I would like to propose a new working group on executive nominations headed by Chairman Schumer and Ranking Member Alexander of the Rules Committee. We will develop the details of this effort in the coming weeks, but I think a Senate level…

One of the issues we must reform is the confirmation process in the Senate. I have heard from a number of Senators on both sides of the aisle who think we should address this. Clearly, all Presidents are entitled to choose well-qualified…

happy new year to you. And happy new year to all my colleagues, those returning to the Senate and those taking office today for the first time. I am honored, humbled, and will forever be grateful that the people of Nevada have entrusted me…

every working body needs a strong heart to function. This legislative body, the Senate, is no different. For many years--as long as I have been in the Senate, and that is a while--Lula Davis has been the heart of the Senate. In 1997, when…

when we convened this Congress in January 2009, 750,000 Americans were losing their jobs every month. Soon after this Congress began, an auto industry nearly imploded, and within a year an oil well exploded. It was a tough 2 years for our…

Through early mornings and late nights, weekdays and weekends, dedicated Senate pages often work as hard as do Senators and staffs. Their job is fast-paced. We ask a lot of these young men and women. They have significant responsibilities…

the horror of September 11 was unforgettable, and so much about that day was unimaginable. But imagine you had the courage to run into the disaster everyone else was running away from. And because of the toxic fumes and smoke you breathed…

we cannot end this historic session of Congress without taking one more important step to protect the national security of the United States. It is time for the Senate to ratify the New START treaty. This treaty will secure nuclear…

I just got something on my desk today about a woman who is going to be--well, she was in the hospital a year and a half and is expected to be there for 2 more years as a result of eating some contaminated food. So it is so important. I am…

I say to the people in the Senate and the American public, to hear my friend, the distinguished Republican leader, talk about our having done things procedurally brings a big yawn to the American people. Everyone knows how we have been…

the path is clear that we can finish our work relatively soon. As I indicated earlier, we are going to have two votes in the morning. Even if cloture is invoked on one or both of those matters, there is no reason we couldn't complete that…

we have done a lot of important work this year. We have reformed our health care system to give families more options and more control. We have brought accountability to Wall Street; and reigned in the reckless behavior that led to the…

I hope the court reporter will take down the smile I have on my face because the answer to the question is kind of easy. We have had to file cloture 87 times in this Congress because, on everything we have tried to do, we have been…

I would ask my friend, why, if these bills enjoy bipartisan support--and they did--why were they not brought before the full Senate and passed? I think I would say to my friend, I expect it is because you had other priorities. And this is…

But I would say this to my friend from Washington, remember, this bill, which is 1,900 pages long, consists of the work of 12 subcommittees.

Yes, and it satisfied what we had debated here on a number of occasions and voted on, the so-called Sessions-McCaskill number. So we did that. This is not a big balloon that we just threw up to see how it would work out. Senator McConnell…

Members on both sides anticipated my filing cloture tonight on the spending bill that would take us through next year. Everyone knows we are operating under a continuing resolution that expires Saturday night at midnight. Senator Inouye…

it doesn't take a person with a PhD to understand that I differ with what my friend, the senior Senator from Kentucky, said, things that don't indicate what history is in the Senate. We have been facing 87 filibusters this Congress. For…

Yes. And things that Senator Cochran did not want in, Senator Inouye, being the gentleman he is, said: OK. That is what I will tell my caucus.

Yes. To Senator Cochran's credit, there were things he thought should not be in the bill that Senator Inouye was putting together. Senator Inouye, to his credit, said: OK, it does not go in. Everything people wanted in this bill--in…

I was told within the last 24 hours that we had bipartisan support to pass this bill. Many told -- I shouldn't say that, many is a word that's too large -- but a number of Republican senators told me that they'd like to see it pass.

in times like these, we cannot afford to play games with the economic security of middle-class families in Nevada, and across America. This bill is not perfect, but it gives those families the boost they so desperately need. It will create…

if you asked anyone in this body to summarize Arlen Specter, I think the words that would come up most often would be he is a real fighter. Arlen Specter fought to defend our Nation in Korea. He fought crime in the streets of Philadelphia…

as a Christian, no one has to remind me of the importance of Christmas for all of the Christian faith, all of their families all across America. I do not think any of us, and I do not need to hear the sanctimonious lectures of Senators Kyl…

I wish to say a brief word about George Voinovich. I have watched him for many years. He has an outstanding record. He is a Senator from the State of Ohio who came to Washington with as many credentials as anyone could have: a member of…