Let me ask the other four Commissioners, without naming names of staff, do you know of such instances?

What are you going to do about those specific instances?

We are in a time following the Japanese disaster, we are in one of the two most sensitive and important times regarding civilian nuclear safety in our lifetime.

we do have a crisis of government and a crisis of leadership, as evidenced by this discussion and the leadership style of the Chairman.

I too rise in strong support of the balanced budget amendment--the strong, meaningful, balanced budget amendment presented on this side of the aisle because it is an important, necessary effort to rein in the biggest economic problem and…

there has been a lot of wild rhetoric, quite frankly, hyperbole, exaggeration. I wanted to try to bring this discussion and this debate back to reality. To do that, I wanted to remind folks that conservatives objecting to this nomination…

I ask unanimous consent the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table and any statements be printed in the Record. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

in closing, I thank everyone, on both sides of the aisle, who worked in a very commonsense way to get this done. Again, sort of the worst case scenario is what we all experienced in 2010. Four different times in 2010 the program actually…

last week I came to the floor and urged all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to come together in a commonsense, bipartisan way and extend for a significant period of time the very important National Flood Insurance Program. That…

I know of no further debate on this measure. I will have a few closing comments after we formally pass it, but I urge its passage. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on the engrossment and third reading of the bill. The bill was…

The SEC did take action in June, and I thank you for that. It was very long in coming, going back to well before your tenure, but the SEC finally took positive concrete action.

I ask unanimous consent to speak for up to 10 minutes on a different topic than the Defense authorization bill. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. National Flood Insurance Program

I come to the Senate floor to discuss another very important issue for our economy, which is the National Flood Insurance Program. The National Flood Insurance Program is a vital Federal program that helps provide flood insurance for…

I certainly share Senator Shelby's and others' concerns about this significant chance, rated at a 50-percent chance, that there will have to be a taxpayer bailout in the next year.

I thank the majority leader, and I also rise to object to the motion for completely different reasons than my colleague from Kansas. I rise to object, and several join me in this view, because I believe these additional appropriations…

I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. Energy Production

several weeks ago, on September 28 of this year, I joined three of my Senate colleagues--Senators Shelby, Cornyn, and Hutchison--in requesting from the Obama administration and its Interior Department a detailed plan about what their new…

I thank our Alabama colleagues. They are very gracious, and they are great sports in terms of this whole past week and this bet. So I am honored to be with them as they wear LSU colors for 1 day. Maybe they can keep those ties for January…

should the unthinkable happen, I will do that. Should the unthinkable happen, I will deliver fresh, healthy gulf seafood to Senator Sessions' office as well as Senator Shelby's. We have been in contact with Senator Shelby's office and…

Senator Sessions and I come to the floor following a discussion of a lot of important issues on the floor to discuss the most important issue back home for us this week, which is the upcoming regular season national championship game…

I ask unanimous consent that Senator Sessions and I have up to 15 minutes for a colloquy. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. LSU Versus Alabama

Amen. With that, we yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll. The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.

this is a second-degree amendment to the Menendez amendment. The Menendez amendment would actually expand the already dominant role of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the mortgage marketplace when there is an unlimited taxpayer bailout…

I call up the Vitter second-degree amendment. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report. The assistant legislative clerk read as follows: The Senator from Louisiana [Mr. Vitter] proposes an amendment numbered 917 to amendment No. 857.

I ask for the yeas and nays. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There is a sufficient second. The clerk will call the roll. The legislative clerk called the roll. The result was announced--yeas 45, nays 55, as follows…