Harry Reid: “this is a most important bill. I understand how important it is. I also understand it is normal procedure to have the…”

“this is a most important bill. I understand how important it is. I also understand it is normal procedure to have the chairman of the subcommittee speak first and the ranking member speak second. But I feel it is appropriate, in talking about this bill, to respond very briefly to my friend from Kentucky. It is obvious to anyone who understands Senate procedure why things did not go well last year. It is because the minority stopped us from doing our work. We worked very hard to allow these pieces of legislation to pass. We have been partners with them. The Senator from Kentucky can talk all he wants about leadership, but everyone knows that the situation where we now have, toward the last few days of this Congress, a time set aside--30 hours--to talk about judges, and the comments in that regard upstairs by Senator Daschle and by me indicated that was something we thought was amateurish. Mr. President, one of the chief aims of the Commerce-State-Justice appropriations bill is to articulate the priorities of the United States on matters related to business and the economy.”