mr. udall: we're in a quorum call, is that correct? the presiding officer: correct. mr. udall: i ask the quorum call be vitiated. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. udall: i have two unanimous consent requests i'd like to direct to the chair. the first one is i would ask unanimous consent the following staff of the finance committee be allowed on the senate floor for the remainder of the 112th congress -- andrea chapman, claire green, sara weaver, sterling louden, owen hawk ye, james mathis and owen stefans. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. udall: i also have eight unanimous consent requests for committees to meet during today's session of the senate. they have the approval of the majority and minority leaders. i ask unanimous consent that these requests be agreed to and these requests be printed in the record. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. udall: madam president, i yield the floor and i note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will

mr. udall: thank you, mr. president. mr.the wind production tax credit. i rise before the senate to discuss an industry that's created tens of thousands of good-paying jobs for american workers and has contributed billions of dollars, literally billions of dollars to our economy. mr. president, i think you know this and all of our colleagues should know this, that this is an industry that will be in grave trouble if we in the congress don't act soon. by that, i actually mean immediately to extend the wind production tax credit. we returned this week to congress in the wake of really sobering news about recent layoffs of american workers in our wind industry largely due to our inaction, congressional inaction on the wind production tax credit. i want to be very clear, mr. president. the wind industry has already begun firing american workers because we have failed to extend the wind production tax credit. it's that simple. you ask why. well, the p.t.c. has been a driver of the wind energy industry's enormous expansion in the

udall: mr.president? the presiding officer: the senator from colorado is recognized. mr. udall: mr. president, let me commend my colleague from west virginia for his eloquent and articulate and powerful remarks about the importance of standing with our veterans. we have work to do. as abe lincoln so powerfully put it, i just want to acknowledge the great work of my colleague from west virginia. mr. president, i'm here as i have been for many a morning for the last number of months to urge all of us to work together in order to extend the production tax credit for wind energy. the p.t.c., as it's known, is going to expire in just a few months, and that impending expiration not only threatens the jobs of tens of thousands of americans but also threatens the continued prosperity of an industry that has seen tremendous growth over the last decade. and we simply cannot let that happen. but each day we fail to act and in effect abdicate our basic responsibility to support job creation, we are allowing

mr. udall: i appreciate the sentiments and the tone of his -- his remarks and i respect greatly his financial acumen. we know the training that senator enzi has and i appreciate his call to action hopefully as soon as possible. i'd like to stay in washington and continue to work on a simpson-bowles architecture. i know my colleague from colorado, senator bennet, has spent a great deal of time as a member of the gang of six plus two, crafting legislative language to put the simpson-bowles recommendations into effect. i did, however, want to set the record straight, as i read it and as i understand it, which is that we have had a budget control act that we -- many of us voted for last year which, in effect, is a budget for 2012 and 2013. and as i'd like to, mr. president, ask unanimous consent to include in the record this documentation of the budget control act. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. udall: and it -- in the language, it reads, "the allegations, aggregates and levels in su

mr. udall: thank you, madam president. i rise gene this morning as i have for a number of months to talk about the most important issue facing the american people and this congress, and that is jobs. and a good-news story on the jobs front has been our wind energy industry. the wind energy industry has created thousands of good-paying jobs, and it could create thousands more. but the troubling news that goes along with the good news, madam president, is that the potentially bright future of this industry is uncertain. why? because we hear here in the congress -- because we here in the congress are holding the wind energy industry hostage because we failed to extend the production tax credit. as i've said every day i've been otofloor since -- on the floor since june to discuss this topic, madam president, every day that we fail to extend the p.t.c. for wind energy, more jobs are put at risk. and we've seen this unfortunate reality unfold across the country, as predicted, including in my home sta

mr. udall: thank you, mr. president. let me just say, before my colleague, senator durbin, leaves the floor, that this whole issue, as he has pointed out, of campaign finance is a pressing issue. it is one that is before us now and we're seeing it play out in the campaign, and i'm sure at the end of this campaign that citizens across this country are going to demand reform, they're going to demand change. he's outlined several pieces of legislation here that i think really do that. and this constitutional amendment is one. the disclose act, the piece of legislation that he has authored and fought forks i think both in the house and the senate, i think really bring transparency to the process. they bring disclosure to the process and we need do it and so i real appreciate his leadership on this and look forward to working with him very closely on this issue, as we get into the next congress. thank you. mr. president, i rise today to pay tribute to a gentleman by the name of russell train. on monday of this we, ou week, r

udall. >> senator demint. >> thank you mr. chairman and mr. beecroft i also thank you for your service and your willingness to continue to serve in iraq. we have got a lot of our blood and treasure invested and frankly you have encouraged me today and i've heard you talk a a and you answered a lot of questions i've had because i've heard a number of folks say iraq is unraveling, that it is just coming apart. the fact that we didn't leave establishing -- stabilizing force in iraq makes it virtually impossible for us to impact the policy in some the things of said suggested otherwise. i have to admit i'm a little cynical because over the last 10 years i've gotten a number of reports that were very rosy and we would find out that wasn't the case at all. you seem to be very credible and knowledgeable so i am encouraged by what you said. i will just ask a few questions as a follow up and you answered some of these to some degree. clearly there is a growing anti-american sentiment throughout the middle east and how pervasive is that in iraq? do you

udall, a senator from the state of new mexico, to perform the duties f the chair. signed: daniel k. inouye, president pro tempore. the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: i would yield to my friend from delaware and ask that i be recognized when he finishes his remarks. the presiding officer: the senator from delaware. mr. coons: thank you very much, mr. president. i rise today to express my gratitude to leader reid, to chaplain black, to all of us in the chamber and my gratitude to the reverent dr. dug gerdts. it is my honor and privilege to welcome him to our chamber this morning as one of delaware's finest leaders. reverend gerdts leads the congregation at first and central presbyterian church in wilmington. each time i join with him on sunday mornings, i'm challenged by his passionate sermons and leave engaged for the week rooted in my faith and moved forward by his words and by his leadership. but reverend gerdts' leadership extends far beyond the walls of his church. the church literally opens its doors every saturday welcoming in homeless delawareans and also welcoming in children who need classroom to succeed. he chaired our diversity com