Wendell Ford

Mr. FORD

Mr. FORD. The reason I ask--I apologize for interrupting--is for others who want to come to the floor, and we can give them a time at which they can get here. So it would be roughly 10 minutes after 11. I thank the Senator.

Mr. FORD. Mr. President, how long will the Senator be?

Mr. FORD. Mr. President, I join my colleague in asking the Senators to help us move this bill along. We worked late into the night last evening in order to try to accommodate as many Senators as we could. There were some changes in language to where the amendments could be agreeable. Those amendments will be offered because both sides have agreed. We are down to maybe five or six amendments that will need votes. I don't know of any other vote that would be necessary. Under the unanimous consent agreement of last evening, we said that these were first-degree amendments and that there might be second- degree amendments. We hope not. I want to encourage those on my side, if they have amendments that they want to debate and discuss, we are ready to take the time to do it now. It gets a little frustrating here at the end of a session when everybody wants something done and nobody is here to help us get things done. It is the ``nature of the brute,'' as I have heard quite often. But we will be in a crunch, we will be here Saturdays and Sunday afternoon if we are going to get out by October 9, or we will be labeled as a ``do-nothing Congress.'' I don't like that label, and I don't like to work on Saturdays or Sundays. I don't think my colleagues do either. If they would just come and offer their amendments and give us a time agreement, we can stack votes. We can do a lot of things to accommodate our Members. I hope they will listen to the admonishment of my friend from Arizona that we want to finish this bill today, if at all possible. We intend to do that. If colleagues are not cooperative, then third reading is always possible. I thank the Chair, and I yield the floor. Mr. FEINGOLD addressed the Chair.

Mr. FORD

Mr. FORD. Mr. President, I have to oppose this amendment, also. The FAA must have the ability to act when it believes safety is at risk. The FAA is often criticized for not acting quickly enough on safety matters. Here they revoke a certificate for safety purposes and we want to make it harder for them to act. Right now the court of appeals has upheld the FAA actions in every case. They do not second guess the agency charged with the regulation of safety, so let's be sure we give the FAA the authority for safety in the air.

Mr. FORD. I announce that the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Glenn) and the Senator from Illinois (Ms. Moseley-Braun) are necessarily absent. I also announce that the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Wellstone) is absent attending a funeral. I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Wellstone) would vote ``no.''

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

Mr. FORD

Mr. FORD. I announce that the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Glenn) and the Senator from Illinois (Ms. Moseley-Braun), are absent on official business. I also announce that the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Wellstone) is attending a funeral. I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Wellstone) would vote ``aye.''

Mr. FORD

Mr. FORD. I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. FORD

Mr. FORD. Mr. President, let me compliment and thank my friend from North Dakota. No one has worked harder or spoken more eloquently in support of the small family farm than the Senator from North Dakota. How well I understand what he is going through. We heard on this floor yesterday afternoon that we are getting ready to spend money for ``emergencies,'' but we ought to give a tax break. What is an emergency? Farmers, the Senator said. We should have known there would be a drought or there would be too much water. We ought to have put money in the budget for it. ``Emergency'' is something that is on occasion. We cannot anticipate an emergency. We can't do that. But a tax break is in perpetuity. It goes on forever. Emergency is one time. So we try to cover up by accelerating the payments under Freedom to Farm. I voted against the North American Free Trade Agreement, one of seven in this body. It is awfully hard to get a Senator with something on his mind, with a philosophy that never looks in the future. The future is now at hand on that vote on the North American Free Trade Agreement when we are being flooded not only with farm products but wool and everything else relating to our people trying to make suits, pants and so forth in the textile business. It is driving our people out of this country. The Senator is absolutely correct, we need that safety net for our farmers. I have sat on too many front porches of farm families. I have been in the kitchen with the farmer and his wife and family. I understand what they are going through. They can't compete. One of the finest men I know was in my office yesterday taking a load of hogs to the slaughter house. He got $3,500 for hogs that a year ago would have brought $7,000. What did he get? Nothing. We don't have any compassion for him; we don't have any reason to try to help him keep that farm. He put everything into that load of hogs. What does he get back? He couldn't even pay for the feed. So we say ``compete.'' Competition is like dialing a new bank at home. The tape says if you want so and so, push 1; if you want so and so, push 2; if you want so and so, push 3. You keep on pushing the phone and finally people throw the phone out the door. They want to talk to a human being, but we call another State to talk about local loan problems or financial problems. We are getting into an intolerable situation. I hope the Senator never lets his vote die as it relates to the family farm. I compliment the Senator for what he is trying to do. I understand we have been debating the aviation bill, but he has an amendment that talks sense. The commodity we have so little of here is common sense. Common sense, I think, if it prevails, the Senator might win a couple of amendments in the not-too-distant future. I yield the floor.

Mr. FORD

Mr. FORD. That will be fine, since we don't have a Senator on the floor wanting to offer an amendment right now.

Mr. FORD

Mr. FORD. I announce that the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Glenn) is necessarily absent.

Mr. FORD. I announce that the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Glenn), is necessarily absent.

Mr. FORD

Mr. FORD. Reserving the right to object, let's be sure we have the parliamentary procedure correct. This is a managers' amendment that is a part of the original bill as filed subject to amendment.

Mr. FORD. I wanted to be sure. There is not any hanky-panky going on here, I know that. Every once in a while, we find we have to make a unanimous consent request to get us out of a parliamentary problem.

Mr. FORD. What airports do they go do?

Mr. FORD

Mr. FORD. We gave the Senator time off the aviation bill. We have some amendments.

Mr. FORD. But the 2 minutes are fine.

Mr. FORD

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

Mr. FORD. I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. FORD

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

Mr. FORD

Mr. FORD. Madam President, I appreciate the remarks of the Senator from New Hampshire. Many of the economists give credit for the financial position of this country to the President and those who voted for the 1993 Budget Act, for which not a one on the side of the Senator from New Hampshire voted. Secondly, the CBO, which is an appointment of the majority party, has said there will only be a $31 billion surplus in the general fund at the end of 10 years. He is partially right in saying if we have an emergency supplemental that it would come from the surplus, which is basically Social Security. Any tax break that is given comes from Social Security. I think whatever we might believe about the President, if a bill that goes to his desk that takes part of the Social Security trust fund money and spends it for a tax break or anything else that he will veto it, because the economic situation of this country is still an amazement to the rest of the world, how we have put our economy and our economic position in place. What is an emergency? I think the rules are basically something similar to this. I don't have it before me to read. But it is something that doesn't come all the time, it is unexpected. The Senator from New Hampshire says you can expect a drought, or you can expect too much water, or you can expect all these things, so you should fund for it. I have gone through years when we didn't have an emergency in the farm community. I have gone through years when we did not have an emergency appropriations. So, therefore, you didn't need to budget it. Secondly, the emergency is something that occurs and is not in perpetuity. The tax cut goes on; it doesn't stop. If you have an emergency now, you try to take care of that emergency; if it doesn't occur again, you don't have to do it again. If you give a tax break, that goes on forever, in perpetuity. So there is a difference between a tax cut and an emergency supplemental appropriations. It isn't something that reoccurs; you do it one time. As we look at the Freedom to Farm bill that was heralded as the savior for the farm program, we see now that it really doesn't work; there is no safety net for the farmers. There is a crisis in the Midwest. The farmers who raise the grain have had a lot of trouble, and it is not necessarily no rain, a drought, and so forth, but prices. The North American Free Trade Agreement, which only seven of us in the Senate voted against at the time, has now come back to bite us. When you find farmers standing at the border between the United States and Canada preventing those 18 wheelers from coming in, it is somewhat understandable that we should be concerned about it. I hope we can sit down and work out whatever moneys are necessary as it relates to an emergency supplemental, particularly for our farmers and particularly in defense. I did not want the Senator from New Hampshire to get up and say all these things as fact without having a little bit of the other side from whom some people refer to as a moderate Senator from Kentucky. I yield the floor. Several Senators addressed the Chair.

Mr. FORD

Mr. FORD. I thank my friend, Senator McCain, chairman of the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee. I compliment him on his remarks. I think he fully and fairly explained the legislation that is before the Senate. One of the things I want to reiterate that he stated is that every State in this Nation has a vital part in this piece of legislation as it relates to air transportation, not only domestically but internationally. It is important. We are talking, I think, in the neighborhood of approximately $10 billion per year. It is so important, as the chairman has said, that we work hard and quickly on this bill so that we might pass it prior to adjournment. I would hate to see this piece of legislation caught up in a continuing resolution that would generally turn into a ``Christmas tree.'' So, Madam President, before us today is S. 2279, a bill that my good friend, Senator Ted Stevens, and this committee named after me. I hope having that name on it won't prevent it from moving expeditiously. It is an honor to have a piece of legislation named after a Member, and I thank the Senator from Alaska for his friendship and his kindness. As many of my colleagues know, this bill is a ``must'' pass bill. Without it, the FAA and our nation's airports can not continue to build to meet future needs. I have watched over my career as airports in Louisville, Cincinnati, Owensboro, Hazard and may other places in my State, have benefited from the work of the FAA. We all have seen the growth in aviation throughout the country and, yes, throughout the world. Denver, for example, was a pipe dream for many years. Today, it is a vital part of the aviation system. Past Administrators, like Linda Daschle, and Secretaries, like Sam Skinner, have also realized how critical aviation is to our economy. In naming these two individuals, I do not mean to exclude the many fine individuals who have held those posts. The Administrator today, Jane Garvey, and the Secretary, Rodney Slater, have seen first hand how important airport improvements are to our communities. I had hoped, in my last FAA reauthorization bill, that we could have done more. In 1996, along with Senator McCain and others, we tried to set a course to reforming the FAA. We worked through difficult issues together, and produced a good road map for the FAA. One piece remains missing--funding. There will be options that will be debated next year--a fee system, taking the Airport and Airways Trust Fund off budget, or keeping the current system. As long as you can ensure that the FAA has the money it needs to modernize and meet the future needs of the traveling public, you will succeed. Today, we will lay down a managers' amendment. We have been working on it ever since the FAA bill was reported by the Commerce Committee. Many issues of concern of the Members have been addressed. Some remain unresolved. I want to make clear that there are a few provisions that still need some work. Clarification of intent will be important. The bill today does two critical things--it gives the FAA a road map to improve safety and to make sure that communities that have not benefitted from airline deregulation have a chance to improve airline services. I have heard the Chair's distinguished colleague, who is on our Commerce Committee, talk about the air transportation problems in small communities in their area. I am hopeful that in this piece of legislation we moved in the right direction to help those communities that have not benefited from airline deregulation and have a chance to improve their services. I will talk more about the small community needs later. As I said earlier, I think Senator McCain explained the bill very well and very fairly. I am hopeful that colleagues on my side will be more than willing to accept the managers' amendment and will be Henry Clay-like--that is, in the mood of compromise--as we move into the amendments that are not quite ready to be agreed to. I am hopeful that we will be limited to maybe five or six votes and then final passage. If we can do that, then that will be a real victory for the legislative process. I want to express a special thanks to the staff on both sides who have worked so hard since this bill was introduced to work out many of the amendments that were being proposed and suggested. I think we come today with a package that is almost there. I am sure that once we get into the five or six amendments that might be contentious, we will be able to work it out. Even now, as we are bringing this piece of legislation to the floor, staff are working to see if they can reach an agreement on the final pieces of legislation. I agree with my colleague, Senator McCain, that we are hopeful that between now and roughly 6 p.m., we will know how many amendments will be brought to this piece of legislation, how many would need a vote, and how many we would need to discuss. We are hopeful that we can be very close at the end of the day to getting this bill prepared to pass here tomorrow and send it to conference, so that we can include this must-pass bill in our agenda before we leave here somewhere around October 9. Again, I thank my colleague for all of his hard work. He is a pretty tenacious fellow. When there are things that he believes should be done, even though he may not have a majority with him at that time, look out, here he comes. So we are down to five or six amendments, I believe, and we are still working to try to see if an accommodation can be made, because when we are talking about the transportation and the industrial development, those things are so important to this country and our ability to move in the international sphere that we must pass this bill before we leave here. So I am ready to work. I will meet with our colleagues any time. Our staffs are prepared to meet, and we will do whatever is necessary to spend the time to work out these final few amendments. Before we leave here this afternoon, I look forward to having some kind of a finite list, if we can get it, of those that we will be considering in the next 24 hours. Madam President, I thank the chairman for his courtesy and the time. I yield the floor.

Mr. FORD. Madam President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. FORD

Mr. FORD. Reserving the right to object, how much time?

Mr. FORD

Mr. FORD. I thank the Chair. There is no objection to the distinguished Senator's amendment on this side.