Byron Dorgan: “Let me finish the explanation and I will be happy to yield. The Base Closure Commission was established in this bill by…”

“Let me finish the explanation and I will be happy to yield. The Base Closure Commission was established in this bill by this committee some years ago. One would expect the ability to strike that requirement would be in this bill. That is where it would be relevant, in this bill. This bill itself contains provisions dealing with base closings because the bill contains some hundreds of millions of dollars in conformance with the requirements and the costs of previous Base Closure Commission actions. I was told this morning the way our amendment is currently drafted is nonrelevant. I don't have the foggiest idea who could come up with that sort of judgment. I will not demean anyone who does, but to say there is no way on God's Earth that anybody can suggest that it is not relevant in this legislation to deal with base closing because this is where base closing came about. This is where it originated. If the idea of relevancy is to get unanimous consent to shut people out from being able to offer amendments such as this on this bill, it is the last time--I say this again--it is the last time any committee will ever get a unanimous consent in this Senate as long as I am here during this session of the Congress on relevancy. It is the last time it will happen. I am certainly not upset at the Senator from Virginia, but I am upset with this process because I will find a way to draft this so it is relevant and we will have a vote on it.”