Chris Sununu

let me use my portion of time to conclude my remarks. I wish to address some of the points Senator Lautenberg made in his presentation. First, it was suggested that under 2007 data, four routes would have to be shut down if my amendment…

I do think it has some real weaknesses. Both Senators Lott and Lautenberg touched on some of those weaknesses in their opening remarks--that at times Amtrak has not delivered the kind of quality service we would expect; at times they have…

I rise today on behalf of an amendment to address the problem on fisheries failures in New England. In November 2006, the New England Fishery Management Council imposed new regulations on groundfishing, known as Framework 42. Under these…

I rise today in favor of the Sanders amendment, No. 2905, to the Department of Defense authorization bill, which would establish a pilot program aimed at providing essential care and services to National Guard soldiers returning home from…

I fear that the State Department is severely limiting the scope of the scholarship program, including to conflict countries such as Lebanon that remain unaccompanied posts for State Department employees. To put that another way, no U.S…

I commend the senior Senators from Vermont and New Hampshire for the fine work that they did last week in managing H.R. 2764, the fiscal year 2008 State Department, Foreign Operations and Related Programs Appropriations Act. Given how busy…

I rise to honor a fallen officer of the Epsom, NH, Police Department, Officer Jeremy Todd Charron, by introducing a bill to designate the United States Postal Service facility at 11 Central Street in Hillsborough, New Hampshire, as the…

I certainly agree with him that it is critical we focus on the threat posed by al-Qaida--whether it be in Afghanistan, Pakistan, or Iraq, or the under leadership of al-Zawahiri or Osama bin Laden. That needs to be a focus of our…

The amendment, as I have described it, is a simple, single line that inserts that additional contingency. I think the reporting and the assessment of the threats that are included in this amendment make sense. Members of Congress along…

in closing, let me thank the Senator from New Mexico for his points. I certainly appreciate the commitment I have heard from everyone who has spoken this morning about the value of the peer-review process, the commitment to this critical…

I would certainly be more comfortable if the guaranteed increases were struck from the bill, because that is a protection, a consideration for this area of funding that isn't given to other areas of funding. I would have concern about that…

I think, unfortunately, dealing with this legislation has laid to bare some of the weaknesses and problems with the way we are organized in Congress because it has been, unfortunately, an inefficient process in many ways. There are five or…

I offer this morning two amendments that expand on the work we did in the Commerce Committee dealing with the implementation of September 11 recommendations; in particular, in the area of interoperability, meaning, quite simply, the…

I offered an amendment at the beginning of the debate a couple of days ago that would ensure continuation of funding for some of the high-performing women's business centers across the country, one of them being in Portsmouth, NH, a small…

I wish to speak to the legislation before us and in particular to address some of the remarks that were made earlier by Senator Kennedy from Massachusetts. He raised concerns about the State of New Hampshire and suggested that this…

Let me begin by addressing a concern that was just raised. It was suggested that if cloture is not invoked tomorrow that there might not be a 3-month extension and the expiring provisions of the PATRIOT Act, which are now law, would…

that is not the only basis on which these will be reviewed. The national security letter and the gag order require showing of bad faith on the part of the Government. I believe that standard as written in the conference report will prove…

I will address the question and the concern. I think the threshold is too high. But I would prefer that time be provided to others--there are a number of others on the floor-- who support my position and oppose cloture.

I want to be courteous to my colleagues who wish also to speak, so I will briefly address a couple of the points raised. First, I never suggested that the ability, allowed under the conference report, to hire a lawyer to challenge an NSL…

I am not a lawyer. I am an engineer by training. But I know of no other provision in law where that is required. Even if it is required in a few very limited cases in law, I believe this will provide a chilling effect on our right to…

We introduced the SAFE Act to deal with very specific areas where we thought the PATRIOT Act needed to be improved to better protect civil liberties. Some would argue that with the PATRIOT Act, as it has been rewritten, the conference…

I offer an amendment today that deals with what I consider to be a tax loophole that is in the Code that fully exempts private, for-profit corporations, owned by shareholders that have had very high levels of profit in recent years, from…

if I may make a point through the Chair to the minority leader, I would seek 2 minutes to offer an amendment. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?

my amendment is quite straightforward. It deals with a very large tax loophole that allows Government-sponsored entities, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, to avoid paying any State or local taxes whatsoever. It is a huge exemption for companies…

I think our energy policy and our approach to its provision ought to be driven by a need for balance, for evenhandedness, for a thoughtful approach, and that means not stepping forward and offering a lot of rhetoric, being careful about…