we have something that is long overdue. We have an agreement to take care of this. Nelson Mandela will soon be 90 years old, in a matter of days. The old organization he was a member of decades ago--and he is probably still a member, but I…

I call to your attention today the contributions of three outstanding individuals who will be retiring from the U.S. Capitol Guide Service at the end of the week. Tom Stevens, Sharon Nevitt, and Jeannie Divine have served the Congress…

A veto by the President? Gee whiz, who would be afraid of him? He has a 29-percent approval rating. How in the world could anybody be afraid of him vetoing a bill? I cannot imagine why anyone would care about that. We have tried to pass…

these are some of the organizations that support the Medicare bill now before the Senate. We have the American Association of Retired Persons, the AARP; Alzheimer's Association; the American Academy of Oncology; the American Academy of…

I am wondering while my friend is on the floor, the highway trust fund, according to the States, is upside down. There is not enough money in it. With the construction season upon us for renovation and repair of streets, highways, and…

let me say this. I had one Senator come to me today and say: You know, why don't we spend more time here? We set out to accomplish certain things. We haven't been able to accomplish everything we wanted, but I say to everyone here, the…

I am objecting, and I will use leader time to make a statement. It is obvious that everybody can see there were 59 votes in favor of this. We needed 60. They have played this game before, going only to 59, and they are going to try to…

this bill has many items in it, one of which we call the doctors' fix, which prevents a 10.6-percent pay cut for physicians who participate in Medicare. It provides a payment freeze for 2008 and a 1.1-percent update for 2009. These are…

It is legislation that every State in the Union is calling us about, their Governors and other representatives, to please take care of this. That is what we need to do. Are we doing this to take care of the doctors? Partially, yes, but the…

I rise today to recognize Bob Stoldal, a legend in Nevada news and the Las Vegas community for more than 40 years. Mr. Stoldal's first experience in a news office came in 1960, working for the Las Vegas Review Journal--first as a janitor…

I have been very patient while my dear friend, the junior Senator from Nevada, has talked about this. Here is the situation in which we find ourselves. Everyone knows we have an extenders package. I have a letter on my desk that has been…

I am very pleased that I am finally able to say we are going to restore the Federal Election Commission to a fully functioning six-member body. The FEC lost a functioning quorum last January when three recess appointments to the Commission…

I would say one final thing. There is a time when we need to work together. The Republican leader recognizes that; I recognize that. This is the time. We need to figure out a way to get from here to there. We are going to do our very best…

Senators Dodd and Shelby are crafting a bill that can go directly to the President. That is what we are trying to do, craft something on which there has been general agreement with the counterparts of Shelby and Dodd in the House, and it…

we are in the splendor of this beautiful Senate Chamber. We have all had a good night's rest. But around America today, there are people in the West who are just awakening and people in the East have been awake for a while. But a lot of…

I say to my friend, this, I believe, will be in the package we get from the House, and we will be happy to work with the minority if they feel some changes should be made. There are a number of people on my side who would agree to this…

I think it is glaring to note that of these major companies--hundreds and hundreds of them that have signed this letter--not a single oil company has signed on. Oil companies don't want us to do this legislation. They want us to keep being…

Yesterday was a remarkably good day. When I got out of law school, I went back to Nevada and thought I would be this great golfer. I golfed for 6 months or so, and then realized I was becoming obsessed with the game. Therefore, I decided I…

I understand that my distinguished counterpart has a right to do this, an absolute right. I don't question that right. We will just have to schedule the hearing at a different time, if they don't want to have the hearing. I will, though…

this Saturday, Jeff Alberici from Auburn, NY, delivered the Democratic weekly radio address. Jeff and his wife aren't rich; they aren't poor. They are squarely in the middle. They are middle class. Jeff is a middle school teacher. He…

my friend would like everyone to be confused. No one is confused. No one is confused as to what is taking place here. All records in the history of this country have been broken on the number of filibusters. No one is confused about what…

Mr. President, downtown this morning one of the Republican Senators whose name I won't mention said, meeting with a number of people downtown--this Republican Senator said: There is a lot of frustration within the Republican caucus about…

the remarks my friend, the distinguished Republican leader, made regarding the energy crisis facing us are, as has been this past week, Orwellian. Everyone listening to what he said understands the direct opposite has happened. Everyone…

first of all, let me say I really appreciate the nine Republicans who voted to proceed. I appreciate that. We want to legislate. I think there is an indication that maybe things are getting to a point where we are going to be able to do…

I rise today to recognize Betsy Reifsnyder, a dedicated public servant who is retiring in July after nearly 25 years of service to the U.S. Congress. Ms. Reifsnyder came to the Library of Congress in 1984 as part of an intern program and…