Bill Frist

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. The Senate has made tremendous progress on the bill today. It has been a very long day. The chairman and ranking member have done a superb job working with other chairmen and other ranking members throughout the course of the day to bring us to this point. I do want to congratulate Senator Stevens and Senator Inouye for their great work. We will finish this bill before we leave on Friday, as we set out to do now about 7 or 8 days ago. We will have a very long session tomorrow. We have a lot of work to do. We are in this postcloture period. There are a lot of amendments to be processed and to be voted upon. We are still working toward an agreement on the pensions bill. I hope to have progress to report on that front tomorrow. Aggressively, people have been working to bring resolution to that bill, and I am confident we will be able to do that but do not yet know the timing on that.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 266, which was submitted earlier today.

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. If there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate stand in adjournment under the previous order, following the remarks of Senator Landrieu.

Mr. FRIST

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, pending before the Senate is a nondebatable question as to whether the pending Warner amendment is germane. I now ask consent that this question be temporarily set aside to recur Wednesday evening at 7:30.

Mr. FRIST. I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, the unanimous consent request was to temporarily set aside the pending Warner amendment, the determination of whether it is germane, until 7:30 tomorrow evening. What that means, practically speaking, now that we have filed cloture as well, is we will continue on the Department of Defense appropriations bill; amendments, as they are brought to the Senate, will be debated and considered over the course of tomorrow, throughout the day; that the first vote that will be taken--we are not going to be voting until tomorrow evening--is on the issue of the germaneness of the Warner amendment. There are likely to be--in fact, there will be--other votes stacked after that depending on what comes forward tomorrow. We have two other amendments pending as well. The cloture motion has been filed. That cloture vote would be on-- today is Tuesday, then comes Wednesday--Thursday morning, which will allow us to complete the Department of Defense appropriations bill this week, as we have said all along. One of the reasons we filed cloture tonight is to allow the full Senate to decide how best to proceed and to move forward so the preferences of Senators can be heard, listened to, and we can bring to closure this particular bill. Mr. President, I will simply turn to my distinguished colleague from Virginia to allow him to make any statement, but that is the understanding we have had among both the chairman and ranking member of the Department of Defense appropriations bill, the leadership on both sides, and the chairman of the authorizing amendment that has been offered.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the amendment at the desk be agreed to, the committee-reported substitute, as amended, be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 205, S. 1197.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 264, which was submitted early today.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Banking be discharged from further consideration of S. 392 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the bill be read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and any statements relating to the measure be printed in the Record.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, this morning, following the 1-hour period of morning business, we will resume debate on the Defense appropriations bill. Yesterday afternoon, we locked in an agreement which requires all first-degree amendments to be filed at the desk no later than 10:30 this morning. Senators Stevens and Inouye will be here and be able to determine which amendments can be agreed to on both sides. Senators are expected to come to the Senate today and offer their amendments to the Defense bill. I hope Members will take advantage of today's session and not postpone and delay until later in the week. Although we will not be voting today, the Senate can debate those amendments, and stacked votes begin tomorrow evening. I expect we will have multiple votes tomorrow evening in relation to the amendments on the Defense bill. We will finish this bill prior to adjourning for next week's recess. We will be voting on Friday of this week. Again, we have not voted on very many Fridays over the last 8 months, but we will be voting on Friday this week. We are also trying to reach consent agreements for consideration of the pensions bill which the Democrat leader and I were just talking about, a very important bill, and we are in the final stages of preparation of that bill. Once that is available, we will do our best as leadership to bring that to the Senate in a timely fashion. We hope to have that agreement and are also working on potential agreement on the Defense authorization bill as well. Once agreements are in place, we will be ready to bring those to our colleagues.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, Saturday night, on the Indonesian island of Bali, suicide bombers attacked 3 crowded cafes, killing 25 people and wounding many more. People from 22 nations perished in those deadly blasts. Indonesian officials are on the hunt for the masterminds of this and the October 12, 2002, attacks. America stands ready to assist in whatever way we possibly can. Our hearts go out to the families of the people of Indonesia who, once again, have suffered at the hands of deranged killers. We know all too well the pain and anguish caused by the terrorist enemies. Today, the Senate intends to pass a resolution expressing our deep sympathies and condolences. I will come back to the Chamber later today to pass that resolution with unanimous consent. We stand shoulder to shoulder with the Indonesian people as they bring justice to the killers. We are at war with a barbarous and implacable foe. The killers strike in the name of Islam, but their religion is not to be found in the pages of the Koran. Their religion is found in their corrupted and blackened hearts and in their twisted and hateful minds. Indonesia, a Muslim country, has been the target of multiple attacks. The killers seek power, squalid and absolute. Their war is on the civilized world. Istanbul, Turkey, 2003: 56 people killed, more than 450 people injured. Madrid, Spain, 2004: 190 people killed, 1,500 injured. Beslan, Russia, September that year: 344 people killed, 186 of them schoolchildren. London, UK, July 7, this summer: 52 people killed, 700 injured. The attacks continue on the Iraqi people and the people of Afghanistan. The United States calls on the international community to renew and strengthen our efforts to defeat the killers by dismantling their network and exposing the nihilism and perversion of their aims. We urge the international community to increase the global effort to advance freedom, liberty, and prosperity, and to root out the social injustice that feeds the violence. These are daunting challenges, to be sure. But just as surely, we have no other choice. The gauntlet was thrown for America on September 11. The enemy offers death. We must offer hope. We must shine the light of freedom wherever they live, wherever they hide, a light so dazzling that not even their shadow remains. I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, today we continued on the Defense appropriations bill, and several amendments were offered and debated. As previously announced, any votes ordered will begin tomorrow at sundown. The first vote will occur at approximately 7:30 tomorrow evening. Moments ago, I filed a cloture motion on the Defense appropriations measure. We are working with a compressed Senate schedule this week, and I filed this motion to ensure that the Senate will finish the Defense appropriations bill by the end of this week. The cloture vote will not occur until Thursday. Therefore, we can dispose of amendments throughout tomorrow and tomorrow evening, voting on them prior to Thursday's votes. I will announce again that we need to finish this bill prior to the Senate adjourning for the recess next week.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 10 a.m. on Wednesday, October 5; I further ask that following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved, and the Senate then resume consideration of H.R. 2863, the Defense appropriations bill. I further ask unanimous consent the Senate stand in recess from 12:30 to 2:15 p.m. to accommodate the weekly party luncheons.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. If there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate stand in adjournment under the previous order.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, today we are turning to consideration of the Department of Defense appropriations bill. Chairman Stevens and Senator Inouye are ready for Senators to come forward with their amendments. We hope to have an agreement that all first-degree amendments will be filed at the desk no later than 5 p.m. today. The Democrat leader and I were just talking to that effect, and we will continue to work for the next several minutes on that. This would enable the two managers to review--and this is very important--allow them to review the legislative language to see what amendments may be acceptable on both sides. We have been unable to lock that agreement in place at this time, but I will continue to talk with the Democrat leader to see if that would be possible. As I previously announced, there will be no rollcall votes today or tomorrow in observance of the Rosh Hashanah holiday. Any votes ordered today or tomorrow will occur at sundown on Wednesday. In all likelihood, we will be stacking votes at that time. Having said that, we will be in discussion during this period, so Members can come forward and offer their amendments. I encourage Members to come to the Senate and not wait until later in the week. We are going to finish this bill before our next recess. We are making real progress on the appropriations bills. We need to continue that process. As we all know, the fiscal year has just passed. We are working on a continuing resolution. It is critical we continue to make progress on these bills. We have Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of this week to complete the Department of Defense appropriations bill. I hope we will be able to finish it Wednesday or Thursday, but we are not going to leave until we complete this bill. A number of other pieces of very important legislation are being discussed, debated, talked about, and written. One of those is the pensions legislation. The Committee on Finance and Committee on HELP have a bipartisan package on which we expect to reach a unanimous consent agreement so we can consider that bill this week as well.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, this is a momentous day in the history of our Nation. For the first time in two decades, a new Chief Justice ascends to the bench of the highest Court in the land. Today, John Roberts is leading the Supreme Court as the 17th Chief Justice of the United States. And today, with the nomination of Harriet Miers as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, we are faced with yet another opportunity to shape the course of history. President Bush's choice of Harriet Miers demonstrated a thoughtful, careful, and discerning selection. Once again, the President reached out in a bipartisan way to more than 80 Senators. Once again, the President chose a qualified nominee for our High Court. During her distinguished 35-year legal career, Ms. Miers has demonstrated her expertise as a talented attorney in both private practice and in public service. In every sense, Harriet Miers has been a true trailblazer and a role model for women in the legal profession. As a young attorney, she overcame numerous obstacles to become the first female hired by her Dallas law firm. She impressed her colleagues so much that they elected her president of the firm, making her the first woman to lead a Texas firm of that size. Ms. Miers has been a pillar of leadership in the legal community. She was the first female elected president of the Dallas Bar Association and head of the State Bar of Texas. She has served as trusted adviser to President Bush in various capacities and currently serves as White House Counsel. Since she has not served as a judge, she will bring a unique perspective to the Court. In fact, 41 of the 109 Supreme Court Justices who have served, including Chief Justice Rehnquist, did not have prior judicial experience. What the President saw in Ms. Miers and what I see in her is that she embodies each of the qualities we seek in a Supreme Court Justice. She is fair, honest, and of the highest integrity. Her resume is a study in the time-honored values of hard work and perseverance. She understands the importance of judicial restraint and the limited role of the judge to interpret the law and not legislate from the bench. She deserves a fair and civil hearing and a dignified debate on the Senate floor, followed by a fair up-or-down vote before Thanksgiving. As we move ahead with the nomination process, I hope we will carry forward the lessons we have learned from Chief Justice Roberts' recent nomination. His nomination progressed expeditiously and in a bipartisan manner. I commend Chairman Specter, Ranking Member Leahy, the Judiciary Committee, and the entire Senate for setting a standard to follow. We put principle above partisanship. We put results above rhetoric. We followed the framework intended by the Framers of the Constitution. By doing this, we helped to preserve the integrity and legitimacy of the judicial nomination process. And today, our Supreme Court and our Federal judiciary are stronger for it. From the Roberts confirmation we have learned and a bipartisan group of Senators agree that Senators can make an informed decision on the fitness of a judicial nominee by focusing on the individual's qualifications and not her political ideology. We have learned that a nominee's fitness to serve on the Federal bench can be determined by reviewing her record, her writings, and testimony, without probing into confidential, privileged documents. We have learned that nominees can and should answer questions without compromising their judicial independence and without prejudging cases, and we should not expect them to prejudge cases or issues that may come before the Court. A nominee who prejudges is truthfully the antithesis of what we want in a judge. We want an individual who approaches every case with a fair and open mind, analyzing the facts before them and applying the law. Perhaps the most important lesson we have learned from Chief Justice Roberts' nomination is that we should apply a single fair standard to all judicial nominees. With Harriet Miers' nomination before the Senate, we must again move expeditiously but carefully. It is my expectation that the Senate will give Ms. Miers the fair and civil hearing, the dignified debate, and the fair up-or-down vote she deserves. I believe the Senate has moved beyond the obstructionism of the recent past, and in moving forward we will adhere to the time-honored principle that all judicial nominees deserve a fair up-or-down vote. That vote should occur by Thanksgiving. With civility, trust, and hard work, we can accomplish this goal.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent the Senate now proceed to consideration of S. Res. 263, which was submitted earlier today.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent all first-degree amendments to H.R. 2863, the Defense appropriations bill, be filed at the desk no later than 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, October 4, and all first- degree amendments be subject to relevant second-degree amendments.