Tom Daschle

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I can certainly appreciate the frustration expressed by some of our colleagues. We have been there. We know how frustrating it is to have judges who are not given the time and attention, and the fair consideration they deserve. Because we have experienced that all too often while we were in the minority. What we have attempted to do is respond to that frustration by doing what we have said we were going to do from the very beginning, that we were going to treat judges fairly, we were going to try to do as much as we could to move them quickly. And we believe we have done that. I do not recall a time when our Republican colleagues ever agreed to hold at least one hearing on a circuit court judge with every group of district court judges receiving hearings. But that is exactly what our chairman of the Judiciary Committee has committed to do. I will look at the numbers, and we can compare statistics all day long, but all one has to do is look at the bottom line. We have exceeded their record in many ways. In 9 months, we have confirmed more judges than the Republicans confirmed in President Reagan's first year--12 months. We have confirmed more circuit court judges already this year than Republicans did in 1996 when they confirmed zero circuit court judges. But we can compare these back and forth. What I am simply prepared to do today--as you have heard Senator Leahy and members of our committee say on so many occasions--is to say, we are going to deal with these judges fairly and expeditiously. I think our record shows that. I thank Senator Leahy for his leadership, for the commitment he has made, and for the diligence he has shown in getting us to this point. Forty-two judges have been confirmed; 7 circuit court judges have already been confirmed. What Senator Leahy and the Judiciary Committee are now saying is, we will improve upon that in the coming weeks and months. When you look at what we will have been able to do by the end of this session, I think everyone will be able to say, without equivocation: You have done a good job. That is what we are committing to do. That is what our resolution says. That is why I believe, very strongly, that supporting the Democratic resolution is, again, supporting the clear intent of our caucus and of this Senate that these nominees are going to get fair treatment. We are determined to do that. And we will demonstrate that with each passing week. I yield the floor. Vote On Amendment No. 3040

Mr. DASCHLE. I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, we are currently consulting about the remainder of the day. It is fair to say Senators should expect additional rollcall votes. We are hoping we might reach an agreement procedurally on how to make additional progress on the bill during the remaining hours of today. At this point we cannot say with any confidence what tomorrow holds. It depends, in part, on what the schedule will be for the remainder of the day. We are working to arrange for additional votes and consideration of additional amendments. We will propound that request as soon as it becomes available.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. I have a request regarding the adjournment resolution. It has been approved by the Republican leader. I ask unanimous consent the Senate now proceed to the adjournment resolution which is at the desk, H. Con. Res. 360.

Mr. DASCHLE. I ask unanimous consent that the concurrent resolution be agreed to and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. DASCHLE

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

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, as I understand it, we are working on an arrangement that will accommodate further progress on this part of the energy bill. I appreciate the cooperation of all those involved. I want to take a moment to talk about a strong interest I have--and I know it is shared by the Presiding Officer and many other of our colleagues--in trade promotion authority, trade adjustment assistance, and the Andean Trade Preference Expansion Act. We will be dealing with all three of those issues in the next work period. I reemphasize the importance that I, as one Senator, put on getting that package passed during that time. I think we all saw yesterday that the January trade deficit swelled to $28.5 billion. That is a 15 percent increase over December and sharply higher than the consensus forecast. That alone caused some analysts to lower their projections for first quarter growth by a full percentage point. That set of numbers indicates pretty clearly how important trade is to the American economy, and it graphically demonstrates why we need to provide trade promotion authority. Today, nearly one in every 10 U.S. jobs--an estimated 12 million jobs--is directly linked to the export of U.S. goods and services. These are good jobs that pay 13-18 percent more than the national average. The benefits are even more pronounced in agriculture. Since passage of NAFTA in 1993, U.S. agricultural exports to Mexico have doubled. Agricultural exports today account for one in every three U.S. acres planted; nearly 25 percent of gross cash sales in agriculture; and more than three-quarters of a million U.S. jobs. The U.S. Trade Representative's office estimates that the average American family of four saves between $1,260 and $2,040 a year as a result of the two major trade agreements we entered into in the 1990s-- NAFTA and the Uruguay Round. And in my view, the benefits of trade today are even greater for the United States because no Nation in the world is better positioned to thrive in a global, information-based economy. Expanding trade also offers national security and foreign policy benefits because trade opens more than new markets. When it is done correctly, it opens the way for democratic reforms. It also increases understanding and interdependence among nations, and raises the cost of conflict. Senators Baucus and Grassley deserve great credit for getting a bipartisan TPA proposal out of the Finance Committee with an overwhelming vote of support--18 to 3. Their proposal not only gives the President that authority he needs to negotiate good trade agreements for the United States. It also addresses critical labor and environmental concerns. Under their proposal, labor and environmental concerns are central issues, not side issues. The fundamental reality is that expanded trade raises living standards generally, but some people lose. That is inevitable. Last year, we passed an important education reform bill. We agreed then that we would ``leave no child behind.'' Now we need to make sure we leave no worker behind. And that's why the package will include expanded trade adjustment assistance This is not a partisan idea. It's an American idea. It was also the one clear area of agreement among the recommendations of the bipartisan U.S. Trade Deficit Review Commission, which was established by Congress in 1998. Among the key members of the commission were President Bush's trade representative, Robert Zoellick; Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld; and George Becker, the former president of the United Steelworkers. Nor is trade adjustment assistance a new idea. It has been part of American trade policy for 40 years. The current program, however, covers too few people. And it does not address some of the most serious problems displaced workers have in finding productive new employment. I commend Senators Baucus and Bingaman for their leadership in putting together a proposal that corrects both of those shortcomings. I also thank Senator Snowe, who has been working closely with us on this effort. We already have 47 cosponsors. There are some reasons why we need a new, expanded program of trade adjustment assistance. I want to cite a few. Today, if your employer's plant moves to Mexico, you are eligible for a year of additional unemployment benefits, plus education and training. But if your plant moves to Brazil--or any other nation besides Mexico--you get none of these benefits. The new proposal says that no matter where your company moves, you get help. Today, workers whose company moves to another country are eligible for trade adjustment assistance. But let's say your employer provides parts to another company, and that company moves to another country. If you lose your job in that case, you are not eligible for assistance. The new proposal makes sure these ``secondary workers'' get help, too. For the first time, the new proposal also includes farmers. As a general matter, expanded trade will provide billions and billions of dollars in economic growth for the United States. Certainly, we can dedicate a small fraction of this gain to those Americans who are harmed. It is the right thing to do. Frankly, it will be impossible to build a broad consensus for expanded trade unless we do it right. We should help American workers learn the new skills they need to earn a living. We should help them maintain health insurance while they're unemployed--and help protect against wage loss when they become re-employed. I also want to reaffirm my strong support for the Andean Trade Preference Expansion Act. Again, I wish we could have passed it quickly, this week, as I had originally hoped. But I am confident we can pass it in a relatively short period of time after we return. Congress first passed the Andean Trade Preferences Act 10 years ago as a comprehensive effort to defeat narco-trafficking and reduce the flow of cocaine into the United States. The program allows the President to provide reduced-duty or duty-free treatment for most imports from Bolivia, Columbia, Ecuador, and Peru. The goal is simple: to provide farmers in a region that produces 100 percent of the cocaine consumed in the United States with viable economic alternatives to the production of coca. The program works. In the last decade, our Andean neighbors have made significant economic gains, and trade between the United States and the region has increased dramatically. According to the International Trade Commission, between 1991 and 1999, two-way trade between the United States and Andean nations nearly doubled, and U.S. exports to the region grew by 65 percent. The ITC also reports that ATPA has contributed significantly to the diversification of the region's exports. In addition, the program has served as a catalyst for resolving regional conflicts, pushing the members of the Andean community-- particularly Peru and Ecuador--to work toward resolution of long- standing disagreements that have undercut efforts at regional development. ATPA is doing, in other words, precisely what it was intended to do. So there is every reason to extend it on its own merits. But in addition, the bill we passed last year to expand U.S. trade with Caribbean countries has had the unintended effect of putting the Andean nations at a competitive disadvantage with other nations in the region. The development and stability of the Andean region is as much in our interest as it is in theirs. The package we will consider when we return will renew ATPA and, at the same time, level the playing field between Andean nations and their Caribbean neighbors. I thank Senator Graham of Florida for his leadership in putting together the proposal and again Chairman Baucus for putting the entire trade package together. The word ``trade'' has its roots in an old Middle English word meaning ``path,'' which is connected to the word ``tread'' to move forward. The trade package we will consider when we return will enable us to move forward in this new global economy in a way that strengthens our national security and the economic security of American businesses and families. We look forward to a good and vigorous debate when we return. I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Reserving the right to object.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I wish to point out that Senator Lott and I have talked about this matter on a number of occasions. I share his strong desire to complete our work on Andean trade. We will do so. I have also indicated a desire, and I know it is a desire held on both sides of the aisle, to finish the energy bill. It would be my hope we could move to many of these other pressing legislative priorities as soon as we finish energy. We had agreed to take up and finish our energy responsibilities, and that is what we are doing. We have been on the bill now for 13 days, as my colleagues will note. There is one item that may keep us from reaching some agreement in the near future, and that is the ANWR amendment. We have been attempting to get some understanding about how we might resolve the issue relating to ANWR. So I ask unanimous consent that on Monday, April 8, at 2 p.m., the Senate resume consideration of S. 517; that Senator Murkowski be immediately recognized to offer his amendment relating to ANWR; that the amendment be debated Monday and Tuesday; and that the Senate file cloture on his amendment Monday; that if cloture is not invoked on the amendment, then the amendment would be withdrawn and no further amendments relating to drilling in ANWR be in order. If the Republican leader could agree to this, then I think we would be in a position to move very quickly, as soon as we finish our work on ANWR and on energy, on this and other matters.

Mr. DASCHLE. This would allow us to complete our work on ANWR and on energy so we could move to not only Andean trade but TPA and border security as well.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I hope everybody realizes this was an exercise without any real value because the House went out last night. Even if we had passed it tonight, there is no prospect for the House to take this legislation up until after they come back in 2 weeks. We have been waiting for the House to give us some indication as to the size of the debt limit increase they support and some understanding of what they will do. We have yet to hear what the House plans are with regard to the debt limit. The last I heard is they were having some difficulty in reaching agreement, and because they have not reached an agreement, they do not have the votes to increase the debt under any conditions at this point. There is some indication now they are planning to offer the debt limit increase as an amendment to the supplemental, but the supplemental has yet to be presented to the Congress. So we do not have a supplemental. We do not have any indication from the House as to what their intentions are with regard to the size or the timeframe within which the debt will be considered and extended. So even if we did take up the debt limit tonight, as I wish we could do as well, unfortunately we are still going to have to wait until after the House acts on the legislation for us to be able to complete our work. So I do hope when we come back we can work in a bipartisan manner and send clean legislation either to the House or wait for the House to send similar legislation to us. I yield the floor.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, as I understand it, all time has expired on the Republican side. I think we are prepared to yield back the remainder of our time.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I want to add my voice to the many this morning who have spoken with some relief and satisfaction and confidence about the outcome of the vote. There are many who can take credit for the success we are about to experience, but none more than the colleague who is sitting to my left, Senator Feingold. He and Senator McCain have been extraordinary in their persistence and their willingness to negotiate, to compromise but yet to hold fast to the principles that make this legislation worthy of its passage and historic in its nature. We are concluding one of the most important debates we will have had in this Congress. Thomas Paine, the famed revolutionary, once offered an explanation for why corrupt systems often last so long. He said: A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong gives it a superficial appearance of being right and raises, at first, a formidable cry in defense of custom. That is certainly true of the way we pay for campaigns in this country. Our reliance on special interest money to run political campaigns is such an old habit that for a long time it had the superficial appearance of being right. But not anymore. The American people understand that special interest money too often influences who runs, who wins, and how they govern. While there is still a vocal minority who deny it, a clear majority of this Congress and an overwhelming majority of the American people know our current campaign finance system is broken. Now is the time to fix it. Almost 1 year ago, the Senate passed the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform bill. At the time, we had 2 solid weeks of debate and we passed a good, strong bill. Opponents of reform in the House used every argument and excuse, every imaginable ploy, to stop the bill from becoming law. For a while, it looked as if they had won, but 1 month ago the reformers turned the tide. The House passed the Shays-Meehan bill, and the President has indicated he will sign it. Now it falls to the Senate, which started this process, to finish it, and today with this vote we will. I am a realist. I know this bill does not address every flaw in our system, and I know there are those who are already looking for ways to work around this bill. But as Senator Feingold has often said, it does show the public we understand the current system does not do our democracy justice. It curbs some of the most egregious injustices. It bans soft money, the unlimited, unregulated contributions to political parties. It curbs issue ads, those special interest ads that clearly target particular candidates in an attempt to influence the outcome of an election. It calls for greater disclosure and increases penalties for violation of the law. Often those who are the loudest and decry the abuses of our current system are the staunchest defenders of that system. If you really are outraged by the abuses, you need to fix the system that invites them. If you want to fix the system, now is the time to do it. There are those who have argued and will continue to argue that in an attempt to make things better we will only make things worse. But since its founding, the goal of America has been to strive for that more perfect union our Founders envisioned. To say we should not attempt to make things better begs the question: ``Is what we have now good enough?'' Is it ``good enough'' that half of the government has to recuse itself from an investigation of a failed company because it spread around so much money to those who were involved, to so many people in that community? Is it ``good enough'' that in every election the amount of money spent goes up and the number of people voting goes down? Is it ``good enough'' that the current system is more loophole than law? If we look at the rising tide of money in politics, the influence that money buys and the corrosive effect it has on people's faith in government, the answer, then, is clearly no. Ours is a government ``of the people, by the people, and for the people.'' It is not a government of, by, and for some of the people. With this vote, we stand on the verge of putting the reigns of government back into the hands of all people. We owe that in large measure to the stewardship and commitment of our colleagues, Senators McCain and Feingold. Time and again, they have refused to compromise their principles in the face of incredible pressure, but time and again they have acted in the national interest rather than their respective partisan interests. So I thank them for their service to our Republic and to the Senate. It has taken us a long time to get to this point. The last time Congress strengthened our political system by loosening the grip of special interest money was 1974, more than a generation ago. Congress may not have another chance to pass real campaign reform for yet another generation, long after most of us will have left. Passing this bill will likely have a profound impact on each of us for the rest of our time here, and none of us can be absolutely sure what that impact will be. But we know this: The status quo is not acceptable and today it will end. The currency of politics should be ideas, not dollars. It is time for us to start putting the currency back into circulation. After years of debate and months of delay, let us do this one final thing. Let us take the power away from special interests and give it back today to the American people where it belongs. We can do that today. The time is now. I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. I thank the distinguished Senator from New Mexico for his kindness. Mr. President, I make an announcement that there will be no more rollcall votes tonight. We will pick up, hopefully, on the Kyl amendment tomorrow and have a vote on it at some point shortly after we reconvene. Technical Amendments Negotiations Mr. President, I also announce that it appears it is unlikely we are going to reach an agreement with regard to the so-called technical amendments that have been the subject of a good deal of discussion and negotiation over the last several days. I appreciate the effort made by many of our colleagues. That will, as we have all understood, necessitate the cloture vote tomorrow. My expectation is that we will come in late morning and then have the cloture vote and begin the debate on the campaign finance reform bill. Perhaps we still may reach some agreement with regard to the technical amendments, but at least as of this hour no agreement has been reached. Senator McCain has indicated to me he is not in a position to agree to the amendments that have been discussed. As a result, while I encourage further discussion, I do want people to know that it is very likely, I would say, we could have that cloture vote as early as late tomorrow morning. So I want to inform my colleagues of that. I would be happy to yield to the Senator from Kentucky.

Mr. DASCHLE. I thank the Senator from Kentucky. I appreciate all of his efforts. I said a moment ago, I still hold out the possibility that some agreement can be reached. And, of course, the cloture vote does not preclude that. So we will keep talking. I think Senators should be on notice that the cloture vote will take place, and, hopefully, we can then reach some kind of unanimous consent agreement with regard to the time required for further debate on the bill prior to the time we have a final passage vote. I thank my colleagues and yield the floor.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Madam President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. DASCHLE. Madam President, we anticipate a cloture vote on Wednesday on campaign reform. I have talked with the Senator from Kentucky. I am not averse to--in fact, I would encourage our colleagues to return to the energy bill and continue the debate on the energy bill. But if Senators have a desire to speak on campaign reform, to be heard on it, they are certainly entitled to do so. We will be on campaign reform on Wednesday. If we get a unanimous consent agreement, it may be for a shorter period of time. Barring that, we will then stay on it through the end of the period, assuming we get cloture on Wednesday.

Mr. DASCHLE. Yes.

Mr. DASCHLE. Madam President, I am very pleased to receive that report. I look forward to talking more with the Senator from Kentucky, the Senator from Wisconsin, and others, as the day unfolds tomorrow. Senators should be prepared, beginning tomorrow morning, for votes. We will see if we can schedule some debate on the energy bill and move forward with amendments on the energy bill until some agreement can be reached. I yield the floor.

Mr. DASCHLE

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

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, 2 months ago, I traveled with some of our other Senate colleagues to Afghanistan and other Central Asian nations. We wanted to see what progress is being made in the war against terrorism. We also wanted to talk with our allies in the region to try to assess how we might help make their nations hospitable to freedom-- and inhospitable to terrorists. We learned a great deal. I have already had a chance to share many of my thoughts and observations with Secretary Powell. Today, I would like to say a few words publicly about the part of our trip that I found the most moving and impressive: the other Americans we met--men and women who are serving our Nation's interests every day in places far from home--often under incredibly challenging conditions. We met extraordinary people from almost every State. They all deserve our profound appreciation. I was especially moved by five people I met from my own State. Listening to them, and watching them perform their jobs, made me very proud to be a South Dakotan. It also reinforced my conviction that we will triumph in the war against terrorism. This week, as we mark the 6-month anniversary of the attacks on our Nation, seems like a fitting time to tell my colleagues about them. David Nelson, the Senior Economic Counselor in the U.S. Embassy in Berlin, is from Brookings, SD. Day in and day out, he is working to protect America's economic interests in Germany. Since September 11, he has also played a critical role in our efforts to cut off the terrorists' money supplies. Dr. Jan Riemers is from Bristol, SD. She is the only western doctor in Uzbekistan's capital city of Tashkent. She is a sort of modern-day Albert Schweitzer, who moved her entire family to Uzbekistan so she could serve people who might otherwise never see a doctor. I also met three remarkable young men who are even more directly involved in the war against terrorism. They are serving our country in uniform. For security reasons, I won't use their names. One is an Army private from Midland, SD who I met in Uzbekistan. When we met, it had been almost 2 years since his last leave. On September 11, he was just completing a tour of duty in Bosnia. He and his colleagues had been living in tents and eating MREs--packaged meals--three times a day for several months at that point. He could have come home instead, he volunteered to go to Central Asia to be a part of the war against terrorism. And he said he was honored to do so. In Afghanistan, I met an Air Force master sergeant from Rapid City. He is involved in delivering two things Afghanistan needs desperately: U.S. military support, and humanitarian assistance. His efforts helped make possible the military victories we have seen in Afghanistan. They are also part of the reason we have not seen the humanitarian disaster some predicted at the outset of the war. In Kyrgyzstan, I met an Air Force staff sergeant from Yankton--one of the first U.S. service members deployed to that country. We met at Manas International Airport, where he and other Americans are working to build an air base that will host personnel from several countries and serve as a hub for air operations in Afghanistan. He came out to meet us in the middle of a snowstorm, and he could not have been more excited about his mission. We ask our service men and women--like these three honorable South Dakotans--to attempt extraordinary things and make extraordinary sacrifices. Time after time, they not only meet our expectations, they exceed them. In this week, when we mark the 6-month anniversary of the attacks on our Nation, it seems appropriate that we also honor the men and women who are working--and risking their lives--to try to prevent us from ever experiencing that heartache again. They are true patriots. They come from my State and yours, and from every State and territory in our Nation. They make us proud. And they are making America, and the world, stronger and better. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the report we have compiled regarding the trip to Afghanistan from January 10 to 19 of this year be printed in the Record.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, today the Senate loses one of its most valued employees to retirement. After 35 years of dedicated service, Alex Lewis of the Recording Studio is stepping down. Alex began work for the Architect of the Capitol in 1967 at the ripe old age of 20. He started work here as an electrician's helper. By the 1970s he was running and maintaining the Senate and House audio systems, moving to the Senate full time in 1991. In 1994, he helped bring the Senate into the computer age, working tirelessly over many late nights and weekends and under a tight deadline to replace the old Senate sound system with the state-of-the- art digital system we use today. That can-do attitude, his friendliness and cooperativeness was respected by everyone who worked with him. And, in the last 3 years as studio supervisor, Alex was respected for his caring, consideration, and fairness by everyone here in this body. Alex said that having the opportunity to be witness to more than three decades of historical events at the Capitol is something he will always treasure. Today, all of us in the Senate family want to express how much we treasure his service to this institution. We thank him and we wish him well. Mr. President, I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, we have been working with colleagues on both sides of the aisle with regard to the campaign finance reform bill. I am now in a position to announce that we are able to reach a unanimous consent agreement on the motion to proceed to the campaign finance reform bill. So I ask unanimous consent that, at 3 p.m., Monday, March 18, the Senate proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 318, H.R. 2356, the campaign finance reform legislation, and that the cloture vote on the motion to proceed be vitiated.

Mr. DASCHLE

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the order for the quorum call be dispensed with.