Bill Frist

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, 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. I ask unanimous consent the committee-reported amendments be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read the third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and any statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record. THE PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The committee amendments were agreed to. The bill (S. 1250), as amended, was read the third time and passed, as follows:

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of calendar No. 194, S. 1250.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 197, S. 1415.

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

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 2 p.m. on Monday, September 12. I further ask consent 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 proceed to a period of morning business, with the time equally divided until 3 p.m. I further ask consent that at 3 p.m., the Senate resume consideration of H.R. 2862, the Commerce, Science appropriations bill.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, today we are resuming consideration of the Commerce-Science-Justice appropriations bill. Last night, we reached agreement to limit amendments to that bill. That agreement will allow us to finish this appropriations bill early next week. We are here today to give Senators the opportunity to offer amendments from that list. They will also have that opportunity on Monday. We will not vote on amendments during today's session, but we are prepared to debate additional amendments and schedule those votes for next week. Last night, we scheduled our first vote on Monday, and that will occur at 6:30 Monday evening. It will be on the motion to proceed to the resolution of disapproval regarding the regulations relating to mercury. As everyone is aware, the Judiciary Committee will begin its hearings on the nomination of Judge Roberts. I will be working with the Democratic leader to schedule floor votes around those hearings to provide the least amount of disruption of those proceedings. That means most of the voting will occur at the lunch hour or around midday and then later in the evening. Throughout this time, we will continue to focus our efforts on legislation related to the effects of Katrina. Yesterday, as my colleagues know, we acted very quickly on emergency court legislation so that those Federal courts could continue operations appropriately. As I have stated again and again, we will remain committed to respond and act expeditiously on any matter that can be cleared and that will assist in our recovery efforts in those affected States. Hurricane Relief Efforts

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I am pleased to report that last night, the Senate moved very quickly and passed a supplemental emergency aid package, a $51.8 billion bill that was signed and then about 2 hours later was signed by the President of the United States. It is a bill that aims directly at the critical rescue and relief efforts of the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Last night's action reflects the solemn commitment of the Congress and the President to the people devastated by the extreme disaster which has struck the Gulf Coast. I thank my colleagues for their hard work and determination to get this bill passed expeditiously. The clock was ticking. As of yesterday, the $10.5 billion we allocated during last Thursday's urgent session was nearly tabbed out. We knew at the time we passed this initial funding that more aid would be needed. What we did not know was the sheer magnitude of the catastrophe and how it would outstrip those relief dollars so quickly. By pulling together and responding in an efficient and quick manner, focusing on that essential task, at 7:30 last night we did pass that $51.8 billion bill. As a result of that, thousands of volunteers and responders will continue to do what they are doing so well right now along the Gulf Coast, and that is saving lives and providing aid. As I speak, over 65,000 Active-Duty and National Guard personnel are in the Gulf region conducting search, rescue, and voluntary evacuation operations. They are helping to restore washed-out roads, build bridges, and clear millions of gallons of toxic floodwater. They are providing critical health care, medical care, food, water, shelter, and security. Our thanks go out to them. Our gratitude goes out to each and every one of them. Many of those rescue workers, in fact, are putting their lives on the line as they deal day in and day out with an environment of destruction, of toxic chemicals, of toxic waters. We thank them for their dedication. When I was in New Orleans last Saturday and Sunday, just outside the terminal of the New Orleans airport, I had the opportunity to meet face to face with so many wonderful guard units. The 118th Airlift Wing, the Tennessee Guard based out of Nashville, was there in force. The 118th had been ferrying supplies and people in and out of that region over the course of the week, around the clock for days. Right now, the 118th AeroMed units are transporting the sick and the injured evacuees to locations all around the country. Again, I thank them in particular because they are from my home region of middle Tennessee, but I thank all of those Guard units and Active military that are contributing with untiring dedication and commitment. FEMA continues to aggressively provide support and sustenance for the hundreds of thousands of families whose lives have simply been shattered by this disaster. In 1 week, over a quarter of a million people have been evacuated and placed in over 200 shelters across 17 States. Each one of those shelters has affiliated with it many shelters, but it gives some feeling of the magnitude that there are some formal shelters in 17 States. Countless citizens all across the country are pitching in and giving money and donating their services and giving hope to those displaced individuals and families. Huge efforts are underway to locate those missing persons, people who have been separated from their friends and from their families. From the very beginning, we have seen a great outpouring of the American spirit, compassion, and care from private citizens, church groups, college groups, doctors, nurses, grandparents, moms, and dads--all being on the front lines helping neighbors in distress. Several of my colleagues have heard me tell the story of last Saturday and Sunday at the New Orleans airport where triage was underway, thousands of people were being brought in the door of that terminal. One out of four had some special need, some health care need, some medical emergency. To see the operation of four college students from the University of Texas helping carry people up to the triage unit side by side with our Guard units maintaining security the best they possibly could, coupled with the DMAT units, disaster medical assistance units, that have come from Florida, Pennsylvania, and really from all over the country--it was an amazing outpouring of people working together under the most trying circumstances, circumstances that minute by minute got worse and worse and worse. But everybody was pulling together, helping people in distress. A vivid image I think of throughout the day is two people on stretchers side by side on the floor in that very dark terminal in the midst of all that chaos in so many ways with so many people coming in, and those two people not knowing each other but taking care of each other's needs, helping each get a little bit of water, a little bit of food, or stopping somebody, the assistance one patient would give another patient, somebody they had never seen before. Again, there was this outpouring of compassion, love, and volunteer spirit. Today in the private sector, individuals and businesses have spontaneously donated well over $300 million to this effort. It is growing by hundreds of thousands of dollars every day--again, a representation of the outpouring of generosity, concern from individuals, corporations, and businesses. It is this outpouring of compassion and support that is a testament to our national character, the character of being an American. Here in the Senate, we have worked around the clock, as people have seen, with the emergency session last Thursday, and it continues today. We convened the emergency session Thursday and passed an emergency supplemental of $10.5 billion, and then the $51.8 billion last night. The committee chairmen have all been charged and are working very hard crafting legislation to meet the urgent and long-term needs of the hurricane survivors. This week, Speaker Hastert and I announced the formation of a bicameral--that is, House and Senate--bipartisan committee to conduct a top-to-bottom investigation, analysis, review of the emergency preparation and response to Hurricane Katrina. The committee will be made up of senior Members. It will report back to this body no later than February 15. They are going to review the emergency plans that were in place at the local level, at the State level, and at the Federal level, and how they interacted with each other, what went wrong and what went right. They will assess how local, State, and Federal governments actually responded, and when things went wrong, we will find it and we will correct it as we prepare for the future. Our committees will have legislative authority and will work with that joint committee based on those findings to legislate accordingly. The Energy Committee this week held hearings on the surge in gas prices and what can be done to bring them down. We passed legislation to get the Federal court system in the affected areas up and running. There are a lot of moving parts. We will continue to focus on legislation that answers the immediate response and relief, moving other business aside. Thousands of people need our help, and the three States need to recover and rebuild. Yes, all of this is a massive undertaking. It is an undertaking that is going to force us to think out of the box, to think innovatively, to think creatively, to think in ways that we just simply have not thought before. In many ways it is inexcusable to have a response which is not seamless, which is not efficient, which is not focused on seamless communication. We are going to fix what is broken and we are going to do it aggressively, thinking creatively, innovatively, and out of the box. As the Senate moves forward, helping the victims of the hurricane is our No. 1 priority. We are working through essentially three phases. And when I say phases, I think chronologically, but it is simultaneous phases. First is that immediate response to the victims who are in need, to the displaced persons, to continue that search and rescue. Whatever it takes, this body will make that an ongoing priority. The second element is the longer term rebuilding and reconstruction and revitalization of that entire Gulf State region. That is a major focus. It is a focus that has already begun, but it is also a much longer focus. It will take weeks and months and years. And that focus is something that needs to be a part of our agenda, is a part of our agenda, and each of our committees is looking at that. The third element is an analysis of what went wrong and what went right. We will be doing that through our committee structure as well as the joint committee that has been established by the Speaker and me. We need to cut the redtape and bureaucracy that is getting in the way. We hear it again and again and again. I have asked each of the committee chairmen to expedite proposals, suggestions to leadership, so we can consider those in this Chamber. In closing, the Senate and the American people are committed to helping the Gulf Coast rise again in a bigger way, a better way, and a more prosperous way than ever. It will require us to think innovatively and creatively. In this hour of need, in this hour of tragedy and unrest, we can also find great opportunity and great reason for hope. We stand shoulder to shoulder with our neighbors from the Gulf today, tomorrow, and in the months ahead. Mr. President, I yield the floor.

Mr. FRIST

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

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of calendar 196, S. 1340.

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

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of calendar No. 195, S. 1339.

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

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, on Monday, the Senate will resume consideration of the Commerce-Justice-Science appropriations bill. There are a number of amendments pending or in order to the bill, and I encourage Members to offer and debate those amendments on Monday afternoon so we can schedule votes for Monday night and Tuesday. On Monday evening, at 5:30, we will have an hour of debate followed by a vote on the motion to proceed to S.J. Res. 20, a resolution of disapproval relating to mercury. That vote will occur at 6:30 p.m., and additional votes are possible into the evening. Early next week, we expect to finish the Commerce-Justice-Science appropriations bill, and we will continue with other appropriations measures over the course of that week. Many of these appropriations bills do have disaster-related language, language that is important to our response to Katrina; therefore, we want to expedite their consideration. We have been working to pass several freestanding measures in response to Katrina, and we will continue to do so as they become available. As I pointed out earlier this morning and yesterday, last night, we are working very aggressively to make sure all legislation which is of benefit to the victims of this hurricane are handled expeditiously on the floor of the Senate in their consideration and passage. We have considered two emergency supplemental bills: the $51.8 billion we passed last night and the $10.5 billion we passed on Thursday of a week ago. We have considered bills regarding emergency court jurisdiction in response to Katrina and the courts' ability to continue their operations along the southern coast. We considered a resolution allowing for Senate offices to assist with noncash contributions with regard to relief in response to the hurricane. We are currently working on a whole range of additional matters relating to flood insurance and TANF, which is the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families Program. Our committees, through their various jurisdictions, are working to see how and when we can take action to give that appropriate relief and make progress in helping all of those affected by this natural disaster. We will continue those efforts over the weekend and into next week.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, 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 Reid.

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

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask the unanimous consent request as propounded follow the completion of the statement by the Senator from California and the Senator from Texas.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I yield myself time as necessary for my statement. Mr. President, we do turn to the second supplemental--the second supplemental in a week and a half--to address the natural disaster we have watched unfold, and that has literally unfolded in several ways, which is continuing now with both continued recovery and people settling around this country. Yesterday, Speaker Hastert and I announced the formation of a bicameral and bipartisan committee to analyze and conduct a real top- to-bottom investigation of the emergency preparation and response to Hurricane Katrina. The committee will be made up of senior Members. They will report their findings no later than February 15. The review will look at the emergency plans that were in place at the local, State, and Federal levels, and they will assess how the local, State, and Federal governments actually responded. It is clear that in some places the response was simply unacceptable at all levels of breakdown in systems. I saw it this weekend firsthand as a medical volunteer: too little command-and-control structure, too little communication. America deserves better. America deserves answers. The Senate must do all it can--and we are doing all we can right now--to provide immediate relief for the hundreds of thousands of people stranded and shattered by last week's events. We urgently need to pass a second disaster relief supplemental, and we will do that tonight, with no amendments, no delay. It is absolutely critical. Last Thursday's $10.5 billion emergency package has been drained-- totally drained. As of midnight tonight, all of the money will have been spent. And it is good. It shows a positive, rapid, quick response on behalf of our Federal Government. But it means we must act; thus this supplemental bill we will be voting on here in about 90 minutes. If we were to fail to act, every relief that is going on right this very moment, every search-and-rescue operation, all of the emergency food that is being delivered, and the shelter that is being provided, and the medical care that is being extended, will be without money when the sun rises tomorrow. The administration has requested $51.8 billion in this supplemental. That breaks down to $50 billion for FEMA, $1.4 billion for the Defense Department, and $400 million for the Army Corps of Engineers. We need to pass this bill and get it to the President for his signature tonight. Tens of thousands of volunteers, relief workers, law enforcement and military personnel are working right now, this very minute, to provide aid, rescue, and recovery. National guardsmen are going block by submerged block to carry out their rescues. The Army Corps of Engineers is hard at work pumping the floodwaters out of New Orleans. The water level, happily, has already gone down by 40 percent. They estimate it will take another 2\1/2\ months to completely drain the city. Right now, 60,000 U.S. military forces are on the ground in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi, aiding the recovery. They are providing extensive search and rescue, evacuation, and medical support. Twenty-seven Navy and Coast Guard ships are stationed off the gulf coast providing supplies and medical treatment. FEMA is working around the clock to find temporary homes for the thousands of displaced families. They are exhausting every option, including military bases, cruise ships, emergency trailers, vacant properties, and motels. All of these efforts are underway, and they must continue. The lives of hundreds of thousands of people are at stake. Meanwhile, there is still a lot of work to do, and we are working around the clock to do it here in the Senate. Today, we began consideration of the Commerce, Justice, Science appropriations bill, which includes critical support for recovery and rebuilding efforts. It provides funding for the disaster loan program administered by the Small Business Administration. It provides grants to State and local authorities, including law enforcement, for critical equipment such as satellite phones, which are especially critical right now where communication is spotty and, in places, where sometimes communication is even nonexistent. The Commerce bill also supports the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA. NOAA is responsible, as we all know, for researching, forecasting, monitoring, and warning the public of hurricanes such as Hurricane Katrina. Clearly, we need to pass this bill. We also need to cut the redtape and bureaucracy that gets in the way of helping people, the redtape and bureaucracy we have heard again and again slowing the response at every level. In the coming days and weeks we will take up legislation that streamlines the system and gets help to the people who need it on time, efficiently and quickly. As we have seen over the past 12 days, America is a compassionate, generous Nation. People from all over have poured out their hearts, time, and resources to help their neighbors on the gulf coast. Private citizens and businesses have donated hundreds of millions of dollars. Relief organizations and faith-based organizations are on the front lines every day working valiantly to provide material and spiritual assistance. Here in the Senate, we cleared a resolution last night allowing noncash Katrina assistance to be solicited and donated among our Senate employees. Americans from all across this country and in all walks of life are offering hope and love and compassion. It is a testament to our Nation's strength and to our historic bond as citizens, as Americans. Hurricane Katrina now stands as the worst natural disaster in our Nation's history. It is a tragedy of epic proportions. But there is hope and there is determination. The gulf coast will recover and rebuild and emerge more modern and more prosperous than ever. It is going to be a massive effort. It will take all of our strength and all of our determination. But this is America, and in America no challenge is too great. We rebuilt Chicago. We rebuilt San Francisco. New Orleans, Biloxi, Mobile, and the entire coast will rise again bigger, stronger, and better than ever. Mr. President, I yield the floor.

Mr. FRIST. Very briefly, Mr. President, this supplemental will be the last vote of the evening and for the week. We will be here tomorrow to continue business on Commerce-Justice-Science. Amendments can be offered either tonight or tomorrow. There will be no rollcall votes tomorrow. We will be voting on Monday. Instead of 5:30, it will be a little later than that. We will announce that specific time on Monday. We will finish Commerce-Justice-Science early next week. Senators should not wait to offer amendments. Either offer them tonight or tomorrow. We will wrap this bill up in the very early part of next week.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Senators be permitted to submit tributes to Chief Justice Rehnquist for the Record until September 30, 2005, and that all tributes be printed as a Senate document.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 9:30 a.m., on Friday, September 9. 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 resume consideration of H.R. 2862, the Science-Commerce-Justice appropriations bill.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, tomorrow, the Senate will resume consideration of a very important bill, the Commerce-Justice-Science appropriations bill, a large bill and a bill on which we have a number of amendments to be considered and a bill that does have a direct application to our disaster response to Katrina. Although there will be no rollcall votes tomorrow, the managers will be here ready to continue with the amendment process and expedite consideration of the bill. We now have a limited number of first-degree amendments in order, and I encourage Senators to come to the floor tomorrow, as well as Monday, so that we can complete action on this bill early next week. Monday evening, we will have an hour of debate followed by a vote on the motion to proceed to S.J. Res. 20, a resolution of disapproval. That vote will occur at 6:30 p.m., and additional votes are possible into the evening. Mr. President, in closing, this has been a challenging week for the entire country and, indeed, for the Senate as we have responded in an expeditious way to this natural disaster that the Nation has witnessed unfolding. We approached our response in the Senate at three different levels or three different phases or three different elements. The first is this immediate action for relief and recovery, immediate response, quick action, considering legislation brought to the floor and setting other business aside to address that important immediate response. We will continue to do that over the course of the next week and the week after that to make sure we address the needs that must be addressed at the Federal level through this body to facilitate the response to the disaster, focusing, of course, first and foremost on the safety and welfare of the victims. Other immediate action was the $10.5 billion that we passed last Thursday night and then the $51.8 billion that we passed tonight, which will be signed here shortly and signed by the President within the next hour or so. Another example is the Federal courts relief bill that we passed so that Louisiana Federal courts could be up and running with appropriate sites. The second phase that is ongoing is the consideration of rebuilding, reconstruction, and this involves consideration of a whole range of issues through not all but most of our committees, in terms of redevelopment with strong economic incentives to capture the dynamism and the power of the private sector in partnership with the public sector. It is going to take the strength of the public and the private sector working together to accomplish that successful rebuilding and reconstruction of a part of the country that can return and will return with a much more modern and revitalized future, a future that is actually very exciting as we look to the rebuilding and reconstruction, something to which the Governor, local officials, and the Federal Government are committed. The third phase is analyzing very carefully what went right but probably even more importantly what went wrong in our response--meaning our generic response, everyone's response--to this natural disaster. Things did not go as well as anyone would like, Americans deserve answers, and we will get to the bottom of that. We have established a bicameral, bipartisan committee with the House and the Senate working together to carry out that analysis. In addition, we have designated in this body the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee as the lead committee in oversight. I mention these three elements because with so much activity, it is important for both our colleagues and the American people to know that we are working on each of these three elements with immediate action which requires expeditious consideration on the floor of the Senate; secondly, rebuilding and reconstruction to an even more modern and revitalized and very exciting future for the Gulf States; and thirdly, to investigate and analyze what went wrong. We will continue with all of that over the course of the evening and tomorrow and through the weekend, and everybody will keep pulling together and acting in the best interest of the American people, with our thoughts and prayers going out to those people who have been so dramatically affected, along with the States, and who are now spread all over the United States of America.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, 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, I ask unanimous consent that other than the pending amendments, the only remaining first-degree amendments to H.R. 2862, the Commerce-Science-Justice appropriations bill, be the following list that I send to the desk; provided further, that they be subject to second-degree amendments which are relevant to the first- degree amendment to which they are offered.

Mr. FRIST

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