thank you too you and senator stabenow. we saw what happened over in the house and the two of you rose above it all and got this bill done. thank you. senator mcconnell. thank you for your words. we're excited about the hemp provision, and we're most excited this bill will go to the floor by the fourth of july, whereas my friend from iowa knows the corn is knee high by the fourth of july, shoulder high. in minnesota, it may be knee high. >> a generation ago it was knee high. now it's shoulder high. >> already. i'm using my time up for a song. all right. there we go. okay. so our farmers are facing a lot right now. they are facing everything from low prices to some late weather in the midwest. we had snow in april in minnesota, a blizzard. we've got trade issues. and pork that goes to canada in our state. beef to south korea. corn and poultry to mexico. our ag producers sent 7.1 billion in ag products to markets around the world. it makes it even more important that we come together with a solid and consistent farm policy ou

senator stabenow. senator stabenow: thank you chairman roberts. workally is a pleasure to with him. we have a true partnership. this is a committee that represents our part of the country in terms of dates and interests. we have 12 different titles are essentially 12 different bills on all kinds of topics from commodities and conservation to energy, nutrition, and treat. it is a very important set of issues that really go to having a rural economy and rural economic development. and then focusing on the 16 million jobs and counting that come from agriculture. i want to thank senator roberts for being a great partner and our staffs have worked very closely together on this. that we is significant have not changed or increased overall dollars, we have been able to strengthen things in the commodity area. conservationgth on and we can address issues and making themrograms more effective. and strengthening some areas in conservation. to theome integrity nutrition title while creating more opportunities for states to establish jobs programs and jobs training programs to be able to show w

stabenow: thank you. madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from michigan. ms. stabenow: i'm here joining with chairman roberts and his sense of urgency and his comments this morning. we have worked very hard, and our distinguished presiding officer, a part of the committee now, knows that we have produced a bill that is a strong, bipartisan bill and gone on to address many other interests and needs that members have brought forward in the substitute and now, woulding with members -- and now working with members as well. but there is a sense of urgency in the country. there are so many things right now that are up in the air for farmers and ranchers. it's a very, very difficult time. and this bill really is a bill that provides a safety net for farmers and a safety net for families. and for families, because the economy is getting better, we actually are saving money, over $80 billion is going to be saved, taxpayers dollars not used over the next ten years because the economy is getting bette

senator stabenow? >> i want to support this amendment. thank senator klobuchar for her terrific leadership on this. and this really builds on what we did as well in the last farm bill and it's, this is a jobs amendment. it's about the rural bioeconomy, it's about jobs in rural me. these programs have leveraged more than $5 billion in private investments since 2009. i want to thank senator klobuchar for her great work and mr. chairman for working with you on this. as you mentioned there are a number of important issues on here. i would also indicate that very pleased that senator gillibrand's priority is in this package to help our small dairies. that were not able to use the new program that the last farm bill on dairy. so this is very positive as well. thank you. >> is there further -- >> mr. chairman? >> senator bozeman? >> i've got sympathy for what the senator is trying to do the problem is to pay for. the economic adjustment assistance program. is a very popular program. it's kept many mills across the country in business. and certai

stabenow: thank you, mr. president. before the senate from minnesota concludes, i want to just thank her for her amazing leadership as one of the members on the agriculture committee. she not only made a significant difference as it relates to energy and as she talks about bioenergy and the bio-based economy. she has been a real leader there as well as in conservation as well as in the commodity titles and local foods an all of the ways -- and all of the ways that this bill has come together. i just want to thank the senator from minnesota. a senator: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from louisiana. mr. kennedy: mr. president, i would like to call up my amendment number 3383 from the language proposed to be stricken by amendment number 3324. i am joined -- the presiding officer: the clerk will report. the clerk: the senator from louisiana, mr. kennedy, proposes amendment number 3383 to the language proposed to be stricken by amendment number 3324. strike section 103 and insert the following. section 410

senator stabenow. >> well,hank you, chairman roberts. it really is a pleasure to work with chairman roberts. as you can tell, we have a true partnership. this is a committee that represents all parts of the country in terms of states and interests, and we have 12 different titles, which is essentially 12 different bills on all kinds of topics from commodities and conservation to bio energy to nutrition and trade and so on. so it's a very important set of issues that really go to having a rural economy, rural economic development, a food economy for everybody, and then focusing on the 16 million jobs and counting that come from agriculture. i want to thank senator roberts for being a great partner, and our staffs have worked very closely together on this. i think it's significant that while we haven't changed or increased overall dollars that we've been able to set some priorities and strengthen some areas, do some things in the commodity title, make sure we have a strong crop insurance title on conservation, be able to address issues to

stabenow: mr. president, i just want to take a moment to thank my friend from north dakota for his leadership and the valuable input and hard work that he provides to the agricultural and nutritional forestry committee. we've worked together now on two farm bills. not only the work on the a.r.c. program and conservation and trade and research, but also the important tribal provisions that i think are going to have a very, very positive impact. i just want to tnk senator hoeven for all his hard work. mr. hoeven: would the senator yield? ms. stabenow: i'd be happy to. mr. hoeven: i'd like to thank our ranking member. this is truly a bipartisan bill we brought out of committee through the hard work and good leadership of both of our chairman and ranking member, and so i appreciate all your diligent, good efforts on the bill. thank you. the presiding officer: the senator from south dakota. mr. thune: mr. president, i understand the senate is not in a quorum, is that correct? the presiding officer: the

i supported ranking member stabenow's timber innovation act. this bill encourages new and innovative uses for word and building construction, which is important for the timber industry in my state. i'm very proud that this bill expands programs i advocated for to help beginning farmers and traditionally disadvantaged farmers. we need to make sure that producers from diverse backgrounds are able to access usda services. in my state, this means native american farmers, mung, somali farmers and veterans farmers. today as our farmers face deep uncertainty around tariffs, this bill includes bipartisan provisions to increase funding for usda trade promotion activities. international markets are essential to the profitability of many farmers, including in minnesota. this bill also helps to protect native food products from fraught lent imposters on the market. for example, some food businesses are trying to minimum mick or replicate unique food products like minnesota wild rice and then sell them on the marketplace as traditional food items. developin

debby stabenow needs to step up. she's campaigning on her own ineptitude. this is region today is celebrating a crop that may not be here if debby stabenow is reelected. we have to make sure that people are working here, and work ethic to help farmers here. go to my website, john james senate, go to day 62, you talk about defunding sanctuary cities and securing our borders. leland: debby stabenow is in the united states senate and will speak about that issue. how confident are you that in the president's words if the democrats keep running on abolish ice and ice platform, it will be helpful for republicans come november. >> democrats have a history of running issue to issue. debby stabenow is running on campaign issues from long ago, she's talking about the soo locks and she's not focusing on where we get talent and labor that we need the most. and making sure we're doing the right things the right way. one of the big questions here in michigan has been the president's tariffs. it's something that's controversial in addition to some of the issues of immigra

rthank you again chair roberts and ranking member stabenow. i look forward to continuing work on this bill. >> with your permission i would like to recognize our leaders senator mcconnell for his three minutes and 21 seconds. >> thank you mr. chairman, ranking member. i'm happy to be here this morning. >> a. i say one other thing thank you for your commitment not only too be here but your commitment and i want to make this clear to everybody with regards to senator schumer both committed once we finish our business here we can finish our business on the floor of the united states senate. >> let me mention, thank you mr. chairman.ch we will turn to the bill before the fourth of july, and i'm hopeful that the house will get to bears. there will probably look different from ours but hopefully it will give us a chance to get into conference and make a difference in the law which i know we are all interested w in doing. i want to thank both of you for the process that led us to today. in my home state of kentucky, agricultural heritage is a central

stabenow: thank you, mr. president. i just want to concur with the comments of our chairman, senator roberts. i believe we have 91 amendments all together between the work of the committee on a bipartisan basis and the work that we have put into the substitute. we have listened and worked together with colleagues on both sides of the aisle and put forward a package of bipartisan amendments that will allow us to move forward in a way that will provide certainty for our farmers and ranchers as well as our families. now we take the next step, and we are looking forward to working with colleagues to move this forward to get to a final vote this week. thank you. mr. roberts: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from kansas. mr. roberts: thank you, mr. president. i would like to read the amendments that are included in the substitute that my distinguished colleague, ms. stabenow, having working on and the diligent staff. they are senator jones, senator smith, senator kennedy, number 3097, senator murkowski, 3110,

i thank my colleague for working with senator stabenow and myself on this amendment. i support it and urge my colleagues to do so as well. thanks, mr. thune: thank you, mr. chairman. i appreciate that endorsement, and that of you and your staff in helping structure this in a way to get the broad support you mentioned from the commodity groups and wildlife groups. i think this is a win-win for conservation and certainly a win-win for the c.r.p. program and for the farmers and ranchers in south dakota who -- not just in south dakota but all across this country who make use of this important and vital resource. mr. president, i yield the floor. mr. portman: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from ohio. mr. portman: mr. president, dal i want to talk about -- today i want to talk about the tax reform legislation that this body passed at the end of last year. turns out this week is the sixth -month anniversary of the tax cuts and tax reform legislation. and it's time for us to look at it and determine how it's working. it's particularly important because ther

and senator stabenow's point on the pain. i've been around the entire state of maryland, and we have opioid problems in every part of our state from our most rural to our most urban. they're in desperate need of partnerships with the federal government. so i want to talk about two programs, one that is pretty well established and another that is becoming a popular option, perhaps an option. both are impeded by our reimbursement structure. we don't have an integrated care system that reimburses for integrated care. so you have to find creative sources in order to deal with a lot of the treatment options. one of the more successful options in our state has been pierce support services where those that are recovering from drug addiction help get those that are in need to the appropriate care center. we have those programs in maryland, and they are extremely successful, by the way. the numbers are very, very popular. the problem is there is not a e reimbursement structure. a lot of this you have to find third-party sources to fun

so i want to thank chairman roberts and ranking member stabenow for ensuring, as well as the rest of the committee for ensuring that this policy continues and that cotton farmers have the long-term predictability they deserve under the farm bill. this year's bill also retains and strengthens the price loss coverage program to help provide texas producers with predictability throughout unstable weather and natural disasters. that comes as great news this year, especially when we're all well aware that much of the texas pan handle as well as much of the rest of my state remains under severe or even exceptional drought conditions. additionally the bill promotes animal health and reauthorizes disease research programs, including a crucial one that will help the u.s. department of agriculture research and contain the stred of cattle -- the spread of cattle fever. this is a parasite carrying insects with the potential to wipe out cattle herds and cause devastating financial losses. and the research programs that we're promoting will help farmers and ranchers all across the country. i know

i've spoken with senator roberts and senator stabenow about that. that's exactly what this amendment would do. the amendment would gut most importantly, it would gut one of our trade enforcement tools, a tool congress passed and enhanced in the finance committee just in the last couple of years, passed to ensure we protect the industries necessary to defend our country. i know my colleague from tennessee generally opposes the president's trade agenda. i think he does that from an intellectually honest position. but that is not justification for completely undoing a decades old statute that is one of the few tools we have to defend national security interests against distortions in the global market. the steel and aluminum tariffs the president has put in place are long overdue actions to defend against further shrinking of two sectors critical to national defense. senator toomey certainly knows this in the western part of his state as i know it in mine. i know my colleagues agree that steel -- excess steel production capacity in china is troubling.

senator stabenow. >> i just want to also support this amendment. thank you senator klobuchar for her terrific leadership on this and it builds on what we did as well in the last farm bill, and this is a jobs amendment. it is about the economy. it's about jobs in rural ameri america. the leveraged within $5 billion in private investment since 2009. so i want to thank senator klobuchar for working with you on this mesh debate the issue mentioned. i would also indicate a and very pleased senator gillibrand priority is in this package to help the small dairies that were not able to use the last programs of this is very positive as well. >> thank you mr. chairman. i have sympathy for what the senator is trying to do. the problem is the economic adjustment assistance program. it's a very popular program and has those in business and certainly this is a jobs situation. currently 44 companies in 14 states participated in the program. many states are represented in this committee and for that reason i would encourage a no vote and work at some point to see

i rise to talk about the farm bill and i want to thank senators roberts and stabenow for making this farm bill really a model of bipartisanship. mr. booker: i live in a community in newark for the last two decades plus that most folks would not associate with the farm bill. but the truth is, the issues we are grappling with in this bill affect all of our american communities. suburban, urban, rural alike. folks in my community have borne the burden of horrific environmental injustices for decades. from toxins that have poisoned our river, to lead in our soil, to pollute tntses in the air. -- pollutants in the air. families in my city cannot plant crops in their soil because huge swaths of my city and many areas are toxic. we also have food deserts that exist in communities like mine where people don't have healthy foods. i also visited rural areas of our country that endure the same kind of injustices. i've met families who cannot open their windows because industrial farming operations are spraying waste into the surrounding air, families who can't hang their clothes outside, can't

senator stabenow, are you in agreement? without objection, so ordered. the committee is open to any amendment on the title. >> mr. chairman. >> thank you mr. chairman. i would like to call it amendment number seven to indicate duplicate pesticide committee. this bipartisan amendment would address the duplicate of permitting of the clean water act. this duplicate of process creates unnecessary resource burdens and challenges for pesticide registrants and users including small businesses, local water authorities and the agricultural communities. pesticides are critical for maintaining the healthy and viable environment by eliminating harmful and invasive tests and threaten the livelihood of the agricultural producers. we already required th require o ensure pesticides cause no unreasonable adverse effects to humans or the environment. the label is the law. users who do not follow the label or in violation of federal law even without a permit. with the increasing water act liability, many communities and small municipalities are being forced to reduce their

chairman roberts, senator stabenow, working very closely together to put together a bipartisan farm bill which would be a perfect opportunity to move this forward. i'm constantly saying at home in oregon very supportive of agriculture. let's grow it in america. let's add value to it in america. and let's shipt wherever we can in order to create jobs, jobs that start on the farm. so we've got momentum growing. and that's why hempisry week, this time when i come to the floor and talk about this broad array of products is signed to really get the facts out about growing hemp. now, mr. president, before growing hemp was made illegal, hemp was month the -- was among the predominant american crops for generations. it was grown in the fields of mo vnon. it was threaded into the ropes and sails of the first ships made for the united states navy. if hemp was easier to run, it might even have its own lyric in "america the beautiful" right alongside the amber waves of grain. i believe that it is long past time for the congress to throw out an antifarmer policy and legalize -- by the way, both leade

senator casey and i have introduced to apply to the affordable healthcare plan and that senator stabenow and i have introduced to apply to medicare and medicaid so that we can put this into the low? >> you were the one i raised this in my confirmation process and we find it unconscionable, so the record working with you and other senators on legislation that would across the spectrum deal with the issues and getting us to stop because we think a patient should have the right to know what they're out-of-pocket or and low-cost alternatives are. >> most patients are not going to assume if they don't use their insurance they will get a better price. >> the average person is not intuitive. >> i am also very concerned about the problems of gaming the system through strategies such as patents and effort training. when we talked on the telepne yo mtioned a the annual spending on just one drug is the equivalent of the cost of an aircraft carrier. we found with rheumatoid arthritis ever greening is going on and there've been payments of that bitter much less expensive anthan the generics are avail

under chairman roberts' leadership, along with ranking member stabenow, the agriculture committee has continued its tradition of addressing the needs of america's farmers and ranchers with the serious bipartisanship they deserve, and today the needs are great. in the case of declines in farm income, growers and producers need certainty and stability. that's what this bill would help provide. the committee reported the farm bill to the full senate by an overwhelming bipartisan margin. this week we'll have a chance to pass the bill in the same fashion. on behalf of the farmers in my home state of kentucky and around the country, i hope each senator will take advantage of this opportunity. now, mr. president, on one final matter, week after week, the evidence continues to mount that tax reform and the rest of republicans' pro-growth, pro-family agenda is helping reinvigorate our economy and set the stage for long-term job and wage growth. just today, cnbc is reporting that a percentage of the americans who say the economy is good or excellent is the highest they have ever recorded in the

senator casey and i have introduced to apply to the affordable health care plans and that senator stabenow and i have introduced to apply to medicare and medicaid so that we can put this in law. >> we agree with you. you brought this to my attention and we find this unconscionable. so we look forward to working with you and other senators on legislation that would across the spectrum deal with the issue of these gag clauses and getting them to stop. the patient has a right to know what their lower cost alternatives are. >> and most patients are not going to assume that if they don't use their insurance they will get a better price. >> right. to the average person it is not intuitive, right. >> i'm also very concerned about the problems of gaming the patent system through strategies such as evergreening. when we talked on the telephone recently, you mentioned our country's annual spending on just one drug, humira, is the equivalent of the cost of a aircraft carrier. we found that evergreening is rheumatoid arthritis drugs that it has been going on, and in fact there's been payments of bio s

debbie stabenow from michigan is up for re-election. she could consider some of these nominees. extraordinarily volatile situation for senate democrats and it's going to infuriate the democratic base if, obviously, any of these democratic senators vote for trump supreme court nominee. >> we haven't seen, six months ago, we were talking about how hard it would be for republican senators to hug donald trump in the general election, then run in the swing states. i mean, it was sort of a lose/lose situation. i think you have the same situation with these three or so democrats. first of all, how do you run in west virginia, indiana or north dakota if you vote against donald trump's supreme court choice, and then, how do you stay in the democratic party if you are the one that helps them, donald trump put a second person on the supreme court before the election? i mean, it's a lose/lose situation. it's almost like, okay, i can vote with donald trump again on the most important thing in the democratic base. after i do that, i have to switch parties. >> yeah, you are between the rock an

rally for john james, the senate hopeful is one of several republicans hoping to take on debbie stabenow, talked about putin and trump, will there be a meet be with the ayatollah, ayatollah and trump any time soon? sounds far-fetched. don't know. we'll talk to david rubin in a moment. he's here in the studio today. >>> and the headline, from a former top reagan aide mark weinberg, assistant press secretary. he says the world is safer place today than it was yesterday and president trump deserves full credit. he is next. over the last 24 hours, you finished preparing him for college. in 24 hours, you'll send him off thinking you've done everything for his well-being. but meningitis b progresses quickly and can be fatal, sometimes within 24 hours. while meningitis b is uncommon, about 1 in 10 infected will die. like millions of others, your teen may not be vaccinated against meningitis b. meningitis b strikes quickly. be quick to talk to your teen's doctor about a meningitis b vaccine. . stuart: despite all the good news on the economy, despite the trump summit meeting in singapore, despit

james is seeking the republican nomination to challenge democrebe stabenow.king his message to the midwest when he holds a rally in duluth, minnesota next wednesday it will be the president first trip to minnesota since taking office. steve? steve: president trump wrapping up historic summit in north korea. americans sloping optimism with president trump with 52% saying they approve of the way of the way the president is handling the economy. will these major accomplishments, the historic summit and booming economy, could they possibly impact the midterm elections? that guy right there, larry sabato, director of university of virginia's center for politics probably has a thing or two to say about that and he joins us now from virginia. larry, good morning to you. >> good morning, steve. steve: first of all, let's just start, your general observation about how the president has conducted himself in singapore? >> this was a transformational moment for donald trump. you know, i don't know what thets are, the communique and what's going to happen in the future an

and understanding how to grow a company and create jobs and i'm the only one who can beat debbie stabenowcs that sounds kind of familiar doesn't it. john james is republican running for the u.s. senate seat in michigan. thank you for joining us today from detroit. >> thanks for having me. steve: you betcha. what do you think about that? let us know. a veterans group is told to take down this bench honoring our flag or they could be fined. we have kwru7 date coming up next. seattle thought it was good idea to attack companies like amazon to help the homeless. then the backlash came. stuart varney here with the message for west coast democrats. stu's next. ♪ ♪ still a chance here. it's willingham, edge of the box, willingham shoots... goooooooaaaaaaaallllllll! that...was...magic. willingham tucks it in and puts the championship to bed. sweet dreams, nighty night. as long as soccer players celebrate with a slide, you can count on geico saving folks money. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. pressure, what pressure? the players on the... pressure, what pre

he is excited to have kid rock help him rally to take back michigan from sitting democrat debbie stabenowe there was rumors that kid rock was going to run til he announced the campaign was a publicity stunt. finally there is this, warren buffet and mark cuban are d.q. buddies. they were spotted at a dairy queen yesterday in omaha, nebraska. they had lunch. here's the proof. this was posted on instagram. with a d queen.better guy to eat dairy queen is owned by buff fit's berkshire hathaway. >> maria: why were they having lunch? >> cheryl: i don't know. at dairy queen. were you thinking dinner and champagne. >> maria: taking steps to complete denuclearization but both sides are in for the long haul to make this a reality. we take look at the expectations. back at home, an effort to reverse the president's zte deal. the details on china trade coming up. [music playing] (vo) from day one, we always came through for our customers. it's how we earned your trust. until... we lost it. today, we're renewing our commitment to you. fixing what went wrong. and ending product sales goals for branch ba

co-authored with my republican colleague, congressman lance, and my senate colleagues, senators stabenow and blunt, certifies a community behavior health clinics, known as cbhc's, it's period and gh its showing great stats. "bridging the addiction treatment gap," it surveys cbhc's operating in the excellent act demonstration states and it offers hope. it offers near universal adoption of medication-assisted treatment, or m.a.t., for opioid use disorder. 95% of clinics in the program are offering at least one type of f.d.a.-approved m.a.t. second, 100% of ccbhc's have expanded the scope of addiction treatment services under the demonstration. for many clinics, this is the first time such services have been available in their communities, very often in medically underserved areas. third, even while seeing more atients, 2/3 of survayed ccbhc's have seen an increase in wait times. after an initial call or referral, most offer same-day access to care and some can provide an appointment within a week or less. mr. speaker, the excellence act is showing concrete results in terms of patient outco

stabenow: madam president? the presiding officer: will the senator suspend? ms. stabenow: i will. the presiding officer: morning business is closed. under the previous order, the senate have resume consideration of the motion to proceed to h.r. 2, which the clerk will report. the clerk: motion to proceed to h.r. 2, an act to provide for the reform and continuation of agricultural and other programs of the department of agriculture through fiscal year 2023 and for other purposes. ms. stabenow: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from michigan. ms. stabenow: thank you, madam president. first i would ask unanimous consent that ward griffin and jason sherman, a detailee and fellow with the minority staff on the agriculture and nutrition and forestry committee, be granted floor privileges for the duration of this congress. the presiding officer: without objection. ms. stabenow: thank you so much to the majority leader and the democratic leader for their support in bringing this bill to the senate floor for consideration as quickly as they have done. i appreciate all of

i now yield to my distinguished ranking member, senator stabenow. thank you for being such a great partner. ms. stabenow: thank you. mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from michigan. ms. stabenow: thank you. i want to thank my partner and friend as well. this has been a tremendous team effort, and it's a great pleasure working with you. today the senate has proven that bipartisanship is the way we can get things done, and we all know that's the case. it's not always the easiest path to take, however, when we put our differences aside and focus on the needs of the communities, the people that we serve, that's how we deliver a good bill, in this case, a bill that serves our farmers, our families, and rural america. and over 500 food, agriculture, and conservation leaders agree that this bill will provide certainty to communities and to our farmers across the country. from the start, we've had a collaborative process. we've built this bill on feedback. we heard from farmers and local leaders at field hearings and in our committee room. w

stabenow: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from michigan. ms. stabenow: mr. president, i just want to indicate, i certainly understand the senator from florida's concerns. we've been working in the last two days to find a resolution. there are multiple interests on various sides of this issue alone on cuba that we're trying to work through so we can move forward on this as well as other amendments. as the chairman indicated, there are two amendments we're trying to get pending so that we can move forward and take the next steps to be able to come to a resolution, to be able to get to a final vote on the farm bill, which our farmers and ranchers and families in rural communities are very anxious to have us do. so we'll continue to work as we have all day, and as we did yesterday, at looking for ways to resolve this, to be able to move forward. hopefully we can do that because there is, there are a lot of folks really counting on us to be able to come together and get this done. mr. roberts: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from kansas. mr. rob

stabenow: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from michigan. ms. stabenow: i join with the chairman in asking members to vote no on this amendment. thank you. mr. roberts: mr. president. the presiding officer: the senator from kansas. mr. roberts: thank you, mr. president. i ask unanimous consent that the following amendments be called up and agreed to en bloc -- the amendment by senator isakson 3348, ?ars widen and -- senators widen and murkowski, senators king and collins 3221, senators gillibrand and toomey 3390, senator heinrich 3287, senator rubio 3364, senator sullivan 3303, senator hirono 3321, senator cortez masto, senators brown and portman 3323, senator cantwell 3365, senator moran 3171, and senator thune 3371. i further ask that it be in order for the following amendment to be called up and reported by number, the amendment by senator lee. i further ask that there be cloture motions with respect to senator -- pardon me h.r. 2 be withdrawn and the senate now vote on the following amendments in the order listed -- senator lee number 3074,

stabenow: thank you very much. mr. president, i rise today to pay tribute to someone who's been fighting for working men and women his entire career. just for a moment, let's think back to 1977. the top movie that year was star wars. the original one. and the average movie ticket cost $2.23. the apple 2 computer went on sale. it cost $1,298, not including the television you needed to use for a monitor. the space shuttle enterprise took its first test flight perched atop a boeing 747, and a young marine corps veteran and salvage welder at j.i. case first joined u.a.w. local 806 in rock island, illinois. he began fighting at that point for workers' rights. a few things have changed since then. star wars and apple have evolved. and the space shuttle has retired. yet one thing hasn't changed. dennis williams is just as dedicated to the working men and women of the u.a.w. today as he was four decades ago. over the years, he's served them in a number of ways. negotiating the first contract at mitsibishi motors north america

stabenow 2537. don fischer 2554. cardin 25262. rubio 2564. reed 2636. schumer 2757. menendez 2683, and smith 2523. mr. corker: mr. president. i ask unanimous consent that the senate be in a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak therein for up to ten minutes each. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. corker: mr. president, i had a conversation with senator inhofe and senator reed earlier to talk a little bit about resolving a blue-slip issue. i think many members here are aware that i wan to offer an amendment that deals with our ability to weigh in on tariffs that are put in place under se232 ofhe tra act. national security issues. i think we may have found a resolution to that, but i don't want to offer it right now, then senator inhofe not knowing yet whether there works for him or the committee would have to object. i don't know if that would be the case. i want to continue to work on this. i'm not going to offer an amendment and a statement thereof relative to this. with that, i don't see anybody else on the floor that wishes to spe