Carl Levin

Mr. LEVIN

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, to clarify that, regardless of what is pending, at 4:30, we will move to the Lugar amendment, and we will vote on that amendment at 6:30, and then return to whatever the pending matters are.

Mr. LEVIN. Right.

Mr. LEVIN. I wonder if the good Senator will also share the amendment with the chairman and the ranking member in the Banking Committee, both.

Mr. LEVIN. Reserving the right to object, we have a lot of amendments now that have been set aside. If the Senator from Texas is asking that she could introduce a sense-of-the-Senate amendment and put it in order and then it be set aside immediately and taken up at a later time, I will have no objection. Because other amendments are waiting to be disposed of, I could not agree that her amendment come ahead of other amendments.

Mr. LEVIN. Reserving the right to object, my understanding of the request is that immediately following Senator Durbin, the Senators from Texas and Florida will be recognized simply to introduce a sense-of- the-Senate amendment, which would then be set aside, and then we would move at 4:30 as previously authorized, and any time remaining between the time they offer and set aside that amendment would then go to the Senator from Maine and the Senator from New Jersey to continue their debate.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I think Senator Lugar controls all of the time on his side. I wonder if he might yield 4 minutes to the Senator from Rhode Island. I don't know how long the Senator from Texas was going to speak.

Mr. LEVIN. This would be on Senator Lugar's time.

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

Mr. LEVIN. I join in those concerns, and I agree that there should be some response tonight.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, we have no objection that I know of to this amendment. It does not purport to limit the jurisdiction of a Federal court in determining what the Constitution means. So we do not have any objection to it.

Mr. LEVIN. And an even more distinguished list of opponents. Just kidding. The hour is late.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, we very strongly support the Warner amendment. I ask unanimous consent that I be listed as a cosponsor of the Warner amendment.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, we understand there will be no second- degree amendments to the Warner amendment now. I also ask unanimous consent that Senator Kennedy be listed as a cosponsor.

Mr. LEVIN. We have no objection and support that.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, we are attempting to find a time for that amendment which fits not just the Senate schedule but a very important personal need, which I think the Senator from Virginia is aware of, of one of the cosponsors. We do have many amendments that we are going to be offered tomorrow. Apparently there is no plan for votes tomorrow; is that the Senator's understanding?

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, we are checking on Senator Bayh right now.

Mr. LEVIN. We appreciate that.

Mr. LEVIN. I wonder if we could lock in an additional speaker. I ask unanimous consent that immediately prior to the vote on the Warner amendment at 12:30, Senator Kennedy be recognized for 5 minutes at 12:25.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I am afraid I didn't hear that request. Are the speakers that have been identified speaking on the pending amendment?

Mr. LEVIN. Although there will be no votes tomorrow, we nonetheless are making an effort on this side, and I hope the chairman will do the same on his side, to have people debate amendments, lay down amendments, set them aside so we can vote on them next week. We are doing that on this side. The idea that a cloture motion is filed on this bill, to me, is inappropriate. There is no filibuster of this bill. Everybody wants to handle amendments as quickly as possible to this bill, and the idea that there is a cloture motion filed on a bill where we are making progress, where people are offering amendments, and we are disposing of them, to me is inconsistent with what we have done as a body and should be doing as a body.

Mr. LEVIN. I ask unanimous consent that we add to that request that Senator Lautenberg then be recognized to offer an amendment immediately after the speakers who have been identified.

Mr. LEVIN. He would just lay down an amendment prior to Senator Kennedy speaking and then he would pick up after the vote.

Mr. LEVIN. Thirteen amendments pending.

Mr. LEVIN

Mr. LEVIN. No objection.

Mr. LEVIN

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent, on behalf of Senator Reid, that Richard Ferguson, a Defense fellow, be granted the privilege of the floor during debate on the Defense authorization bill.