Trent Lott

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. For the information of all Senators, there will be a cloture vote on the supplemental appropriations bill tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. In addition, Senators are reminded that all second degree amendments must be filed prior to the 10 a.m. cloture vote. If cloture is invoked, it is my intention to continue consideration of the supplemental appropriations bill and complete action, if not tomorrow-- hopefully tomorrow--or as early Thursday, if possible, if it goes to the next day. Senators who intend to offer amendments to this legislation should be prepared to offer their amendments during Wednesday's session. I urge them to come to the floor during the daylight and offer their amendments, because we have a job to do here, and if we cannot make good progress tomorrow, then we will be here tomorrow night on this bill. Senators should be aware there are a number of amendments filed to the supplemental, so Senators should expect a busy voting day tomorrow. We could have several votes during the day, and we will notify Senators as soon as possible with respect to the exact times of the rollcall votes occurring during the session.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and any statements relating to the resolution appear at the appropriate place in the Record.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Senate Resolution 84, submitted earlier today.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I have to say I am very pleased to hear the Democratic leader say they are not delaying and they do not intend to delay. In this body, if you have one Senator who prefers not to vote for a while, he can pretty much make that happen. But if it is the Democratic leadership's intent not to delay, that is good news, and I am glad to hear that. I presume, then, that based on that we will probably pass cloture tomorrow, and we can move on to dispense with the amendments that are pending in a reasonable time. I think the Senator probably has the list of amendments that have been filed. As a matter of fact, there are only about 9 or 10 that state any purpose at all. Most of them have no statement of purpose on file.

Mr. LOTT. I thought it was 61 Democrats and 48 Republicans. The point I am making is I have a list here, 10 amendments indicated by 1 on our side, with no statement of purpose, and on the next page, 10 by your side. I think there is a lot of positioning and placeholding, and we understand that is the way it happens around here. I think if we could get cloture passed tomorrow and then work through the amendments that are still legitimately filed and we are concerned about, we can get those done tomorrow and bring this to a conclusion. If not tomorrow, at a reasonable time on Thursday so we can move on to other legislation. Of course, another thing, obviously, we would like to still hold the final passage until the House has acted. We may not actually be able to completely have the final passage until Thursday if the House has not acted by Wednesday, but we could complete everything and then have final passage on Thursday. Now, with regard to the quote about not wanting the President to have the upper hand, that is right. I do not want him to have the upper hand. What we need to have is for nobody to have the upper hand. We need to have coequal positions: Congress has a certain responsibility, and the President has a certain responsibility and advantages. We need to find a way to work through that, where neither side can hold the other hostage, neither side. I am hoping we will find a way to do that over the next 24 hours or next 2 days. With that, Mr. President, I am prepared to go to close.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, we will have some debate, I believe, and then I will have a further motion. Mr. CONRAD addressed the Chair.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, in light of that objection, I move to proceed to Calendar No. 32, S. 4, the flextime bill.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 32, S. 4, the flextime legislation.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I rise today to express the deep gratitude of the Senate to Ms. Patty McNally, Executive Assistant and Protocol Officer in the sergeant at arms' office, who is retiring after more than 20 years of dedicated public service in the Senate. As the chief protocol staffer in the sergeant at arms office, Patty's responsibilities have included coordinating joint sessions of Congress, swearing-in ceremonies, serving many long hours as the Sergeant at Arms representative on the Joint Congressional Inaugural Committee, and the more somber occasions of state funerals. Patty also was responsible for making the protocol and security arrangements for the numerous visits to the Senate heads of states and other dignitaries from around the world. In 1987, Patty played an important part in the making of Senate history, as she arranged and coordinated the transportation of the Senate delegation to Philadelphia to participate in a very special joint session of Congress that commemorated the bicentennial of the Constitution. Mr. President, Patty has made substantial contributions to this institution and in the celebration of democracy. Today, we celebrate her contribution and wish her the very best in her new life with her family and friends, and we will envy the view from her home of the Nubble Light House.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, for the information of all Senators, then there will be no further rollcall votes today nor on Friday. We have a prior agreement with the Democratic leadership that we would not have a session on Friday because of a meeting that they have. We have a similar agreement for Friday of next week because of a meeting that we have. The Senate will shortly begin debate on the motion to proceed to S. 4, the flextime/comptime bill. On Monday, at 1 p.m., the Senate will begin consideration of the supplemental appropriations bill. Amendments are expected to be offered. Therefore, votes could occur but are not expected prior to 5 p.m. on Monday. As we work through agreements on amendments, or getting an understanding about amendments, we will let Senators know what time they may expect votes late Monday afternoon, Tuesday, or early.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that at 1 p.m. on Monday, May 5, the Senate turn to consideration of calendar No. 43, S. 672, the supplemental appropriations bill.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. If the Senator from Georgia will yield, it is pretty clear and narrowly defined, as I read it. It would be applicable to volunteers or any category of volunteers in the performance of services for a nonprofit organization or governmental entity; and (2) nonprofit organizations or governmental entities. That is pretty narrow in its applicability. But let me ask you, are you telling me that there are examples in America where individuals who get involved with the Salvation Army or get involved with Little League Baseball literally are being sued?

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, on this legislation, again, I want to emphasize to the American people that we are being prevented from even debating the real merits of this very important legislation, which would give some degree of protection to volunteers from being sued when they are not even remotely involved in what may have caused a lawsuit. If they are involved in some excessive action or some misconduct, they would still be subject to lawsuits, but this would give some degree of protection to volunteers. I cannot help but again point out the fact that, at a time when there is this great conference in Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love, talking about voluntarism in America, how important it is to be involved with Little League, to be involved with reading, to be involved with the Boys and Girls Club, the Red Cross, the Salvation Army--be involved. Here, when we say, ``Yes, but one of the problems is that you run the risk of being sued; if your good will causes you to be involved as a volunteer you could wind up having legal action against you and we want to provide some protection against that''--the Democrats are filibustering the motion to proceed to the bill. That is very curious. They say maybe it is related to other issues that have not been brought up. But the fact of the matter is, this is very clear. It is a very clear choice. Is the Senate going to go on record of supporting volunteers and giving them some reasonable protection against frivolous lawsuits, or are we going to side with the plaintiffs' lawyers who want to be able to sue everybody, anytime, anywhere they want to, even volunteers? We are going to have to choose. So I want to serve notice to the Senate we are going to vote on this issue over and over and over, and we will not go to other legislation until this Volunteer Protection Act is passed. You know, if there is going to be a lot of whining about we cannot do other things--this is important, fundamental legislation that tells an awful lot about whether we are honest about wanting to encourage volunteers and be helpful to volunteers in America. I would like to address some questions to the distinguished Senator from Georgia, who has done such outstanding work on this legislation. I commend him for being prepared to come to the floor of the Senate and point out what is actually in the bill. I put down some of the ridiculous allegations that I have heard against the bill yesterday, about who might be covered by this. You have stood here and you have answered the questions. You have told the truth about what is in the bill. You have been prepared to work out problems that might exist, although it does not look to me like anybody is really very serious about addressing concerns they may or may not have. So, I thank you on behalf of the volunteers of America for volunteering to stand here in the Senate and do battle for them. You have done a great job. I have heard a lot of other good speeches from our colleagues out here in the Senate, Senator Ashcroft--I encourage others to come over and engage in this debate. But would you answer for me this question? First of all, is this going to protect volunteers who are involved in misconduct in any way from legitimate lawsuits?

Mr. LOTT. I thank you again for your effort. I am hoping we will begin to see a break in the stonewall against the motion to proceed to the bill today and that we will have some Democrats join in getting cloture so we can go on and finish our discussion of the bill and get to a final vote. I think that will happen because I think all of us really want to encourage voluntarism and I think this legislation will help that all across America. Then we can go on, either later on this week or next week, to take up some nominations that are pending on the Executive Calendar and be prepared on Monday to go to the supplemental appropriations bill. It is our intent to move forward with that legislation. There is a lot of complaining now that there may be some amendments in committee or amendments offered on the floor. What's new? This is the U.S. Senate. Any Senator, he or she, can offer an amendment. We can debate it. And there are those who say, ``If you offer certain amendments or if there are certain things in the bill, we are going to filibuster those items and hold up the bill,'' and then they say we are holding up the bill. I am saying now the Appropriations Committee will do its job today or tomorrow and report out the supplemental appropriations bill, hopefully in a way that will pay for the cost of the bill, for the most part. And then we will be prepared to begin on Monday and I will be prepared to have the final vote Tuesday or Wednesday. If we have to, we will file cloture to try to cut off a filibuster on items that may or may not be in the bill. And we hope to be able to complete it Wednesday or Thursday of next week. With that, I yield the floor.

Mr. LOTT. Who is opposed to this legislation? What is the reason for opposing it? I cannot understand it.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, this morning the Senate will immediately resume consideration of the motion to proceed to S. 543, the Volunteer Protection Act. By previous order, at 11:15 a.m. the Senate will vote on the second cloture motion to proceed to this bill, S. 543. As a reminder to all Senators, if that cloture vote fails, two additional cloture motions were filed last night and would be voted on, on Thursday. It is still my hope that the Senate will be allowed to move forward and begin consideration of this important legislation. In addition, the Senate could also be asked to turn to any other Legislative or Executive Calendar items that may be cleared.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I do want to thank the distinguished Democratic leader for his comments. He knows quite well that there had been concerns, initially, about this nominee. I have been satisfied that she is qualified for the job. But I didn't know all the details of allegations or problems that had been identified. The committee, under the leadership of the chairman, took their time, they looked into the potential problems and allegations, and they finally took a vote. I believe it was a unanimous voice vote. Members of the committee had adequate time to look into these potential problems. I think the nominee has assured Senators that her conduct is going to be very circumspect as Secretary of Labor. I am satisfied that she will do that and that she will work with the Congress and the Senate, on both sides of the aisle, and will do a good job as Secretary of Labor. Now, the second problem, of course, has been the idea that there would be an Executive order with regard to Federal union contracting. There has been a considerable amount of concern, as the Senator knows, about this being done through Executive order. We feel that should be done by the Congress with recommendations and time for consideration. But we have worked out an understanding with the administration of how this matter will be handled. Based on their assurances, which we feel they will honor, we felt it was appropriate to proceed with this nominee. I want to say, again, that the nominee was not the problem over the last few weeks. The problem was an understanding about how labor law should be changed. I think we have reached a point where we can enter into this agreement. I thank the assistant majority leader, Don Nickles, for his effort. He is knowledgeable in this area. He has been aggressive in trying to identify the problem and trying to find a solution. I did have a chance to discuss this last night with the President. He has had an opportunity to discuss it with representatives from the White House, and I feel that an amicable arrangement has been reached. I yield the floor.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I renew my request for a unanimous-consent agreement that we proceed to Calendar No. 70, the nomination of Alexis Herman to be Secretary of Labor.

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

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, before the Chair rules on the unanimous consent request, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now go into executive session to consider Executive Calendar No. 70, the nomination of Alexis Herman to be Secretary of Labor. I further ask that there be 30 minutes of debate on the nomination to be equally divided between the chairman and ranking minority manager; I further ask unanimous consent that immediately following the expiration or yielding back of the time, the Senate proceed to a vote on the confirmation of the nomination, and immediately following the vote the President be notified of the Senate's action, and the Senate then return to legislative session.

Mr. LOTT

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

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Good morning, Mr. President.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, today, the Senate will resume consideration of the motion to proceed to the consideration of S. 543, the Volunteer Protection Act. Debate on the motion to proceed will continue until 12:30 p.m., with the time equally divided between Senator Coverdell, or his designee, and the ranking member, or his designee. From 12:30 p.m. to 2:15 p.m., the Senate will be in recess for the weekly policy luncheons. By a previous order, at 2:15 p.m., there will be a cloture vote on the motion to proceed to S. 543, the Volunteer Protection Act. If cloture is invoked, there will be 1 hour of debate, followed by a vote on the motion to proceed. As a reminder, a second cloture motion was filed last night on the motion to proceed to S. 543. Therefore, if cloture is not invoked at 2:15 p.m., there will be a second vote on Wednesday. Hopefully, cloture will be invoked today, and the Senate can begin consideration of this important bill. I note again, this is debate on the motion to proceed on a bill that seems to me we would certainly want to pass in short order to provide some basic protection for volunteers who serve on boards of charitable organizations, volunteer organizations. That is the spirit of what we have seen in Philadelphia for the last 3 days, and yet, if you volunteer in America, you run the risk of being sued. Maybe we can work out some of the concerns that lawyers may have about this bill. But it seems like it is the fair thing to do. We have other work we need to do. I am sure Senators would like to turn to the supplemental appropriations bill as soon as possible. We hope that bill will be ready for consideration Wednesday or Thursday, but we have to dispose of the Volunteer Protection Act first. There are other concerns that we think need to be addressed. So we will be working with the minority leader to see if we can come to some agreement on how we can conclude these very important pieces of legislation. I yield the floor, Mr. President.

Mr. LOTT

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