The budget agreement that we passed is an important step forward for our country and for our government. I know Chairman Patty Murray worked tremendously hard to get to a conference in the first place and to reach this agreement with the…

I ask for the yeas and nays. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There appears to be a sufficient second. There is a sufficient second. The clerk will call the roll. The assistant bill clerk called the roll. The PRESIDING…

Five days ago Typhoon Yolanda devastated the central Philippines. As a category 5 supertyphoon, this was reportedly the strongest storm ever to make landfall anywhere in recorded history, sweeping away almost everything in its path. Nearly…

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to offer floor privileges to my staffer, Michael Inacay, for the remainder of the evening. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. ____________________

I ask unanimous consent to speak for up to 15 minutes as in morning business. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. Typhoon Yolanda

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. 1652 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of…

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. 1608 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of…

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. 1607 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of…

Madam President, yesterday Senate Republicans rejected a cloture motion on a strictly party-line basis for a simple measure to prevent default for the United States of America. This bears repeating. Yesterday we voted on whether to proceed…

Mr. President, most people believe in compromise. Coming from Hawaii, I certainly believe in compromise. It is part of who we are. When you live on an island--no matter how contentious issues may get--because of your geographic…

Mr. President, I rise to speak on the Affordable Care Act. At home in Hawaii we have a saying, ``Lucky you live Hawaii.'' That can mean a lot of different things to different people, but when talking about access to affordable, effective…

I wish to thank Senator Whitehouse for being a leader for so long, for being so forceful and so factual on this issue. I applaud his leadership and look forward to continuing to work together on this important issue. Climate change is…