Don Nickles

When the Senator was talking about judicial experience or legal experience, correct me if I am wrong, but didn't Miguel Estrada argue 15 cases before the Supreme Court? And doesn't that mean he has a lot of experience, legal experience…

This is more fiscally responsible than any appropriations bills we have passed in the last many years. I compliment the chairman of the Appropriations Committee, Chairman Stevens, as well as Senator Frist and all of our colleagues who…

I warn my colleague, she cannot be throwing up a modification and saying we want you to accept this when the amendment deals with substantive issues. The amendment deals with entitlements, with issues that are under the Finance Committee…

The modification has a tax increase to pay for it, I understand that, but that may have some problems in itself. I want all of our colleagues to know the amendment has not been modified as of yet.

I heard the Senator mention a modification, but I have not seen it yet. I am concerned in reading page 15, section 302, about budget scorekeeping, that the Senator is modifying the Budget Act or trying to waive the Budget Act.

Colleagues, let's have regular order in the Senate. Why have the Finance Committee have jurisdiction over an issue if we are just going to skip the committee and consider it on the floor? Are we going to do this with every authorizing…

I do not know what the agenda is. I know the chairman of the Judiciary Committee has a different opinion. Maybe the Democratic leader decided we are not going to be dealing with the appropriations bill. We have an amendment on which we are…

Should not have. That was the breaking of a precedent in every Congress of never mentioning the funding resolution. Mr. President, 1977 was the first time funding was ever raised, and I do not believe it was part of the reorganizing…

I will not yield. My point being, the tradition of the Senate has always been to adopt a resolution announcing the individuals serving on committees and that this person or that person will be chairman of a committee. That has always been…

I am embarrassed by their objection. The resolution the majority leader introduced is basically pro forma. It should have been done on the first day. It recognizes the newly elected Senators and the committees on which they have chosen to…

I am going to be very strict when people start engaging in dialog and not going through the Chair. The Senate is a great institution. It is not a little chat club. I am warning my colleagues, they should go through the Chair. To say that…

We passed temporary Federal unemployment compensation extension last March or April. We passed that. It was a benefit. It passed overwhelmingly in the Congress. It expired on December 28. Several people said we need to extend that. Last…

The essence of the letter says the only way for States to continue paying temporary unemployment compensation benefits without disruption is if a bill is presented to the President for signature no later than Thursday, January 9, the day…

I appreciate my colleagues comments and agree with them that the revenues collected through the federal gas tax should be used to maintain and improve our transportation infrastructure. I will work with my colleagues to ensure this is the…

Senator Tim Hutchinson of Arkansas, one of our colleagues, will soon be leaving us. I thank him for his service to his State and also to our country. For the last 6 years, I have had the pleasure of working with Senator Hutchinson. He is a…

Just to clarify, I believe that is not a 13-week extension; it is a 26-week extension. Also, just for your information, the House may soon try to pass legislation that would eliminate this cliff as of December 31. So I want the Senator to…

The proposal before us still has the adjusted insured unemployment rate to where it includes the following paragraph: Except that individuals exhausting their right to regular compensation during the most recent three calendar months for…

I believe the bill offers 26 additional weeks for anybody who just came into the system.

I will tell my colleague, I will never agree to this language passing. I will also tell my colleague, if she is politicizing this, talking about the first Bush recession and the second Bush recession, the first compensation package did not…

It is a sad occasion that we see flowers on the desk of Paul Wellstone memorializing his service to this country and to the Senate. Paul Wellstone served very ably in the Senate for 12 years. I had the pleasure of working with him, and I…

I think some people are playing political games. I understand some people are interested in passing a unanimous consent agreement on unemployment compensation. I heard the request. It was to provide a 13-week extension of unemployment…

AARP opposes give-back provisions without drug coverage in Medicare, and our 35 million members will not understand how the Senate can take this course of action. They have stated they are opposed to doing a give-back bill on a stand-alone…

I will repeat to my friend and colleague, the chairman of the Finance Committee, I will work with him to try to come up with a package that can pass this Congress this year. I want it to pass, and I want it to be signed into law. To come…

I believe the trigger is different from the one in the early 1990s. The fact is, if you want to help people, consider a straight extension of the program we have in current law.

Just to inform my colleague from Minnesota, that current law is a 26-week State program and a 13-week Federal program, with some high unemployment States getting an additional 13 weeks. You are trying to modify the original 13 weeks and…