all i am hearing is what is want to have a long term. i question is, what is a timeline we have set up for this? what do you see happening in the area of working with employers to offer more insurance or getting the uninsured something now? >> whatever reforms we set up, it will probably take a couple of years to get it in place. here you go, kennedy. [applause] whatever reforms we pass, it is going to take a couple of years to get all the reforms and all the systems in place. there are some things i think we should be able to do fairly quickly. for example, the pre-existing condition issue. some of the insurance reform issues we should be able to get in place more rapidly. the t

mentioned that a colleague of mine at the kennedy school first couple of months of the obama administration, i think this is true today, are still today described mr obama or the obama administration, the president as a passive free trader and his point was that the president was willing to intervene against the most egregious potential or actual island he upgrade protection or progression and trade, but not really to date at that time, and i think this is true today, willing to take leadership. yet on specific issues or either large questions, doha, or other questions about the existing trade agenda. i should have said at a footnote before i started, and that is it seems as if the obama administration, with all that's going on the economic crisis, with iran, he had been in office for years, but i must remind myself in you that it's only been five months to go anything i say about trade policy or other policies have to be tentative. they are just getting in place. so let me say that before going on. but for my short term, short time i have here, there are two things i want to point out about what we know so far. one, it seems to me, and this is no

kennedy? >> no by proxy. >> 14 ayes -- or no, 11 ayes, 14 noes. >> the amendment is not agreed to. senator murray? >> mr. chairman, we are now ready to accept murkowski number 23 as modified. ask unanimous consent it be accepted. >> any objections to senator murkowski number 23 as modified? without objection, the amendment is agreed to. next up? >> mr. chairman, we have a meeting. >> do you have a meeting. maybe it's just as wise at this juncture. my view would be as i said earlier, i know our republican friends have a meeting to attend. >> if i could ask, i know the republicans are going to leave, how many more amendments we expect on this? >> i have no idea where we are -- four? judd, do you have any further ones on this one? this section? >> on this title? >> so we have four -- >> we have four more. we will come back. i will aim to reconvene at 5:30 but ask the senators to keep me informed, if the meeting goes longer, let me know. we will try to come back in. if we finish up that and if the members are prepared as well, we may take a break for dinner. i will leave it up to the advice of my colleagues

mr. rogers, who are the first two gentlemen featured on the conservative's cover? >> thank you for asking. that's a very good question as john f. kennedyay. next question. >> well, let's move on to the myth of american exceptionalism. >> okay. that is a fine book by godry hodson a british scholar who has specialized american history throughout his career. he is most famous for his book on 20th century america. that is a beautiful study of the '60s. this is sort of his love letter to america. he's almost like alistar cook in his long association of the development of america in the 20th century and what he's arguing here is that america is well loved for its exceptional qualities throughout the world and always has been. and that we have always lived our political lives internationally as an exceptional nation both morally and politically. and he is troubled that we have sort of taken the notion of exceptionalism in recent years and turned it into a rationale for a preemptive strike in iraq, for example. and he expresses worry that we have maybe overstepped the bounds -- the boundaries of what we can and cannot do in the world under the

kennedy? >> aye by proxy. i want to recommend that all future amendments be offered by senator sanders. very good, senator. lamar alexander, you're up. >> thanks, mr chairman. i have an amendment to title three, section 311. the purpose of it is to make sure that the right choices program which is in that title doesn't require the states to spend any money on it, and this is a relatively small item, probably, but i would like to make a larger point in making my proposal, if i could say just a word about it. >> certainly. >> we have talked a lot here about cost and usually the cost is described in terms of cost to the federal government, and the cbo, congressional budget office, score has said that the kennedy bill even without three of its major points would add $1 trillion over ten years. senator gregg has said that once the program is implemented fully by the fifth year, it would be more like $2.3 trillion. but i would like to talk about a different sort of cost that i'm particularly sensitive to because of my experience as governor, struggling with the medicaid program and watching every other governor struggle with the medicaid program. in 198

mr. president, i've watched with great admiration, senator dodd's work on this. i worked with chairman, with henry waxman in the house of representatives. and senator kennedy, senatorred ssenatordodd and congressman wae never given up and i am appear tich particularly to senator dodd. i boil this issue down to almost one sentence: i remember sitting in front of the "help" committee in the house of representatives many years ago and seeing the tobacco company executives stand in front of us, raise their right hand and swear to tell the truth and they didn't exactly tell the truth when they talked about nicotine not being an addiction but i learned one simple concept that we have known this number for years, 400,000 americans die every year from tobacco-related illness. that means on the average more than 1,000 americans die every single day from tobacco-related illnesses. no if you are a tobacco executive, mr. president, what you think about is this: you've lot 4 hundred dho 400,000 custou need to replenish your base much what do you do? you need to find 400,000 new customers every year. you don't go to people of senator dodd's and my generation. you don't

mr. reed: thank you, senator. thank youment ms. snowe: thank you. madam president, i'm proud to join my colleagues in expressing, first and foremost, my admiration for senator kennedy phos long-standing -- kennedy for his long-standing vigorous leadership which has certainly been the impetus behind this critical legislation. undeniably, senator kennedy continues to serve as the strongest of champions on so many issues related to health care and we are all grateful for his tireless contributions to this major initiative. i also want to commend senator dodd, who has been guiding this legislation here in the united states senate, and i certainly appreciate all of his efforts to make sure that this legislation becomes a reality. i also appreciate the public health agencies and the advocates who have work ceaselessly to address this serious public health problem associated with tobacco, as we all well know, and who are committed to the task of reducing youth smoking. i certainly want to commend states like maine that have used their funds from the 1998 tobacco settlement to reduce smoking rates. madam president, first and foremost, it's regrettable as the first decade o

mr. chairman, thank you very much and they're grateful for your leadership here and as we have her from so many of our colleagues about senator kennedy think it is evident the impression that we hold for him but also he is. so many ways, he doesn't have to be physically in this room to help the center and guide us. i think his inspiration is here years of work we would not be here without his leadership, his passion and his work ethic is evident in this hearing room and in the work that all of us have done. and now he called this morning and i'm sure he may call tonight and i want to make sure we're doing a good job for him but i do want to thank you for your leadership in the midst of some of the other challenges that the nation has and you have been working on directly. i also want to thank the members of the democratic side who have been, have the working groups, two years with senator mikulski and harkin and senator bingaman and mary, so many who have worked for many years not just in the last couple months on this issue. i also want to thank the staff. remarkable work on both sides of the aisle. senator enzi, the ranking member

henry waxman, by senator edward kennedy, by the campaign for tobacco-free kids and scores of public health groups. and it is a big down payment on health care reform. mr. speaker, california alone spends over $9 billion annually treating tobacco-related diseases. this critical funding could be put towards our failing health care infrastructure and make health care more affordable for everyone. with its passage today, i hope this bill will become law promptly and i hope, mr. speaker, that c.b.o. will find the way to score the savings that come from this and other preventive health measures. if we can do this, we can find a way to cut the cost of health care reform, national health care reform, which is urgently needed this year. so as i see it, this is a down payment on health care reform and it's a down payment on the health of our children and our grandchildren. this bill will save lives and scarce resources. this bill is a slam dunk. vote aye on the rule and the underlying legislation, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back her time. the gentlewoman from north carolina. ms. foxx: thank you, mr.

mr. president, because it's the only agency that regulates, has the regulatory experience, the scientific experience, and the combination of that with the public health mission. unlike the kennedy bill, which is the underlying bill we're dealing with here, senator burr's substitute fails to provide adequate resources to do the job, as well. in the first three years, senator burr's substitute would be adopted, unquarter of the funding that is allocated in senator kennedy's proposal of the underlying bill. in addition, the burr substitute provides far less authority to remove harmful ingredients in cigarettes that the weapon difficult bill would do -- that the kennedy bill would do. it does not go far enough to protect children from marketing and has less effective health warnings. i say respectfully to my friend from north carolina, the setting up or creating a whole new age, providing a fraction of the funding necessary to get it done, and providing the inadequate resources in order to support these efforts is not the step we ought to be taking. if all of us agree that the food and drug administration basically, the agency we charge with responsibility of regulating everything

the carpenter, by kennedy and i've forgotten off the top of my head the other book, but they make remarkable cases for the housekeeper's involvement and for the involvement of one of mrs. lindberg's sisters in the case. so that's why i say, that although his name has never been cleared, if you read enough about the case, you are certainly justified in having some doubts. just a moment, please. >> i want to know, do you have anything more recent, like recent, very recent journalistic or you just don't want to say? >> no, i'm happy -- well, in the book you'd find out anyhow. in detail, the most recent that i have get is janet cook. i don't know if you know of her case. she won a pulitzer prize for the washington post in 1980 for a story called jimmy's world, about an 8-year-old heroin addict in washington, d.c., who never existed. and she was fired and has led a very sad life ever since then. there are fleeting references to jason blair, to mitch albaum, a sports writer, who a couple years ago, did a piece unisonal former michigan state athletes, and their reminiscenses as they watched michigan state play in the final four. unfortunately, albaum did the story if advance

mr. chairman, thank you for your leadership on that issue and so many. and your willingness i guess to step up. i don't know how many options you had when senator kennedy calls and asks you to take over the reins. but it is appreciated it recognizing which you have in front of you the wake of this task, the responsibility i think we would all agree that in terms of the issues that are first and foremost on the minds of americans, if it is not the impact of the economy on a daily lives is health care. and how that impacts of the family budget and decisions that are made in the expectation is real and substantive that we. congress will deal with health care reform. but how is that translated, how a person like tricia urban reckoning is is that this is meaningful health-care reform as opposed to when a person in a very small remote village they feel is necessary. oh is the devil is in the details and i appreciate your leadership on this of senator enzi taking a very difficult area and try to bring some sense and some rationale to it. a lot of the members of lease on the republican side this morning and this afternoon have talked about the process and ther

mr. speaker, we realize that as this current economic downturn puts millions of americans at risk, the need for volunteers and national service will be more important than ever. the recently signed edward m. kennedy serb america act expands the americorps programs to incorporate some 250,000 volunteers each year. it is important to recognize the commitment of these volunteers so that future generations will continue to support the ideal of national service. the strength of our nation depends upon individuals who take action toward building better communities. we observed americorps week may 9 through may 16. americorps week provides current volunteers, alums, grantees, program partners, and friends with the opportunity highlight the important work done by this great organization. it is a chance for us to thank those individuals who -- whose service to society cannot be fully measured. it is also a wonderful opportunity for us to motivate future individuals to pursue the ethic of service, whether in organizations such as americorps or the various other service opportunities that exist in our nation. the ethic of service is a manifestation of the greater ideal of democracy. the americorps pledge, i

mr. heinrich: we normed the environmental coalition because we believe in america's promise to become a global leader in environmental strategies. leadership and innovation is he hallmark of american success. in 1961 when president john f. kennedy said our country would lead the world by landing an american on the moon, within eight years, his goal was achieved with the apollo project. today that same innovation is present in the emerging clean energy economy. madam speaker, the opportunity for america to create thousands of clean energy jobs that will build our 21st century economy cannot be understated. evidence of that clean energy job growth, a key component of our local economic recovery, is already visible on the ground in communities like the -- like the new mexico first congressional district, which i represent. part of this clean energy cluster growth is a result of the vast natural resources new mexico has to share. we are second in the nation in solar energy capacity and 12th in the nation for wind energy production potential. but we also have invested heavily in our human capital. one example of this success is the work being done in partnership with sandia national laboratories, which has been at the center of mult

mr. mccain: tomorrow the committee on health, education, labor and pensions will begin consideration of a 615-page bill that seeks to reform our nation's health care system. this bill introduced by senator kennedy and others just last week has very grand ambitions. we all agree that health care reform is necessary. we all agree that congress must act. but we must not act recklessly. we must not act with haste and political expediency. health care reform will affect each and every american, and we must do it right. i strongly believe that we have to start over and act in a truly bipartisan manner to address the issue. unfortunately, the legislation before that committee seeks to enact a massive government-run health care program that intrudes into the lives of all americans by making decisions on each american's choice of doctors, employer health plans and insurance providers. and it leaves major questions unanswered. every american should know the answer: how much will this massive expansion of government cost? and every taxpayer should have a clear answer to how are taxpayers going to pay for this massive government expansion? yesterday -- yesterday -- the congressional budget office released

colleagues to work with president obama as well as senator kennedy to make sure that everyone has access to quality, affordable coverage. thank you, mr. president. i yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: the presiding officer: the senator from alabama. mr. sessions: mr. president, i ask that the quorum call be tis spenced with. the presiding officer: without objection, so ordered. mr. sessions: -- dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection, so ordered. mr. sessions: mr. president to the american people, we're going to do our best to have a hearing in the judiciary committee on her confirmation and that the american people will feel it is fair and i would hope they would say it's the best hearing we've ever had. i have to tell you, though, that things are moving fast. faster than i would like to have seen them move. and it does cause some difficulties for us. as i discussed on the floor yesterday, the republican members of the judiciary committee are deeply concerned about this process being moved this rapidly. yesterday chairman leahy unila

kennedy for his outstanding leadership on this issue and join many of my colleagues in supporting this important legislation that will save lives in new hampshire and across the country. thank you, mr. president. i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: quorum call: quorum call: