Pete Domenici

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I am kind of confused on my side for the moment. I see two Senators. I yield time to Senator Enzi. I ask the Senator, do you want to speak on the Dodd amendment or do you want to speak on another amendment?

Mr. DOMENICI. I ask Senator Hatch, do you want to speak 1 minute on the Gregg amendment?

Mr. DOMENICI. I will give you each 1 minute on mine. I will try to go quicker than that. The argument has now reached the point where everybody can understand it. Although the amendment which the Senator offered does not address the reserve funds set up with the tobacco settlement money, he has clearly stated his case. He would like to be able to spend some of the tobacco settlement on his ideas on child care. Even if his amendment passed, he could not do that. But let me just tell you what this means. This means that the Senator from Connecticut wants to spend tobacco settlement money on child care where the Budget Committee wants to spend it on Medicare. Medicare spends $25 billion a year and thus it is in default and will be bankrupt in 10 years because of cigarette smoking which causes illness and cancer in the seniors covered. The Budget Committee said the best place to use the money is to put it in the Medicare fund so we do not let the program go bankrupt. I continue to say that is the best place and the highest priority. Today is another good example. No matter what the Government of America is doing, we must do more. Whatever we are doing in child care, we must do more. Whatever we are doing in some other area, it is not enough. Now we have heard that for a long time, but I believe we are passed that stage. I think we are in an era of balanced budgets and surpluses. You will not stay there very long if you return to the day that whatever the Government is spending, it is not spending enough, let us have a new program. Mr. ENZI addressed the Chair.

Mr. DOMENICI. I ask for the yeas and nays on the second-degree amendment of Senator Gregg.

Mr. DOMENICI. I ask unanimous consent for it to be in order for me to make a point of order on the Dodd amendment so he can make the motion to waive, so that will have been accomplished, and we will, therefore, have that be the second vote.

Mr. DOMENICI. Regarding the Dodd amendment, it is not germane to the provisions of the budget resolution pursuant to section 305(b)(2) of the Budget Act, and I raise a point of order against the Dodd amendment.

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. DOMENICI. I ask unanimous consent that the yeas and nays be vitiated.

Mr. DOMENICI. I don't think we have anything further by unanimous consent. By virtue of the list we have, the next amendment is Senator Kyl's. That will be followed by a Democratic amendment yet to be chosen.

Mr. DOMENICI. Is the Senator talking about the two amendments we had agreed we were going to dispose of by Senator Burns and Senator Kerry?

Mr. DOMENICI. Does the Senator have more amendments?

Mr. DOMENICI. Let's do that.

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, parliamentary inquiry. I am not objecting on the basis that the second-degree amendment alluded to is not automatically called up as a second-degree amendment to the amendment suggested, because I believe we will have an opportunity, even if we have to have the majority leader here, to offer the second- degree amendment before it is offered on that side. Is that correct?

Mr. DOMENICI. I didn't think it was a unanimous-consent request. I object. I have no objection to the amendments.

Mr. DOMENICI. They are just going to be pending like the other amendments, as I understand it.

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I yield the floor to Senator Kyl. Amendment No. 2169

Mr. DOMENICI. Might I inquire how much time remains on the amendment and how much in opposition?

Mr. DOMENICI. If we use that, each side has used an hour.

Mr. DOMENICI. Thank you. Senator Bumpers.

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Before our friend from Colorado proceeds, I send to the desk an amendment on behalf of Senators Roth, Breaux, Gregg, Robb, Hatch, Nickles, Gramm, Gordon Smith, and Santorum, and ask it take its place among the amendments to be determined in the future as to when a vote will occur.

Mr. DOMENICI. Is that the amendment on Indian schooling?

Mr. DOMENICI. Thank you.

Mr. DOMENICI. I yield the floor so the Senator from Colorado can call up and debate his amendment. Mr. ALLARD addressed the Chair.

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I suggest the Senator not yield back his time but, rather, let us set his amendment aside, reserving whatever time he has, and we will proceed with the next debate. So tomorrow, if my colleague wants to pick it up when we are in session and use another period of time, maybe that will give the opponents a chance and we will have a good debate. If we don't need it, we will yield it back then.

Mr. DOMENICI. I understand the distinguished Senator from Idaho, Mr. Craig, would like to speak for about 5 minutes.