Mr. President, I would request that floor privileges for the balance of the month be afforded to my interns: Annika Graham, Nathan Sidell, Amber Vernon, Rebecca Carney-Braveman, Samuel Ortiz, Evyn Ysais, Marcus Gamble, Diane Murph…

I thank the gentleman for yielding to me. With all due respect to the gentleman offering this amendment, yes, we are one State; but if you took all of the land from the tip of Maine to the tip of Florida, from the Mississippi River over…

Today, I would like to recognize and thank Mr. Randy Erickson, a constituent from Kodiak, Alaska. Recently, on behalf of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association's International Foundation, he traveled from Kodiak, Alaska, to…

Madam President, I wish to speak very briefly this afternoon to acknowledge a hero. I come to the floor just after the announcement has been made about a leader in the Senate, Senator Baker. While I did not have the privilege of serving at…

I appreciate that my friend and colleague from Wyoming is helping to lead this discussion about the Keystone XL Pipeline and really to encourage the Senate to move on it, to do something on this rather than just talk about it. We are…

I would just like to put a plug in for charter schools period. The Amy Biehl school is an example of what can be done under charter schools and how it does serve a purpose. We have been very successful in the State of Alaska with our…

Mr. President, I request that the following interns from my office be given privileges of the floor for the balance of the day: Emily Hartley, Alfonso Sitenga, Rachel Tougas, Michaela Spaulding, Deirdre Creed, Maria Villa, Lyndsey…

I thank the Presiding Officer, and I thank my friend from Ohio. First, I would like to bring up the issue of the Alaska State student aid agency. The Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education--or as we call it ACPE--is funded by the…

Madam President, this has been an interesting week here in the Senate. When we began this week, there was a great deal of attention focused on what was happening overseas with the release of a prisoner of war who had been in captivity for…

Mr. President, I appreciate an opportunity to speak on a bill we passed here yesterday, the veterans access reform bill. We passed it 93 to 3, which is amazing when you think about it--in this body--as we struggle to get issues in front of…

I agree with the gentlelady. Housing is important for the American Indian community. It should be funded. This bill is a decent bill, but flatlining this funding back to the 2004 level is not acceptable. We need this housing in rural…

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now resume legislative session and proceed to a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there…

Mr. President, I am pleased to be here today with my friend and colleague, Senator Murray, to talk about Social Security. I am going to spend a few moments discussing a bill we are introducing today and then turn it over to Senator Murray…

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that privileges of the floor be granted to Cathy Cahill for the remainder of the 113th Congress. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. ____________________

Madam President, I come this afternoon to speak about the regulations proposed by the administration on Monday relating to the Environmental Protection Agency. This time the agency's target is a 30-percent reduction in greenhouse gas…

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. EPA Regulations

Mr. President, at the very start of my comments, let me make it clear that the nominee we are voting on today will have my support. I like her from a personal standpoint. I think she is competent. I think she is able to do the job that is…

Madam President, I thank the Presiding Officer and thank my friend from Oregon. I appreciate the opportunity to be on the floor today to talk about veterans care. It is an important issue that is not only critical to my State but across…