for the education of all Senators, we just completed a caucus, and the two issues before us are FISA, the Foreign Intelligence Act, of course--and I am disappointed that we don't have something we can sign off on for that, but we are very…

the Finance Committee on a bipartisan basis has worked up what they feel is something they are going to bring before the full committee tomorrow, and that will take place--we will get their take on the stimulus package tomorrow. We have…

last night, President Bush spoke of the bipartisan effort we've seen to put together an economic stimulus package. I have joined this chorus of praise. It is important for us to remember that despite our differences, we can find common…

But it is the way in which we go forward. We had discussions yesterday about voting on the very issues the majority leader just indicated are the key issues relating to this bill. Hopefully, during the course of the day, we will be able to…

if this law is so good and we are able to, in the words of the Republican leader, ``get new targets,'' why don't we extend the law? I don't understand why we are not doing that. I tell everyone again that it is legislatively impossible to…

this bill is not a bipartisan bill. The bill that came out of the Intelligence Committee is bipartisan, but understand it was concurrently referred to the Intelligence Committee and the Judiciary Committee. They both have jurisdiction over…

I want everyone--especially my Republican colleagues and especially the people in the White House--to listen to what I am going to say. FISA, if we don't do something on it today, will expire. It will be out of business. The House is going…

I say to my friend, the distinguished Senator from Illinois, I personally have been to the floor and offered on many occasions to extend the time. We could all see the train wreck coming, and we believed that it was necessary to extend…

We understand the implication of the legislation that is now in effect and will expire Thursday. We understand that. We understand there are new targets our intelligence officials may want to go after. We understand that. But I repeat…

A person who is heavily involved in this legislation, the distinguished Senator from Wisconsin, Russ Feingold, said this legislation should be extended. He has, on many occasions, voiced his opinion on what is wrong with the way we passed…

let me say that we are going to work real hard tomorrow and the next day to get a lot of work done. We have so much to do. This is a relatively short work period. We have the stimulus package. We have foreign intelligence that we have to…

I watch The Weather Channel sometimes, and they have these pieces on what the Coast Guard does in violent seas. The Chair, being from Rhode Island, probably doesn't appreciate it as much as I do, being from the desert, but the Coast Guard…

we all acknowledge the Intelligence Committee did a good job on this piece of legislation. But the Intelligence Committee knew, everyone knew, there was concurrent referral of this legislation. It was always anticipated and believed…

75 years ago yesterday, the U.S. conducted the first nuclear test on American soil--the detonation of a one-kiloton nuclear device in an area known as Frenchman Flat at the Nevada Test Site. Conducted in extraordinary secrecy, this first…

In a few hours, President Bush will stand across the way in the House Chamber and deliver his final State of the Union Address. This will be his eighth State of the Union Address. From what I have heard earlier today in my meetings with…

a year ago today, the Presiding Officer gave one of the classic speeches in American history as a freshman Senator responding to the State of the Union Message. It was a message that was accepted on both sides of the aisle by the people of…

there is no question that Senator Rockefeller and Senator Bond have worked hard on this legislation. Also, we have had good work from Senator Leahy and Senator Specter of the Judiciary Committee. Senator Rockefeller wants a piece of…

Democrats believe there are a lot of bad people out there and that there should be some form of collecting information over the telephone. But we believe it should be done in an orderly way in keeping with our Constitution. It appears…

If Congress does not act quickly, our national security professionals will not be able to count on critical tools they need to protect our nation, and our ability to respond to new threats and circumstances will be weakened. That means it…

The Judiciary Committee made what I believe to be some important improvements in this legislation, adding protections for the privacy of law-abiding Americans. This is a strong bill. I will support it. I encourage my colleagues to do so as…

I was hoping that at this time today we would be talking about the work we had done on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. But we were unable to do that. What an unusual day. We were not allowed to vote on anything on this bill. I…

we have conferred with our colleagues on the other side of the aisle. Senator Bond is aware of this new amendment. He has not had time to study the amendment. He has been busy all day, as have all my Republican colleagues at their retreat…

we said farewell last year to our friend, Senator Lott. Today, we welcome his successor, Roger Wicker. Senator Wicker is no stranger to Washington, DC, having served the people of Mississippi's First Congressional District since 1995. In…

I say to my friend, there is no place, no people in America more badly in need of health care than Native Americans. In Nevada, we have 22 different tribal organizations. The sickest, the most dependent people on health care are Indians…

Benjamin Franklin once said: Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man. This year, I know all 100 Senators will work to enable the words of Franklin to be meaningful, to…