Robert Dole

Mr. DOLE

Mr. DOLE. Let me add, I failed to recognize that, with the adoption of the Shelby amendment, it actually raised the rescission package to $15 billion, not $13.5 billion. So I was in error. Is there objection to my request?

Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent, after the Senator from Minnesota proceeds for 5 minutes and the Senator from Connecticut for 10 minutes, that we stand in recess under the previous order until 2:15. Does the Senator from Kentucky want any more time?

Mr. DOLE. I thank the Senator from Nebraska. I would say we have been meeting at a staff level. Both Senator Daschle and I have talked about it on the Senate floor. He indicated he might be able to whittle down the 70 amendments. Well, it is Tuesday. I am certain we could whittle down the 28 amendments. Maybe we will get it down to 50 amendments. If you took an hour or more on each one, plus rollcalls, it is not going to happen. It seems to me that rather than just let everybody bring up amendments here, posturing, doing whatever they are doing, it is best just to pull the bill down and have those debates at some other time. I know the Senator from Nebraska has an amendment. I know he is serious about it. It is a serious amendment. I would just guarantee him, if we reach an agreement, that amendment will be in the mix unless the Senator decides otherwise.

Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, I send an amendment to the desk.

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. DOLE. Speed up the call, and we will have a vote.

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. DOLE

Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, what is the pending business? Are we in morning business?

Mr. DOLE. I ask if I may speak as in morning business.

Mr. DOLE

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

Mr. DOLE

Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand in adjournment until the hour of 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, April 5, 1995; that following the prayer, the Journal of proceedings be deemed approved to date, that no resolutions come over under the rule, the call of the calendar be dispensed with, the morning hour be deemed to have expired, and the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day; and that there then be a period for routine morning business until the hour of 11:30 a.m. with Senators permitted to speak for up to 5 minutes each, with the following exceptions: Senator Domenici for up to 20 minutes; Senator Daschle or designee for up to 30 minutes; Senator Simpson for up to 10 minutes; Senator Kerrey for up to 10 minutes; Senator Coverdell for up to 15 minutes; Senator Nunn for up to 10 minutes; and Senator Coats for up to 10 minutes.

Mr. DOLE. I further ask that at the hour of 11:30, the Senate resume consideration of H.R. 1158, the supplemental appropriations bill.

Mr. DOLE

Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, I have been asked if we might have a 10- minute period for morning business. I ask there be a period of 10 minutes for morning business, 5 minutes to be used by the Senator from Maine and 5 minutes by my colleague from California.

Mr. DOLE. Yes.

Mr. DOLE. I will have a discussion with the distinguished Democratic leader during the 10 minutes to see.

Mr. DOLE. Does the Senator need morning business time?

Mr. DOLE

Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Mr. DOLE

Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent--and it has been cleared by the Democratic leader--I ask unanimous consent that the live quorum under rule XXII be vitiated.

Mr. DOLE

Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, I think there is a serious effort by the Democratic and Republican leaders and the White House to try to see if we can bring this to closure. If we cannot, we will pull the bill down. If we can, we will try to finish it tomorrow evening. There is no way we can finish it with 97 amendments. That would take the rest of this week and all of next week, and I have something else planned for next week. In any event, many other Senators have plans for next week. I wonder if it would be all right, between now and 6:15, the time equally divided. I thank the Senator from Massachusetts. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent--this has been cleared by the Democratic leader--that all time between now and 6:15 p.m. be equally divided between the Democratic leader and Senator Ashcroft, or their designees, for debate on the Daschle and Dole amendments.

Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, let me say for the information of our colleagues, I have been talking with Senator Daschle, the Democratic leader, to see if there is some agreement we can reach on this supplemental appropriation bill. Right now I understand on that side of the aisle there are at least 70 amendments and on this side 27. That is almost 100 amendments. If we are to complete action on the bill and go to conference yet this week, today is Monday, we do not have a great deal of time. It was our hope to be in recess on Friday. I think the House also hopes to go out on Friday. So, I have been talking with the White House. If they do not want to finish this bill, then they ought to let us know, because we may not want to finish the Defense supplemental. We are prepared to make the readiness argument with this President any time he wishes on why we need the supplemental appropriations. The President sent me a letter. I think I received it Saturday morning, and I responded Saturday afternoon to the President's letter. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent those two letters be printed in the Record at this point just so we would have a record made.

Mr. DOLE. If the Senator will yield, I understand the Senator will have it printed today but it will not be offered today. Is that correct?

Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, will the Senator yield further? The Democratic leader indicated to me that he was prepared to vote on the D'Amato amendment, which indicates that he must have the votes to table. Would there be any objection to having it follow the vote on the D'Amato amendment, because his amendment was pending prior?

Mr. DOLE

Mr. DOLE. I announce that the Senator from Colorado [Mr. Campbell], the Senator from Mississippi [Mr. Cochran], the Senator from Texas [Mr. Gramm], the Senator from Oregon [Mr. Hatfield], the Senator from Texas [Mrs. Hutchison], the Senator from Oklahoma [Mr. Inhofe], the Senator from Kansas [Mrs. Kassebaum], the Senator from Arizona [Mr. Kyl], the Senator from Mississippi [Mr. Lott], the Senator from Oklahoma [Mr. Nickles], the Senator from Delaware [Mr. Roth], and the Senator from New Hampshire [Mr. Smith] are necessarily absent. I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from Oregon [Mr. Hatfield] would vote ``yea.''