John McCain

Mr. McCAIN

Mr. McCAIN. I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to. Amendment No. 1202, As Modified

Mr. McCAIN. Reluctantly.

Mr. McCAIN. I yield back the 1 minute of time remaining.

Mr. McCAIN. I have nothing more to add. I wish to vote.

Mr. McCAIN. It sounds simplistic, and the hour is late and we need to vote, but the fact is there were 382 amendments that were submitted. There were hundreds of amendments that were waiting, and the fact is that initially the Cornyn amendment was not agreed to, so it is a little more complicated than that. There were literally 400 or 500 amendments that were filed, and we had to at some point cut off the process. For next year's bill we will try to get a situation where it is far more inclusive and far more informative. When you are dealing with 500 amendments, I know that each is important, but there is no way you are going to be able to get through the authorization bill with that many amendments that are filed, and that is just a fact. We are doing the best we can to accommodate the Senator from Texas and the Senator from Oklahoma and every other Senator who didn't get their amendment voted on.

Mr. McCAIN. I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. McCAIN. I thank the chairman. One of the things I look back on with great nostalgia and appreciation is the relationship we have developed over many years. I must say that we have had spirited discussions from time to time, but they have been educational, enlightening, and entertaining. I thank the Senator for his leadership.

Mr. McCAIN

Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I must admit that I have heard some bizarre arguments in my time as a Member of this body in referencing the Constitution of the United States as a basis for the argument. Now, it is my understanding my friend from South Carolina--I ask unanimous consent to enter into a colloquy with the Senator from South Carolina.

Mr. McCAIN. It is my understanding that under the Constitution, it is the Supreme Court of the United States that gives the interpretation of the Constitution as to various laws and challenges to the Constitution. It is their responsibility. Is that a correct assumption?

Mr. McCAIN. So our colleague from Illinois who continues to quote from the Constitution of the United States fails to quote from the specific addressing of this issue by the U.S. Supreme Court, specifically the Hamdan decision. Is that correct?

Mr. McCAIN. Not a civilian trial, not given her Miranda rights, but tried by military tribunal.

Mr. McCAIN. Captured in the United States of America. Those are the facts of the case.

Mr. McCAIN. Madam President, I am afraid we have to move to the amendment of Senator Merkley, who has been very patient.

Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I call up amendment No. 1229 and ask for its immediate consideration.

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

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

Mr. McCAIN. Madam President, I would like to say to my colleagues, we have been waiting approval of a managers' package of amendments that have been cleared by both sides. It is not a managers' package. It is simply a group of amendments that have been proposed by Members on both sides of the aisle, approved--no one has objected--and yet there are objections to moving forward with these amendments in a package. There are important amendments by Members on both sides. I would urge my colleagues who would object to moving forward with this package of amendments which have been agreed to by both sides--and there has been no objection voiced to them individually--that I would like to move to adopt those shortly before the vote on cloture at 11 o'clock. If someone objects to that, then I would insist that they come over to the floor and object. That is the procedure we will follow that I would like to inform my colleagues. In other words, we have a group of amendments. They have been cleared by both sides; no one objects. And yet there seems to be an objection to moving forward with a group of amendments that has already been agreed to. So according to parliamentary rules, I will insist that the Member be here present to object when I move forward with the package shortly before the hour of 11. Anyone watching in the offices, please inform your Senator of that decision.

Mr. McCAIN. They have been cleared on this side.

Mr. McCAIN. Madam President, I thank my colleagues for allowing this package of these amendments to go through. We will be working on additional amendments that we can agree to. We are about to vote on cloture, and if cloture is invoked, I want to inform my colleagues, those amendments that are pending and filed will be eligible for votes, and we will be using the chronology of when they were filed. We will be notifying every Member who has an amendment that is filed and pending and germane. We will try to arrange time agreements for those who want votes. We will be looking to also see areas where we could agree and adopt an additional package. It is my understanding that if cloture is invoked, we will have 30 hours, and during that period we wish to get these amendments resolved. I remind my colleagues that if the 30 hours expires and there are still pending germane filed amendments, there will have to be additional votes taken at some time after the 30 hours. So I would urge my colleagues who have filed, pending, germane amendments that we sit down during the cloture vote or just afterward and try and arrange a schedule of votes that is most convenient for them in keeping with their schedule. Again, I thank my colleagues for allowing that package to go through. Those are very important amendments which have been agreed to by both sides. I realize we have a long way to go, but this is a significant step forward. I yield the floor.

Mr. McCAIN. Madam President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, briefly, while my friend from Colorado is on the floor, he said: Take the time. We have been taking time, I tell the Senator from Colorado, since September 11, 2001, when the United States of America was attacked. We passed the Detainee Treatment Act. We passed other pieces of legislation--the PATRIOT Act, and others. Take the time? I say, in all due respect, we have taken a lot of time--in fact, hundreds and hundreds of hours of debate, discussion--as to how to address this threat to the United States of America. If the Senator from Colorado supports the Feinstein amendment, I agree with that. I cannot agree that we have not taken the time. I personally have taken--I cannot tell you--untold hours addressing this issue of how we treat detainees. We may have a fundamental disagreement, but I do reject the argument that we have not taken the time. I yield the floor.

Mr. McCAIN. Go ahead.

Mr. McCAIN. I thank the Senator from Colorado for his clarification, and I think I understand more clearly his rationale for his support of the amendment. I yield the floor.

Mr. McCAIN

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

Mr. McCAIN

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