Roland Burris

Mr. BURRIS

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, as I am sure many of my colleagues are aware, today is National Teachers Day, and this week is Teacher Appreciation week--an opportunity to recognize and celebrate the enormous contributions made by America's educators at every level. The work they do--and the impact they have--can hardly be overstated. Teachers are charged with helping to shape young minds, and providing our students with the tools and inspiration that will lead them to success at every level of our global society. This work could not be more important. Our educators truly impact eternity. But, as I address this Chamber today, they face a climate that is increasingly inhospitable to their work, and their goals. Studies show that today's teachers are more experienced and more educated than ever. Almost half of all public school teachers hold at least a master's degree, and more than 75 percent regularly participate in professional development programs. Yet every single year we ask these dedicated professionals to work longer hours for less pay. And in some cases we even expect them to spend their own hard-earned money to provide school supplies for their students. This is unacceptable. We can--and we must--do better. At every stage in my career, I have raised my voice on behalf of America's students and educators. Today, on National Teachers Day, I urge my colleagues to join me in this call to action. We need to step up our investment in America's future, and provide our educators with the support they need. We need to meet competence and dedication with gratitude, fair pay, and adequate classroom resources. And we need to do so without delay. Because, if we fail to keep these commitments, if we fail to provide the support our educators need, we will lose quality educators and the invaluable services they provide. In my home State of Illinois, roughly 9,000 public school teachers have received layoff notices this year. And as many as 300,000 will lose their jobs nationwide. This will result in more crowded classrooms, less individual attention for students who need it, reduced access to extracurricular programs, and a school faculty and staff that is increasingly stretched thin. I invite my colleagues to consider the impact these massive layoffs will have on our students. I invite them to think of the consequences for America's future. We cannot let this stand. That is why I am proud to be an original cosponsor of S. 3206--the Keep Our Educators Working Act, which I have introduced with my good friend Senator Harkin. This legislation would create a $23 billion Education Jobs Fund, which would help provide resources to states and local districts that are finding it hard to make ends meet. This money would be used to retain current educators, hire new ones, and provide important on-the-job training activities to those in education-related careers. It would keep good teachers where they belong: in the classroom--and would help to close the budget gap that currently threatens to leave many school districts high and dry. So I urge my colleagues in this Chamber to support this bill, and make education a priority again. Let us give teachers and students the support they need--so we can recruit the best teachers, fund afterschool programs, and keep more schools open. I applaud President Obama for his unwavering commitment to our education system. And today, I call upon him to follow through on that commitment. To work with my colleagues and I, on both sides of the aisle, to pass the Education Jobs Fund Act, reinvest in our schools, and make sure that America's future is secure. And I would ask that they join with me in celebrating the dedication and hard work of our teachers--without whom none of us would be where we are today.

Mr. BURRIS

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, my colleagues and I here in Washington are here to fulfill a sacred public trust, a commitment we made the moment we raised our hands and swore the oath of office. Whether we swore that oath 30 days ago or 30 years ago, that commitment remains very real. We are here to fight for the citizens of our respective States, to represent their concerns and to make sure their voice rings out in the committee hearings and on the floor of this Chamber. That is the obligation we took upon ourselves the moment we entered public service. I know it is something all of us take very seriously. I call upon my colleagues to rise to the challenge of this pivotal moment. It is time to live up to the promise we made. It is time to stand up for the people we came here to represent, from all 50 States of this Union. It is time to take action on Wall Street reform so we can restore accountability to a system that has spiraled out of control, and cost billions in taxpayers' dollars. The U.S. Constitution makes it clear that my colleagues and I are accountable to the American people we came here to serve. But because we enjoy a thriving free market system, Wall Street bankers are bound by no such accountability. That is why we used to have strict regulations in place, such as basic capital standards and lending requirements, that laid out the rules of the road by which all financial institutions must operate--not to interfere with the market but to assure that business practices were free and fair. It used to be that banks, large and small, based their security on the quality of their investments. I worked at a very large bank in those days. The lending decisions were driven by confidence in the local businesses. Financial institutions sank or swam as a result of the choices they made. This encouraged responsible choices and ensured that banks made smart investments. It kept them accountable to the communities they served and to the businesses in those communities. I said a moment ago I served as a banker for many years. I helped secure loans for small and large businesses. I fought to keep investing in the local economy because I knew we had a responsibility to those who worked with us. We helped enrich the people with whom we did business. The bank's responsibility is to keep capital and cash flowing. The bank's responsibility is to keep capital and cash flowing. So we were accountable to our customers. That is what banking used to be. But not anymore. Gradually over the past few decades, tough standards were relaxed, regulations were rolled back, and rules were bent or ignored by some of the country's largest and most trusted financial institutions. Greed replaced accountability as the driving force behind many transactions. Banks made bad loans and then repackaged them with other loans and sold off the risk. They created new types of securities and invented ways to place high-stake bets on investments. These activities have no value of their own. They have nothing to do with our free market economy. They are designed to make easy money for big banks, which pass the risk on to someone else. But they contribute absolutely nothing to the economy. There is no product, no investment in private enterprise that will benefit local communities. So Wall Street has basically turned into a casino, and it has done so at our expense. These fat-cat bankers were gambling not just with our money but with our economic future. They placed our entire economy at risk, and about 2 years ago their recklessness caught up with them. The bottom fell out. The whole massive scheme began to unravel. The American economy fell apart like a house of cards because that is exactly what Wall Street had become--a giant pile of empty investments that had been passed around between big banks, packaged and repackaged to the point where these investments were supported by little more than the paper on which they were written. These large investment banks tried to make something from nothing, and in their wild pursuit of bigger and bigger profits, they gambled the stability of our entire economy. So it is no wonder these systems came crashing down. Wall Street dropped the ball, and now they are trying to pass the buck. I refuse to let them do that. I refuse to stand by as these big firms try to take the government bailout money and escape the consequences of their action. What they did was irresponsible and unethical. My colleagues and I were forced to make difficult decisions to prevent a complete economic collapse. We did what was necessary to stop the bleeding and get America back on the road to recovery. Now it is time to make sure this can never happen again. It is time we pass financial reform that will make Wall Street accountable again so they cannot make decisions that undermine our economic security. That is why I strongly support the bill introduced by my good friend, the distinguished Senator from Connecticut, Chairman Dodd. I thank my Republican friends for allowing us to bring it up for debate. I said on this floor yesterday that the ball game had another inning, and it did. I am grateful to our Republican friends who said: Yes, let's put this on the floor and let's debate it. Let's not debate to debate and then not get on with the business of average American citizens. As we discuss this legislation in this Chamber in front of the American people, I hope to work with my colleagues in both parties to hammer out a comprehensive, bipartisan bill, a bill that ends the days of the Wall Street casino and safeguards every American from the kind of reckless behavior that led to this crisis in the first place. This is the difficult work we swore to do when we came to this Senate. As we take up the issue of Wall Street reform, I intend to work with my colleagues, both Democrats and Republicans, to see that it gets done. As I said to the Senator from Rhode Island, I am very interested in his piece of legislation that deals with the credit card interest. I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. BURRIS

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

Mr. BURRIS. Madam President, we just witnessed a few moments ago the third attempt to try to do something about financial reform legislation in this body, and for the third time, it went down. I am an old baseball player. I played a lot of baseball in my young days, and there is a rule in baseball that says three strikes and you are out. Well, we have had three tries at this financial reform, and I will tell my distinguished colleagues on the other side of the aisle: We are not out. We are just beginning to fight under the circumstances we are confronted with because we are fighting on behalf of the American people. Earlier this week, our distinguished majority leader called for a vote to open the debate on major financial reform. We have seen well- designed proposals from the Senator from Connecticut, Chairman Dodd. This bill reflects the priorities articulated by President Obama and supported by an overwhelming majority of the American people. It will end the so-called ``too big to fail'' and prevent massive banks from making risky decisions that threaten the entire American economy. It will eliminate the need for government bailouts, and it will institute commonsense regulations so companies cannot create investments that are designed to fail and then bet against them. In short, this legislation is a good starting point. As a matter of fact, we have heard Chairman Dodd say time and time again we have to get it on the Senate floor so we can improve this legislation. I know I am supportive of a couple of amendments that would be beneficial to improve the legislation. It may not be the complete Wall Street reform package in its final form, but it contains a number of good provisions, and it is worth debating. So I am asking my colleagues, let's stop debating to debate. The majority leader scheduled a vote to bring this bill to the floor so Members of both parties could offer amendments and make improvements. This was not a vote on the legislation itself. Leader Reid was not asking the Senate to pass the bill without debate or without amendment. He simply wanted to start the process. He wanted to begin deliberations on the floor of this Chamber in front of C-SPAN cameras and in front of the American people. But when the roll was called and my colleagues and I came to the Chamber, every single one of my Republican friends voted to block the debate, plus one of ours. So we will try again, I hope, this afternoon, if not tomorrow, but we are not playing baseball on the floor of the Senate. This is not the all-American game, but it is the all-American future. There was a second vote to start debate--to move ahead this process and take up the consideration of financial reform. But for a third time, my Republican friends stood in the way. They know they will have plenty of opportunity to try and defeat the bill once it is on the Senate floor, but they decided to drag their feet anyway. We have seen this kind of thing before. This is the same Republican playbook we saw with health care reform, the same obstructionism, the same tired politics. In the past, they have been able to use this strategy to score political points. This time, I would respectfully suggest that my Republican friends have miscalculated. The issue of health care reform was complicated, so when it came time for debate, it was easy to distract and delay and to spread misinformation. It was easy to muddy the waters so they could gain traction and delay President Obama's agenda. When the health care debate was over, good policy won out over good politics, and we passed the bill--but not before my friends on the other side had scored some political points. This time it is different. Financial reform itself is very complex. That is why it is so easy for big banks to take advantage of consumers. That is why it is difficult to apply the kind of oversight we should have seen in the years leading up to the recent collapse. The issue itself is hard. This time around, the tactics of distraction and delay will not work. That is because Americans are smarter than that. They know who the bad guys are. About 2 years ago, Lehman brothers was one of the first dominoes to fall. Next came Bernie Madoff. Then a handful of other Ponzi schemes came crashing down. Most recently--just yesterday--we witnessed Goldman Sachs, one of the largest and most respected firms on Wall Street, was charged with fraud. When it comes to financial reform, we know where the problem lies. My Republican friends can try to distract and obstruct all they want, but they will not succeed in confusing the American people. Ordinary folks have had their pocketbooks bled dry by this financial crisis. They have seen their hard-earned savings disappear and their future become dramatically less secure, and they know exactly who to blame. For far too long, Wall Street banks have been subject to relaxed oversight. As a result, the focus of their business has changed. It stopped being about lending money to businesses, making smart investments, and encouraging free enterprise. When I was in the banking business, that is what we did. I was at the biggest bank in Illinois, the seventh largest bank in America, where we worked with companies, made loans, collected interest, and took the people's deposits in and paid them interest. And we kept the economy going. Instead, Wall Street has basically turned into a casino. Look at the derivatives market. Here you essentially have an object that is being traded that has no value of its own. It has no ties to the actual economy. There is no product, no business idea, and no actual investment. It is just a high-stakes bet. Without intelligent risk management, capital standards, and basic rules of the road, these bets have the potential to undermine the strength of our entire economy. Wall Street is a casino gone wild, and they are gambling with our money not theirs. They are making money off of our money. The American people know this. They can see through the distractions and political posturing. They recognize the need to reform Wall Street so we can end bailouts, put commonsense rules in place, and make sure we never experience this kind of economic crisis ever again. I am not sure what my Republican friends hope to gain by blocking our debate on this bill. They say they want to improve it, but that is exactly what we would be able to do once it is on the floor. Maybe they believe they can water down our reform package by dragging out this process. Maybe they would like the chance to hold some more Wall Street fundraisers before they have to take a vote on the legislation itself. Maybe they simply don't have an alternative plan, and they know they cannot win this argument on the floor of the Senate, with the eyes of the Nation on them. I am not sure what they hope to gain by stalling financial reform. I urge my distinguished colleagues on the other side to please let us move ahead with this process. I urge them to set aside these political tactics and bring their ideas to the table so we can strengthen this bill and make sure our economic future is safe. I call upon them to join us in debating, amending, and improving this important legislation rather than dragging their feet on a bill that has so much public support. When we pass this into law, after extensive discussion, it will be a victory for the American people. If my Republican friends join us in this effort, it can be a victory for both political parties, as well. We will all benefit. The American people will benefit. This legislation deserves to be debated in open session. I ask my Republican friends to let us move ahead. But if they will not, and they continue to delay and obstruct, then I challenge them to come to the floor and explain. I challenge any one of my distinguished colleagues on the other side of the aisle to walk into the Senate Chamber today and seek recognition from the Chair. I challenge them to stand before the American people and tell them why American families should be asked to fund Wall Street's recklessness and greed. I want them to explain that, Mr. President. I believe we need to end these practices. I believe we need to take up the issue of financial reform without delay. If my friends on the other side disagree, it is their privilege to do so. But I believe they owe the American people an explanation. I am pretty sure it will be very difficult to explain to them why they are holding up this important piece of legislation. Mr. President, I yield the floor.

Mr. BURRIS

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, for years at big corporations such as Goldman Sachs, Wall Street bankers packaged bad mortgages and sold them to investors. They knew these investment vehicles would inevitably fail so they turned around and bet against them. They bet against the American people. That is what they did when they put these packages together. They sought to make a profit off the misfortunes of their own customers. Tonight we stand at the brink of a real debate on this topic, but our Republican colleagues will not even agree to let us move forward. We have to debate whether we are going to debate. Main Street suffered the most challenging economic situation in a generation. It has been made clear tonight who the Republicans stand with--they stand with Wall Street--because we are debating to debate. After the breathtaking scope of the economic crisis that America is only now coming to terms with, how can we simply refuse to move forward, refuse to debate this critical legislation? We are debating to debate--unbelievable. We have to debate to debate about fair, meaningful reform while Wall Street continues to pose a systemic threat to the American financial system. I know a little bit about the financial system. I am probably the only one here who is a banker. I spent my early years in the biggest bank of the State of Illinois, selling money for a living. I know about banking and I knew what Glass-Steagall would do at the time. It prevented us from getting into the insurance business, the investment banking business, and banks were still able to grow and to make loans to the various entities that needed the loans. That is what we were there for, to assist businesses to grow and provide capital and make sure they would be successful and repay their loans. As a matter of fact, I financed some of the most difficult businesses in the State of Illinois. We had a government-guaranteed loan section for startup businesses. I loaned $1 million to a church-owned hospital, the first Black church-owned hospital in America. I financed that in 1969 with a $1 million loan. Guess what. The hospital paid every penny of that money back to our bank, plus we made interest on it. It wasn't a giveaway; it was not any type of charity; it was a business transaction to help the community. That is what banks ought to be doing. That is why we need to pass strong financial reform, to prevent bad behavior on Wall Street from sinking ordinary folk on Main Street. I know a little bit about Main Street because that is where I financed those businesses. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the reform legislation introduced by Senator Dodd, the distinguished Senator who put his life into this business, trying to make sure we have some type of financial security for the people and not a bunch of people who are going around ripping off folk and getting rich off of the work of other people. This bill would have prevented Goldman Sachs and other companies from getting into this mess in the first place and it can help ensure that we will never end up in this position again. I hope so, but we don't know what will come up. I heard Senator Warner on the floor today. Senator Warner was saying he might not know what will happen and probably won't. But I hope when we get this legislation to debate--the legislation we are debating to debate--it will never happen again. But first we need to agree to debate the bill on the floor. I ask my colleagues on the right to simply talk and debate about the ideas on this bill. I want Glass-Steagall. I am cosponsor of the amendment for the Glass-Steagall Act to come back. This legislation will create a consumer protection bureau designed to shield ordinary Americans from unfair, deceptive, and abusive business practices. As a former attorney general, I know what it is, in so many of these financial situations, mistreating our consumers. I defended those consumers tremendously during my years as Attorney General of the State of Illinois. I want the bill to establish an oversight task force to keep an eye on emerging risks so we will not be taken by surprise again. It will end too big to fail, protect taxpayers from unnecessary risk, and eliminate the need for future bailouts. This bill would also increase transparency and accountability for banks, hedge funds, and the derivative market. Some people don't even know what they are doing about it, so big companies such as Goldman Sachs won't be able to get away with fraud anymore. These basic reforms will establish clear rules of the road for the financial service industry so we can keep the market free and fair without risking another economic collapse. But if we fail to take action, if we do not pass this reform legislation, if we even fail to move forward on this simple procedural motion on the debate to debate, then we will be right back where we started--no safeguards against this kind of deception and abuse in the future. I call on my colleagues to join me in supporting moving on to Senator Dodd's bill. Let's move on to it and get on with the business of debating the bill and not debating to debate. I ask my friends on both sides of the aisle to stand with me on the side of the American people. Let's move to debate this financial reform legislation without delay. I yield the floor.

Mr. BURRIS

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, in early 1933, just after Franklin Roosevelt was sworn in as President, the Great Depression was at its worst. The American economy had been shaken to its core. Financial institutions had closed, people's life savings had evaporated, and no one knew where to turn. That is when the unthinkable happened: Much of the American commercial banking system collapsed. President Roosevelt and his colleagues in the House and Senate sprang into action. Congressman Henry Steagall and Senator Carter Glass, both Democrats, worked with the President to write sweeping reform legislation. They set out to get the economy back on the road to recovery. The resulting law--known as the Glass-Steagall Act of 1934-- helped to lay the foundation for sensible bank regulation in this country. It would come to define America's financial landscape in the decades that followed the Depression. Mr. President, it is in this spirit that I ask my colleagues to join me today in supporting major financial reform and making sure that the Volcker rule is included in our financial legislation. If we pass the bill that has been introduced by Senator Dodd, we can help prevent another economic crisis and reinstate some of the basic protections included in Glass-Steagall. Almost 80 years ago, this legislation established the FDIC, which still insures bank deposits--and it drew a sharp distinction between commercial banks and investment banks. In the wake of economic collapse, Congress recognized that these dueling roles often came with massive conflicts of interest. In some cases, this resulted in risky behavior. In others, fraud. So Glass and Steagall designed their bill to set up a barrier between commercial banks and investment banks. The law prevented these two activities from mixing and kept financial professionals honest and accountable. For much of the next half century--as our economy recovered from the Great Depression and prosperity returned to America--the system worked just as it was intended. As a former banker, I can personally speak to the significance of the Glass-Steagall Act in helping to keep our financial system on an even keel. This important law was essential to the stability of our economy--right up to the moment when my Republican friends repealed it--a little more than a decade ago. In 1999, the Republican Congress decided there was no longer a need to keep commercial and investment banks separate, so they passed a bill that rolled back key portions of the Glass-Steagall Act. Unfortunately, President Clinton signed it into law, and with the stroke of a pen, the walls between commercial banks and investment banks were torn down. Almost overnight, commercial institutions started to move into this fresh territory. They started to underwrite CDOs and mortgage-backed securities. Then they began to trade them. Commercial lenders even created new investment vehicles, which bought these very same securities. Without the Glass-Steagall Act, it was a free-for-all. As soon as the regulations were removed, big banks swooped in without regard to responsible lending practices. Conflicts of interest sprang up everywhere. Fraud was allegedly committed by some of our largest and most respected institutions. Then, 2 years ago, our economy went into a massive downward spiral--a great recession from which we are still trying to recover. The repeal of Glass-Steagall certainly did not cause this financial crisis on its own. But many believe it was a contributing factor, and unless we can take action to close this regulatory gap, the absence of Glass-Steagall could expose our economy to major systemic risk in the future. So, today, as the Senate stands on the verge of considering major financial reform, I would urge my colleagues to reinstate some of these protections. We must prevent big banks from engaging in these irresponsible practices ever again. That is why I am proud to support the Volcker rule, which my friend, Senator Dodd, has included in his financial reform bill. This provision will prevent traditional banks from making private equity investments. It will stop them from running hedge funds. It will help keep them from placing bets on the market. As a key part of Senator Dodd's bill, the Volcker rule will essentially serve as a modernized version of the Glass-Steagall Act. It would stop short of reinstating the old law of 1933, but it would help to prevent fraud, discourage conflicts of interest, and keep large banks from engaging in reckless behavior. It would also allow us to help regulate mergers among our biggest banks so we can prevent the market from becoming too concentrated or incurring systemic risk. Mr. President, I believe each of these key components is a necessary part of any financial reform bill. That is why I am proud to join Senator Dodd, as well as President Obama, in supporting the Volcker rule. Colleagues, let's learn from the events of history. Let's impose fair and reasonable regulations so a handful of banks would not be able to undermine the American economy with a few foolish decisions. Let's pass a financial reform bill that includes the Volcker rule. Mr. President, I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. BURRIS

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on April 21, 2010, at 9:30 a.m. in room G50 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building.

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on April 21, 2010, at 2:30 p.m. in room 253 of the Russell Senate Office Building.

Mr. BURRIS. 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 April 21, 2010, at 10 a.m. in room 406 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building.

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on April 21, 2010, at 10 a.m. to conduct a hearing entitled ``The Lessons and Implications of the Christmas Day Attack: Securing the Visa Process.''

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on April 21, 2010, at 2:30 p.m. to conduct a hearing entitled ``The FY2011 budget Request for the Small Business Administration.''

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Veterans' Affairs be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on April 21, 2010. The Committee will meet in room 418 of the Russell Senate Office building beginning at 9:30 a.m.

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities of the Committee on Armed Services be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on April 21, 2010, at 10 a.m.

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Subcommittee on Strategic Forces of the Committee on Armed Services be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on April 21, 2010, at 2:30 p.m.

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate to conduct a hearing on April 21, 2010, at 2:30 p.m., in room SD-366 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building.

Mr. BURRIS

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, when I came to Washington over a year ago, this country faced an economic crisis greater than anything we have seen in generations. So my colleagues and I set out to work. Under President Obama's strong leadership, we passed a landmark stimulus package that stopped the bleeding. We did what was necessary to prevent a complete economic collapse and set America back on the road to recovery. Since that time, we have come a long way. Many key economic indicators have started to turn around, but we are not out of the woods yet. The economy has started to grow again, but unemployment is still too high, and rampant foreclosures continue to threaten families in my home State and across the country. During the first 3 months of this year, almost 15,000 homeowners went into foreclosure in Illinois alone. Despite our best efforts to modify mortgages to make them more affordable, that is twice as many foreclosures as we saw during the same period last year. This is unacceptable. We are making progress, but it simply isn't enough. Today, America no longer stands at the brink of disaster, but we are still vulnerable to the same recklessness that led to this crisis in the first place. For years, at big corporations such as Goldman Sachs, Wall Street bankers packaged bad mortgages together and sold them to investors. They knew these investment vehicles would inevitably fail, so they turned around and bet against them. They bet against the American people. They sought to make a profit off of the misfortunes of their own customers. They allegedly committed fraud, and that is why they are currently being sued by the Securities and Exchange Commission on behalf of the American people. As a former banker, I understand the seriousness of this misconduct. I know it continues to pose a dramatic threat to the American financial system. That is why we need to pass strong financial reform to prevent bad behavior on Wall Street from sinking ordinary folks on Main Street. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the reform legislation introduced by Senator Dodd. This bill would prevent Goldman Sachs and other companies from getting us into a mess in the first place, and it can help ensure that we will never end up in this position again. This legislation creates a consumer protection bureau designed to shield ordinary Americans from unfair, deceptive, and abusive financial practices. It would establish an oversight council tasked with keeping a close eye on emerging risks so that we are never taken by surprise again. It would end so-called too big to fail, protect taxpayers from unnecessary risks, and eliminate the need for future bailouts. This bill would also increase transparency and accountability for banks, hedge funds, and the derivative market, so a big company such as Goldman Sachs would not be able to get away with their alleged fraud anymore. These basic reforms will establish clear rules of the road for the financial services industry so we can keep the market free and fair without risking another economic collapse. But if we fail to take action, if we do not pass this reform bill, then we will be right back where we started, with no safeguards against this kind of deception and abuse in the future. I call upon my colleagues to join me in supporting Senator Dodd's bill when it comes to the floor this week. I ask my friends on both sides of the aisle to stand with me on the side of the American people. Let us pass financial reform legislation, and let's do it without delay. I yield the floor.

Mr. BURRIS

Mr. BURRIS. Madam President, here, in our Nation's Capital, we stand for justice, for fairness and opportunity and for the rule of law. On the floor of this Senate and in the Oval Office, we shape national policy, and guide the course of a Nation. In the chambers of the Supreme Court, the principles of justice laid down in our Constitution are translated into the real world. Our system of government, embodied in this city, stands as an example for all others around the world. And yet today we are met with a certain irony. As I address this chamber, the DC Superior Court has been paralyzed, and our justice system has ground to a halt, thanks to my Republican colleagues. My good friend, the junior Senator from South Carolina, has chosen to obstruct an eminently qualified judicial nominee and current DC magistrate judge, named Marisa Demeo. When the President of the United States appoints a judge to the Superior Court here in Washington, these nominations are generally approved by the Senate without delay or controversy. But this time, my Republican friends have decided to play politics with our judicial system. They have stalled Judge Demeo's nomination for 8 months, and have turned a routine vote into the longest confirmation battle of the Obama Presidency. As a result, DC government officials have warned that their ability to administer justice is being tested. As a former attorney general of Illinois, I understand how dire this situation is. I understand how this obstructionism is crippling the Superior Court system. And for what reason? My colleagues and I have asked our Republican friends to name their objections, but no one can get a straight answer. No Republican has cast any doubt on Judge Demeo's qualifications, which are superb. She has served as a magistrate judge since 2007. Before that, she worked at the Department of Justice, in the Civil Rights Division and as an assistant U.S. attorney. She has degrees from Princeton and New York University. Her legal training and experience are more than adequate for the post of Superior Court Judge, and yet, for unspecified political reasons, the junior Senator from South Carolina continues to hold up this important nomination. He said he has concerns that Judge Demeo may not be fair and balanced in her approach. But there is nothing in her record to suggest anything of the sort. In fact, not a single Republican even took the time to ask a question at Judge Demeo's confirmation hearings. So I cannot imagine what they find objectionable. The court system in our Nation's Capital is strained to the breaking point, and my friend from South Carolina doesn't seem to mind. I believe this is simply unacceptable. This is why the American people are frustrated with their government: because petty political battles and Republican obstructionism are impeding our ability to govern. My friends on the other side are certainly entitled to play political games if they like, but I would urge them to save politics for the campaign trail, and stop holding up the course of justice and the important business of the American people. We simply do not have time for this. This is not about politics, this is about people's lives. This is about the functioning of the American justice system, right here in the Capital of the United States. This is about the constitutional right to a fair and speedy trial, a right which has been denied to DC residents by Republican political games. The American people have had enough. So I urge my friends on the other side to abandon this kind of obstructionism and take their political games elsewhere. Let us stand up for the ideals of fairness and justice that are embodied here, in this system of government. And let us make sure that every American, including the residents of our Nation's Capital, can avail themselves of this system. I ask my colleague from South Carolina to drop his hold on this eminently qualified nominee, so this Senate can hold a vote, and then we can move forward in a bipartisan manner to address the challenges we face.

Mr. BURRIS

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak in morning business.

Mr. BURRIS

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, last week, I came before this body to speak of the loss of a great leader from Memphis, TN, by the name of Benjamin Hooks. It is with a heavy heart that I come to the floor of the Senate again for the loss of a distinguished American. Early this morning, our Nation lost a strong leader and a great civil rights pioneer. I ask my colleagues to join me for a moment in reflecting upon the leadership, passion, and selfless dedication that defined the highly consequential life of Ms. Dorothy Height. She began her career in the 1930s as a teacher in Brooklyn, NY. She became active in the United Christian Youth Movement shortly after it was founded. It was this cause that would first carry her to national leadership, though she was quite a young lady at the time. In 1938, Dorothy was selected by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt to help plan a World Youth Conference. She rose to this task with poise and determination and made a strong impression on the First Lady. Later, Dorothy was asked to serve as a delegate to the World Congress on Life and Work of the Churches. Also, in 1938, she was hired by the YWCA and quickly began to rise through the ranks of the national organization. It was around this time that she caught the attention of Mary McLeod Bethune, founding president of the National Council of Negro Women, or NCNW, who recruited young Dorothy to join the fight for women's rights, one of the central issues that would become the cause of her life. She remained deeply involved in the YWCA and also attained high leadership positions in the Delta Sigma Theta sorority, the U.S. Civil Rights Leadership, and a number of other organizations. She helped to guide these pivotal groups through the stormy waters of the civil rights movement, looking always to the future and maintaining a steadfast dedication to cause and principle. But it was Dorothy's distinguished leadership of the NCNW that would come to define her career. In 1957, Dorothy Height was elected fourth national president of NCNW, a position she would hold continuously until 1998. For more than four decades, she was at the helm of the preeminent leadership council for African-American women. Thanks to her unrivaled expertise, transcendent vision, and lifelong dedication to this cause and to this great organization, by the time of her retirement in 1998, she lived in a country that was far more free, more fair, and more equal than the one she saw as a child. For her extraordinary work, in 2004, this Congress bestowed upon her its highest civilian honor, the Congressional Gold Medal. President Bush presented her with this award on her 92nd birthday. Today, as we celebrate Dorothy's life and mourn her loss, I ask my colleagues to join with me in honoring the immeasurable contributions she has made to this country. I ask them to reflect on the leadership she has rendered and the causes she has championed and the countless lives she has touched. Without Dorothy Height, America might be a very different place today. We owe a great deal for the difference she has made and for the lifetime of hard work she has devoted to her fellow citizens. It is with a sad heart that I come to this floor again to eulogize one of our pioneers, one of our greatest Americans, and one of the major contributors to the civil rights movement to advance the cause of equality and justice in the United States of America. Mr. President, I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. BURRIS

Mr. BURRIS. Madam President, it is with pride that I bring to the attention of my colleagues a recent series of programs conducted in Downing Grove, IL, relating to medical care for our servicemembers. The programs were sponsored by the Dupage Medical Group and the Defense Education Forum of the Reserve Officers Association of the United States, ROA. They were part of an ongoing series of six programs held over the past 2 years by these entities and related to the Reserve Components and military medicine. In November of last year, the topic was Mental Health Care Programs for the Reserve Components and their Families. As we all know, the signature injuries of the current overseas wars have been head injuries resulting in some degree of traumatic brain injury, TBI, and post traumatic stress syndrome, PTSD. Treatment for our wounded warriors with these injuries is paramount and has been correctly made a priority by the Secretary of Defense and Secretary of Veterans Affairs. The most recent of the programs was on the lessons in military medicine from Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom, which was conducted on April 9, 2010. It had a distinguished faculty and featured Dr. Paul DeFina, chairman of the International Brain Research Institute, who discussed brain trauma and its latest treatments. I am especially proud of the efforts of several of my constituents, notably, COL Janet Kamer and the doctors of the DuPage Medical Group, in developing and hosting these programs together with the Defense Education Forum. Colonel Kamer is the command consultant for psychology to Air Force Reserve Headquarters and a psychologist with the DuPage Medical Group. She is also the president of the Illinois Department of the Reserve Officers Association. MG Robert Kasulke also deserves recognition for his efforts in cohosting these programs. He is commander of the Army Reserve Medical Command and a vascular surgeon in his civilian career. RADM Paul Kayye (Retired), the national president of ROA, has also played a part in these medical care programs by introducing the April 9, 2010, program. Other faculty for these programs that deserve recognition includes: BG Margaret Wilmoth, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs; COL Nicole Keesee, deputy surgeon in the Office of the Chief of the Army Reserve; Sergio Estrada, assistant director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs; Adermi Olodun, of the DOD Employer Partnership Program; and Bob Feidler, the director of the Defense Education Forum. Participants of the meetings included medical providers, local representatives of the Department of Veterans Affairs, other caregivers, medical and legal, and several of our wounded warriors. It is through people such as Dr. Kamer, the DuPage Medical Group and the Defense Education Forum of ROA, and the distinguished faculty of these programs that the most up-to-date information is being provided to the medical community, Reservists and their families about the various programs and treatments available to them. I congratulate them on their ongoing efforts.

Mr. BURRIS

Mr. BURRIS. I thank the distinguished Senator from Montana. I hope I can do my brief remarks in 6 minutes. It is tax day, I say to the Senator. I hope your taxes are filed. Madam President, as my colleagues and the American people are undoubtedly well aware, today is tax day. Across the country, hundreds of millions of people are filing their returns, paying what they owe or calculating the refunds they will receive. Now, even in the best of times, paying taxes is not something most Americans look forward to. In fact, in the wise words of George Washington, ``no taxes can be devised which are not more or less inconvenient and unpleasant.'' But even Washington and the other Founding Fathers recognized that taxation is a necessity--and that paying taxes is every American's patriotic duty. When they are levied--not by some tyrannical monarch across the ocean, but by a representative government--taxes are ``the price we pay for a civilized society,'' in the words of Oliver Wendell Holmes. It is the only way a modern government can function. We are each asked to contribute a percentage of our income, and in return we expect our government to provide certain essential benefits: A strong, highly-capable national defense. Adequate roads, bridges, and other infrastructure. Quality schools. Emergency responders, so there is someone to answer the phone when you call 911. Basic regulation and consumer protections, so you can buy food and other products without fear of getting sick or suffering injury. A safety net to help you get back on your feet in tough economic times. All of these programs and services are supported by our tax dollars. They serve functions we cannot perform for ourselves--and it is appropriate that the government steps in to fulfill this role. That is why my Democratic colleagues and I are fighting Republican obstructionism to extend unemployment insurance and other benefits people desperately need. And that is why I am proud to report that, this year, roughly 70 percent of Americans will get a tax refund. But even so--my colleagues and I are all painfully aware that, especially in difficult economic times, taxes can be a burden. They can be hard on families that are already stretched to the breaking point--struggling to make ends meet in the face of pay cuts, reduced hours, or even unemployment. That is why my Democratic colleagues and I have been working hard to ease the burden on these families. We have committed ourselves to fight for the interests of working Americans. Our economic recovery remains fragile. The national unemployment rate stands just under 10 percent--and in my home State of Illinois, it exceeds 11 percent. And among minority communities, it is much higher. Roughly 16 percent of African Americans are currently unemployed, along with 12 percent of Hispanics. That is why my Democratic colleagues and I have taken action. We passed a sweeping stimulus package that brought us back from the edge of economic disaster. While Republicans filibuster unemployment benefits, my colleagues and I are fighting to extend them. While they drag their feet on COBRA, we are fighting to increase access to this important program. And, while they talk about enacting responsible tax policies, Democrats are actually getting it done. We are working hard to make sure that everyone pays their fair share of taxes--but no one is asked to contribute more than they can afford. This is an issue that has defined our party for many years, especially under recent Democratic administrations: From the middle-class tax relief provided by President Clinton, to the largest tax cut in American history, which was proposed by President Obama and ratified by my Democratic colleagues and I just last year--time and again, we have proven our commitment to commonsense tax policies. We have passed fair, targeted reforms and responsible tax cuts for those who need it most. We have stood squarely on the side of the American people, despite what some of my Republican friends might claim. And in fact, when you examine their record--when you look at the truth behind the Republican rhetoric--it is quite different from what many of them would have you believe. For decades, Republicans have claimed to be both fair and responsible when it comes to tax policy. But the reality is that they have consistently failed to deliver for the American people. Since the days of President Reagan, Republicans have slashed tax rates for corporations and the super-rich, while squeezing the middle class for everything they are worth. This is a country that has always encouraged personal initiative and respected success in the business world. But my friends on the other side are making it harder and harder for ordinary folks to attain prosperity and realize their dreams. It has never been harder to get rich in America--but it has never been easier to stay rich, as long as you can arrange a seven-figure bonus or a golden parachute every time the economy starts to look bad. But for those of us who can't, Republican tax policies have brought nothing but headaches. Under President George W. Bush, Republicans passed a massive tax break for the top 1 percent of wage earners, and did little or nothing to help the vast majority of Americans. In fact, this massive tax cut was not even paid for--every penny of it was added directly to the deficit. So let's cut through the political rhetoric and talk about what this really means. My Republican friends exploded the deficit by more than a trillion dollars, so they could give tax breaks to the richest of the rich. Now they are expecting us to pay down the deficit using the tax dollars of regular, middle class Americans. These are folks who did not benefit from the original tax cut--but now Republicans expect them to foot the bill? Not on my watch. These tax policies are irresponsible. They are outrageous. And the American people have had enough. Even now, my friends on the other side think we should spend even more money we don't have, on people who don't need it. My Democratic colleagues and I strongly disagree. We believe significant tax breaks should be targeted to middle-class Americans who need help, and that is why we passed legislation that accomplished exactly that. We believe in responsible tax policy, which asks each and every American to pay their fair share without placing an unfair burden on any segment of the population. My Republican friends will try to tell you they believe in the same values. So I would urge the American people to ask them: If that is the case, why did every single one of them vote against the largest tax cut in history? The Democratic record is clear. We believe in American prosperity on Main Street, not just Wall Street. So I urge my Republican friends to join us in standing up for ordinary folks, not just Wall Street bankers and the richest of the rich. Unfortunately, taxes will always be necessary, and they will never be pleasant. But if we embrace commonsense tax policies and fight for the principles that have guided Democrats for many years, we can make these tough times just a little bit easier for ordinary folks. Pay your taxes, enjoy America, and let's make sure that everyone pays their fair share. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. BURRIS

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

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak as in morning business.

Mr. BURRIS

Mr. BURRIS. Mr. President, early this morning, we awoke to sad news out of Memphis, TN. This country has lost a civil rights pioneer, a strong leader, and a witness to history. Benjamin Lawson Hooks fought all of his life for freedom, prosperity, and universal equality. When the world was consumed by war, Benjamin put on the uniform of the 92nd Infantry Division and rendered honorable service to his country. When peace was won and America looked inward today to address policies of discrimination and inequality, he was on the frontlines once again, standing with visionaries such as Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. At every turn, and at every moment in his life, he waged to fight against injustice. He became an attorney and was eventually appointed as the highest ranking Black Federal judge in the State of Tennessee. But that was only the beginning of a remarkable career in public service. Benjamin Hooks was the first African American to serve on the Federal Communications Commission, where he spoke out against biased reporting in the media and called for minority ownership of TV and radio stations. In 1977, he was unanimously elected as President of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the NAACP--a position he would hold with distinction until his retirement in 1993 and which would come to define his career. Throughout those tumultuous years, Benjamin Hooks was at the forefront of the nonviolent struggle for civil rights. He constantly challenged old assumptions, stood up to discrimination, and fought against those who defended the status quo. He taught us the courage to live out our convictions. He showed us how to translate our dearest principles into words and action. In 1980, he became the first national leader to address conventions of both political parties. He denounced those who resorted to violence, and he personally led prayer vigils, peaceful protests, and countless other popular demonstrations. At various times throughout his career, Benjamin Hooks served as a pastor, a soldier, a judge, and a political leader. He fought for equality in the courtroom, on the pulpit, on the airwaves, and even on the battlefield, but never did he act for personal gain. Not once did he forget the cause of justice that he and others dedicated their lives to defend. So great was the legacy of this civil rights leader, so deep was the impact he had on the fabric of our society, that even today, on the sad occasion of his passing, I cannot help but feel a lasting sense of pride in the profound and enduring accomplishments he leaves behind. Benjamin Hooks will be sorely missed by all who knew him, particularly his family, to whom we express our deepest condolences today. Even as we mourn his loss, I urge my colleagues to join me in celebrating his memory and honoring the living legacy he leaves behind. I am sure Benjamin would be the first to remind us that we must not pause in remembrance for long because there is much work yet to be done. Let us take up this fight. Let us defend the principles that guided Benjamin Hooks throughout his life and embrace the spirit that drove this pioneer to reach for equality, fight for opportunity, and aspire to greatness. I yield the floor.

Mr. BURRIS

Mr. BURRIS. I thank my colleague from Virginia, Senator Warner, who has taken a leadership role on this important and crucial issue in the Senate. At a time when we are looking at trying to move all this major legislation and solve problems for the people of America, we find ourselves stymied with regard to our third branch of government. The upcoming vacancy on the Supreme Court has already started a lot of talk across the Nation, despite the fact that we don't even have a nominee as yet. But let's forget about that. We must still focus on a number of immediate judicial nominations. My Republican friends continue to delay and obstruct, and for what reason, I have no idea. Take, for example, my home State of Illinois. There are currently five judicial vacancies, two in the central part of the State and three in the northern part, which is, of course, where we have Chicago. The caseload is tremendous on those current judges and so there are all these delays. If you want to know why it takes so long to bring someone to trial, that is because the judges there are overworked and the numbers there need to be brought up to par with what the requirements call for. Illinois is not alone. This is happening all over the country. So the numbers are such that we have all of these nominees who have been nominated, and some have been cleared by the committee unanimously. On some of the other judges, whom we did get confirmed, we had to go through cloture. They cleared the committees, they were blocked, but then, when we got to vote on them, the result was 99 to 0. That is uncalled for. So we must do what we can in order to make sure that the judicial process is not being delayed. That is, after all, our third branch of government. That is where justice is rendered for individuals who have violated any of the Federal laws. My Republican friends are holding these up. They are blocking these important nominations and stopping the Senate from performing its constitutional duty to advise and consent. We cannot consent because of the delay tactics they are using. As a former attorney general of my State, I have a deep understanding of how this obstructionism brings our justice system to a standstill, and justice delayed, of course, is justice denied. It is simply inexcusable. I urge my Republican colleagues to stop blocking these qualified nominees, stop playing political games at the expense of our court system--the third branch of our government--and let's bring all of those nominees to a vote. I thank the Senator, and I yield to him.