Carl Levin

Mr. LEVIN

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, we are drafting a unanimous consent request to put in place what the Senator from Arizona has just described. But what it would be is that immediately following the disposition of the Lieberman amendment, as modified--and the modification is almost completed--that then there would be a recognition of Senator Hagel, with 2 hours, I believe, equally divided, and then there would be--I have not had a chance to talk with the Senator from Arizona, but it may be preferable to have the Kyl amendment just offered and laid down today and then the hour for Senators Salazar and Alexander and their cosponsors, with a half an hour, as I understand it, for the Senator from Arizona or his designee, to be recognized after that hour for Senators Alexander and Salazar et al. But their hour would be purely for a matter of debate. There is no amendment of theirs that would be pending at this time.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I think that would be the intention.

Mr. LEVIN. Whenever it comes up.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, if the Senator will yield on that, Senator McCain, actually, I think, was intending to protect that interest in the half hour which he requested. If that is not sufficient, then we could make that an hour.

Mr. LEVIN. We will have a unanimous consent request. This is being cleared on our side. I would also ask that Senator Smith be recognized for 10 minutes between now and the time we will, hopefully, vote on the Lieberman amendment. Is the modification at the desk? Is that ready?

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I think the Senator from Illinois is going to be recognized at this point. After he has his colloquy with Senator Lieberman, I would again seek the floor to put in place that unanimous consent agreement which we have just broadly outlined.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, if the Senator will yield, the only issue is it is not in the proper form. I would urge the Senator to describe that modification. By the time he describes it, and I have had a comment or two, it will be in a form we could send to the desk.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, let me again thank the Senator from Connecticut for these modifications. There are a number of other smaller modifications in the body of the amendment. The only one which I will read, make note of here--although there are a number of other very small ones--however, the one I do want to particularly point out, for those who are following this debate, is that the words ``of hostility'' are eliminated on line 14, page 7 in order to avoid any suggestion that this--I will give my interpretation, which I think fits exactly with what the Senator from Connecticut said--to avoid any implication in the body of the amendment that there is an authorization here for the use of force. And the words ``of hostility,'' in the context of that line, might have given an impression contrary to what is now explicit, that ``Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize or otherwise speak to the use of Armed Forces against Iran.'' Again, I thank our friend from Connecticut for these modifications. I support the amendment. In fact, I ask unanimous consent that I be added as a cosponsor to the amendment, and that Senator Salazar be added as a cosponsor.

Mr. LEVIN. With that, Mr. President, we wait for the form, and also the unanimous consent request which--

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, as soon as the modification is in proper form, it is the stated intention of the Senator from Connecticut to send that to the desk. In the meantime, if the Senator from Oregon could be recognized for 10 minutes.

Mr. LEVIN. To alert all Members, I think we will be ready for a vote at 5 minutes to 4 o'clock on the Lieberman amendment. Should we get the yeas and nays on that amendment now? We have to wait until after it is modified to get the yeas and nays. I yield the floor.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, let me first thank my good friend from Oregon for his extraordinarily prescient and moving statement. His support of this amendment has been a matter of great importance to the Nation, as well as to him personally and to the troops and their families. I want to personally tell him how moved I am by his words, and I wish everybody in this country could have heard his words. Hopefully, as many as possible will take a moment to read the words of Senator Smith. Mr. President, I believe we will be ready to move to a vote very shortly. I think there will be a UC which will set the time for 10 minutes after 4, but we will wait for the staff. Can we announce that it will be 4:10 for the vote? If I could get the attention of the Senator from Arizona, because I am asking for unanimous consent that the vote now be scheduled for 10 minutes after 4.

Mr. LEVIN. I thank the Senator. Between now and then, the modification will, hopefully, be ready. It is at the desk. Does this require a motion or a unanimous consent or just a request to modify? I think the Senator from Connecticut needs----

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, again, I thank my good friend from Connecticut for his cooperation and for his modification of his amendment. I think it now will command and should command the overwhelming vote of the Senate. There is no division when it comes to threats to the troops of the United States. Those troops are threatened in many ways in Iraq, and one of the ways they are threatened is by the activities of Iranians. We want to make it very clear to the Government of Iran that we speak as one when it comes to protecting those troops from those kinds of threats. I hope that message gets through to the leaders of Iran loudly and clearly as a result of the adoption--or the expected adoption--of the Lieberman amendment. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the time until 4:10 today be for debate with respect to the Lieberman amendment No. 2073, as modified, with the time equally divided and controlled between Senator Lieberman and Senator Levin or their designees; that no amendments be in order to the Lieberman amendment prior to the vote; and that at 4:10, without further intervening action or debate, the Senate proceed to vote in relation to the Lieberman amendment, as modified.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I note the absence of a quorum.

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

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

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate considers the Hagel amendment No. 2032 and the Graham sense-of- the-Congress amendment relating to readiness during today's session, that there be a total of 90 minutes, equally divided, between Senators Hagel and Graham or their designees, with the amendments being debated concurrently; that no amendments be in order to either amendment prior to the vote; that each amendment must receive 60 affirmative votes in order for the amendment to be agreed to; that if either or both of the amendments receive 60 affirmative votes, then the motion to reconsider be considered made and tabled; that if neither amendment receives 60 affirmative votes, then the amendment be withdrawn; that upon the use or yielding back of time, the Senate proceed to vote in relation to the Hagel amendment; that upon disposition of the Hagel amendment, the Senate proceed to vote in relation to the Graham amendment; that there be 2 minutes of debate, equally divided, prior to a vote in relation to the Graham amendment; following disposition of the Graham amendment, Senator McCain or his designee be recognized to offer the next first- degree relevant amendment, to be followed by Senator Levin offering a relevant second-degree amendment; further, that the time for debating the Hagel and Graham amendments be considered to have begun at 4:50 p.m. and charged according to usage to this point.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I did not hear the Republican leader.

Mr. LEVIN. I thank the leader. Senator McCain and I have had discussions on this, that it was our hope we could have majority votes on these matters, but there would have been objection to that. Is that a fair statement?

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I thank my friend from Arizona. It is my intention that I bring up the wounded warriors amendment tomorrow as the amendment referred to here. It is a Levin-McCain et al. amendment. It is a bipartisan amendment. But it is the amendment that I intend, as of this moment, to bring up as the amendment referred to in this UC.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I thank my friend for that clarification.

Mr. LEVIN. I would hope that would not be the case and that be decided on a case-by-case basis.

Mr. LEVIN. I hope that will not be the case.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, let me clarify something I said. Senator McCain is correct, and I misspoke. The reference to my bringing up the wounded warriors legislation is not governed by this UC. It is my intention. After the matters that are governed by this UC, that is what I would do. I can be recognized by the Chair under the rights of recognition in this body, and that is my intention. I thank my friend from Arizona for that clarification.