Bob Kerrey

You said the president was tired of swating flies. Can you tell me one example where the president swatted a fly when it came to al Qaeda prior to 9/11?

You said the president was tired of swatting flies. Can you tell me one example where the president swatted a fly when it came to al Qaeda prior to 9/11?

I would love to get Dr. Rice in front of this commission, in the public, to have her answer a series of questions about that, because...

One of the most important dividing lines between the two candidates is that the Governor from Texas has been saying Washington, DC should not decide who gets a tax cut and who does not. The Vice President has been saying--not only for…

Essentially, the argument is over. Our colleagues on the other side of the aisle are agreeing with us; their Presidential candidate is wrong; we should target tax cuts. Then you move on to the next question, which is, Who is going to get…

In my administration, we will ask not only what is legal but also what is right, not just what the lawyers allow but what the public deserves. He went on and said: In my administration, we will make it clear there is the controlling legal…

This is a Small Business piece of legislation. This bill references small business. This is not a Finance Committee bill. The answer is, it is not a Finance Committee bill. Didn't the majority do the legislative equivalent of stealth…

I have one last question. I find myself saying it doesn't hurt me. I wasn't in the room. It didn't hurt me at all. As a matter of fact, because my income is over $130,000, those folks making the decision in that room helped me out. I guess…

I represent low-income working families without health insurance subsidizing my health insurance. I have a claim on their income. They have no claim on mine, and I am getting a big tax cut. I just say to my friend, does that seem fair to…

My experience is that all 100 people in this Senate--every single one of them--are trying to do the best job they can. They have different points of views. The Republicans bring certain things to the arguments sometimes that Democrats…

I don't know. I am certain we will have a chance to look at the precise numbers that CBO and others have done. As I look at the numbers right now, it seems our friends on the other side of the aisle, having put this together without…

I heard the Governor of Texas say he does not like the Vice President's tax cut proposal because it is targeted. Doesn't it seem that the tax cut proposal that is being brought to us--though it might be hard for my friends on the other…

Well, their bill does not have across-the-board tax cuts. There has been a debate going on between the Vice President and the Governor of Texas as to whether or not there should be an across-the-board tax cut of $1.6 trillion that the…

I am very sympathetic to the large amount of taxes that higher income Americans are paying. They have been contributing a substantial amount to deficit reduction since President Bush signed into law an increase in their taxes in 1990 and…

I think they do understand it. I think they do, but the problem, it seems to me, is you have to step back from time to time and look at the work you are doing, and you have to apply other values, other standards, to it. I just don't, in…

It seems nobody was in the room to say: Hey, that doesn't seem to be fair. If you look at the average household--Nebraska and Iowa are pretty close to being the same --the average household in Nebraska pays more payroll taxes than they pay…

Absolutely. It would be fairer to provide full deductibility for the self-employed. The Senator from Iowa and I both represent a lot of self-employed families, many of whom are farmers, and they are increasingly going into town to get the…

If I could respond to say the Senator from New Mexico and any of my colleagues who are uncomfortable and wish I would not do this, if I had not done this the last 6 or 7 years, it is the fault of the Senator from New Mexico. You and…

at Pier 12 in the Norfolk Navy Base, along with the Presiding Officer in Norfolk, VA, I joined 10,000 others to mourn and to pay our respects to the families of 17 U.S. Navy sailors who were killed or who are missing following the…

Are we going to pay the Medigap insurance for every single Medicare beneficiary?

I don't disagree, but to fix Medicare by saying there will not be copayments or deductibles, I don't think there is anybody on the floor who would argue that eliminating copayments and deductibles is the way to save money in health care…

I am a retired Naval officer for medical reasons. The Senator is quite right; there is a difference between the reason I signed up, how I did it as a reserve officer, and somebody who signs up for 20 years. No question, that is true. I…

I say to the chairman and ranking member, I am not going to make any additional arguments on the specifics. I want to make some closing comments. I am prepared to yield back time and go to the vote. I don't know where they are, but I will…

many of the things we do in the Senate involve making investments in America's future. Investments in research through the National Science Foundation or investments in infrastructure development through the Department of Transportation…

I support this bill not only because it is in the best interest of American farmers, businesses, and consumers; but also because passage of PNTR is the best way for America to have a positive influence on China's domestic policies…