mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader is recognized. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent that theall of quorum be terminated. the presiding officer: without objection, so ordered. ey mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent that it be in order for th senate to consider en bloc the following amendments with no amendments in order to the a.m., that once the amendments have been reported by number and modified, if applicable, the amendments be agreed to en bloc, the motions to reconsider be laid on the table en bloc. amendment number 3406, 3349, and 3346 would be modified -- i'm sorry, let's do that last phrase again. and the motions to reconsider be laid on the tail en bloc. amendment number 3406, amendment number 3409, and the amendment, 3406 be modified with the changes at the desk. the presiding officer: is there objection? without objection, it is so ordered. mr. reid: i now ask, mr. president, we provide to a period of morning business, senators allowed to speak therein for

mr. reid: yes, it is. mr. schumer: thank you. mr. reid: i would also say, mr. president, that the state of kentucky, the state of nevada have been having tremendous problems with a number of prabs, one of -- programs, one of which is medicaid. one of the things we did in our recovery package was to give the states, all 50 states, nevada and kentucky, all 50 states some help with medicaid. the cost of health care is just wreaking havoc with our states. there's nothing wrong with doing that. we have an obligation. medicaid was a program that we back here started. and to talk about the states getting some kind of a big benefit that they don't deserve, i don't think that's right. i met two weeks ago tonight in room 219 with 12 governors. they handed me a letter signed by 48 governors all saying "we need some help. and one of the places we need help is with medicaid, these health care costs are skyrocketing. skyrocketing." and even though we have given help, there are very few states in the union that haven't had massive layoffs. so, mr. president, again, i would ho

mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: majority leader. mr. reid:. mr. reid: i direct this through the chair to my distinguished colleague, the republican leader. all time is expired. under the rules in the senate, we start our vote-athon now, as the republican leader knows. i would ask my friend, is it the desire of the minority that there would be time before each amendment and a response to that? mr. mcconnell: i would say to my friend the majority leader, since the voting will all occur during the so-called vote-a-rama, if we could have the time to describe what each amendment; that would be helpful. mr. reid: i say to my colleague and members in this body, we do not have to agree to one minute. but we have -- want everyone to understand we have tried to be as fair as we can through this whole process, and there are some who said why should we tk-rbd there would be 43 minutes -- there would be 43 minutes. i think there are 26 amendments pending so it would be 43 minutes. we want to be

mr. reid. 202 is theary code. -- is the area code. the numbers are listed on the screen. mr. reid is joining us from the mountain time zone in denver. you can also send us an email at book tv@c-span.org or send a tweet twitter.com/booktv and we'll try to get as many of those as possible. here a mr.eid's oks. "confucius lives next door" we talked a little bit. united states of europe. "congressional odyssey." this came from a series of "washington post" that mr. reid wrote back in the late '70s, early '80s. "this is the chip." his most recent "the healing of america". and my personal favorite, "ski japan!". to look at "the healing of america", what's the bismarck here? >> guest: i tried to figure out why it is that all the other industrialized democracies, countries like this, spend half of us. they're not all socialized medicine. some countries do have big government providing the care and paying the bills but a lot of industrialized democracies cover everybody with private doctors, private ho

mr. reid's book confucius' lives next door we talked about a little bit. the united states of europe we also talked about, congressional odyssey, the sob of a senate bill and this fascinating is about waterway fees and the skin from a series in "the washington post" mr. reid wrote back in the late 70's and early 80's. this is the chip by "in t.r. re, the most recent the healing of america global quest for better, cheaper and there are health care and my personal favorites skied japan the guide to the ski resorts in japan. to look at the healing of america, mr. reid, what is the bismarck model? >> guest: what's going on in the healing of america is a true to figure out why it is that all of the other industrialized democracies, countries like us, managed to provide health care coverage for everybody and spend half as much as we do in the process. how do they do that? when i went around the world to fight this out it turns out they are not all socialized medicine. some countries do have big gove

mr. reid: madam president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: i note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the albuquerque will call the roll. -- the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: mr. reid: madam president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent the call of the quorum be terminated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: i have a few things to say, but it's my understanding the distinguished senator from maine wishes to make a unanimous consent request, and i would yield to her for that purpose. ms. collins: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from maine. ms. collins: thank you, madam president, and i thank the distinguished democratic leader. madam president, on my own behalf and on behalf of numerous members of the republican caucus who have expressed concerns to me, i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to the immediate consideration of h.r. 4691, with one hour of debate equal

mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: mr. majority leader. mr. reid: i ask unanimous consent that we vitiate the quorum thatre now under. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: mr. president, i now move to adjourn until 3:05 p.m. today, and i ask for the yeas and nays. the presiding officer: is there a sufficient second? is there a sufficient second? there appears to be a sufficient second. the clerk will call the roll. vote: vote: the presiding officer: any senator wishing to vote or change their vote of? seeing and hearing none, the ayes are 57, the nays are 39. the motion to adjourn is agreed to. pursuant to the motion to adjourn, theenate stands adjourned. the presiding officer: the senate reconvenes in a new legislative day. the clerk will read the communication to the senate. the clerk: washington, d.c., march 23, 2010. to the senate: under the proightsdz of rule 1 -- provisions of rule 1, paragraph 3, the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable mar

mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader is recognized. mr. reid: i sent an amendment to the desk on behalf of senator murray and others. this is number 3356. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: the senator from nevada, mr. reid, for mrs. murray and others proposes an amendment numbered 3356 to amendment numbered 3336. mr. reid: i ask the reading of the amendment be waived, mr. president. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: this amendment, i note, has been -- i offer on behalf of mrs. murray, mr. harkin, mrs. boxer, mr. begich, and mr. burris. this is the amendment proposed by senator baucus. the sanders amendment i ask be called up now. that's 3353. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. reid: i would note, mr. president, this is for senator sanders, mr. dodd, mr. whitehouse, mr. leahy, and mrs. gillibrand. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: the senator from nevada, mr. ride, for mr. sanders and others proposes an amendment numbered 3353 to amendment numbered 3336. mr. reid: i a

franko said that mrs. reid actually stood up since her surgery today but things are looking pretty good. their 48-year-old daughter who is the oldest of the five which were and driving the honda odyssey van in yesterday's crash heading northbound of 95, southbound of the fairfax county parkway, she suffered facial lacerations, was released from the hospital and is okay. other family members are coming in here to be with mrs. reid. the senator will be here want to. the doctors say it could have been worse but as you heard the doctor tell us, there is no risk of paralysis and mrs. reid should get out of the hospital in a few days. >> her standing up is promising. bob barnard live outside of inova fairfax hospital. thank you. >>> a national charity under the microscope tonight. what is going at the boys and generals clubs of america that has congress on the case. >>> and a textbook battle browing in texas could have far- reaching impact nationwide. what it means for your children's classroom. what are you working

quorum call: mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: majority leader. mr. iding officer: without objection. mr. mcconnell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the republican leader. mr. mcconnell: aree in a quorum call? the presiding officer: no, we're not. mr. mcconnell: i understand there are two bills at the desk and i ask for their first reading en bloc. the presiding officer: without objection, the clerk will report. the clerk: s. 3152, a bill to repeal the patient protection and affordable care act. s. 3153, a bill to provide a fully offset temporary extension of certain programs so as not to increase the deficit and for other purposes. mr. mcconnell: i now ask for a second reading. and in order to place the bills on the calendar under the provisions of rule 14, i object to my own request all en bloc. the presiding officer: objection is heard. the three bills that are read for the first time which will receive the second reading on the next legislative day. mr. mcconnell: mr. president, a little earlier today the president signed the democratic healt

mr. reid: mr.dent? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: following the leader remarks, there will be a period of morning business until 3:00 p.m. senators permitted to speak for up to ten minutes each. at 3:00 p.m., we'll turn to the consideration of h.r. 4213, the tax extenders legislation. senator baucus will be recognized to call up the amendment. as previously announced, there will be no roll call votes today. the first vote of the week will occur at 12:15 p.m. tomorrow. that vote will be on the motion to invoke cloture on the nomination of barbara keenan to be a united states circuit judge for the fourth circuit. mr. president, there are two bills, i'm told, at the desk due for second readings. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: h.r. 4626, an act to restore the application of the federal antitrust laws to the business of health insurance to protect competition and consumers. h.r. 4691, an act to provide a temporary extension of certain programs, and for ot

mr. reid? >> mr. speaker, before i answer the question let me make another tribute to our troops. they are working with incredibly incredible bravery with fortitude and dedication to defeat those who brought terrorism to the streets of britain. by denying them ground and air support by offering the population in afghanistan a more prosperous future. i know the house will join me in paying tribute to the seven soldiers who lost their lives since the house last met. lance corporal deron hicks from first battalion, lance sergeant david greenhorn. from six battalion attached to third battalion of their rifles. riflemen mark marshall. from the second battalion the duke of lancaster regiment, sean dorsey. from 36 engineer regiment royal engineers, first battalion guards, lt. douglas. from first battalion scots guards, and sergeant david walker. these men of exceptional bravery are great courage and skill whose loss is deeply felt. we send our profound condolences to their families and loved ones. meeting with others in addition to my duties in the house i thought of such duties today. >

mr. reid: and the amendments fall, is that right? the presiding officer: correct. mr. reid: what is the business before the senate? the presiding officer: the question is on the baucus substitute 3336 as amended. all those in favor say aye. all those opposed say no. the substitute amendment, as amended, is agreed to. the clerk will report the motion to invoke cloature. the clerk: cloture motion: we, the undersigned senators, in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, do hereby move to bring to a close debate on the debate on h.r. 4213, the tax extenders act, signed by 17 senators. the presiding officer: the mandatory quorum call has been waived. the question is, is it the sense of the senate that the debate on h.r. 4213, an act to amend the internal revenue code of 1976 to extend certain expiring provisions and for other purposes shall be brought to a close. the yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. the clerk will call the roll. vote: vote: vote: the presiding officer: are there any senators in the chamber who wish to vote or

mr. reid: following leader remarks, the senate will turn to a period of morning business until 2:00 p.m. this afternoon. senators during this time will be allowed to speak for up to ten minutes. the majority will control the first 30 minutes, republicans will control the next 30 minutes. at 2:00 p.m., the senate will resume consideration of h.r. 4213, the tax extenders legislation under an agreement reached last night, all postcloture debate time will be yielded back and the substitute amendment will be agreed to. the senate will then proceed to a cloture vote on the underlying bill. if cloture is invoked, all postcloture debate time will be yielded back and the senate will then proceed to vote on passage of the bill as amended. we continue to work on an agreement to begin consideration of the federal aviation administration re-authorization bill today. mr. president, the bill s. 3092 is at the desk. i understand it's due for a second reading. the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the

mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: following leader remarks, the senate will resume consideration of the tax extenders bill. there will be no roll call votes today. the next vote will be tuesday morning. mr. president, we had a good, hard week working on this legislation dealing with the tax extenders' expiring provisions, cobra, unemployment compensation, fmap. so that those watching don't think this is some kind of a coded message, these are very important provisions. tax extenders are measures that come at the end of the year. many of them should be extended for much longer than a year, but we're in a moment now of paying for things, and as a result of that, we don't have the money to do it for more than a year. expiring provisions are very important issues. they deal with satellite tv, which is important to about a million and a half people in america. many in the rural west depend on this. unemployment compensation. today is a big day in america. only 36,000 people lost their jobs today, which is really good.

mr. reid: mr. president, would the chair report how much time is left on general debate on the bill. the presiding officer: the majority has 7 hours and 32 minutes. the minority has 8 hours and 30 minutes. mr. reid: mr. president, i would now yield back all time on the bill on the majority's side. the presiding officer: the leader has that right. the time is yielded back. mr. alexander: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from tennessee is recognized. mr. alexander: thank you. i ask unanimous consent to temporarily set aside the pending motion so i may offer a motion to commit which is at the desk. the presiding officer: without objection, so ordered. the clerk will report. the clerk will report. the clerk: the senator from tennessee, mr. alexander, moves to commit the bill h.r. 4872 to the committee on health, education, labor, and pensions of the senate with instructions to report the same back to the senate within one day, with changes to reduce the interest paid by student borrowe

mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. senators permitted to speak up to 10 minutes each. the republicans will control the first 30 minutes, the majority will control the second 30 minutes. following that morning business the senate will resume consideration of the f.a.a. bill. and debate concurrently until 11:30 with the mccaskill amendment and the pryor amendment with the time equally divided between senate and pryor or their designees. additional roll call votes in relation to f.a.a. amendments are expected throughout the day. announce morning business please. the presiding officer: under the previous order the leadership time is reserve. under the previous order there will be a period of morning business for one hour with republicans controlling the first half and the majority controlling the final half. are you leaving? >> no, quorum call: a senator: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from new hampshire. mr. gregg: i'd ask unanimous consent that the republican time be extended. the presiding officer:

pelosi and mr. reidhould wise up and understand the country has had quite enough of quasisocialism. if the far left element of the democratic party continues its agenda, the democrats might completely collapse. so, in both parties, there is danger in the air. that's the memo. now for the top story tonight. reaction, with us barack and a hard blaze duo monica crowley and alan colmes. both are fox news analysts. is this a big blanking deal? how about that? >> unlike dick cheney he wasn't calling someone that name. >> bill: no. but did he not see the microphone there? you see, it picks it up. >> he was jubilant. american people. come on. >> bill: when you are jubilant, colmes, do you use that word. >> never unless -- i think it but i never -- >> bill: you never get that jubilant. >> hardly ever. now, u.s.a. gallup poll today shows that things have turned around. most americans, 4 wers, not most, close to most support this health care plan things are changing now. >> bill: let's let that shake out for a coup

mr. reid: madam president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: following leader remarks #-rbgs the senate will proceed to a period of morning business until 12:30. senators will be allowed to feck for up to 10 minutes each with the time between 10:30 equally divided and controlled between the two leaders or their designees. that the time from 10:30 until 12:30 equally divided with the majority controlling the first half of that time, and the republicans controlling the second half. the senate will recess from 12:30 until 2:15 p.m. to allow for the weekly caucus loons p. luncheons. when the senate resumes consideration at 2:15, it will resume consideration of the f.a.a. reauthorization legislation. senators should be prepared for roll call votes this afternoon in relation to the f.a.a. bill. and the reason i talk about the time equally divided and controlled between democrats and republicans, according to how long senator mcconnell might takers it may not be a full two hours. so it'll be very close thereto, though. madam president, i understa

mr. reid: madam president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. : following leader remarks there will be a period of morning business for an hour. senators allowed to speak for ten minutes each during that period of time. following that morning business, we'll resume consideration of the federal aviation administration re-authorization legislation. we have two amendments pending, the sessions amendment and the lieberman amendment. senators will be notified when any votes are scheduled. mr. mcconnell: madam president? the presiding officer: the republican leader. mr. mcconnell: as democratic leaders in congress continue to insist we're at some make or break moment in the health care debate and that for some reason we need to pass a bill that raises taxes, raises premiums and cuts medicare, i'd like to call attention to a notice received just yesterday from the congressional budget office informing us that they plan to issue a cost estimate today for the senate-passed health care bill. in other words, sometime today, the c.b.o. will release its final

mr. harry reid. [applause] all of the terrific committee chairs, all the members of congress who did what was difficult but did what was right and passed health care reform, this generation will thank you and the next generation of americans will thank you. this decree was also made possible by the painstaking work of this administration including our outstanding director of health and human services, kathleen sebelius. and one of the unsung heroes of this effort, an extraordinary woman who led the reform effort from the white house, nancy-ann deparle. [applause] today, i am signing this reform bill into law on behalf of my mother, who argued with insurance company -- companies even as she battled cancer in her final days. i am signing it for brian smith who is here today. he runs a small business with five employees and trying to do the right thing to pay half the cost of coverage for his workers. this bill will help them for that coverage. i am signing it for 11-year-old marcellus owens who is also

mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: mr. president, last thursday my wife was involved in a violent car accident. we often say the senate is a family. i'm reminded of it time and time again when both triumph and tragedy unite us. in the past few days i learned all over again just how close, how genuine and how meaningful that family is. the tremendous outpouring of support for my wife and daughter from people across nevada and the nation and from this senate family has deeply touched all of us. we received literally hundreds and hundreds of e-mails and phone calls. we really very much appreciate all the thoughts for landra and every prayer on her behalf. the kindness and concern, overwhelming and humbling. it was a close call, but we're grateful it wasn't worse and are confident she'll be making a full recovery. it won't be tomorrow or the next tkaeurbgs but she'll be -- next day, but she'll be back on her feet as soon as she can. landra and i have been married for almost 50 years. she is the strongest and most selfless pers

mr. reid: madam president? the presiding officer: the leader. mr. reid: following leader remarks, the senate will resume consideration of the tax extenders legislation. today we'll continue work through the remaining amendments to the bill. senators will be notified when votes are scheduled. there should be some this morning. mr. mcconnell: madam president? the presiding officer: the republican leader. mr. mcconnell: madam president, the american people are asking us to start over on health care. they are asking us to scrap the massive bills democrats have been trying to force on them. they want us to focus on cost instead. that has been their clear message now for over a year. but yesterday, democrats in washington said they know better. the president and his allies in congress made up their minds to turn aside any pretense of bipartisanship and plow ahead on a partisan bill. a partisan bill, by the way, that americans don't want. in a last-ditch effort to get their way, they stake themselves to a flawed vision of reform over the wishes of the publi

mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: following leaders remarks the senate will be in morning business until 3:00 p.m. with the time equally divided and controlled between 2002 leaders or their designees. at 3:00 p.m., the senate will resume consideration of h.r. 1586, the federal aviation administration legislation. at 5:30 the senate will proceed to a series of up to three roll call votes in relation to the f.a.a. bill. senators will be notified when we know exactly roll call votes will be necessary. mr. president, our country has lost a friend, a patriot, an environmental pioneer, stuart udall. stuart udall did more to preserve and protect the american landscape than probably anyone else. he died this weekend, and our thoughts are with his family and many friends. on my last trip to new mexico, i had the the good fortune to be able to sit and talk to stuart udall for about an hour. it was a wonderful experience for me. i had never met him. i served with his brother in the house of representatives. but this is the

mr. reid: following leader remarks, the senate will resume consideration of the hire act. there will be 10 minutes for debate equally divided and controlled between senators gregg and schumer or their designees. we expect senator gregg to make a budget point of order with respect to the bill. at approximately 9:45, the senate will proceed to a series of roll call votes. on h.r. 2547. the senate will resume consideration of the f.a.a. reauthorization. the senate will decrease from 12:30 to 2:00 p.m. for a special disement caucus. when the senate reconvenes at 2:00 p.m., there will be a live quorum. the senate will consideration articles of impeachment of judge g. david portious of new orleans, louisiana. senators will be sworn & then senators are required to sign the book. consideration of amendments on the f.a.a. are expected throughout the day. the presiding officer: under the previous order, the leadership time is reserved. under the previous order, the senate will resume consideration of the house message on h.r. 2847, which the clerk will report. the clerk: resolve tha

mr. reid: following morning business, we'll turn to morning business until 11:00 this morning. republicans will control the first half, the majority will control the second half. following morning business, the senate will resume consideration of h.r. 4213, the tax extenders bill. there will then be a series of up to four roll call votes in relation to the amendments to the bill. those votes will start at 11:00. following the series of votes, the senate will recess until 2:15 p.m. in order to accommodate the weekly caucus meetings. at 2:30, the senate will proceed to a cloture vote on the substitute amendment. as a reminder, the filing deadline for accepting new amendments is 12:00 noon today. mr. mcconnell: mr. president? the presiding officer: the republican leader. mr. mcconnell: mr. president, the debate over health care has been going on for a long time now. it's easy to lose sight of where we started, so i would just like to remind people today of what this debate was supposed to be about. it was supposed to be about cost. this debate was supposed to be about bringing the

pelosi and mr. reid to correct it after we pass it.if this was the only flaw in the bill maybe we could look away. you heard democrats who also voted against the rule and almost took this bill down also state their objections to provisions that should have had the opportunity for at least an amendment by this body. so no consideration of changing the bill, making the appropriate fairness changes, equitable changes so we would all be treated equitably. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from north carolina. mr. etheridge: i yield a minute to the speaker of the house, speaker pelosi. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the speaker. the speaker: thank you very much, madam speaker. i thank the gentleman for yielding. i appreciate his leadership and his intensive knowledge of this legislation and how important it is for us to proceed much madam speaker, i will not speak long because the sooner we debate it the sooner it goes to the senate and goes to the pr

mr. oberstar: so we're sending it over to the other body. majority leader reid sent it back with the appropriate members of the senate, to committee leadership and the senate floor leadership, but somehow it -- this correction has gotten bogged down. i also urge the other body to act on h.r. 476, which we passed march 10, to correct an additional problem created by the filibuster in the senate that caused highway authorization to lapse and 1,922 federal highway administration career employees to lose their salaries. they through no fault of their own get a 20% cut in their biweekly paycheck. that's unreasonable. now, we sent over a bill to the other body with the very clear payment restructuring. may i have another minute? mr. costello: i yield an additional minute to chairman oberstar. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman may proceed. mr. oberstar: and the secretary of transportation said that he has made the shift within the administrative account but cannot make the payment because he needs authority from congress to do so. so we quickly drafted the bill wi

he's got a letter of intention from the speaker and also from mr. reidpass this. but to do this in the proper legislative fashion, to actually create jobs, we should be fair to everyone and distribute this equitably to all states. also missing from this is a six-year bill which we only need. this only extends transportation authorization through december 31 of this year, which will leave many states behind. so this bill leaves many jobs behind. it leaves fairness behind. and again it doesn't do the job it should do in creating jobs that we so badly need in this nation. i will reluctantly oppose the so-called jobs bill on the basis that i stated. it's my hope that we can correct this measure. i'll do everything i can working in a bipartisan fashion to correct it so we have fairness for all 50 states in the distribution of the funds that they sent to washington. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from california is recognized. ms. matsui: madam speaker, i just want to say while this bill distributes some highway f

pelosi and mr. reid to correct it after we pass it. if this was the only flaw in the bill maybe we could look away. you heard democrats who also voted against the rule and almost took this bill down also state their objections to provisions that should have had the opportunity for at least an amendment by this body. so no consideration of changing the bill, making the appropriate fairness changes, equitable changes so we would all be treated equitably. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from north carolina. mr. etheridge: i yield a minute to the speaker of the house, speaker pelosi. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the speaker. the speaker: thank you very much, madam speaker. i thank the gentleman for yielding. i appreciate his leadership and his intensive knowledge of this legislation and how important it is for us to proceed much madam speaker, i will not speak long because the sooner we debate it the sooner it goes to the senate and goes to the p

mr. reid: yield back the time. ask for the yeas and nays. the presiding officer: is the a sufficient second? there appears to be. the clerk will call the roll. vote: vote: the presiding officer: anyone wishing to vote or to change their vote? hearing none, the yeas are 99, the nays are zero. the nomination is confirmed. a motion to reconsider is considered made and laid on the table. the president shall be notified of the senate's action and the senate returns to legislative session. the senator from new hampshire. mr. gregg: i understand that the senator from illinois is planning to speak. i'd like to speak after he completes his remarks. i ask unanimous consent that he be recognized and then i be recognized. the presiding officer: without objection. the senator from illinois. mr. burris: after i would like to speak, i ask unanimous consent that the senator from delaware be able to speak for his period of time. the presiding officer: is there objection? mr. burris: after the senator from new hampshire. the presiding officer: is there object

both mrs. reid . lana are conscious and according to doctors, their injuries are non life threatening. in the article it goes on to say that jim manely said the nevada democrat went to hospital after being told about the incident, later returned to capitol hill for a meeting with white house chief of staff rahm emanuel and house speaker ned to pelosi on efforts to pass health care legislation. in "the new york times" this morning it looks at the kansas city school system and its decision to close 28 out of 61 schools. the school board was dysfunctional for years, there was very poor governance for a long period of time and it was like a revolving door with superintendents. faced with a $50 million deficit in the $300 million budget, the district decided to close the schools. the plan also calls for the elimination of 700 out of 3000 jobs, including teaching positions. education experts praised the new schools superintendent, who was hired in april from the pueblo, colorado, district, for pushing the c

pelosi and mr. reid to correct it after we pass it. this was the only flaw in the bill maybe we could look away. you heard democrats who also voted against the rule and almost took this bill down also state their objections to provisions that should have had the opportunity for at least an amendment by this body. so no consideration of changing the bill, making the appropriate fairness changes, equitable changes so we would all be treated equitably. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from north carolina. mr. etheridge: i yield a minute to the speaker of the house, speaker pelosi. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the speaker. the speaker: thank you very much, madam speaker. i thank the gentleman for yielding. i appreciate his leadership and his intensive knowledge of this legislation and how important it is for us to proceed much madam speaker, i will not speak long because the sooner we debate it the sooner it goes to the senate and goes to the pres

mr. harry reid. >> harry! harry! >> to all of the terrific committee chairs, all of the members of congress and did what was difficult but did what was right and pass health care reform, this generation of americans will thank you. the next generation will thank you. this victory was made possible by the painstaking work of members of this administration, including our outstanding secretary of health and human services kathleen sebelius garra. and one of the unsung heroes of this effort, an extraordinary woman who led the reform effort from the white house, nancy. where's nancy? today, i am signing this reform bill into law on behalf of my mother. -- who argued with insurance companies even as she battled cancer in her final days. i am signing up for ryan smith who is here today. he runs a small business with five employees and is trying to do the right thing, paying half the cost of coverage for his workers. this bill will help them afford that coverage. i am signing it for a 11-year- old marcellus, who is also here

mr. harry reid. >> but democrat harry reid has some political problems back in his home state of nevada.melling blood. let's go to our cnn national political correspondent, jessica yellin, who is working this story. you had a chance to even catch up with him. what's going on here, jessica? >> reporter: hi, wolf, i did. the senate majority leader is facing a bruising re-election battle. the numbers just don't look good for him. and to complicate matters, wolf, right now the tea party is planning a huge rally in his hometown of searchlight, nevada, tomorrow, with keynote speaker sarah palin who will call for reid's defeat in november. in nevada politics, the stakes couldn't be higher for senator harry reid, his big bet on health care reform, turned into a win in washington, but it's not playing as well with voters back at home. >> with the health care thing, he's -- he's screwing up big time, so he's out. >> legislation -- >> reporter: after four terms in the u.s. senate, the majority leader could lose his job this november. polls show a majority of nevadans don't like him, and only a thir

mrs. palin hammer senator harry reid in his hometown. >> so harry reid comes from these parts.ou know, he served on the state's gaming commission and what he is doing now is gambling our future. and somebody needs to tell him, this isn't a crap shoot. this is a lot of this is being crap though. >> bill: obviously the left despises that kind of rhetoric. now charges that sarah palin incites violence and sows discord. some on the left fear tea party movement and there is a media strategy to brand tea party people as racist. right in the miami herald over the weekend leonard pitts says this about the tea party quote: are you can see what's emerging. the most ardent critics of president obama is going to be label racist and extremist. the extremist label is being used by some on the right against the president. last week's awful confrontation outside the capital where charges n word was used by anti-obama demonstrators signals how intense this entire issue has become. as the factor reported there is no proof of any racial inventricle that. we do believe harsh words were spoken by a

mr. harry reid.use] all of the terrific committee chairs, all the members of congress who did what was difficult but did what was right and passed health care reform, not just this generations of americans will thank-you but the next generation will thank you. this victory was also made possible by the painstaking work of members of this administration including our outstanding secretary of health and human services, kathleen sebelius. [applause] and one of the unsung heroes of this effort, an extraordinary woman who led the reform effort from the white house, nancy-ann deparle. [applause] today, i am signing this reform bill into law with regard to the mother who argued with insurance companies as she battled cancer in her final days. i am signing it for ryan smith who is here today. he runs a small business with five employees. he is trying to do the right thing to pay half the cost of coverage for his workers. this bill will help him for that coverage. i am signing it for 11-year-old marcellus col

mr. harry reid. [cheers and applause] to all of the terrific committee chairs, all the members of congress who did what was difficult but did what was right. and passed health care reform, this generation will thank you and the next generation. this victory was made possible by the painstaking work of members of this administration, including our outstanding secretary of health and human services, kathleen sebelius. [applause] and one of the unsung heroes of this effort, nancy [unintelligible] [applause] today, i am signing this re form bill in to a lot on behalf of my mother, who argued with insurance companies even as she battled cancer in her final days. i am sending it for ryanne smith. he runs a small business with five employees. he is trying to do the right thing. this bill will help him of for that coverage. i am signing it for an 11-year- old who is also here. marcellus -- [applause] marcellus lost his mom to an illness. she did not have insurance and could not afford the care she needed. in

mr. harry reid.that terrific committee chairs, all the members of congress who did one of the most difficult but did what was right, they passed health care reform -- not only this generation of americans will thank you, but the next generation will fight it. victory was also made possible by the painstaking work of members of this administration, including our outstanding secretary of health and human services, kathleen sebelius. in one of the on song hyssop -- heroes of this effort, an extraordinary woman who led the reform effort from the white house, nancy-and the paul -- nancy-ann deparle. today i am signing this reform bill on behalf of my mother who argued with insurance companies even as she battled cancer and her final days. i'm signing a four ryan smith who is here today. he runs a small business with five employees, trying to do the right thing, paying half the cost of coverage for his workers. this bill will help them for that coverage. i am signing at 411-year-old marcellus owen -- for 1

mr. chairman. >> thank you, senator inhoff. senator reid?> thank you for your service and dedication not only to the american military but to the nation. thank you very much. general renuart, a disturbing phenomenon seems to be the increasing sophistication in armaments of the mexican drug cartels -- assault weapons, anti-tank weapons, sophisticated night vision devices and communication devices. where are these coming from? >> the very first meeting i had in mexico, the military leadership outlined their concern over what they called u.s. trafficking of weapons into mexico. clearly, there is no doubt there are weapons moving north to south in mexico. we have partnered closely with our law-enforcement friends to help provide information for the mexican military. they have collected the forensics and so we can prosecute. there have been over 40 prosecutions in the last two years of weapons dealers. certainly, we see an involvement in this country with respect to illicit weapons trade. we are seeing that move from other nations around the worl

reid. this lasts about 50 minutes. [applause] >> the caucus will come to order. mr. president, majority leader reid, welcome. to the caucus. america's caucus. madam speaker, while the body was waiting outside to bring the president in, i was informing our caucus that it didn't happen under speaker cannon nor did it happen under speaker ray born or mccormick. it didn't happen under speaker o'neal. but urns f under speaker nancy pelosi we are going to pass health care for the american people. [applause] to introduce the president of the united states, the speaker of the house, thansy pelosi. [applause] >> thank you very much. i received your kind words on behalf of all of our courageous members of the house of representatives who want the best for the american people. and what we can do that is best for them in the next 24 hours is to pass affordable accessible health care for all americans. [applause] the best for americans is to have 32 million more people to have health insurance in our country. the best for our country is to have 1.3 trillion in deficit reduction so that we are not leaving mountains of deb

mr. -- our senate majority leader reid and all of our leadership and members of congress and our coalition partners on a strategy to put america back to work. one of the key components of our proposed jobs package was to seek an extension of tanf emergency contingency fund for one year with an appropriation of $2.5 billion. this valuable program was originally authorized in the american recovery and relief acts of -- for a total of $5 billion to help tanf related expenditures, including basic assistance, nonrecurring, short-term benefits. put simply, the tanf fund allows states to leverage federal dollars to subsidize private company wages by providing states with an 85% reimbursement rate for their increased tanf expenditures in these categories. now, back in december we communicated with president obama and our speaker and raised the importance of extending the tanf emergency contingency fund. earlier this month, chairman mcdermott held a meeting will be his committee. this was another important moment that reinforced the congressional black caucus' call for an extension and helped gener

reid, and cindy wherhoyer. this is about 50 minutes. [applause] >> the caucus will come to order. mr. president, majority leader reid, welcome to the house of representatives caucus, america's caucus. while the body was waiting outside to bring the president in, i was in forming our caucus that it did not happen under speaker canon, rayburn, or mc cormac. but under speaker nancy pelosi, we are going to pass health care for the american people. [applause] to introduce the president of the united states, the speaker of the house. [applause] >> thank you all very much. i received your kind words on behalf of all of our courageous members of the house of representatives who want the best for the american people. what we can do that is best for them in the next 24 hours is to pass affordable, accessible health care for all americans. [applause] the best for all americans is to have 32 million more people to have health insurance in our country. the best for our country is to have $1.30 trillion in deficit reduction so that we are not keeping a mountain of debt. the best for our country is t

mr. alexander: well, when they jump, it might be. but senator reid, i would ask the senator from arizona and his democratic colleagues, they're not going to have any incentive to catch these house members who vote for the bill, because the president will have already signed it into law enforcement hhe'll be well on his way to i understand niece aia. we have 41 republican senators who have signed a letter saying that you're not going to make new deals and send them over here and change them by reconciliation. mr. mccain: i would also take -- bring attention -- and, madam president, i ask unanimous consent that an article entitled "health care reforms sickeningly sweet deals" by kathleen parker which appeared in "the washington post" on wednesday, march 10, be included in the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mccain: i think she says is best. and i quote her article. "skipping through the candyland of the health care bill, one is tempted to hum a few bars much "let me call you sweetheart." what a deal for deal makers, that is, not s

mr. alexander: well, when they jump, it might be. but senator reid, i would ask the senator from arizona and his democratic colleagues, they're not going to have any incentive to catch these house members who vote for the bill, because the president will have already signed it into law enforcement hhe'll be well on his way to i understand niece aia. we have 41 republican senators who have signed a letter saying that you're not going to make new deals and send them over here and change them by reconciliation. mr. mccain: i would also take -- bring attention -- and, madam president, i ask unanimous consent that an article entitled "health care reforms sickeningly sweet deals" by kathleen parker which appeared in "the washington post" on wednesday, march 10, be included in the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. mccain: i think she says is best. and i quote her article. "skipping through the candyland of the health care bill, one is tempted to hum a few bars much "let me call you sweetheart." what a deal for deal makers, that is, not s

mr. president, welcome. we are pleased to have you here. senate majority leader harry reidou and i realize when you were a capitol cop and i was working down in the basement of the russell building we would be on this stage with president obama. >> i had a good job. >> he had a good job, he said. of course in that office i worked there was a young lady who also worked there. her name was nancy. this was pre-paul wedding, not necessarily pre-paul but pre-paul wedding. little did we realize you and i would be here at this historic time to participate with our colleagues in this extraordinary effort. america is watching us. some would say this is a partisan effort. they are wrong. this is an effort on behalf of all americans. george w. bush in 2002 said, "all americans should be able to choose a health care plan that meets their needs at affordable prices." bill clinton said the time has come to pull together to work in a bipartisan manner to work on a guaranteed health care coverage to all americans. george h.w. bush in 1992, said a universal comprehensive national health ins

mr. president, welcome. we're pleased to have you here. senate majority leader harry reid, little did you and i realize when you were a capitol cop and i was working down in the basement of the russell building that we would be on this stage with president obama. >> i had a good job. >> he had a good job, he said. [laughter] and, of course, in that office in which i worked there was a young lady who also worked there. her name was nancy. and this was pre-paul wedding. not necessarily pre-paul, but pre-paul wedding. and little did we realize, nancy, that you and i would be here at this historic time, to participate with our colleagues in this extraordinary effort. america is watching us. some would say this is a partisan effort. they're wrong. this is an effort on behalf of all americans. george w. bush in 2002 said and i quote, "all americans should be able to choose a health care plan that meets their needs at affordable prices." bill clinton said the time has come together to pull together to work in a bipartisan matter to deliver affordable health care coverage to all a

mr. president, to my colleague, thank you for your forebearance. senator reid has asked that i announce to senators that there will be no further votes this evening and there will be no votes tomorrow. we expect the next vote to be monday at 5:30. and i will explain in a few moments the circumstances. we do expect finally that we are near an agreement by which we would be able to finish this f.a.a. reauthorization bill with a final vote monday evening. and that's our expectation. as i indicated, i'll explain more about that following the remarks of senator reed. mr. reed: mr. president? e esidg ofcer: the senator from rhode island is recognized. mr. reed: mr. president, i would ask, if it's appropriate, unanimous consent to have my remarks immediately following senator whitehouse's. the presiding officer: without objection, so ordered. mr. reed: thank you, mr. president. mr. president, i want to join my colleague and friend, senator whitehouse, in paying tribute to an extraordinary american, an extraordinary rhode islander, george peneeches. senator whitehouse