Herb Kohl

Mr. KOHL

Mr. KOHL. Madam President, I ask that it be in order to make a point of order en bloc on several pending amendments.

Mr. KOHL. Madam President, I make a point of order that the following amendments are not germane postcloture: amendments Nos. 2225, 2226, 2246, 2248, and 2288.

Mr. KOHL. I ask unanimous consent that at 2:15 p.m., the Senate resume consideration of the Coburn amendment No. 2244; that Senator Harkin be recognized to speak for up to 15 minutes, to be followed by Senator Coburn for as much time as he consumes; that following Senator Coburn's remarks, the Senate then proceed to vote in relation to the Coburn amendment No. 2244, with no amendment in order to the amendment prior to the vote; further, that upon disposition of amendment No. 2244, the Senate then resume the following amendments, with 2 minutes of debate prior to each vote: amendments Nos. 2245, 2243; that no amendments be in order to either amendment prior to a vote; and that no amendments be in order to any of the amendments listed here.

Mr. KOHL. I yield the floor.

Mr. KOHL

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

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. KOHL. I ask unanimous consent that the pending amendment be set aside and the Senate now consider amendment No. 2284.

Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote and move to lay that motion on the table.

Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, I now ask unanimous consent that the Senate consider the following amendments en bloc: Nos. 2241 and 2280; that amendments Nos. 2271, 2282, 2249, and 2266 be modified with the changes at the desk; that the aforementioned amendments, as modified, if modified, be agreed to en bloc; and that the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table en bloc.

Mr. KOHL. I will make a point of order that amendment No. 2240 is not germane postcloture.

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

Mr. KOHL. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, as I stated at the outset of this bill, it does reflect an increase in spending over the previous year. But let's be clear, 90 percent of the discretionary increase is for WIC, food and drug safety, humanitarian food assistance, and rural rental housing. These four items are among the most important things that government does. To put it a little more in context, the largest overall increases in this bill are not in discretionary programs at all. The largest single increase in the bill is for nutrition programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. That program, and programs combined with other programs, are together funded at $9.1 billion higher than last year. These are mandatory programs that reflect the state of our economy and serve as a very basic human safety net. Other mandatory increases involve farm support and crop insurance programs and funding $3.4 billion higher than last year. These programs operate as they are authorized, and this spending is what is required to pay farmers and ranchers the benefits they are entitled to receive under the law. The Senator is correct that the spending in this bill is higher than last year. But much of that increase is attributable to mandatory programs that do not change through an appropriations bill. With regard to overall spending, Congress has spoken on that question through the budget resolution and the allocations that are made to each subcommittee for discretionary spending. This bill is about how we apportion that discretionary spending to best serve the American people and the people throughout the world. This bill has a proper priority. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. KOHL. No objection.

Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, notwithstanding the previous order, I ask unanimous consent that amendment No. 2285 be considered and agreed to and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Mr. KOHL. I ask unanimous consent that the previously agreed-to amendment No. 2280 be modified with the changes at the desk.

Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, I oppose the motion to commit.

Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, I thank my friend from Iowa for his comments. The impacts of emerging animal diseases are felt in many far- ranging sectors of the economy and human health. The impact of threats to the health of livestock can have a devastating impact on producers. Misleading information about an emerging disease can also spread across the country rapidly. This underscores the importance of rapid detection and diagnosis of emerging animal diseases. I am pleased to work with you to include in the final version of the fiscal year 2010 agriculture spending bill $3.4 million in additional resources, above the baseline, to continue NADC's role as one of the preeminent research institutions on emerging animal diseases. This is intended to be additional funding that will be part of the base funding for NADC in future years.

Mr. KOHL. I can assure Senator Stabenow that we will do all that we can to continue to improve this important program.

Mr. KOHL. I would like to enter into a colloquy with my colleague from New York.

Mr. KOHL. I would like to thank my colleague for bringing this to my attention and I will certainly address this issue during conference.

Mr. KOHL. I thank Senator Brownback for raising this issue. I, too, want Senator Isakson to know that this will be corrected during conference. Southern Plains Range Research Station

Mr. KOHL. I thank my colleague from Wisconsin. He has been a leader in this effort and I always appreciate his input and counsel. The Department has under consideration a number of reorganization options that affect a range of departmental functions. My hope is that between now and the time conference negotiations are complete we can have a little more clarity on all these proposals and find a way to make progress in the areas my colleague outlines. Our very able Secretary of Agriculture is trying to make the pieces fit together and I will do likewise during conference negotiations.

Mr. KOHL. I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, I want to take a minute to thank Senator Brownback, with whom I have worked extremely well on this bill. He has made great contributions to the bill, and he has a wonderful staff-- Fitz Elder, Stacy McBride, and Katie Toskey--who also made great contributions. On my side, Galen Fountain, Jessica Frederick, Dianne Nellor, and Bob Ross made great contributions. We are all very proud of the product, we are pleased with the vote, and we are happy it is over.