Byron Dorgan: “I want to make the same point. The Senator from Missouri makes an appropriate point about the urgency, and we need to…”

“I want to make the same point. The Senator from Missouri makes an appropriate point about the urgency, and we need to move this legislation. I understand that. I accept that. I hope we can do that. To suggest somehow that one Senator, the Senator from Minnesota, or anyone else in the Chamber is deliberately holding something hostage is not appropriate. What has happened here is there are a series of issues that get done by consent and by agreement, and the majority leader and minority leader and others have worked hard to put these things together. Some of them become unraveled, and there are a number of reasons that they become unraveled. The fact is when you start talking about taking hostages, if we wanted to spend some time we could talk about hostagees here for a while, but I do not think it would serve your interests or mine. I just think it is not appropriate to suggest that the Senator from Minnesota or anyone else is holding up this bill.”