Lincoln Chafee

Well, it is a complicated way of proceeding, but it is my understanding that this would actually kill the IRS reform.

No, my understanding is that the intent of this section is to prevent the dollar amount of the minimum guarantee from growing out of proportion far beyond that which the conferees anticipate. The intent of the Congress is that no State…

I appreciate my colleague's clarification. I chaired a hearing on Devils Lake before the Committee on Environment and Public Works late last year and am committed to addressing the terrible flooding problems experienced there. However, I…

No. What I have been trying to do is narrow down the problems that have come up. And I had down on the list to see the distinguished Senator from West Virginia. As you said, we want to get this thing done. I think we can get it done and…

Yes, the Senator from California is correct, the Golden Gate Bridge is eligible for additional discretionary funding from this program. I wished that the conference could have done more to earmark funding, but the earmark provided was not…

The philosophy we had in this legislation was to repeat what took place, as far as the general philosophical approach in ISTEA I, which passed in 1991. Now, in 1991, the first time, we passed a measure that was truly a transportation bill…

As the chairman of the Budget Committee well knows, I am always opposed to taking these programs off budget. That is my position, and that is the position we will take going into conference. We have been treated very well by the Budget…

I thank Senator Baucus for the wonderful work he did. We worked as a team. We went over the amendments we were going to accept. If there was a problem, he cleared them rapidly with those on his side of the aisle so we could ascertain where…

Thank you Senator Breaux and Senator Landrieu for bringing this proposal to our attention. Although we continue to face a significant challenge in providing funding for the complete range of national transportation needs, I will work with…

From my visits to California, I have learned first hand how the traffic coming through the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles are expected to more than double by the year 2020 with 25% of all U.S. imports coming through these two ports…

I share the Senators' view that advanced composites deserve further investigation for their applications to bridge construction, and are certainly innovative materials that fall under the purview of the bridge research program.

Inadvertently the managers of the bill omitted important language from the transit title. I am grateful to the chairman and ranking member of the Banking Committee for bringing that to our attention. This amendment has approval of this…

I commend the Senator from Vermont for his amendment. I think he is dealing with a very, very important subject. Having traveled a good deal in Vermont, I am familiar with these lovely covered bridges, but his amendment does not restrict…

It also is my understanding that the purpose of your amendment is to provide clear opportunities for local input into the railbanking process in instances where section 1247(d) of title 16 is being invoked by parties other than the states…

Thank you. First, although it is not explicitly referenced in the wording of the amendment whether its terms would apply to rail corridors that already are railbanked, and which already have been transferred from the railroad to the…

I also want to include in that ``pit bull'' category, Senator Abraham. He, also, was right there. They were a team. They dogged us every step of the way. So Senator Abraham and Senator Levin both did outstanding work in connection with…

I share those sentiments. I have noticed that the Presiding Officer who is in the seat now, the distinguished Senator from Maine, as you say, follows the debate. Now, she may be thinking about something else, but you wouldn't know it, and…

I have to be cautious about allying myself with those comments since my State gets something out of the transit legislation. It is very important. We have one transit system within our State. So I am very anxious to see that transit…

Well, we certainly have tables and charts that will show what Alaska got under ISTEA I, what Alaska gets under ISTEA II, what Alaska gets under ISTEA II with the added money in the so-called Chafee amendment, what those total dollars are…

This amendment is a modification to the border crossing and trade corridor program. It is for the Secretary to consider an area's future growth while awarding grant funds.

Yes: it is. We have made it clear to the Secretary that while one can never predict with 100 percent certainty what language may pass constitutional muster, the Committee expects the Secretary and his legal staff to do their utmost to make…

Mr. President, I say the answer to this question must be a firm and resounding ``no.'' We must stand up for the Constitution. We must guarantee the equal protection of the laws to every citizen of our country, without regard to race and…

No. I want to report that we have not received complaints. Indeed, as I pointed out, my State has gone beyond the 10 percent. We are up to 12.1 percent. It is impressive how many States have gone considerably beyond. Our neighboring State…

In his admiration for the efforts that the Senator from Kentucky is making to defend our Constitution, I hope we can enlist the support of the Senator from Texas against an amendment that is clearly against the Constitution and restricting…

I haven't heard from the Senator from Utah, the distinguished chairman of the committee who has power over all these affirmative action programs. Why doesn't he go after all of them? That would be a rather magnificent effort. It certainly…