Bill Frist

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the measure, and I object to further proceedings.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that, notwithstanding the recess or adjournment of the Senate, committees be authorized to report legislative and executive matters on Thursday, May 29, 2003, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that during the adjournment of the Senate, the majority leader or the assistant majority leader be authorized to sign duly enrolled bills or joint resolutions.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding the recess or adjournment of the Senate, the President of the Senate, the President pro tempore of the Senate, and the majority and minority leaders be authorized to make appointments to commissions, committees, boards, conferences, or interparliamentary conferences authorized by law, by concurrent action of the two Houses, or by order of the Senate.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand in adjournment until 12 noon, Monday, June 2. I further ask that following the prayer and the pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of procedures be approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and the Senate then begin a period for morning business until 1 p.m. with the time equally divided between the two leaders or their designees; provided that at 1 p.m., the Senate resume consideration of Calendar No. 79, S. 14, the energy bill.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. For the information of all Senators, when the Senate reconvenes on Monday, June 2, there will be a period for morning business until 1 p.m. Following morning business, the Senate will resume consideration of S. 14, the energy bill. Pending to the bill is an amendment relating to ethanol. Members who wish to speak to the amendment or the bill itself are encouraged to do so during Monday's session. There will be no votes on Monday. The next vote will be on Tuesday, June 3, and Members will be notified when that vote is scheduled. As I mentioned earlier, we had a very productive 4 weeks. Again, I thank my colleagues for their hard work. I wish everyone a safe and restful recess.

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 provisions of H. Con. Res. 191.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 106, H.R. 192.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read the 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. The bill (H.R. 192) was read the third time and passed.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I will ask unanimous consent that the Senator from New Hampshire have 5 minutes, followed by Senator Byrd for 20 minutes, followed by Senators Bond and Talent for 10 minutes, and prior to the Senator from New Hampshire, 30 seconds to Senator Specter.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to a period of morning business with Senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, once again, I thank the chairman of the Finance Committee for his hard work yesterday and today. In addition, I thank all Members for their patience and cooperation throughout this legislative period, a very productive few weeks of session. We have had busy days and long nights. It was worth the effort. The next vote will be the last vote prior to the Memorial Day recess. The Senate will reconvene on Monday, June 2. However, no rollcall votes will occur that day. Members can expect the next rollcall vote on Tuesday at approximately 12 noon. That vote most likely will be in relation to an amendment to the energy bill. I wish everyone a safe recess, and I look forward to working with everybody following this recess.

Mr. FRIST. I move to reconsider that vote and I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, may I have the attention of the Senate. On the last rollcall vote, No. 201, the one we just completed, the distinguished senior Senator from New Mexico, current chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and the former long-serving chairman of the Budget Committee, Senator Pete V. Domenici, cast his twelve-thousandth vote in this Chamber--12,000 votes. (Applause, Senators Rising.) Senator Domenici now joins a very historic and select club of Senators who can claim this distinction. Senators now cast more votes in each Congress than they did in the past. So while historical records are not perfect, our Senate Librarian says we are safe to conclude that among all Senators who have served since the beginning of the Republic, Senator Domenici is in a class of only ten. Since the beginning of the Republic, only Nine other U.S. Senators have similarly cast more than 12,000 votes in their careers in the Senate. Five of them are serving today. The Club of Nine now becomes the Club of Ten with Senator Domenici's last vote today. The Club of Nine has been: Senator Claiborne Pell; Senator William Roth; Senator William Proxmire; the current President pro tempore, Senator Ted Stevens; Senator Edward Kennedy; Senator Daniel Inouye; Senator Ernest Hollings, Senator Strom Thurmond; and--with over 16,685 votes--the all-time record, Senator Robert C. Byrd. Senator Domenici, I know I speak for all of your colleagues, all of your fellow Senators, when I say: Congratulations on this achievement. But, more importantly, thank you for your tremendous service over the years to New Mexico, to your country, and, most importantly, to the U.S. Senate.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, in the interest of time--I want to turn to the Democratic leader for his comment--but I have asked all of our colleagues to withhold further comments on this celebration, to submit them for the Record or to give them after we complete the voting today. We are trying to keep the bill moving. Again, I want the Democratic leader to comment but then I do ask our colleagues to wait to speak on this celebration. They will have an opportunity to do so later.

Mr. FRIST. Yes.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the committee amendments be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read a 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.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, in executive session, I ask unanimous consent that the HELP Committee be discharged from further consideration of the following nominations for the National Science Board: Steven Beering, PN44; Ray Bowen, PN46; Elizabeth Hoffman, PN50. I further ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to their consideration, the nominations be confirmed, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action, and the Senate resume legislative session.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the matter be printed in the Record.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 154, which was submitted earlier today.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, putting this bill together has been a challenging task. Many Senators have played important roles in this legislation but it could not have been done without the contributions of our staff. Without the aid of these individuals, the work of this institution would be impossible to accomplish. I would like to recognize the hard work and dedication of those staff members whose contributions to this legislation have been critical and without whom we would not have been able to pass this very important bill. On the Finance Committee, I want to recognize the contributions of Chairman Grassley's staff. On the tax side, I want to especially thank the committee's chief tax counsel, Mark Prater, the committee's staff director Kolan Davis as well as Ed McClellan, Dean Zerbe, Christy Mistr, Diann Howland, Elizabeth Paris, and Brad Cannon. I also want to thank Ted Totman, Steve Robinson, Leah Kegler, and Becky Shipp for their work on the State aid provisions. I would also like to acknowledge the contributions of Chairman Nickles' Budget Committee staff, including Rachel Jones, Hazen Marshall, Beth Felder, and Cheri Reidy. I should also thank Lisa Wolski and Lawrence Willcox of Senator Kyl's staff, whose efforts were integral to the success of this bill. Also integral to our efforts was the work of the entire staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation and the Senate Legislative Counsel's office. Specifically, George Yin, Mary Schmitt, and Bernie Schmitt of the Joint Committee and Jim Fransen, Mark Mathiesen, and Ruth Ernst at Legislative Counsel. They have all put in long hours to help bring this bill to completion. I would also like to acknowledge the efforts of those individuals from the administration, all of whom dedicated significant time and effort to this bill. From the White House, I would like to thank Ziad Ojakli and Christine Burgeson from the Legislative Affairs Office and Pam Olson, J.T. Young, John Kelly, and Greg Jenner from the Department of Treasury. Without their efforts and cooperation, this bill could not have come to pass. Finally, I would like to thank my staff and Senator McConnell's staff for their work in getting both a bill and then a conference report through the Senate in just over a week's time. From Senator McConnell's office, I would like to especially thank Kyle Simmons and Michael Solon. From my office, I would like to thank Lee Rawls, Eric Ueland, Bill Hoagland, and Rohit Kumar. These staff members have worked diligently and largely in anonymity. Given all that they have done in service to their country, I think it is appropriate to recognize their work publicly so the rest of the country knows, as we all know, how well we are served by our staff.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I take this opportunity prior to this important, significant vote to thank and congratulate the chairman of the Finance Committee, Chairman Chuck Grassley, and his staff on the tremendous work they have done over the past several days but really over the past 30 days to bring the Senate to this conclusion in 3 minutes or so. I also thank the ranking member and his staff and especially the staff of the Joint Tax Committee for the long hours and work they have devoted to legislation that is straightforward in what it accomplishes, to create jobs and grow the economy, which is quite complex when you look at the moving parts where we have had to marry the House bill with the Senate bill. In many ways, in large part because of a number of discussions that seem a long time ago, it was just 2 weeks ago the Finance Committee met its instructions under this year's budget resolution to report a tax reconciliation bill to the Senate, a bill complying with this year's budget instructions to craft an economic tax stimulus bill. That was just 2 weeks ago. It was just 1 week ago last night that the full Senate passed and sent to conference a revised tax reconciliation bill. We are here this morning with an opportunity to pass and send to the President a bill that will provide immediate relief to millions of American families, businesses and, indeed, States. And it will create jobs. Economists say again and again our economy in this country is like a great ship that cannot be turned around quickly, but while our economy today is moving in the right direction and it does not need to be turned all the way around, it clearly needs to pick up pace. We need to stoke those boilers in that ship, that ship being the economy, in order to create those jobs. Of the $350 billion stimulus and growth provided in the bill before the Senate this morning, nearly 60 percent, or $200 billion of this tax and fiscal relief is provided this year and next. It is immediate. It is short-term stimulus to grow the economy and jobs. I add that this is more stimulus in the first few years than either the President's original proposal or the House bill or the Senate bill. This is a major stoking of those boilers in that economy, in that ship of the economy. In a few moments I believe we will pass what is the third largest tax relief package in history. This is a great victory for the American people. Why? We talk about the big numbers and I talked about the $350 billion, but the wonderful thing is it boils down to greater job security for people who may be listening at this moment, people who are looking for jobs or want jobs. It elevates that sense of security for them. Why? Because it creates jobs. It grows the economy. It means if you do not have a job and you wake up and open the newspaper and you are looking through those classified ads, you are more likely to get a job after passage of this bill. It means if you have a job today but you feel insecure about it because the economy is not moving quite as fast or quite as quickly, it is more likely you will be able to keep that job and it will be with you long term and you do not have to worry every morning when you wake up about losing that job. The bill stimulates the economy and it stimulates job creation. What we have been able to fashion after a lot of negotiation, a lot of compromise on both sides of the aisle and in this body, with the other body, and in addressing the President's initial proposal, is a bill that does it now; it moves the stimulus up to now when people want it. If you are a schoolteacher, you will this year have more money to spend on your children's clothes or you will be able to make those mortgage payments a little bit easier than you did 6 months ago or last year. If you are a mom and dad and you have three children, it means you will receive $3,000 this year. You will receive $3,000, if you have 3 children, in child tax credits to spend on their needs. Maybe you will be able to buy them each that computer they need, that they deserve, to stay in tune with what we can provide in education today. Twenty-five million Americans will receive this child tax credit this year, now, with passage of this bill. If a policeman and a teacher are married and are unfairly paying more in taxes--you are paying more in taxes because you are married than if you were not married--relief is on the way when we pass this bill. As we all know, most jobs--probably 70 percent or 80 percent is the figure we use--most jobs are created by small businesses. That is a fact. It is not the large corporations that provide jobs; it is the small businesses. It is the small businesses where ideas arise, where innovation takes place, where capital is consumed, is invested, where expansion takes place, and jobs are created. They are the engines of economic growth and will be in this bill we will pass in a few moments. The small businesses are directly and specifically stimulated in terms of growth, investment, and expansion. They will hire more people, they will create more jobs. With passage of this bill, if you have a job, no matter what the job is, whether it is a low-paying job or a high-paying job, you will be better off. Your family will be better off. You will have more money. Our Government is simply saying, We trust you with the money you earn. We are saying, once again, It is your money. We are saying, You are the best steward of the resources that you earn, to save, to invest, to spend on your family, on your small business. Today, after the President signs this bill that was passed by the House last night and will be passed by the Senate today--and you can say this to every single American--you will have more money and will pay less in taxes. In closing, I thank the President of the United States and the Vice President. The President has shown remarkable leadership in putting forth this jobs-and-growth package, in promoting it in every step long the way. True leadership. I also thank the Vice President, our own leader in the Senate, who has worked literally nonstop over the last several days to help us marry the original House proposal with that Senate proposal. We thank them for their leadership. Indeed, this bill accomplishes the goals we all share in this body; that is, to move America forward, to grow the economy, and to create jobs and job security for all Americans. Now let's move to pass this bill that will, indeed, benefit all Americans. I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent when the Senate receives from the House the companion to S. 1050, the Defense authorization bill, the Senate proceed to its consideration at a time determined by the majority leader, after consultation with the Democratic leader; provided further that all after the enacting clause be stricken and the text of S. 1050 as passed be inserted in lieu thereof; and further, any other amendments in order be: Warner, two amendments regarding BRAC; Dorgan-Lott, BRAC amendment, 30 minutes equally divided, no second degrees; Kennedy-Cornyn-Brownback-McCain, immigration, 30 minutes, equally divided; Reid-Inhofe, concurrent receipts; that the amendments be subject to relevant second degrees under the same debate limitation except where noted. I further ask consent that following the disposition of the above mentioned amendments, the bill be read the third time and the Senate then proceed to a vote on passage of the House measure, as amended; finally, I ask that the Senate then insist on its amendment, requesting a conference with the House, and the Chair be authorized to appoint conferees on the part of the Senate.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I take a moment to honor a great American who is celebrating his 100th birthday. Bob Hope was born one of six boys in a London suburb on May 29, 1903. His family made their way to America when he was 3, and they settled in Cleveland, OH. We can only be grateful to the Hope family for making that journey. Growing up, Bob Hope was a shoeshine boy, butcher's mate, stock boy, newspaper boy, golf caddie, shoe salesman, and even a prizefighter--all of these things before he became one of America's most beloved and successful entertainers. As a performer, Bob Hope had the rare and miraculous gift of being able to touch our common humanity. His famous road pictures with Big Crosby and Dorothy Lamour were the quintessential expressions of the adventure of being an American. But he is most loved, of course, for the thousands of hours and millions, literally millions of miles he spent in selfless devotion to our troops. World War II, South Korea, Vietnam, from the Far East to Northern Africa, the Indonesian peninsula to the heart of Europe, in refugee camps, on Air Force bases, Navy ships, jungles, forward bases, demilitarized zones, Bob Hope went wherever we needed him, and he conveyed to our troops the commitment and love of the American people. The front rows would be filled with soldiers injured in battle, limbs destroyed, bodies wrapped in bandages. And he would manage to make them laugh. He was able, for those moments while he was on stage, giving his best to our best, to lift those young men and women out of their war- torn bodies and help them forget the fatigue, the fear, and the loneliness of battle. Bob Hope is a giant. Bob Hope is a national treasure. We will never, ever forget his service to the United States of America. Happy birthday, Mr. Hope.

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