On the recordJuly 19, 2011
I commend my colleague, the Senator from Illinois, for his comments. I affirm his sentiments. We have two problems in front of us right now--one intermediate problem: raising the debt ceiling. If we have a downgrade in our debt, there will be a tax increase on every American family, every American business, in the cost of higher interest rates. We have to get that raised, which is something I have been advocating for over a year. We have to take a second step--to put into place the long-term deficit reduction plan. The Senator from Illinois and I and others have been working on this. The Senator from Georgia and I started this over a year ago. We had I believe virtually half of the Senate who came and said it is not perfect, but this makes sense as a way to move forward. We have to do our jobs. I particularly thank the Senator from Illinois, who has worked so hard on preserving the safety net in these discussions. Some of my colleagues on the Republican side have recognized that we have to sort through a way to reform our Tax Code in a meaningful way. These are acts of political courage, and I commend them both. With that, I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll. The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
