Don Nickles: “I really want to tell our colleagues that generosity with time is coming to a close. We are going to start picking up…”

“I really want to tell our colleagues that generosity with time is coming to a close. We are going to start picking up the pace rather substantially. That means we are going to have a lot more votes. It means I am doing everything I can to avoid a vote-arama which Senator Byrd and I have discussed many times. We think it is demeaning to the Senate to have a large number of votes where Members are voting with almost no debate. We are making a great concession on our side. It is easy to debate and say now the time is up and have a vote-arama. I think that is demeaning to the Senate. I have discussed this with my colleague, Senator Conrad. We are willing to consider more amendments with time agreements, have a shorter debate time, and try to dispose of amendments so we can avoid the necessity of being here very late Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and/or Saturday. We are going to complete the bill. But let us try to cooperate, Democrats and Republicans, proponents and opponents.”