Bill Frist

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolutions be agreed to, the preambles be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, all en bloc.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 668, S. 2322.

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

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent the Chair now lay before the Senate the House measure to accompany S. 3938. The Chair laid before the Senate the following message from the House of Representatives:

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent the Senate concur in the House amendment, the motion to reconsider be laid on the table, and any statements be printed in the Record.

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

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 President, I ask unanimous consent the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent the Committee on Commerce be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 5136 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

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 now ask that we resume legislative session.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand in adjournment until 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, December 7. 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 executive session for the consideration of the nomination of Andrew von Eschenbach; I further ask consent that there be 60 minutes equally divided for debate prior to the cloture vote, with the time equally divided as follows: Chairman Enzi or his designee, 30 minutes; Senator Grassley, 30 minutes; Senator Vitter, 10 minutes.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, the Senate overwhelmingly confirmed Robert Gates as Secretary of Defense today. I thank Chairman Warner, once again, and Senator Levin for their tremendous work in expediting this nomination through the committee. Tomorrow, the Senate will have a cloture vote on the nomination of the FDA Commissioner. I previously pointed out how important it is that we have a confirmed Commissioner there and thus I did file cloture to ensure that we did have before the end of this year. Senators can expect that vote somewhere around 10:30 to 10:45 tomorrow morning. If cloture is invoked, which I expect it to be, it is my hope that we will be able to get an agreement on scheduling a vote on confirmation at a reasonable hour. We have several outstanding legislative and executive items to complete before we close out this Congress, so Senators should be prepared to be here until we get our work done.

Mr. FRIST

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

Mr. FRIST

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

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum be waived.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, this circuit court nomination was reported unanimously out of the Judiciary Committee. I do not believe there is any controversy with this nomination. I hope we could vitiate this cloture motion and proceed to an up-or-down vote during tomorrow's session. In the meantime, I have filed cloture to ensure a vote this week on this circuit court nominee.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, for 12 years, I have served the people of Tennessee as a U.S. Senator. Before I joined this body, I spent 20 years practicing medicine--as a transplant surgeon. But I spent even more time--nearly 30 years--getting the education necessary for me to pursue a career at the cutting edge of transplant surgery. Without that education, I couldn't have pursued my dream of helping people. The fact is, education is an essential cornerstone in our society. Not just in the United State,s but around the world--across the global society. Not only does a sound education increase the global competitiveness of America's workforce, but it also enables each and every worker to pursue the American dream, in his or her own way. Here in America, we have a rich history of working hard. We set goals. We visualize dreams. And then we doggedly pursue them, with stubborn perseverance. But as hard as we work, unless we possess the tools and the knowledge and the ``know how,'' we are not optimizing our resources. That means it is our best interest to pursue the best education possible. It is in our best interest to strengthen our education system so we can better equip future generations. That is why I have supported a number of measures that enhance America's education system. Take the President's No Child Left Behind Act, which I proudly cosponsored. It set high standards for schools around the country. It is a comprehensive overhaul of the Federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act based on 4 pillars: accountability and testing, flexibility and local control, funding for what works, and expanded parental options. We laid the groundwork for No Child Left Behind with ED-Flex, to give States more flexibility in how they use Federal education dollars. More recently, we passed the first-ever comprehensive reform and improvement of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. We crafted this strongly bipartisan legislation with input from parents, educators, and disability groups--with the primary goal of ensuring disabled students are achieving. Streamlining regulations, simplifying and improving the integrity of the conflict resolution process, reducing the paperwork burden for special education teachers, improving existing discipline provisions while still ensuring disabled children's rights are protected--with every provision, we helped principals, teachers, and parents better address the needs of disabled students. Enhancing and strengthening our Nation's education system must occur at every level--primary, secondary, and beyond, in colleges and universities. My SMART grant legislation took education reform to the university level, and without a doubt, among the education improvements I have supported over the years, SMART grants hold pride of place in my heart. SMART grants are a new student aid initiative that provide incentives for promoting math and science education and consequently represent a dramatic step toward ensuring America's future global economic competitiveness. Let me put it in perspective: China and India generate scientists and engineers at a furious pace while America lags dangerously behind. We haven't reached the crisis point yet. We still have the best research universities in the world. We take home the lion's share of Nobel prizes in the sciences. We lead the planet in most high-tech fields. And we produce more top scientists and engineers per capita than any country with an economy even close to our size. But for every one engineer we graduate in America, China graduates eight and India graduates four. SMART grants help America maintain our competitive edge by providing aid to Pell grant-eligible students who maintain a 3.0 GPA and major in math, science, engineering, technology, or foreign languages critical to national security during their third and fourth years of college. These funds help incentivize more students to major in these time- intensive studies and they help America produce the quality workforce necessary to compete in today's global economy. But there is still more Congress can do to strengthen our education system and further enhance our America's competitiveness. Right now, we stand at a crossroads. Unless we continue moving to improve our education system at all leve1s, we could very well face economic stagnation and a loss of global scientific leadership. We can't afford to let that happen.

Mr. FRIST

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

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, Since 2003, Bill Pickle has served this body with enormous distinction. As the Senate's Sergeant at Arms, he has helped us and he has protected us. Now, as he departs, I wish to thank him, recognize him, and honor him. For over 3 years, he has excelled in one of the hardest jobs I know of, not just in the Senate, not just in our legislative branch, not just in our Federal Government but I honestly believe, in the entire Nation. When I came to the job as majority leader, I wanted to find the best professional possible in law enforcement, information technology, security, and continuity planning to lead the Sergeant at Arms operation. I found him in Bill Pickle, and it was one of the smartest decisions I made during my tenure as leader. Bill is the consummate professional. He is smart, with good instincts, and like my colleagues, I value his counsel and insight. Originally, his office existed to keep order in the Senate Chamber and compel the attendance of Members for votes. In this body's early days, the Sergeant at Arms would circulate through the drinking houses of what was then known as Washington City, rounding up recalcitrant Members and dragging them--sometimes by the coattails--back to the Senate Chamber. Perhaps today's members do a slightly better job showing up for votes. To my knowledge, Bill Pickle has never had to bodily drag any of my colleagues in for a vote, but that has not made his job easier. Today's Sergeant at Arms is part security specialist, part corporate executive, and part management information systems administrator, and that is just part of it. Every day, the Sergeant at Arms' office must deal with the demands of 100 opinionated, demanding men and women, thousands of American citizens, officials from every part of our own Government, and people from around the world. The duties that fall under his office range from running our recording studio to serving on the board that oversees the U.S. Capitol Police, but one thing unites them all their ability to connect this body to the people of this Nation. Through his leadership, his courage, and his vision, against immense challenges, Bill Pickle has kept this building and this body open and accessible to the people we serve. During the whole of Bill Pickle's time in office, our Nation has been at war against Islamic fascists, enemies who wish to strike at the principles of openness and democratic governance that this body represents. And he has kept us safe. Not a single serious assault has occurred on this body during his time in office. The Capitol is safer than it has ever been. For that alone, we all owe him a debt of gratitude. Every time his office has faced a challenge. Bill Pickle has risen to the occasion. Time after time, he has tackled difficult tasks with aplomb. He preside over a necessary expansion of the Capitol Police, appointed the Senate's first chief information officer, helped oversee expansion of our computer networks needed to deal with the ever-growing stream of e-mail sent to our offices, and, of course, the demands to keep the Senate accessible amidst ever-changing security requirements. In short, he has realized the goals he set out for himself on his first day of work: Providing State-of-the art technology and world class security. He has won the respect and admiration of people throughout the Senate, members of both parties. Bill has taken continuity planning and security to a new level for us in the Senate, and I know his successor, our former police chief, Terry Gainer, will follow Bill's lead on these critical issues. As a person with a long and distinguished career in law enforcement, I trust that Mr. Pickle will not mind if I paraphrase the great American police chief, August Vollmer. In his service to the Senate, I believe, Bill Pickle has shown ``the wisdom of Solomon, the courage of David, the leadership of Moses, the strategic thinking of Alexander the Great, and the diplomacy of Lincoln.'' Bill Pickle: I thank you, the Senate thanks you, and the Nation thanks you.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, as I depart this body, I would like to extend a heartfelt personal thank you to Chaplain Barry Black. From comforting staff and Members in the wake of tragic deaths to leading erudite Bible study groups, to opening the Senate each morning with prayer, Chaplain Barry Black has shown himself the epitome of a great minister. He is a man of keen intellect, enormous oratorical skill, and great faith. Personally, I have always been taken by his voice as he offers our opening prayers each morning we are in session. He has a voice that makes everyone perk up, listen, and remain attentive. I have seen Chaplain Black become a friend, an ally, and a helper to staff and Members from all points on the political spectrum. He has kept his door open to people of all faiths and, as a Seventh Day Adventist minister himself, has helped many Christian Senators and staff--including me--enter into a closer and more meaningful relationship with Jesus Christ. I am delighted that he will be continuing his service and I am pleased that I could have the honor of appointing him. Barry Black, thank you.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, a few days ago, an extraordinary Tennessean, Dolly Parton, received one of the 2006 Kennedy Center Honors. As a singer, a songwriter, an actress, a television producer, and an entrepreneur, she has emerged as one of the preeminent cultural figures of our era. Her life story, her talent, and her rise to success can serve as an inspiration for all Americans. Dolly Parton, in fact, could turn out to be the last prominent American actually born in a log cabin. She was born at home on January 19, 1946. Growing up, by her own description, ``dirt poor,'' in east Tennessee's town of Sevierville, her family of 14 lived in a hand-built log house. She discovered her gift for singing in church, gave public performances before she turned 10, recorded her first tracks at age 12, and appeared at the Grand Ole Opry at 13. Well-known country artists recorded her original compositions before she turned 20. Her own recordings hit the country charts for the first time with the song ``Dumb Blonde'' in 1966. Today, she has recorded more No. 1 Billboard hits than any other female artist ever and received 25 gold, platinum, and multiplatinum honors. She has been awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, seven Grammy Awards, and two Oscar nominations. Her unique personal style and her sense of humor have influenced Americans across the country. Since 1986, her theme park, Dollywood, has generated thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars of investment in the Great Smokey Mountains. As one of the most visited theme parks in the country, Dollywood now serves as an economic anchor for east Tennessee. Today, a statue of her sits Sevierville's town square. She has also given back: Her Imagination Library charitable program has shared her love of reading with millions of children around the United States. Dolly Parton stands as one of the most influential living Tennesseans. We all owe her a debt of gratitude. I must close in expressing my strong agreement with sentiments about her own musical genre: ``If you talk bad about country music, it's like saying bad things about my momma. Them's fightin' words.'' Dolly Parton: I thank you. America thanks you.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, we will be closing down in a few moments. I have several quick pieces of business to do first.

Mr. FRIST

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

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, this cloture vote will occur on Thursday morning. If we can reach an agreement for a vote at a time certain on this FDA nomination, we would vitiate this cloture vote. In the meantime, I now ask consent that the mandatory quorum be waived and the Senate now resume legislative business.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I understand that there is a bill at the desk, and I ask for its first reading.