Trent Lott

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. That we interrupt at this point for us to have a colloquy here about what the schedule be as best we can tell, and then after that we return to the Senator's discussion uninterrupted with our remarks after his remarks to be followed by Senator Roth's response to that.

Mr. LOTT. And morning business. We would turn to morning business at that point.

Mr. LOTT. That is what I am suggesting.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, today is not simply he end of the 1st session of the 105th Congress. For me, this day is one that brings both new opportunities and old memories. Today marks the end of John Lundy's 7 years of service to me, first as my administrative assistant and later as my chief of staff. He has also served the great State of Mississippi. To truly understand John and his impact on others, we must go back to his roots. John was raised on a farm in the small, rural town of Leland, MS. This upbringing taught him the meaning of community and the importance of family. He is a proud Mississippian, and still refers to the Delta as ``God's Country.'' John graduated from Mississippi State University with a degree in agriculture--I guess he couldn't get into Ole Miss. He then moved to Washington shortly thereafter and found a job on the staff of the Mississippi delegation in the House of Representatives. He was single, young and full of ambition. Who would have guessed that he would be returning to Mississippi 7 years later with a wife, a new baby girl and a truck full of furniture? When I asked John to join my staff, I knew he would be a quick study. He was. He quickly jumped into the legislative fires with both feet. John also quickly became involved in the demands of Washington's political world, but he never lost his Mississippi style. Or his Mississippi perspective. Mississippians have told me for years how much they enjoy coming to Washington to see John. He makes everyone feel comfortable--no formalities, no pretenses. John can comfortably sit next to a farmer from the Delta or a banker from the coast and listen to his or her concerns. Visitors from the State are delighted to have one of their own paying attention to their needs, knowing that the message is not going to fade away the moment they leave. Mississippians knew that John was an able steward of their concerns, that telling John was as good as telling me. There isn't a farmer in the State of Mississippi that doesn't know John Lundy, either personally or by reputation. John's knowledge of our State's many agriculture communities is unmatched in Washington. He is respected for his understanding of the issues and his dedication to finding a fair and equitable solution for all. Mississippi's agriculture community was indeed fortunate to have John Lundy in Washington during the 1996 farm bill debate. I found that, although John was my staff member, other Senators had adopted him as their key advisor on this bill. His tireless work on this very difficult and complex legislation brought him the respect of both the State and national agriculture community. Most importantly, John has always put Mississippi first. No matter what the situation or how high the stakes, the needs of the State came first. We all know how easy it is to get caught up in both the glitter and the rat race of Washington, DC, but John's focus has always been hundreds of miles south of the beltway. Mississippians brought him problems, and he found them solutions. Many years have gone by since John joined my staff, but my admiration for him has grown with each passing day. Now the time has come for him to return to Mississippi, to take his young family back home. This past summer, he and his beautiful wife Hayley was blessed with a baby girl, Eliza, who John says ``was born to be in Mississippi.'' As the Lundy family makes their way back to Mississippi, I would like to thank them for being such an important part of my life. I cannot thank John enough for his many years of hard work and dedication. He certainly leaves big shoes to fill. His quiet humility and generous spirit will be missed by my entire staff. I will miss his guidance and friendship. John, I wish you nothing but the best of luck in the future, May you and your family be richly blessed in the coming years.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. I yield the floor.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now resume the fast-track bill for consideration of the Dorgan amendment, that no amendments be in order to the Dorgan amendment, and, immediately following the reporting of the bill, the Senate resume the Dorgan amendment. I further ask unanimous consent that, following disposition of or consent to dispose of the Dorgan amendment, Senator Reed be recognized to offer an amendment regarding environmental standards, and only relevant amendments be in order to the amendment, and, following disposition of or consent to dispose of the amendment, the Senate resume morning business, and no call for the regular order serve to bring back the fast-track legislation.

Mr. LOTT

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

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. I don't know if I have the floor, but I yield the floor, Mr. President.

Mr. LOTT. Maybe we can have morning business until we do it all in one final voice vote, everything left. No, Mr. President, if the Senator would not object at this point, we could have the pending debate, and we will talk with the Senator during the interim.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that further reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Labor Committee be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 1377, and further that the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed, as amended, that the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the bill appear at the appropriate place in the Record.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, Senator Grassley has a substitute amendment at the desk, and I ask for its consideration.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the amendment be agreed to.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of calendar No. 250, Senate Concurrent Resolution 48.

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

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Senate Resolution 147 submitted earlier today by Senators Lott and Daschle.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to this bill appear at the appropriate place in the Record.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 166, S. 170.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the joint resolutions be considered as read a third time and passed, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the resolutions be printed in the Record.

Mr. LOTT. I yield the floor.

Mr. LOTT. Before we go to Amtrak, two other unanimous-consent requests. I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed en bloc to the immediate consideration of House Joint Resolution 91 and House Joint Resolution 92 which were received from the House.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, Senator Daschle and I have been talking about the rest of the schedule this afternoon. First, once again, I am very pleased that after 3 years of effort, we have a bipartisan compromise on Amtrak reform. That was a good day's work. It still has to go to conference, but I believe now that we have a good chance to get that legislation through. That would be very beneficial to maintaining a national rail passenger system that would pay for itself. I believe we are now prepared to go to the D.C. bill. We have worked out an agreement on that. Then later on this afternoon we hope to be able to have another vote. We hoped we would get something on the labor-HHS appropriations conference report. We don't know for sure, but that may not be possible. We still have the option to go back to fast track, and there are some amendments, I am sure, that are in the offing. But whatever votes we would have this afternoon, and it appears it would be a minimum of one more vote, but the last vote for today would occur not later than 5 p.m. this afternoon, and we would then come back in tomorrow at noon and get an assessment of where we are. We are still hoping there may be an FDA reform conference report agreement. There is a possibility. We have worked out an agreement on the adoption-foster-care issue. If either of those are ready, we would try to do those tomorrow afternoon. We also would get an assessment of what will happen with regard to the appropriations bills coming from the House and also see if there is any way we can take some action that would help to expedite some conclusion to the appropriations process. With regard to fast track, we will continue to go back to it and have discussion, debate, and amendments when they are ready. The House has delayed their taking a vote on fast track until Saturday or Sunday. They will not do it today. Of course, that will have an impact on what we do and when we do it. I don't think we can say anything beyond that until we see what happens in the House. We have been asked by our colleagues in the House and by the administration to stay and continue to work to see if we can resolve the outstanding issues on appropriations and be prepared to act on fast track, if and when the House does act. We will keep the Members informed. We will try to be conscious of schedules, but I think you should be prepared to have at least one more vote this afternoon, and there is a possibility that there would be a vote or two tomorrow afternoon and Sunday afternoon. Again, on Sunday we would not be in until probably 1 o'clock to give Members an opportunity to go to church. One of the reasons why we won't have votes after 5 o'clock tonight is because of the Jewish sabbath. We are trying to honor Members' commitments in that regard while still trying to move this process forward. There is a 50-50 chance, still, that we can finish all this by Sunday. There is one thing for sure: If we don't stay here and keep working, there is a 100-percent chance we will be here next Friday. Let's keep trying to get it to a conclusion. I believe it is possible. I thank Senator Daschle for collaborating with me on these issues. I wonder if the minority leader might want to add anything?

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate immediately proceed to executive session to consider the following nominations on the Executive Calendar: Calendar Nos. 381, 428 through 439, 444 through 447, 451 through 453, 456 and 466. I further ask unanimous consent that the nominations be confirmed; that the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table; that any statements relating to these nominations appear at the appropriate place in the Record; that the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action; and that the Senate then return to legislative session.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I want to say what an excellent job you are doing as Presiding Officer. I understand you are fast approaching the amount of time serving in the chair where you will receive the ``Golden Gavel'' recognition. I look forward to being able to come to the floor and pay tribute to you when that time is acquired.