we had a very important vote today on asbestos, and we will be proceeding to that bill tomorrow. It is a bill that I feel passionately about, a bill--as I shared with my colleagues who were with me earlier today in Atlanta at the…

in a few moments, we will be closing down for the evening. But I did want to comment very briefly upon the wonderful experience that I and nine other of our colleagues had over the course of today as we attended the funeral of Coretta…

to my distinguished colleague, I know things will go well as a new member of the family is about to enter. It is a very special time in all of our lives when that happens. I did want to come to the floor to give some perspective to what we…

this afternoon we have scheduled a period of morning business. I mentioned at the close of business last week that it had been my intention to begin consideration today of the bipartisan asbestos legislation. Unfortunately, we are unable…

I will have more to say on the significance of this bill in a few minutes. We will be filing the necessary cloture motion prior to adjourning today. Under the order from last week, that vote will occur at 6 p.m. tomorrow night. I will be…

on another issue, I rise to briefly address an issue that is of critical importance to Tennessee, to the region around Tennessee, and to economic development. Every year, millions of tons of cargo pass through Chickamauga Lock in my home…

under the order entered on Thursday, this vote will occur at 6 p.m. on Tuesday. We will continue with debate on the motion to proceed today and through tomorrow. I hope cloture will be invoked and we will then be able to begin debate on…

it has been a very long day, but a very productive day with the ultimate passage of the Tax Relief Act by a vote of 66 to 31. In addition, just a short time ago, we passed the temporary extension of a very important bill, the PATRIOT Act…

I will have a few announcements to make, but, first, I ask unanimous consent that following the vote on passage of H.R. 4297, the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 4659, the PATRIOT Act extension. I further ask consent…

as a continuation of the explanation, it has not been my preference to file these amendments, but we have tried over the last couple of days to bring a semblance of order so we can complete the activity that is in the Senate. It was…

Mr. Presient, on behalf of Senator Santorum, we yield back the remainder of our time. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the amendment. The amendment (No. 2728) was agreed to.

tonight it has taken a long time to get where we are. We are going to have 10-minute rollcall votes, so everybody needs to stay in the Chamber. We are going to cut everybody off. We have agreed to 10 minutes. It has been a long day…

I now ask that notwithstanding the Budget Act, it be in order for me to send additional amendments and motions to the desk with all the statutory debate time on each amendment or motion still reserved. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without…

on behalf of Senator Talent, I would like to call up his amendment. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report. The assistant journal clerk read as follows: The Senator from Tennessee [Mr. Frist], for Mr. Talent, proposes an amendment…

I send an amendment to the instructions to the desk. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report. The assistant legislative clerk read as follows: The Senator from Tennessee [Mr. Frist], for Mr. Grassley and Mr. Baucus, proposes an…

I move to commit the pending bill, and I send the motion to the desk. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the motion. The assistant legislative clerk read as follows: The Senator from Tennessee [Mr. Frist] moves to commit the…

All right. Mr. President, we will work out on filing the motion to proceed here, and I will have an announcement. We will have no votes tomorrow. By the end of tonight, we will have Tuesday worked out. We will be debating the asbestos bill…

I have been talking to the ranking member before coming to the floor. I think he explained generally what will take place. I will comment on it after completion of procedural requests. Amendment No. 2707 (Purpose: To provide a substitute…

today the Senate did begin consideration of the House version of the tax relief bill that this body passed last November. We now have 7 hours remaining under the statutory time limit for this piece of legislation. We began with 20 hours…

Reserving the right, the recognition prior to Senator Durbin would be to Senator Bond?

today, in just a short while, we will begin consideration of the House-passed tax reconciliation bill. As Senators remember, the Senate passed our bill, the Senate bill on November 18. We considered the bill for 3 days and after 17 votes…

As I understand it, all morning business time, including this additional 30-minute increment, would be part of the 20 hours. The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the Democratic leader?

We have the initial 30 minutes. Is the request made to talk within our 30 minutes? The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Chair understands the request is for Senator Durbin to speak before the 30 minutes commences.

today marks the end of one of the most outstanding public service careers in this country's history. Today, Dr. Alan Greenspan steps down as Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. These last 18 years many…

today has been an extraordinarily historic and eventful day, one in which we have paid tribute to, and reflected upon, the great deeds and towering leadership of some of the most consequential individuals of the 20th century. It has also…