Thomas Daschle: “if I could just respond, I will probably have to agree to disagree. I suppose you could argue that we have spent a lot…”

“if I could just respond, I will probably have to agree to disagree. I suppose you could argue that we have spent a lot more money over the last 27 days than most of us realized in keeping the Senate in session as long as we have. We have been in, in large measure, because we haven't been able to complete our work. One could argue if we would have used the days we had available to us more effectively, we wouldn't be here today. As to the President's insistence on trying to find compromise, I guess this isn't a matter of whether the President gets all he wants. This is a President who has said on numerous occasions we are making progress in coming together. Let us keep at it. Let us try to find a way to resolve these issues. I am not asking for everything I want, but I don't expect the Republican leadership to get everything they want. The essence of good compromise is give on both sides. We haven't seen that. That is the essence of the concern we have on this side, the lack of fairness, not only with regard to any real void in bipartisanship in putting the tax and BBA bill together, but the consequences of having done so without constructive engagement, consequences that led somebody inadvertently, I assume, to leave out the minimum wage entirely, to nullify the minimum wage for 6 months. That is what happens if this bill passes. It is going to be nullified for 6 months. I know that that was not intended, but that is what happens.”