Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The motion having been presented under rule XXII, the clerk will report the motion. The legislative clerk read as follows: Cloture Motion We, the undersigned…

This is getting perilously close to a debate, and I am sorry, for those observing, it looks like the Senate is actually in a debate. The obvious question is was bin Laden an imminent threat to the United States when we took him out? I…

Mr. President, let me first, on a personal note, thank the Senator from Kentucky. He and I have agreed on many things and worked together on many more, and there is much common agreement on what we hope to achieve with this issue, as…

Grant Schaffer is a Marine veteran. He attended the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, a for-profit college owned by Education Management Corporation. Grant saw an advertisement for the school and thought the program he enrolled in would give…

Mr. President, last year, we lost a great American from my hometown of Springfield, IL, and I rise today to pay tribute to him and his legacy. Lyman Hubbard, Sr., grew up on a small farm near Springfield that had been in his family for 165…

I rise today to say a few words in honor of Bill Robertson, an extraordinary man from Rockford, IL, whom we recently lost to illness. Bill Robertson was a public servant in the best sense of the term. For the last few years, he was…

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 10 a.m. on Thursday, March 7, 2013; that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of…

If there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent it adjourn under the previous order. There being no objection, the Senate, at 12:41 a.m., adjourned until Thursday, March 7, 2013, at 10 a.m.

I announce that the Senator from South Dakota (Mr. Johnson), the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Lautenberg), the Senator from Maryland (Ms. Mikulski), and the Senator from Colorado (Mr. Udall) are necessarily absent.

I announce that the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Begich), the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Laugenberg),and the Senator from Colorado (Mr. Udall) are necessarily absent. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber…

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Armed Services be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on March 5, 2013, at 9:30 a.m. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. committee on…

Mr. President, yesterday the Senate took an important step forward when it comes to keeping guns out of the hands of criminals. Senator Pat Leahy, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, introduced bipartisan legislation to finally crack down…

Mr. President, this morning we received news in Chicago that Dawn Clark Netsch has passed away. She died from complications from Lou Gehrig's disease at the age of 86. It was a surprise to lose her this quickly, although all of us knew she…

Mr. President, this week the Senate is going to have an opportunity to confirm the nomination of Caitlin Halligan to serve on the Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. In doing so, we can correct a mistake the Senate made in the last…

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Select Committee on Intelligence be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on March 5, 2013, at 2:30 p.m. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered…

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Veterans' Affairs be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on March 5, 2013, at 10:00 a.m. in room SD-G50 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building. The PRESIDING…

Mr. President, I ask consent to speak in morning business. The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senate is in morning business. The Senator is recognized. ____________________

I am deeply disappointed that despite support from a majority of the United States Senate, a minority of Senators continues to block the nomination of Caitlin Halligan to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia…