Mr. President, I appreciate the remarks of the distinguished Senators from Iowa, North Dakota, and Kentucky. I think what people find so maddening about Congress and Washington, DC, is even when we agree, we still cannot seem to get…

Mr. President, at this time I yield to the distinguished Senator from North Dakota and then, following that, the distinguished Senator from Iowa for any comments he cares to make.

Mr. President, reserving the right to object, the problem with the Senator's proposal is that this piece of legislation he has referred to has not passed out of committee in the Senate. It has not passed the House. This bill, the STEM Act…

Under those circumstances, I agree to yield the floor. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New York. ____________________

Mr. President, I yield to the distinguished Senator from Iowa for any comments he cares to make. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa.

Mr. President, tonight the Senate will vote on an amendment offered by the senior Senator from California that affects the lawful authority of the U.S. military to detain enemy belligerents during wartime. This issue is necessarily…

Madam President, I ask for the yeas and nays. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There appears to be a sufficient second. The yeas and nays were ordered.

I ask unanimous consent the reading of the amendment be dispensed with. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The amendment is as follows: (Purpose: To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to submit to Congress a…

Madam President, I thank the distinguished chair of the Armed Services Committee and ranking member for their work with us on this important amendment. The Veterans' Administration defines a backlogged claim as one that has been pending…

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Cardin.) Without objection, it is so ordered. The Fiscal Cliff

Mr. President, the American people have spoken, and once again they have given us divided government. In that sense, we can say this was a status quo election. Before the election, just a week or so ago, we had President Obama in the White…

Mr. President, as the distinguished ranking member of the Budget Committee pointed out, it has been more than 3 years since the democratically controlled Senate has passed a budget. That should be a national scandal. During the same time…