Mr. President, I yield to the Senator from Rhode Island for purposes of a question.

I would say to the Senator from Michigan, this has been characterized as an emergency because it is an emergency. It has been acknowledged by the Budget Committee. It will be treated as an emergency spending situation. It is an…

I have never pitched a ball game. I never have. I am very proud of what you have done in your baseball career. But let me tell you, this is a wild pitch you are throwing tonight because this is a pitch that is hitting somebody in the…

Mr. President, the Senator has objected to extending unemployment benefits across the United States of America which will expire on Sunday night. He has also objected to extending COBRA benefits, which is health insurance for the…

I will verify that. I was given information it was not. If I am incorrect, I will state so. But we have extended unemployment benefits repeatedly and not paid for them.

I announce that the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Lautenberg) and the Senator from Virginia (Mr. Warner) are necessarily absent.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 4691, a 30-day extension of provisions which expire on Sunday, February 28--unemployment insurance, COBRA, flood insurance, Satellite…

If that was a question, it is clear that there was bipartisanship, and we can use a little bit more of that around here.

I would agree with the Senator from Vermont. You have to go back 70 or 80 years to the Great Depression to see this long a period of unemployment.

There will be no rollcall votes during Friday's session of the Senate. The next rollcall vote will occur on Tuesday morning. I have given notice to Senator Bunning and others that I will be renewing this unanimous consent request tomorrow…

I ask unanimous consent that following my remarks, the Senate adjourn until 9:30 a.m., Friday, February 26. I would like to ask by way of a question, does the Senator from Kentucky seek recognition?

I will tell my colleague what has been said on the floor and which I stand behind; that is, the fact that when President William Clinton left office, he left a budget in balance and in surplus.

I yielded for a question and I answered the question, but I will yield for another question.

Let me explain. There was a source of revenue for the bill, but it wasn't enough to pay for the entire bill. The source of revenue was enough for those who wanted to say: Well, this will pay for unemployment, to point to it; and those who…

Because in the original proposal from the Finance Committee, the unemployment benefits were extended for 3 months, as I understand it. The tax extenders----

I would be happy to. The Senator from Kentucky has not stated it 100 percent accurately.

I will yield after one more question from the Senator from Rhode Island. But I would say, when it came to his party position, tonight we hear this idea of fiscal conservatism, strict spending, punish those who are unemployed, take money…

The Senator from Rhode Island is correct. I don't know how the Senator from Kentucky voted when it came to the tax cuts for the wealthy. I don't know, so I can't presume to state it on the floor. I don't know if he voted for the annual…