Arlen Specter: “Senator Harkin, the chairman of the subcommittee, and I are urging colleagues to come forward to offer amendments. It is…”

“Senator Harkin, the chairman of the subcommittee, and I are urging colleagues to come forward to offer amendments. It is now 4:25. We have only had one amendment offered all day. It is very important that we move ahead with the disposition of this bill. Last year, we had the bill out of committee on June 30 and it passed the Senate on July 27. Then we had months of negotiation in the conference committee, so that if we are to get this matter into conference and have a conference report, it is urgent that we proceed at this time. There is substantial funding for education, which has the consensus of the Senate. There is substantial money for the National Institutes of Health, and the public interest requires that we move ahead. If we do not finish our appropriations bills, there is the possibility--or perhaps probability--that the bills that are unfinished will be folded into a continuing resolution. That means that important funding will not be provided. Again, on behalf of Senator Harkin, my comanager, I urge our colleagues who have amendments to come to the floor.”