Barbara Boxer

Mrs. BOXER

Mrs. BOXER. Madam President, how much time remains?

Mrs. BOXER. And on the other side?

Mrs. BOXER. While we are waiting for Senator Whitehouse--he is on his way--I want to focus the attention of those who are watching this debate on truly what we are talking about. If this was about building a pipeline that was carrying something that didn't hurt anybody, I wouldn't be standing here. But this is about building a pipeline that is going to carry the dirtiest oil we know of, and this dirty oil is already causing lots of problems. Where it is refined in Port Arthur, TX, I met with the people there. I met with the people there. Senators don't live near refineries. Again, if I am wrong on that, I would like to be corrected. People live near refineries sometimes because it is where affordable housing is, and this is what it looks like. They do not want this stuff. With all the talk of jobs, jobs, jobs, let's be clear. The CEO of the company said 50 jobs. So if you want to lay this kind of misery on people who live in this community, vote aye. That is fine. But just take a look at this. We don't see many kids playing on this playground because this pollution is vicious. It adds more heavy metals. It causes asthma. The pollutants cause cancer. We are talking about lead and we are talking about sulfur in very heavy quantities. So let's be clear. We don't see my friends who support this talking about what happens when you refine, but that is what happens. If this was the only thing we could do to make ourselves energy independent, that is one thing, but I have already shown, with the Senator from Vermont, Mr. Sanders, how many incredible jobs are being produced across this Nation in clean energy: solar, wind, geothermal. We are looking at a potential of millions. In California, those clean energy jobs have led us out of the darkest recession we have seen since the Great Depression, and I have put those statistics into the Record. I have to say this. In all the years I have been in public life, starting when I was a county official, not one constituent ever came up to me and said: Barbara, the air is too clean. Oh, God. My air is so clean. The water I drink is so pure. Please don't get in the way of making it dirty. I have been in office for a very long time. No one has ever said that. On the contrary, what they say is: Please, my child has asthma. Please don't back off. Don't let Big Oil or big coal or the Koch brothers or whoever it is stand in the way of my family having a good quality of life. We can take a look at a country where they have thrown the environment under the bus. Here it is. This is what it looks like. That is what it looks like in China. I am sure you have heard a lot of the speeches in China that we will be hearing here: Oh, we need the jobs and we need the energy. They realize now they are in trouble. The President just made a pact with the leader of China to cut back on pollution. But this is what happens when you throw the environment under the bus. People can't breathe. Kids have to wear masks. That is a fact. Go to any school and ask the kids--and I know my friend, our great Presiding Officer--ask the kids: How many of you have asthma or how many of you know someone who has asthma? Honest to God, more than half the class will raise their hands. We need clean energy. We need clean energy. We need clean energy jobs. And if we can clean up our coal, I will be right there. If we can do safe nuclear and not build these plants on earthquake faults, as they did in my State, fine. But don't unleash the dirtiest oil known to mankind when the CEO of the company says it means 50 jobs. We all know that oil is going to be pumped right out of here. We all know it is the toughest oil to clean up because we have seen the spills in Kalamazoo, MI. We have seen the spills in Arkansas. Because of the nature of this oil, the heaviness of this oil, they are still cleaning up that oil 3 years later. It is now my pleasure to yield to Senator Whitehouse for 10 minutes.

Mrs. BOXER. Before my friend leaves, since he said those of us who vote against this have the dumb disease--and I think it is funny. I am not insulted in any way, shape, or form. But I just feel very differently because I don't think it is dumb to say no to a resource that you think is going to hurt the people because it is such dirty, filthy oil. The CEO of the pipeline company says it means 50 permanent jobs, when you could have so many more millions of jobs if you embrace clean energy. Also, I don't think it is dumb at all to say what the economists are now saying, which is that it is going to raise gas prices at home because it is going to be exported. So I think ``dumb'' is in the eyes of the beholder. And I think my colleague is very smart, but I don't think those of us who say no to Keystone are dumb. I think we are smart. I think we are looking at the future. I think we are standing up for the health of the American people. I think we are standing up for jobs and a clean energy economy, and I feel very strongly about that. And what we are talking about is the dirtiest, filthiest oil on the planet. I yield 10 minutes to the Senator from Massachusetts.

Mrs. BOXER. I thank the Senator from Massachusetts. He calls it the Keystone ``export'' pipeline, and that is exactly right. I call it the Keystone ``extra lethal'' pipeline given the type of pollutants that come with this oil. At this time, I ask unanimous consent to propound a UC request on an issue that is completely different and ask that it not count against my time. It is a 60-second UC. I believe Senator Vitter is here to oppose it, but I don't want it to count against any debate time.

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Environment and Public Works be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on November 18, 2014, to conduct a business meeting where we would have three votes for two TVA members and one Nuclear Regulatory Commission member. All three nominees have had extensive hearings. In the case of Mr. Baran, he has had 88 written questions and answers.

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I ask that we continue the agreement that this not count on Keystone time. I need to make the point that Mr. Baran, who is the subject of Mr. Vitter's complaint, has already been confirmed. What we are doing is putting him in a different seat on the same commission that has a different expiration date. He has already had a hearing, and Senator Vitter asked 56 questions. I think it is sad--the Republicans have won the election. Yes, they did. And they said: Oh, we are going to get busy and we are going to work. All I want to do is have a meeting so we can do our work off the floor on people who have had extensive hearings. Now they say: Oh, no, we can't possibly do that. And then my friend talks about the nominee's lack of experience when, in fact, he was already confirmed. When Republican Commissioner Spinickey was nominated, she had never even visited a powerplant. Nobody ever said anything about that, and we all let it go. Sadness is in my heart. Really. This is our work. We are here to work. I thought that is what the Republicans said they wanted to do-- they wanted to work. Oh, no. They come here and object to a meeting off the floor of the Senate so that we can move forward. I wish to make a point: The TVA, Tennessee Valley Authority, is a very important authority. They deliver electricity, and they do it in a good way, they do it in a cheap way, and they do it in an environmentally sound way. That is their job. They need commissioners. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission--my God, after Fukushima, you would think people would want to work together. We have a great nominee who worked over in the House for years. He has already been confirmed. Let it be known to the world, as I stand here today, after an election where I admit we lost and they won, and they said they were going to be good soldiers and cooperate, but we can't mark up the first thing that happens. So now I will have to use another technique that I have in my rules, and I will, but I don't want to do it. I wanted to have a bipartisan meeting, but if they force me to just do it with the majority, which we now have, so be it. But I will not allow these vacancies to continue. In the case of the NRC, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, it is actually dangerous. I have nuclear powerplants sitting on earthquake faults and in tsunami zones. I want to have an NRC that is functional. In any case, I will calm down and get back my Keystone Pipeline voice, and I say to my friends who are not here: They blocked this now, but unfortunately we will have to use the rules to get this done because that is our job. We have to fill these slots. I thank my colleagues very much. Senator Walsh is here and wishes to speak under the time of Senator Hoeven, and I will get out of the way and allow him to proceed. How much time remains on the opponents' side?

Mrs. BOXER. How many remain on the proponents' side?

Mrs. BOXER. I yield the floor.

Mrs. BOXER. Could I ask the Senator to yield? I want to ask whose time is the Senator taking at this point?

Mrs. BOXER. That is fine. Thank you.

Mrs. BOXER. Reserving the right to object, could that be off my friend's time?

Mrs. BOXER. Then we need to add 5 minutes to our time.

Mrs. BOXER. A question through the Chair.

Mrs. BOXER. I think it would be very helpful if the three of us could get together for 1 minute to work out the details of how to close out, and then we could make a unanimous consent request so Senators would know exactly what to do. May I suggest that we go into a quorum call and that it come off of all three sides and have a couple of minutes to discuss this. Is that all right?

Mrs. BOXER. We rethought this situation. I ask unanimous consent that we take no time off of anybody's time at this point and that we just meet and discuss how we are going to close this debate.

Mrs. BOXER. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mrs. BOXER. I yield 5 minutes to my friend from Washington State.

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding the previous order with respect to debate time on S. 2280, the time until 5:45 p.m. be equally divided between Senators Hoeven, Landrieu, and myself, or our designees, and that at 5:45 p.m., Senator Hoeven be recognized for up to 2 minutes for closing remarks; that upon the conclusion of his remarks, Senator Landrieu be recognized for up to 2 minutes; that upon the conclusion of her remarks, Senator Boxer be recognized for up to 4 minutes; that upon the conclusion of Senator Boxer's remarks, the Senate proceed to vote on passage of S. 2280, with all other provisions of the previous order with respect to the bill remaining in order; and finally, I ask unanimous consent that the time used by Senator Murray count toward Senator Boxer's time.

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, it is with great pride that I call on my colleague from California as she gets herself ready to speak to this issue. Senator Feinstein and I represent a State that is creating so many clean energy jobs, and I am very proud to yield to her 5 minutes.

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum, and I ask unanimous consent that the time during the quorum call be taken off everybody's time here.

Mrs. BOXER. Madam President, could the Presiding Officer tell us who has how much time at this point.

Mrs. BOXER. Well, Madam President, I will take three minutes of that time.

Mrs. BOXER. Madam President, what is the time situation?