Susan Collins: “I just want to thank the Senator from Alabama for her eloquent words, her passion, and her leadership. She is absolutely…”

“I just want to thank the Senator from Alabama for her eloquent words, her passion, and her leadership. She is absolutely correct that there is no reason for us to be in the situation that we find ourselves in just 12 days before the start of the new fiscal year. There is no reason why the Defense appropriations bill, the military construction VA bill, the Labor HHS bill, the CJS bill--I could go on and on. There is no reason why the Senate appropriations approved bills could not have been brought to the Senate floor. They are important. Funding the government is critical. And as the distinguished Senator from Alabama points out, when we go on to continuing resolutions, we cause enormous harm, which is why I entered into the record all of those letters from the Department of Defense and to other organizations. And here is the other point: As the Senator from Alabama has pointed out, we end up spending more money. It costs us more money because contracts are put on hold, new starts are delayed, and programs that should be trimmed back or eliminated continue to be funded. This just is not how the Senate should operate. And I implored the majority leader more than once to bring the appropriations bills to the Senate floor, and it is harmful to our Nation and particularly to our national defense that these bills were not brought to the floor. I yield the floor. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from California.”