I thank my good friend for allowing me to take a few minutes and ask a couple of points. Mr. President, I am here to say that is what this debate is about, a simple question, allowing a vote on the House side. If they do not have the votes, because obviously the Speaker there believes he doesn't have the votes and he doesn't support it being voted on, let it be on the floor, it will fail, and we will go back to the drawing board. But the reality is he knows the votes are there. We would be out of this shutdown. The result would be people would be back to work, services will be provided, and businesses will not be losing the confidence they are losing every day or like the market once again. Since this debate started, the threats of shutdown, of actual shutdown, the stock market over the last 15, 16 days has lost almost 600 points. Most people do not pay a lot of attention to that. But if you have an education account, a 401(k) account, a retirement account, an IRA, or you have a little money set aside, it has a direct impact to your livelihood over the long haul. I encourage the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Speaker Boehner, to allow a simple vote. We have, on every bill that has come over here. They have not prevailed, but we allowed a vote. That is the process. But over there they refuse to do it. They keep sending back gimmicks. It is hard for me to understand this logic.…
Share & report
More from Mark Begich
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the letters relating to the resignation of the Senator from Montana, Max Baucus, be printed in the Record. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as…
Madam President, I was not intending to come down here. I was getting ready to leave to see my 12-year-old son who just got home from school and make sure that he has dinner and do all the things that a parent would do, but I heard a…
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Foreign Relations be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on December 9, 2014, at 10 a.m., to hold an International Operations and Organizations, Human Rights…
I wish to speak as if in morning business to talk about one issue, IRS overreach. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.





