Carl Levin

Mr. LEVIN

Mr. LEVIN. If the Senator would yield, I totally concur that this next amendment should be brought up and debated in an orderly way, but that being agreed upon, I would hope, between the sponsors of that amendment and the chairman, the Republican manager. So I do not think there is any need for me, frankly, to intervene in that process. Perhaps you could hear from the Senator from Massachusetts as to what his plans are and how he plans to proceed. I think that would be helpful.

Mr. LEVIN. I suggest that the two Senators who need 10 minutes each be recognized now and that we try to negotiate these various time needs during their presentation.

Mr. LEVIN. Let us do that in a way which is thoughtful, orderly, and planned. And that is what the Levin-Reed amendment proposes. I thank the Chair. And I thank my good friend from Virginia, our chairman, for the way in which this debate has been handled on both sides.

Mr. LEVIN. I thank the Presiding Officer. The National Security Adviser of Iraq said the following in yesterday's Washington Post: We envisage the United States troop presence by year's end to be under 100,000. That is a reduction of 30,000. That is totally in keeping with what the Levin-Reed amendment proposes. That is the Iraqi envisioned timetable. We want to hold them to that vision for their sake and for ours. Then Mr. Rubaie, the Iraqi National Security Adviser, said the following--and these are words which every one of us should soak in-- that the removal of foreign troops will legitimize Iraq's Government in the eyes of its people.

Mr. LEVIN. I yield 3 minutes to the Senator from Washington.

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

Mr. LEVIN

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

Mr. LEVIN. Reserving the right to object. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, what we are dealing with is a historic use of no-bid contracts, where billions of dollars have been spent. There is good evidence they have been misspent in many ways, and there is a huge amount of waste and abuse. I agree with my good friend from Virginia we do have committees that could look into this matter and could focus on this matter. The agendas of those committees are left basically to the chairmen of those committees. If the chairmen of those committees choose to focus their energies in other places--and I don't quarrel with the places they look--it does not mean the Senate should not express its opinion on the need to focus on these abuses, these excesses, this expenditure of billions of dollars on no-bid contracts. Therefore, I support the Dorgan amendment.

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

Mr. LEVIN. I ask unanimous consent I be allowed 1 minute to respond to my good friend's comments.

Mr. LEVIN

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Sharon Hudson- Dean, a fellow in the office of Senator Bill Nelson of Florida, be granted the privilege of the floor during the Senate's consideration of the fiscal year 2007 Defense authorization bill.

Mr. LEVIN

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that after Senator Reed is recognized--the chairman and I have talked about this--at that point, the Dorgan amendment be the matter before the Senate. I believe that the Senator from Virginia and I have agreed that Senator Dorgan would be recognized for 10 minutes, to be followed then by the chairman for 5 minutes, and the intention then would be to proceed to a rollcall vote.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I would ask the Senator from Rhode Island, who is under a unanimous consent agreement to be recognized for 20 minutes, to yield to me for 2 minutes.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I noticed Senator Kyl again uses rhetoric which they apparently have decided will be used no matter what the facts of any particular proposal are. I would just point out in this morning's Washington Post that Mr. al-Rubaie, who is the National Security Adviser for Iraq, has argued that by year's end, we envision the U.S. troop presence to be under 100,000. That would be at least a 30,000 reduction. I wonder whether people, or Senators, who are going to mischaracterize the Levin-Reed et al amendment are going to also then suggest that the Security Adviser to the new Prime Minister of Iraq supports cut and run when he says that they envision a reduction of American troops to be below 100,000 by the end of this year, and he sets forth in this morning's Washington Post all of the reasons it is so important that foreign troops be redeployed, including to legitimize Iraq's Government in the eyes of its people. I ask unanimous consent that the entire article written by the Security Adviser to the new Prime Minister, Mr. al-Rubaie, be printed in the Record.

Mr. LEVIN

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, parliamentary inquiry: Are we now voting on the Nelson-Menendez amendment?

Mr. LEVIN. That is correct.

Mr. LEVIN. Is the Senator offering the amendment he is referring to postcloture?

Mr. LEVIN. Could be on Iraq.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. LEVIN. Reserving the right to object, I assume there would be adequate time that we would be allowed to consider an amendment of the Senator from Virginia? As I understand, the Senator was talking about a possible amendment on Iraq.

Mr. LEVIN. I thank the Chair.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, will the Senator yield for a question? Is it not true that the Senator from Florida would fully agree that we want them to have sovereignty and we don't want to dictate to them what to do, but that his point is, is it not, that we still should strongly urge them not to exercise their sovereignty in a way which provides amnesty in advance since we are in the middle of a war with people who kill American troops? Is that not true? We can urge them without violating their sovereignty. Would the Senator not agree?

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to. Amendments Nos. 4308, 4299, 4349, 4271, 4226, 4350, 4351, 4352, 4353, 4354, 4213, 4210, 4300, 4209, 4215 as Modified, 4355, 4356, 4217 as Modified, 4357, 4358, 4359, and 4360, En Bloc

Mr. LEVIN. Then the request is that the unanimous consent request be amended so that my amendment which is on file will not be subject to amendment.