and colleagues, watching Ms. Shea enter the Chamber today makes me feel very proud. It is a good day for the Senate because ensuring equal access to opportunity is what the U.S. Senate is all about. Ms. Shea has been assisting my office in…

I thank my colleagues. Mr. President, some believe that the Senate is fulfilling its obligations under the Americans With Disabilities Act if they provide someone to accompany Ms. Shea to the Senate floor. But let me say that an unknown…

Transportation of defense- and commercial-grade nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste is a great concern to the people of Oregon. Virtually every shipment to and from the Department of Energy's Hanford site requires at least 200…

the resolution that I submit today would change the Senate rules that deny floor access to those individuals who are visually impaired and need to use guide dogs to carry out their official duties. By denying floor access to Ms. Shea and…

I care greatly about this because there is already more high-level nuclear waste now stored at Hanford than at any other Federal facility in the Nation. There is no place in the United States where nuclear materials are stored under worse…

I believe there is a unique window of opportunity now for action, a window built around the proposition that our economy is moving forward in a positive way. Certainly, we are a few years away from the demographic earthquake that is…

I hope our colleagues will oppose the Bingaman amendment. This is not a question of ``not in my backyard'' run rampant. In fact, Hanford is in the State of Washington. It is not in the State of Oregon. The reason that it is important to…

I have come to the floor each day this week to talk about what I think is the critical need for the Senate to develop a bipartisan plan to reform Medicare. Medicare is a lifeline for millions and millions of American families, and I think…

as I have said, I intend to come to the Senate floor each day this week part of an effort to help build bipartisan support in this body for Medicare reform. Not via an independent commission. Not in the next Congress. But now, and by us…

as I indicated yesterday, I intend to come to the Senate floor each day this week as part of an effort to build bipartisan support in the Senate for Medicare reform. It is very clear to me that there is a rare window of opportunity now for…

the process of making public policy, like much of life, is about opportunity, risk, and reward. That proposition is clearly demonstrated when the Senate looks at the critical issue of Medicare reform. I take the floor today, as I plan to…

my home State of Oregon has long been known for being innovative in a variety of important public policy areas. The Oregon Health Plan, for example, is a pioneering effort. We were the first State to protect our beaches, to go forward with…

The Senator's case would be logical, in many respects, to my constituents, if my constituents were not acknowledging there does need to be change. The Senator mentioned the dams in Bonneville. We are now reinventing Bonneville. We have all…

I have been both as a Member of the House and in the Senate a member of the Commerce Committee a very strong supporter of Amtrak. I think that it is important to have a national rail program. It is important policy for our country. I have…

I rise in support of S. 39, the Sustainable Fisheries Management Act. This bill is a good step forward in the management of our Nations' fisheries, addressing important areas of concern such as rebuilding over-fished stocks and collecting…

As Senator Gorton knows, in particular, the natural resources questions in the West are especially polarized. They are ones where so often there are very heated and controversial fights between groups, particularly industry groups and…

Well, the parts that protect the patient and protect Indiana physicians, those parts are in fact protected under my amendment. But if there are parts of the Indiana statute that do not adequately protect Indiana physicians and do not…

I think that is what Dr. Ganske did when he took this up in the House, a Republican physician, who said that what we need to do is help people. We certainly are not helping people by having these gag rules that keep people from knowing…

first, I express my thanks to Senator Kennedy. He has done yeoman work on so many health issues over the years. He has just been so helpful to me as a new Member of the Senate. I thank him for all of his help and that of his staff in…

No, that is not correct. In fact, we specifically protect the rights of States to go further.

the Senator from Alabama is raising a point of order on a revenue issue that simply does not apply to this amendment. I believe the Senator from Alabama is talking about a Congressional Budget Office report that was done on the House…

What I am seeking to do is to make sure that managed care plans, the fastest growing part of American health care today, are not allowed to impose gag rules that impede patients from getting all the information that they need with respect…

the Senator from Alabama told me that he does not have an official report from the Congressional Budget Office with respect to revenue on it. The Senator has said that the majority staff projects that it will cost $85 million.

This is in fact a national standard. Yes, we do say-- because managed care plans, many of them, operate in more than one State, we have said, you bet, we have a national problem. It is a national standard. But there are a small number of…

I want her to understand that it has not been particularly pleasant to spend the afternoon taking different positions with somebody I admire. We have my amendment which passed 51 to 48, but did not get 60 votes, on a proposal that keeps…