Mr. President, I would like to take a few moments in the Senate to pay tribute to a remarkable woman. Maggie Daley served with dignity and grace for 22 years as Chicago's first lady. She died on Thanksgiving evening after a nearly…

Mr. President, I will only take a moment to say that we have an opportunity now, before we leave for Christmas, to not forget people across America who are struggling in this economy. A payroll tax cut, instituted by President Obama and…

Mr. President, is morning business time still pending? The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Yes.

I ask unanimous consent that all morning business time be yielded back unless there is a request on the floor. The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Is there objection? Without objection, it is so ordered.

Mr. President, I have the greatest respect for Senator Carl Levin and Senator John McCain. They have done an extraordinary job on the Defense authorization bill. I would say, by and large, this bill would not have engendered the…

Let me also say that section 1031 of this bill is one that definitely needs to be changed, if not eliminated. It will, for the first time in the history of the United States of America, authorize the indefinite detention of American…

I announce that the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Begich) and the Senator from New Hampshire (Mrs. Shaheen) are necessarily absent.

I announce that the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Begich), the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Harkin), the Senator from Louisiana (Ms. Landrieu), and the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Menendez) are necessarily absent.

I come down to the floor once a week to talk about the high level of nuclear waste in this country and the fact that this country still doesn't have a single repository to store high- level nuclear waste. Throughout this last year, I've…

Mr. President, over the years, I have visited dozens of schools in Illinois, and I have learned more about the childhood obesity problem in this country by stepping into the lunch room than I have just about anywhere else. Particularly in…

I thank the gentleman for yielding. There's a level of anxiety that we're all sensing back at home as people are looking at Washington, DC, for solutions, and there are various tales that are going on right now in terms of what the Joint…

Macroeconomics, a nonpartisan forecasting firm, said that those cuts would throw about 15 million more people out of work, double the unemployment rate from 9 percent to about 18 percent, and cause the economy to shrink by about 17 percent…

No. It is not pending. Mr. McCAIN. It is too bad. Let me just say to the Senator from Illinois, this is an important issue, and I understand how important it is to him. But this legislation has a lot to do with defending this country. For…

Mr. President, I don't know--I now have the floor, so I will proceed. First, let me thank the Senator from Arizona. We have served together in the House and in the Senate. I respect him very much. I certainly have the highest respect, as…

I will yield after I complete my point. I believe most of us feel if someone is charged with terrorism--an American citizen--that normally they would be subjected to constitutional protections and rights as American citizens. For those who…

I say to the Senator from South Carolina, I yielded for a question. The PRESIDING OFFICER. That is correct.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record. There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows: S. 1884 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of…

Not being a member of the committee, I did not follow it as closely as the Senator did. I respect him very much and take his word.