Bill Frist

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 Saturday, October 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 S. Res. 445, the Senate intelligence reform resolution; provided further that the time until 11:15 be equally divided between the two managers, with 30 minutes under the control of Senator Harkin.

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, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 3858, which is at the desk.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill 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. FRIST. Mr. President, tomorrow the Senate will resume consideration of the Senate intelligence reform resolution. Under the previous order, each of the remaining amendments in order will be offered, and the time until 11:15 will be equally divided for debate on the amendments. At 11:15 a.m., the Senate will proceed to a stacked series of votes on the remaining amendments, to be followed by a vote on adoption of the resolution, and a vote on the Harkin resolution. Following disposition of the Senate intelligence reform resolution, the Senate will resume consideration of the conference report to accompany H.R. 4520, the FSC/ETI JOBS bill. It remains my hope that we can expedite consideration of the conference report, but I would remind all Senators that a cloture motion is pending and that vote is now scheduled to occur at 1 p.m. on Sunday. If cloture is invoked, we would hope that Members will allow us to move forward with the vote on passage at the earliest possible time. The Senate may also take up the Department of Defense authorization conference report tomorrow or any appropriations conference report when it becomes available. I thank my colleagues for their patience. Weekend sessions are rare, but we have a lot of work to accomplish prior to adjourning. That work we will accomplish.

Mr. FRIST

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

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, in a moment we will proceed to the conference report to accompany the FSC/ETI, or JOBS bill. It is my understanding that we would be unable to reach a time agreement on the conference report, and therefore I will file a cloture motion on it this morning. Immediately after filing of that cloture, we will begin the vote on invoking cloture on the McConnell-Reid substitute amendment to the intelligence reform and homeland security resolution. The managers made substantial progress over the course of yesterday and last night. At this juncture, we are down to only a handful of amendments. Senators who do have amendments remaining should stay close to the Chamber this morning as we hope to move quickly on the underlying resolution. If Members are not timely in coming to offer their amendments, we will be moving to adoption of the resolution. At this juncture, we really should have no delay. Every hour that we delay over the course of today means an hour later before we adjourn, whether that is later tonight or tomorrow or the next day. We need to move on to complete the remaining legislative items before our adjournment. As we all know, the clock is working against us. We will finish the pending intelligence reform resolution. We will finish the FSC/ETI conference report. We will finish the Homeland Security appropriations conference report. Finally, we also expect to finish the Department of Defense authorization conference report. Obviously, from those four items you can see we have a lot to do, a full plate of business before our adjournment. Yet all of these can be handled expeditiously, but it is going to take the cooperation of each and every one of our Members. Individual Members are going to be able to determine whether we have to continue to work through the weekend, including Saturday and Sunday, to complete our business. I don't believe, if you look at it and you look at where each of these four items is, that it is necessary for it to take that long. We can very efficiently work through these items, but every Senator is going to have to cooperate. If not, it will be necessary to continue late tonight, Saturday, and possibly Sunday with these four items we must complete before adjourning. We will be voting throughout today and, if necessary, tomorrow and into Sunday. I believe we could finish all of this even late today if Senators focus on it and work together. Again, we need to finish all four items before we adjourn. I will be happy to yield for a moment to the Democratic leader before proceeding to the FSC conference report.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that there now be a period of morning business, with Senators speaking for up to 10 minutes each.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. That is correct.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, there will be no more rollcall votes tonight. We will continue to be here for a while. The plan will be to have a cloture vote on this bill tomorrow morning. We will have to start fairly early tomorrow morning. That vote should occur around 9:15. We will come in at 9 and do a little bit of business and have the first rollcall vote tomorrow around 9 o'clock. We do appreciate everyone's patience and especially appreciate the bill's managers, Senators McConnell and Reid. This has been a very long day. I know people are exhausted. We have a lot more work to do. We will continue for a while. Again, no more rollcall votes tonight.

Mr. FRIST. For planning purposes, because people are asking how long we will be around, we are really having to take this an hour at a time. The plans remain, as the Democratic leader and I have said all week, we will complete this bill. We are going to deal with FSC/ETI, the jobs manufacturing bill, and we will complete Homeland Security appropriations before we leave. We have been fairly clear about the schedule, and everyone has worked very hard, but it means we will stay here until we finish. So we will be here tonight, tomorrow, Saturday, Sunday, or whenever we complete our work. I don't know how long that will take. Everyone knows what the bills are. We have again and again asked for people to focus on the bills. Members have done a very good job. People are very tired. Rather than break and spend all next week or even the week after that, we have decided to go straight through. We know what the business is. The objectives are as I said. And we will again--it is late tonight--we will start early tomorrow morning, and we will complete business before we leave. No more rollcall votes tonight.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, this morning we will have a brief period of morning business for up to 30 minutes, with the first 15 minutes under the control of the minority and the final 15 minutes under the control of the majority. Following that time, the Senate will resume consideration of the pending resolution regarding Senate intelligence and Homeland Security oversight reform. Our whips are here again today to manage that resolution throughout the day. They will be able to update Members shortly in terms of expectations over the course of the day. I hope Members come forward with their amendments so we can finish this important resolution today. I remind everyone that last night we filed a cloture motion on that resolution with the purpose of ensuring that we complete consideration of the reform resolution this week. That is the goal that was set out actually weeks ago by the Democratic leader and myself, the leadership on both sides of the aisle. Again our purpose was not in any way to get Senators cut off on their ability to offer amendments, but given our objective of departing tomorrow, we do need to work expeditiously on this legislation which we absolutely must and will finish. As my colleagues know, rule XXII requires that first-degree amendments be filed at the desk no later than 1 o'clock today. At that point in time we should have a better idea as to how to proceed with the resolution over the course of the afternoon. In addition to completing the pending reform resolution, we expect the House to act on the FSC/ETI or JOBS conference report today. Real progress was made yesterday. As we all know, the conference completed its action and the House will address the conference report today. Once they address it, we will be able to address it. We will turn to that conference report later today, late today. I hope we can reach an agreement for debate on that privileged conference report. However, similar to the current bill, if necessary, we would have to file cloture. I hope that is not the case. There has been a lot of discussion over the last several days and I hope that discussion continues and that people do not force us to file cloture. Again, the leadership on both sides of the aisle agrees and has set out the objective of finishing the FSC legislation before we close out our business. We have a lot to do. We would also consider any other conference report that does become available during this period. I thank my colleagues. National Intelligence Reform Act A brief comment on action yesterday. Once again, I congratulate the Chair and ranking member of the Governmental Affairs Committee for a tremendous effort. A lot of the other committees participated directly through their chairmen and ranking members. Yesterday, we proved the Senate could act very deliberately but expeditiously on a very important bill, a bill that represents the most dramatic and significant reform of our intelligence community in half a century. We delivered that product yesterday. It has been an effort underway for months and months, most significantly since July, the 9/11 Commission Report release date, but which proceeded through August, September, into October, with the final Senate product being produced yesterday. As mentioned again and again, what we have done the last several weeks is address nearly all 39 of the 41 recommendations put forth by the 9/11 Commission. The business in the Senate after morning business today will be the remaining 2 of those 41 recommendations put forth by the 9/11 Commission. Those two are very important, in part because they focus on this body, its internal operation of oversight of the intelligence community, and thus we will address that. Again, I congratulate everyone for their participation. There is no question that the provisions in the bill we passed yesterday will make our Nation safer, it will improve our intelligence community, and will help us immensely in the war on terrorism. That was reflected by the overwhelming support, with only two Senators voting against the bill yesterday. This is going to be a very busy day but a productive day. Again, we should be able to complete all of our business to be able to depart tomorrow, but if not, we would have to be here into Saturday and whatever time it takes. I yield the floor.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, this month is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. It was launched over 20 years ago by the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. In 1989, the first Domestic Violence Awareness Month commemorative legislation was passed by the Congress. It has been passed every year since 1989. We have come a long way in understanding the causes of domestic violence. Most importantly, we understand now that spousal battery is not a mere private matter, something that happens behind closed doors. Domestic violence is a crime. It devastates lives, rips apart families, and affects every aspect of community life. Its victims deserve our best efforts to prevent and prosecute family violence as we would any other violent crime. Battery is a pattern of fear and intimidation to establish power and control over another person. It is wrong. Battering happens when one person believes they are entitled to control another. Acts of domestic violence include physical assault, sexual abuse, and psychological cruelty. It often escalates from insults and verbal jabs to physical harm. Fortunately, the work done by many courageous and committed individuals, including community leaders and churches and police departments, family courts, shelters, and advocates, have made a difference. The Department of Justice reports that the number of female victims of intimate violence declined through the 1990s. The number of male victims of intimate violence also went down over this period. As a society, we are much more aware of the danger signs and of our responsibility to respond and to intervene and to act. We are also more aware of our responsibility as moms and dads and husbands and wives to teach our children by example the value of compassion and respect. I commend those dedicated to keeping this in the public's consciousness. I urge my colleagues to join in the effort to raise the public's awareness. We have come a long way, but there is still more to do. I yield the floor.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Good morning to the Chair and everyone listening today. We will have a brief period of morning business for 30 minutes, with the first half under the control of the majority and the second 15 minutes under the control of the minority. We will then resume debate on the intelligence reform bill. Yesterday, we did invoke cloture on the bill by a vote of 85 to 10; therefore, we will conclude this bill today. This morning the managers will be here and will have additional cleared amendments to consider prior to a series of stacked votes, which are to begin at 11:30 this morning. In addition to those amendments that can be worked out, Senators may want to come to the Chamber to make closing remarks on the bill. The order from last night provides for the Senate to begin voting at 11:30 on the pending amendments that will require rollcall votes. It is expected some of the pending amendments will be accepted after some modifications, or possibly withdrawn. In any event, the voting sequence today will be lengthy. Therefore, Members should be prepared to remain close to the Chamber during that time. I expect to limit the votes to 10 minutes after the first vote in order to expedite passage of the bill. I remind my colleagues that at the conclusion of the pending intelligence reform bill, we will begin consideration of the resolution relating to the Senate's intelligence restructuring. Our distinguished whips will have a proposal to put forth and we will begin work on that later today. Therefore, additional votes will occur following the completion of the Collins-Lieberman bill. Lastly, I add that before we finish our business on Friday, which is our goal, we will consider any of the available conference reports, specifically, those of Homeland Security appropriations and FSC/ETI, if those are available.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, this resolution concerns a request for testimony and representation in a criminal case arising out of the Enron debacle. The Justice Department's Enron Task Force has brought a case in Federal court in Texas against six individuals formerly associated with the Enron Corporation and Merrill Lynch. The indictment alleges conspiracy, false statements, obstruction of justice, and perjury relating to transactions involving offshore power barges. The Government alleges that Enron in essence parked assets with Merrill Lynch to enhance fraudulently Enron's financial statements. The transactions at the center of this case were the subject of extensive investigation and a hearing by the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the Committee on Government Affairs during the last Congress. In the course of the subcommittee's investigation, subcommittee staff interviewed two of the individuals who are now on trial, about these transactions. Last Congress the Senate agreed to Senate Resolution 317, authorizing the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations to cooperate with requests from law enforcement agencies for access to subcommittee records from its Enron investigation. In June of this year, the Senate agreed to Senate Resolution 394, authorizing a former subcommittee counsel and a subcommittee detailee who interviewed the defendants to testify at this trial. The trial of this case began on September 20, 2004, in Houston. One of the defendants has now additionally subpoenaed a former subcommittee employee and a former detailee to testify about the same events. Accordingly, this resolution would authorize the former subcommittee staff to testify at this trial with representation by the Senate Legal Counsel.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, while the Democratic leader and I are both on the floor, because it reflects the discussions we have had over the course of today, there is other business that we will be conducting over the course of the week. There has been huge progress made today on a bill in conference, the FSC/ETI manufacturing jobs bill. We expect to address that hopefully very soon--I believe the House will be addressing it tomorrow--maybe tomorrow night or late tomorrow afternoon. It is a bill we are both committed to addressing before we leave. As everyone knows, we had planned to leave on Friday, October 8. It is a bill that also has been handled in an admirable way in conference by Chairman Grassley, and Chairman Thomas from the House, with a very open discussion, open debate, and votes in the conference. We plan on addressing that bill as soon as it is available and the plans will be to complete that as well before we depart. Homeland Security appropriations is currently in conference and we expect to be able to address that as well. I mention all of those bills because tonight is Wednesday and we have Thursday and Friday. Although our shared goal is that we leave Friday, if it requires being here Saturday or later, it means that we would have to do just that. It should not. The way these bills have been handled over the last several weeks, it simply should not require going into Saturday, but if necessary, we may just have to do that. I will comment briefly on the resolution as well because I have not had the opportunity to do so. I know the managers want to be able to proceed directly, but I just wanted to outline that in mid-August Senator Daschle and I did assemble a task force of 22 Members to look at the recommendations proposed by the 9/11 Commission that deal with reform of the Congress. We charged this task force to look at the range of issues and possibilities and to present the Democratic and Republican leaders with a proposal and their recommendations. To reflect the leadership's commitment to the importance of this issue of congressional reform, we asked our respective assistant leaders, Senator McConnell and Senator Reid, who are managing the bill now, to chair this task force. Over the past several weeks, Senators McConnell and Reid have held a series of meetings, collectively and individually. As Senator Daschle has said and as I have also said, we have had the opportunity to meet as conferences and caucuses to address these issues. The managers of the bill have also consulted with the 9/11 Commission and others to solicit their ideas and their reflections and recommendations. The product of their efforts is captured in the Senate resolution today and the amendment that has just been introduced. Right now, as we talk, the amendment may or may not be a perfect product--it is probably not a perfect product--but it is a very good and very solid product. It does reflect the majority view of the task force as they looked at a whole range of options and alternatives, individual items to improve Senate oversight of intelligence, which is the objective, and that is what will be achieved by this resolution. There are a number of contentious issues that have not been fully addressed, that we expect to be addressed tonight on the Senate floor. When the Democratic leader said we are reaching out to people to bring those potential amendments forward, that is exactly what we mean. It was Senator McConnell's and Senator Reid's recommendation, rightly I believe, to have the Members decide through debate and through the offering of amendments on the floor how we might make that proposal better. That is about as open and transparent a process as one can have, but it does require Members to come forward and participate in that floor debate. I will close by saying that I personally thank Senators McConnell and Reid for their efforts and to the other Members of the leadership task force and to all the Members for their cooperation and their participation in, once again, a nonpartisan manner. I reiterate that it is the leadership's desire on both sides of the aisle to complete this before we depart. I close where I began, and that is, without Senate reform of the way we conduct oversight of intelligence and homeland security, our efforts to overhaul the executive branch, which we took a major step forward just an hour ago in this body, will be incomplete, inadequate, and really inconsistent with our obligations to the American people.

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

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, about an hour ago, the Senate marked a historical moment with the passage of S. 2845, the National Intelligence Reform Act of 2004. Passage of that act was a major milestone--a major milestone--on the road to the most significant overhaul of our intelligence community in over 50 years. The Senate bill includes nearly all of the recommendations made by the 9/11 Commission as they centered on intelligence reform within the executive branch--39 recommendations. It is important to note, however, the Commission said that overhauling the executive branch is not enough and, thus, we are now on the Senate resolution to address the final two recommendations of the 9/11 Commission, and that is the overhaul of how we do business in oversight of intelligence functions. The Democratic leader and I were just talking about how pleased we were in the fulfillment of the process we set out at the end of July where both arms--one being the one we just completed on the Senate floor in the form of the executive branch intelligence jurisdiction, and the second arm being the overhaul of our Senate oversight--has worked so well to date, but we still have that second arm to address, and that is what we are on today. The Democratic leader and I have come to the floor to outline to our colleagues, A, the importance of completing that oversight function reform in this body but, B, and equally important, to point out we do not have very much time to address this issue with the range and number of other issues we have to address. We have plenty of time to address these issues, but we need to do so in an expeditious way, in a way that allows people to have their amendments considered, to have them debated, and to have them voted upon, but we need to do so in a timely manner. We ask our colleagues to bring their amendments to the resolution to the managers so they can be considered. With that, I turn to the Democratic leader, and then I will have further comments on other legislation we have to address before departing.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I rise to comment on the amendment we will be voting on in a bit. It does center on the establishment of a counterproliferation center. I appreciate the comments of my distinguished colleague from Arizona. We have had the opportunity to talk over the course of today about this amendment and we have a modification. I have talked to the White House and, based on that conversation, made further modifications. The reason we should vote on this amendment and it should be a part of this package that we can all be very proud of passing here in 10, 15, or 20 minutes is that the greatest threat facing our country is not a terrorist. We all know it is not just the terrorists. The greatest threat is a terrorist armed with some sort of weapon of mass destruction. In debate the other night before 60 million people, President Bush and Senator Kerry cited the nexus between proliferation and terrorism being their single greatest concern and the most significant challenge our country faces. This whole concept of counterproliferation--talk about a counterproliferation center is not a new idea, but it is a new component of U.S. policy and has been looking at the safety and security of the American people and an overhaul of our intelligence gathering and intelligence system. The counterproliferation is an important component to be addressed. Counterproliferation is a broad topic and it includes everything the United States and its allies do to halt, to deter, to stop, to roll back the trafficking of weapons of mass destruction, their delivery systems and related materials. It means interdicting these dangerous materials before they get into the hands of the world's most dangerous terrorists. It means stopping these items before terrorist groups can assemble them into weapons and deliver them to our homeland. Again, we are talking about counterproliferation, not just counterterrorism. But counterproliferation also means unraveling those proliferation networks that supply, sustain, finance, and enable proliferation suppliers and customers. They are the linkages and supply chains between countries that proliferate, firms that proliferate, middlemen, and their customers around the globe. The most famous network unraveled by the U.S. and its partners was the AQ Khan network. It was this network that supplied Libya, Iran, and possibly others, with nuclear equipment, materials, and know-how. Counterproliferation works, but it takes close cooperation, it takes close coordination, and it takes teamwork within the United States, and with our friends and allies around the world. The most famous interdiction of recent times was the stopping of the BBC China, a ship that was delivering nuclear parts and components to Libya before being interdicted at a friendly port by some of our European allies. This interdiction had a major effect on prompting Colonel Qadhafi to come clean and to give up his programs. With more and more countries possibly pursuing weapons of mass destruction programs, and with those same proliferators skirting international laws, treaties, and export control regimes, counterproliferation can help fill the gap and slow or stop this dangerous trade. The President's Proliferation Security Initiative was a positive step in this direction, but there is more that we can do and we should do. This amendment directs what we can and should do. The President's Proliferation Security Initiative is supported by over 60 countries, and nearly two dozen are active participants. As we expand globally, however, we, at the same time, need to develop internally. Indeed, the 9/11 Commission called for strengthening the Proliferation Security Initiative in its report and its recommendations. Establishing a National Counterterrorism Center is necessary. We are doing that. But the National Counterterrorism Center will be focusing on terrorists and terrorist groups. The Nation needs a similar center that, working closely with the National counterterrorism Center, will focus, clarify, and coordinate our country's counterproliferation efforts. In other words, as the counterterrorism center focuses on the customers, the end users of these dangerous weapons--the terrorists-- the national counterproliferation center will be focusing on the suppliers and brokers and distributors of these weapons. This separate center will endeavor to stop these activities before they ever reach the terrorists, before they ever reach the bad guys. That is what my amendment does. Establishing a national counterproliferation center not only promotes this critical function called counterproliferation that is so necessary to defend our country, it also breaks down the stovepipes that currently exist within the executive branch. This amendment tracks very closely to the structure, authorities, and roles established for the National Counterterrorism Center. Further, we have made changes to this amendment as amendments to the National Counterterrorism Center have been offered on the floor. This amendment has also been modified to make clear that counterproliferation does not include programs such as the Cooperative Threat Reduction Program and other threat reduction programs; that our traditional nonproliferation efforts as they pertain to treaties and regimes are not included; and that it does not apply to programs that provide protective gear, clothing, and other items that protect our troops on the battlefield from weapons of mass destruction attacks. Finally, as my distinguished colleague from Arizona said, I am well aware--we all are--that the President has a Commission studying this issue. That is why this amendment sets the parameters for a national counterproliferation center without getting into the explicit detail. It also does not call for any existing agencies or efforts to be disestablished. The amendment is also consistent with the framework and authorities for the NID that have been established in the underlying bill. I have also modified the implementation date so that this center does not have to be established until late next year. All of this gives the President the flexibility to fine-tune the center based on the findings of his Commission. It also gives him time to establish the center, particularly since the administration will be busy in the coming months setting up the counterterrorism center. The bottom line is this: Just as we take the offensive in the global war on terrorism, we must similarly take the offensive in stopping the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Our nonproliferation efforts are a good defense, but they are not sufficient. We need a good offense, and counterproliferation is just the answer. The role of the national counterproliferation center, therefore, is to coordinate, plan, and manage those efforts. It is to break down the stovepipes that exist in this nascent effort. It is to deny the terrorists and others access to weapons of mass destruction and their materials while the National Counterterrorism Center works to dismantle terrorist groups and bring terrorists to justice. Mr. President, establishing a national counterproliferation center is not only the smart thing to do, it is something we must do. I encourage my colleagues to give this amendment their full support. Doing so will make the country and the American people much safer. Let me also add, in response to the Senator from Arizona, we have received input from the White House on how to improve this amendment. We have incorporated their ideas. The White House, at this point, does not oppose this amendment. I am confident this amendment does strike the proper balance between establishing the national counterproliferation center and, at the same time, leaving the President more than sufficient time--a year--and flexibility to modify it as he sees fit or as the Commission recommends. This amendment is crafted in a manner so as to leave the whole range of details for the President and the Commission to flush out as they see fit. Finally, the modified amendment also includes a provision we worked on with a number of Senators, including Senator McCain's staff, that makes clear that the intent of this amendment is not to undermine or override the Commission. Mr. President, I yield the floor and do appreciate the consideration of my colleagues in supporting this amendment.

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 Wednesday, October 6. 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 there then be a period of morning business for up to 30 minutes, with the first half under the control of the majority leader and the second half under the control of the minority leader; further, that the Senate then resume consideration of S. 2845, the intelligence reform bill, as provided under the previous order; provided further that the debate prior to 11:30 be equally divided between the two managers, and that 15 minutes of that time be under the control of Senators Warner and Levin.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, shortly I will go into a quorum call while we wait a few minutes for Senator Talent, but let me thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle. We have had a very productive day, a very productive week. We set out with an objective several weeks ago of completing this very important intelligence reform bill. With the cooperation of all of our colleagues, we will complete this bill tomorrow. Following completion of that bill, we will proceed to our internal Senate oversight reforms, and look forward to hopefully addressing that late tomorrow afternoon. There are a number of other issues we laid out in the course of the day that are underway, including the FSC/ETI jobs manufacturing bill and the Homeland Security Appropriations bill. So we have a lot of work to do in a short period of time during the remainder of this week. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent the substitute amendment at the desk be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read a third time and passed, the amendment to the title be agreed to, the motions to reconsider be laid on the table en bloc, and any statements be printed in the Record.

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 713, S. 2484.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution and preamble be agreed to en bloc, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating thereto be printed in the Record, without further intervening action or debate.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table en bloc, and that any statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record.