mr. leahy: and i -- the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: madam president, if the senator would yield, he -- he raised some questions with me. we worked both in the committee and out of the committee with respect for each other's position. i appreciate his work in the committee to expedite getting the bill out of committee, because, like he, i believe this is extraordinarily important to level the playing field and allow american innovators to be able to compete with the rest of the world as well as compete within our country. and so i compliment the -- i compliment the senator and, as he knows, i've included his proposal in the -- in the managers' amendment because i felt it was a good proposal. mr. coburn: i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: i ask unanimous consent that the time until 5:00 p.m. be for debate on the leahy-grassley amendment number 121, as modified. which i believe is pending? the presiding officer: it is one of t

mr. leahy: i yield. mr. grassley: supporting what the chairman has just said, outside the fact that there might be one or two controversial nongermane amendments to this legislation, we have to look at the underlying product. the underlying product is very bipartisan. most economic interests within our country are supporting this patent reform legislation. everybody agrees that it's something that probably should have been passed in a congress ago, and i would join my democratic manager and the chairman of the committee in urging republicans on my side of the aisle that have either germane amendments or nongermane amendments to come to the floor and offer them so that the underlying piece of legislation can be passed and sent on to the house of representatives. i yield the floor and -- oh, i'm sorry. mr. leahy: madam president, i also wish to associate myself with the distinguished senior senator from iowa. he has worked very hard on this. he has worked very hard to help us get to the floor. and with the eno

mr. leahy: mr. president, i suggest the absence of a quorum -- no, mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: mr. president, are we in morning business? the presiding officer: morning business closed at 5:30. we've returned to the measure. mr. leahy: mr. president, then we're back on the american invents act. we brought this about a week ago. this reflects several years of work, and for my colleagues, i understand that we have an excellent chance we will be voting on this in a very, very short while. and i would hope the vote would be as overwhelming as the cloture vote was yesterday. i want to emphasize this is legislation that should promote innovation, it will help create jobs, it will help energize the economy as we continue our recovery. legislation can be a key part of a jobs agenda. it can help unleash innovation. we can promote american invention. we can do all this without adding a penny to the deficit. it's

mr. leahy: how much time remains for the senator from vermont? mrs. feinstein: i will just take two minutes more. the presiding officer: the senator from california by consent is using the opponents' time. mr. leahy: is using my time? mrs. feinstein: no, i'm not. i have asked to extend our time. mr. leahy: madam president, if we're supposed to vote at 12:30, and i realize the senator couldn't be here when her amendment was brought up and couldn't be here when her amendment was modified. we did that for her, but i would -- in opposition to it, i should at least have some of my time to be able to use. mrs. feinstein: i would be very happy -- i was here yesterday, i did speak on the floor, mr. chairman. i did in a rather lengthy speech indicate the arguments that i felt. i have asked just for a short period of time. my remarks are no more than five pages, which should take me a minute and a half more to conclude, and i hope i would be offered that. mr. leahy: madam president, at the hour of 12:30

mr. leahy: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: mr. president, i'd ask consent that the pending amendment now be set aside and that the managers' amendment be the pending amendment. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: mr. president, i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: quorum call: a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from delaware. a senator: i ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. a senator: i rise to speak to the america invents act. this bill is about creating jobs. it is about protecting and promoting american ingenuity and giving american ideas the opportunity to become american products. the america invents act is about restoring american competitiveness and leadership in our global economy. mr. coons: america has been at the forefront of global innovation throughout our nation's great history. we invented the lightning rod, the thrasher. edison invented the el

mr. leahy: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from vermont is recognized. mr. leahy: mr. president, i understand we have the feinstein amendment number 133 at the desk. i ask unanimous consent that the feinstein amendment number 133 be modified with the changes that are at the desk. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: mr. president, i want to thank the distinguished senator from arizona for his words here this morning. he -- he was part of the small group of republicans and democrats who've worked very, very hard over the last couple of years on this bill with the idea of giving us something that would allow inventors, entrepreneurs and innovators in america to compete with the rest of the world. i'm one american who feels we can compete with anybody, anywhere provided we've got a level playing field. and other counties have set us enough barriers to us of their own, we shouldn't be setting up barriers here in the united states. and one thing we can do is to take a ma

mr. leahy: mr. president snr sneer sneer the distinguished senator from vermont. -- the presiding officer: the distinguished senator from vermont. mr. leahy: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent that an article written for "the hill" by the distinguished secretary of commerce, garry locke, dated march 2 this year, be included in the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: and, mr. president, i was -- it's interesting -- i don't want to embarrass the person i wish to speak about at all. but it's interesting. i was listening to my dear friend, senator durbin, speak about his time at georgetown law school. both he and i are -- graduated from the georgetown law school. he talked about a classmate of his who was in patent law. he realized this was a complex subject, one that is not the sort of law that he -- durbin was going to go into anymore than i would. but i also think of another graduate of georgetown law center, an engineer, had a degree in engineering, studied patent law, b

mr. leahy: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: mr. president, i ask unanimous consent the call of the quorum be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. morning business is closed. under the previous order, the senate will proceed to executive session to consider the following nomination, which the clerk will report. the clerk: nomination, james emanuel boasberg of the district of columbia to be united states district judge. the presiding officer: under the previous order, there will be one hour of debate equally divided and controlled between the two leaders and their designees. mr. leahy: mr. president, i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: mr. leahy: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: mr. president, i ask consent the call of the quorum be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: mr. president, today the senate wi

mr. leahy: i -- i appreciate that, but i think what they're going to do is try to go back and forth. mr. schumer: well, i yield the floor in any case. mr. leahy: senator sessions will go, but i appreciate the courtesy of the senator from new york. i would yield with the -- and with the consent that i then be recognized at the end of the senator from alabama's speech. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. sessions: mr. president, i -- i thank the distinguished chairman of the judiciary committee and congratulate him on a very successful patent bill that passed with an overwhelming vote. i was pleased to work with him on that as a partner for two years when i was ranking member of that committee, and i think it's a good day. mr. president, we'll soon be moving toward a vote on the continuing resolution. there are apparently going to be two options given to us, and the question i would pose to our colleagues and to the american people is do we have to do something or can we do nothing? is

mr. leahy: i -- i appreciate that, but i think what they're going to do is try to go back and forth. mr. schumer: well, i yield the floor in any case. mr. leahy: senator sessions will go, but i appreciate the courtesy of the senator from new york. i would yield with the -- and with the consent that i then be recognized at the end of the senator from alabama's speech. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. sessions: mr. president, i -- i thank the distinguished chairman of the judiciary committee and congratulate him on a very successful patent bill that passed with an overwhelming vote. i was pleased to work with him on that as a partner for two years when i was ranking member of that committee, and i think it's a good day. mr. president, we'll soon be moving toward a vote on the continuing resolution. there are apparently going to be two options given to us, and the question i would pose to our colleagues and to the american people is do we have to do something or can we do nothing? is

mr. leahy: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: i ask unanimous consent that our remaining morning business time be yielded back. the presiding officer: without objection. morning business is closed. under the previous order, the senate will resume consideration of s. 23, which the clerk will report. the clerk: calendar number 6, s. 23, a bill to amend title 35 united states code to provide for patent reform. mr. leahy: mr. president, before i begin, i note that i applaud the senior senator from massachusetts for his statement about how we should be spending money on innovation, be spending money on energy and so many other areas. i worry that we ofttimes ignore some of the basic causes of the huge deficit here. we went into an unnecessary war in iraq, a war some said we had to do because of weapons of mass destruction when we had many of our intelligence agencies are telling us there were no weapons of mass destruction. but worse than that, for the first time in america's history we went into a war where we decided to borrow

mr. leahy: withhold just a moment. mr. reid: madam president, the chairman's here. mr. leahy: i would just ask consent to put my full statement in the record. miss jackson is one of four nominees to the vacancies that have plagued the district court of the district of columbia for years. and this should have gone last year but i'm glad it's going this year. i strongly support -- i strongly support miss jackson and put my full statement in the record and yield back any time i have. the presiding officer: all time is yielded back. the minority leader. mr. mcconnell: i ask for the yeas and nays. the presiding officer: is there a sufficient second? there appears to be a sufficient second. the clerk will call the roll. vote: vote: vote: the presiding officer: are there any other senators in the chamber wishing to vote or to change their vote? if not, the ayes are 97. the nays are stkaoe roerbgs and the -- nays are zero. under the previous order, the motion to reconsider is considered made and laid on the table. the president will be immediately notified of the senate and the

mr. leahy: so we have bipartisan legislation before us to help everyone from start-ups to small businesses to our largest cutting-edge companies. it is going to create jobs, it is going to mean improved products, and before my voice gives out, i say now is the time to create jobs at home. now is the time for congress to act on patent reform. we can actually accomplish something here and not add a cent to the deficit. mr. president, i ask consent that my full statement be made part of the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: mr. president, i suggest the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll quorum call: a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from virginia. mr. warner: mr. president, i ask that the proceedings under the quorum call be vitiated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. warner: mr. president, i rise today to add my voice to the debate that has been going on in this chamber about spending proposals

mr. leahy: i ask for the yeas and nays on the leahy-grassley leahy-grassley-kyl et al. managers' amendment. the presiding officer: is there a sufficient second? there is a sufficient second. the clerk will call the roll. vote: vote: the presiding officer: any senators wishing to vote or change their vote? on this, the ayes are 97, the nays are 2. the amendment is agreed to. a senator: move to reconsider. mrs. boxer: lay it on the table. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. baucus: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from montana. the senate is not in order. please take your conversations out of the senate. the senate will come to order. the senate is not in order. the senator from montana. mr. baucus: mr. president, i would ask consent for one minute for each side to explain this next amendment. equally divided. one minute each side. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection. mr. baucus: mr. president, the next amendment is the vitter amendment 112 which essentially says that the united states must pay its interest debts and soc

mr. reid: i now ask unanimous consent to withdraw the pending leahy and bennett amendments. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: i call my amendment which is number 143, which is at the desk. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: the senator from nevada, mr. reid, proposes an amendment numbered 143. mr. reid: mr. president, i ask further reading of the amendment be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: i now call up a second-degree amendment which is numbered 152. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: the senator from nevada, mr. reid, proposes an amendment numbered 152 to amendment numbered 143. mr. reid: mr. president, i ask that -- i ask consent that the reading of the amendment be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: mr. president, so everyone knows what this amendment does. we -- what we did is looked at what national science foundation does regarding a program called f-score. a number of sparsely populated states really are disadvantaged with this. however,

mr. president? >> senator from new york. >> i ask concept to speak -- i ask consent to speak up to two minutes and senator leahy to follow. >> without objection. >> mr. president, i wouldn't mind the chart from my friend from nevada kept up because it makes my point in a minute. in a few hours we'll hold a vote. the republicans scorchedded spending with critical priorities like defense, cancer research, and food safety inspectors. it is a trojan horse, and we will not be fooled by it. it speaks in the name of deficit reduction, but the dirty little secret about the republican spending plan is once the dust is settled, it decreases the deficit by $5 billion in fiscal year 2011. when you look at the cbo's score of the continuing resolution we're operating under and compare that to the house spending bill, the difference by cbo only amounts to $5 billion in fiscal year 2011. we're talking of a difference of $1.63 trillion under the current cr1 versus 3.55 billion under the republican proposal. much as my colleague from nevada's chart has shown. in other words, all of the cuts that the republicans are currently proposing will

mr. chairman, i think you. >> thank you chairman leahy. i appreciate that comment. i know that chairman takes great pride in his irish italian heritage. and i've told him he is where the gaelic meets the garlic. [laughter] >> we have returning member here, senator ben cardin it was a great member of the senate committee for many years and now has gone on to other things that i won't say bad things but other things. he still continues as co-chair of the u.s. helsinki commission on human rights and he's asked for opportunity for opening statement participate in history. senator cardin? >> well, chairman durbin and senator graham, thank you for allowing me to participate in this hearing it i appreciate that very much. the right to freely profess the practice of faith or not to practice a faith is a fundamental right in our country. after more than 200 years our first amendment which stands can states that congress should make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. it continues to be the envy of people around the world.

mr. leahythank you very much. madam president, i thank the distinguished senior senator from illinois, and i -- the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: and i thank the distinguished senior senator from illinois who has been an invaluable member of the judiciary committee all the time i have been there, and it's very, very helpful. i appreciate what he has said. i find interesting the list of patents from his home state of illinois, and i think each one of us can point, some with pride, and it's -- but if we're going to stay competitive with the rest of the world, we have got to get this bill passed. we have got -- it's been 50-60 years since we have updated our patent law, and we are way behind the rest of the world, we have to be able to compete, so i thank the senator. and, madam president -- and i have cleared this with the senator from iowa -- i ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding the adoption of the leahy-grassley amendment number 121, as modified, i ask that the