Mike Thompson

I urge this body to vote to send this motion back to committee and promptly report back a solid Medicare prescription drug benefit that we can pass tomorrow.

Mr. Speaker, during tonight's debate we have heard a number of times the Democrats do not have a feasible Medicare prescription drug proposal. This is just not true. The Blue Dogs have a motion to recommit that offers a real and an…

I rise today against this rule. Members should have an opportunity to vote on an enhanced version of the bipartisan Senate bill. That is the Blue Dog prescription drug benefit bill. Unfortunately for seniors across this country, our…

on April 24, President Bush told the workers of Canton, Ohio that the best way to solve the deficit is to grow the revenues--and have fiscal sanity in Washington, DC. As a member of the Blue Dog Coalition, I've been championing fiscal…

Mr. Chairman, since the implementation of TANF, California has tripled the number of welfare recipients who are today working. Cash aid has decreased by 45 percent and caseloads have declined more than 40 percent. H.R. 4 will not help…

Putting a significant piece of legislation like this bill together is a difficult and time-consuming task. Many Senators have played important roles in this legislation, but the contributions of our staff members have also been of great…

I thank Senator Gramm of Texas for his strong leadership on this issue. He is one of the most eloquent, logical, and persuasive Senators who has ever served in the Senate, I am sure of that. The Senate is going to miss his strong voice. He…

I appreciate my colleague's withdrawal of his amendment. As he knows, I agree with what he is trying to do with this amendment. I was a cosponsor of it when he offered it in the Governmental Affairs Committee. I agreed to cosponsor his…

the vote we are debating today will be the most significant vote that we cast during this Congress and perhaps during our entire careers. I say that for two reasons. First, this vote may very well send our American soldiers into what has…

Unfortunately, not as close as I think the Senator apparently thinks. With regard to the labor-management relations issue... why should this President be limited to exercising his authority to a more narrow range of activity--that would be…

the issue here with regard to this cloture motion is whether or not the President of the United States is entitled to an up-or-down vote on his proposal to make this country more safe. I repeat. The issue--and the only issue--on this…

Once you get down to it, the issue has to do with two situations, as I see it. One has to do with disputes involving collective bargaining agreements and what you do about that. There are issues as to matters somewhat minor, if not…

chapter 43 goes beyond the intent of merit principles which provides employees who cannot or will not improve their performance to meet required standards should be separated. As a result, managers must give employees multiple…

Maybe we have finally settled it. I heard the phrase ``additional requirement.'' You can argue that because this is such a massive job, we ought to hamstring the President a little bit or you can argue because this is such a massive job…

how in the world can we say that the Nelson amendment is a supplement to the current law, when the current law says the President may, and the Nelson amendment says the President may not? Square that one with me.

May I ask the Senator, if the end result is exactly the same, why does he insist on proposing this amendment?

If it is not related to terrorism, the President does not have the authority, the way this is drafted. But I suppose what I wonder is if, in effect, what we are saying--and the Senator is right; we are comparing apples and oranges, it…

Yes. Indeed. I do not think any of us want to spend all this time and effort on something that basically we think ought to happen in terms of reorganization of an important part of Government for naught and go before the American people…

The secretaries were a part of the unit and the assistant U.S. attorneys wanted to be organized. I am not familiar with that concept. When I was assistant U.S. attorney, when I was brought in. I stayed as long as they wanted me or I wanted…

I know of no other. Obviously, if I am proven incorrect on that, we will supplement this record. But this is clearly the area-- which points out the importance of it, which points out the whole personnel issue--getting the right people in…

I may say in response, the issue is not jurisdiction of the court, whether you go to court. I agree with that. The issue is what happens once you get there. Under the current law, all the President has to establish is as an agency it is…

Let me address it first, if I may. I don't know whether you would call it a replacement, total replacement, or an addition to. The significant thing, in answer to the Senator's question, under any definition it is a diminution of the…

If I could add to my answer, under present law the President has the authority to make that determination based on the primary function of an agency involving national security. Under this, national security does not appear. It says…

I would like to directly respond to the Senator from Nebraska. As I understand his point, it is that his compromise, which is looked upon as the bipartisan compromise because a Republican has joined in it--what Senator Gramm's efforts have…

In answer to that, the Senator is correct in that the Nelson language does not mention national security in the section that I am looking at that I think is the operable section and requires that the duty of the ``majority of the…