Carl Levin

Mr. LEVIN

Mr. LEVIN. The amendment has been cleared.

Mr. LEVIN. The President is not precluded by this language from reaching a different conclusion and allocating as he chooses. It is pretty clear what our judgment is as to the top priority. That is the purpose of this amendment.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, we support the amendment on this side. We have cleared it. We are willing to see it adopted by voice vote.

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

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

Mr. LEVIN. We are pretty sure this is the one we already have.

Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, does the Senator have a copy of the amendment handy?

Mr. LEVIN

Mr. LEVIN. No.

Mr. LEVIN. There is an intention, as I have shared with my colleague from Virginia, to offer a second-degree amendment to that amendment. That is what we will be discussing with the leaders between now and 12 o'clock.

Mr. LEVIN. Madam President, very briefly, we are making progress on the national Defense authorization bill. We have the pending amendment of Senator Kennedy which will now be voted upon with a motion to table at 2:30. We expect we will at that point begin a debate on missile defense, but the process is not yet worked out for the amendments relative to that as to the order and how they will be offered. There will be some discussion on that matter between now and then. We are working with Senators on the amendments to see if we can act on amendments later today and possibly clear amendments. I continue to be optimistic, with our leader's assistance, with the cooperation of all Senators, that we can complete action on this bill in a timely manner this week. My good friend from Virginia, the ranking member of our committee, is working hard to achieve that same result.

Mr. LEVIN. If it turns out otherwise when the midterm review is completed, despite that best estimate on the part of the Secretary of Defense, will the amendment still authorize the expenditure of that $814 million in the ways specified? In other words, if it turns out to be inaccurate and there is only $600 million in savings, am I not correct that the amendment would nonetheless authorize the $814 million?

Mr. LEVIN. I ask unanimous consent that it be divided in that way.

Mr. LEVIN. Because the Senator from Virginia is confident?

Mr. LEVIN. And if the net savings turned out to be $400 million instead of $814 million, then would the Secretary be required to make cuts in other programs?

Mr. LEVIN. But the Senator's amendment, as I understand it, is not contingent on that amount of inflation savings being available. Is that correct?

Mr. LEVIN. One further clarification: That came directly from the Secretary of Defense.

Mr. LEVIN. Is there anybody in control of the time here?

Mr. LEVIN. Madam President, with apologies to our friend from Rhode Island, that was the unanimous consent request. I can assure him that there is no time limit on the missile defense amendment that Senator Warner will be offering. So we can return to him at that time. The time was to be divided. Senator Kennedy has returned. Let me ask the Chair a question. Is the time divided, under the unanimous consent agreement, until 2:30?

Mr. LEVIN. The savings----

Mr. LEVIN. I thank my friend and I yield the floor.

Mr. LEVIN. But my question is--if it turns out otherwise, there have to be cuts made somewhere, under the Senator's amendment, as he has just responded. He is not adding any money, so there must be cuts made somewhere. And those cuts, of course, could then come in areas that we have tried to protect, including operations and maintenance, readiness, and a number of other areas of which this committee has been very protective. One of my concerns about the language of this amendment is that it is not contingent upon savings being available. It assumes those savings are available. And whether or not they are forthcoming, this money is authorized, as I understand it. So that is one of the concerns I have about this amendment.

Mr. LEVIN. I yield my time to Senator Warner so that there is equal division between the proponents and opponents.

Mr. LEVIN. The $814 million that the Senator assumes in his amendment may or may not materialize, if the midterm review is not completed. But has the Senator from Virginia, as I understand it, been assured at this point prior to the midterm review that those savings will be forthcoming in inflation review?

Mr. LEVIN. Madam President, I wonder if my friend from Virginia would clarify a few factual parts of his proposed amendment. The Senator from Virginia said that he has been assured that the inflation savings which will result from the midterm review will be sufficient to cover $814 million. I am wondering where that assurance came from, because whichever approach we adopt, that is an important part. Where was that assurance? Who gave the Senator that assurance?

Mr. LEVIN

Mr. LEVIN. I move to reconsider the vote.