Barbara Mikulski

Ms. MIKULSKI

Ms. MIKULSKI. This amendment has been cleared on both sides of the aisle. I ask for its immediate adoption.

Ms. MIKULSKI. I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to. Amendment No. 3275

Ms. MIKULSKI. I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I call up amendment No. 3247 by Senator McCaskill of Missouri and ask for its immediate consideration.

Ms. MIKULSKI. I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to. Amendment No. 3288

Ms. MIKULSKI

Ms. MIKULSKI. The committee recognizes the importance of aeronautics research and NASA's 10 Healthy Centers effort. We share your concern about the steady decline in budget requests for aeronautics research. We will work with you to ensure this critical and historical strength of NASA is funded at a level sufficient to maintain our country's competitive edge in aeronautics. Plant Genome Research Program

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I yield to the distinguished Senator from Pennsylvania. We had this pressing amendment we needed to get done, but the Senator from Pennsylvania and the Senator from Ohio have been very patient. I will now yield such time as he may consume to the Senator from Pennsylvania.

Ms. MIKULSKI. Finally, I ask unanimous consent that all first-degree amendments to H.R. 3093 must be filed at the desk by 2:30 p.m. Monday, October 15.

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, this amendment is cleared on both sides of the aisle and I urge its immediate adoption.

Ms. MIKULSKI. If the Senator will yield, I have been on thin ice, but I didn't skate.

Ms. MIKULSKI. I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to. Amendment No. 3268

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, to those who might be watching the actions of the Senate in either the gallery or on C-SPAN--because we do function in an open and transparent way--they might wonder: What is going on there? Well, I will tell you what is going on. We are debating the appropriations subcommittee report that funds all of the Commerce, all Justice, and good, significant aspects of America's science programs--the National Science Foundation, the space agency, the agency that does research on oceans. In the course of debating this appropriations bill, there have been others who have asked to speak on other matters. When you see the Chamber is empty, what we are doing is clearing amendments offered by our colleagues. We are waiting for another colleague to come to offer an appropriations amendment. For us, we are trying to make sure America remains premier in space. I will reiterate, the Mikulski-Shelby-Hutchinson-Bill Nelson-Mel Martinez bipartisan amendment is to restore the funding that it took when the Columbia accident occurred to return our astronauts to space safely and swiftly. I will elaborate on that later, but I note the Senator from Rhode Island is here, who also wishes to speak on the amendment, as does the Senator from Louisiana. I yield the floor.

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, my last request is, I send an amendment to the desk and ask for its immediate consideration.

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

Ms. MIKULSKI

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, this amendment has got a rollcall of cosponsors. Of course, it is cosponsored by my very able ranking member, Senator Shelby; Senator Hutchison of Texas, another strong advocate of space and one of the original architects; Senator Landrieu of Louisiana; Nelson and Martinez of Florida--Nelson is an astronaut-- Salazar of Colorado; Lieberman; and strong bipartisan support from Senators Bennett and Vitter. Senator Clinton of New York is included, as well as Senator Brown of Ohio. This amendment will increase funding for NASA. It is unique and historic that we offer this amendment right at this minute. This is the 50th anniversary of Sputnik. Fifty years ago, that 180-pound piece of round metal went into space and changed the destiny of mankind. When Sputnik went up, we didn't know what the intent of the Russians was, but a wonderful Republican President by the name of Eisenhower knew we had to get into the space race. We have been in it ever since. But it has never been for predatory purposes or military purposes. Our NASA has always been to go where no man or woman has ever gone before, to be involved in discovery, to also come up with the science to protect our own planet and to further our national agenda in aeronautics. Joining us today, as we offer this amendment, in the gallery are the astronauts from the space ship Endeavor. They have spent 14 days in space, continuing the work to assemble the International Space Station, which is our lab in the sky, which will also be a gateway to go back to the Moon and stay there when we do, and then on to Mars; after that, who knows where. We welcome them today to watch this debate because, just as we want to keep space free of politics, we want them to see that here on the Senate floor we can work on a bipartisan basis to put the money in the Federal checkbook to do what NASA needs to do to keep this mission. What this amendment does is adds $1 billion to NASA's budget. It covers the cost of repairing and upgrading the safety of its space shuttle fleet. It comes in the aftermath of the Space Shuttle Columbia accident in 2003. The funding was declared an emergency and they received full funding to return to space. Our amendment follows the precedent set after the 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger accident, when Congress made a special appropriation to get the shuttle flying again. So this amendment follows the precedent set in 1986 after the Challenger accident. A one-time amount of $3 billion was given to NASA to get the shuttle flying again--not only to simply get it flying, but to make sure our astronauts were safe when they did fly. By contrast, after the Columbia accident in 2003, NASA only received $100 million in special appropriations. Let me be clear, our goal is not to increase the NASA space budget but to restore the funding that was forced to get after the Columbia accident. This funding is necessary for three reasons: First, since 2003, when that terrible melancholy event occurred, it has cost NASA over $2 billion to comply with the recommendations of Admiral Gehman to fix what it would take for the remaining shuttles and to fly them safely. Admiral Gehman was asked by the Nation to chair a commission to see what it would take to restore the shuttle's ability to fly again, but also to protect those astronauts. It had engineering solutions, technological solutions, and management recommendations. It was a great report and it was expensive, and do you know what. It was worth it. Is the shuttle flying safely today? You bet it is, and we are all thankful. At the same time, though, the shuttle has become more expensive to maintain and fly safely. The shuttle is a bit old. It has been hit by unforeseen events, from a hurricane to damage in space. We need the shuttle to maintain our commitment to the International Space Station, where we have treaty obligations. Second, another reason to support this amendment is the shuttle will be retired in 2010, and we are faced with the challenge of developing a new, reliable, safe human flight vehicle. But the costs of returning the shuttle to flight have forced NASA to cut funds for the next transportation vehicle by almost $500 million. This cut contributes to the gap of over 5 years between when the shuttle retires in 2010 and when we get a brandnew vehicle in 2015. This is not acceptable. We cannot let China get to the Moon before the United States does. We also need to make sure we keep our astronauts safe for the remaining time they use the shuttle. Also we have to keep that excellent talent down there of scientists, engineers, and mechanics, to keep our shuttle flying safely. Third, NASA has had to forage for funds in other programs to pay to fix the shuttles. Since 2003, science and aeronautics have been cut by almost $100 million. Science on the space station has been drastically cut. This has a ripple effect within the scientific community. It affects our future ability to understand and protect changes in our planet and in other issues. The National Academy of Sciences says we need more space science, not less. The consequences of not doing this amendment are clear. It contributes to the delay of our next space transportation vehicle. No one wants that. We do not want to be grounded for an extensive period of time. It reduces our commitment to our international treaty obligations on the space station. The goals of the amendment are clear. It maintains our commitment to safe, reliable, and robust human spaceflight. It keeps us on track for the next reliable space transportation vehicle and maintains our commitment to scientific discovery. We didn't leave NASA with an unpaid bill 20 years ago, and we shouldn't do it now. Twenty years ago, our colleagues, Senator Byrd and Senator Stevens, provided $2.7 billion out of the defense budget to buy a replacement space shuttle. We did not cut NASA's budget after the Challenger accident. We shouldn't do it after the Columbia accident. We recommend this amendment because it is $1 billion. It follows the precedent from the Challenger accident. It does not add to the base. It fulfills important national goals which were set by our President to lay the groundwork for space exploration to Mars. But if we are going to do that, I believe we have the national will to do that, I believe we need the national wallet to do that. So 50 years after the birth of our great Apollo Program, we need to make sure we keep our commitment to exploration and discovery. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan amendment. I yield the floor.

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

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, this amendment, as modified, has been cleared on both sides. I urge its adoption.

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, this is a very straightforward amendment. What it does is add $10 million to the Office of Violence Against Women. October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and we wanted to be sure that, in our legislation, one of the things we were going to be clear about was that there would be enough resources for our local communities to really deal with the growing issue of domestic violence. It might come as a surprise that many local law enforcement people are injured in the line of duty when responding to domestic violence. You might say: Well, aren't they hurt when they are responding to robberies and burglaries? The answer is yes. But when a police officer responds to a domestic violence call and he walks into a home--or she-- the police officer usually does not have a weapon drawn because they want to de-escalate the situation. This is often happening behind closed doors where someone is being battered, and the perpetrator could very likely feel threatened and, in turn, use the officer's weapon or another lethal object on the police officer. So the police officers are in danger, the spouse or the child being battered is also in danger, and we want to make sure the funding is not also in jeopardy. I strongly support the Office of Violence Against Women that was established by our colleague from Delaware, Senator Biden. My amendment simply increases the money, for a total of $400 million. It has an appropriate offset, and it will provide more funding for the training of police officers and prosecutors. It would also continue the funding for battered women shelters and at the same time have a very strong effort in reducing rape, and also prosecution of rape. The amendment is noncontroversial. We have several cosponsors, including my colleague, Senator Shelby, and also Mrs. Murray of Washington State. So I hope my colleagues would accept this amendment.

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I thank my colleague for supporting this, and I urge the adoption of the amendment.

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I send a modification of the amendment to the desk.

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I concur with setting aside the amendment. I also want to say something. I believe I am the bastion of collegiality. I believe conversation avoids confrontation. That is why we have such a great bill. We have a fantastic bill we have arrived at together. Senator Shelby and I go back a long way, from the House of Representatives where we served, and we have been appropriators during our entire time in the Senate. But in clearing things, we are talking about clearing it with one Senator. That Senator must exercise a lot of fiscal responsibility. I am ready to move my bill along. I would like him or his representative to promptly come to the floor. If we have this new kind of arrangement where we have to clear it with this Senator rather than clearing it with the ranking member and our leadership, then I would like that Senator to come to the floor. I will be collegial. I will be patient up to a point. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the substitute amendment, which is at the desk, and the text of the Senate committee-reported bill be considered and agreed to; the bill, as amended, be considered as original text for the purpose of further amendment; and that no points of order be considered waived by this agreement.

Ms. MIKULSKI

Ms. MIKULSKI. Before my three colleagues who have accomplished this significant feat leave the floor, I, too, wish to salute them. Dear colleagues, what an emotional day. First, our good friend Senator Wellstone embarked on that with you, Senator Murray, many years ago. Paul is no longer with us. His legacy lives on. There is a saying I learned in Catholic girls school: exegi aani perrenius. I will build a monument in lasting bronze. And when one thinks about a monument to Paul Wellstone, the kind of wise guy he was, he wouldn't be a marble guy or want some bronze statue. He would want this as a memorial that others might live. As a Senator from Maryland, my State is a manufacturing State. In my shipyards, there was so much asbestos. To this day, the shipyard workers of Baltimore and Fairfield, Bethlehem Steel, people who built the liberty ships, the ones who helped win the battle of the North Atlantic, the ones who every day would go to work with their lunch pail, now go to the senior citizen meetings carrying an oxygen tank, and not only have they suffered but their spouses suffer. Most of the guys in those days would come home and they would wash their clothes and take care of them. The women were exposed to this as well. It is not only secondhand smoke, but it was secondhand asbestos. For me today to know that when we talked about better things through chemistry, the answer was yes, but what we did without realizing it was subject our American citizens to such unbelievable pain. So for the guys at the shipyards, we say to Murray, to Boxer, and to Isakson: Anchors aweigh, my boys and girls, anchors aweigh. I yield the floor.

Ms. MIKULSKI

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs' Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Managment, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, October 4, 2007, at 2:30 p.m. in order to conduct a hearing entit1ed, ``Forestalling the Coming Pandemic: Infectious Disease Surveillance Overseas.''

Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Joint Economic Committee he authorized to conduct a hearing entitled, ``Mass Incarceration in the United States: At What Cost?'', in room 216 of the Hart Senate Office Building, Thursday, October 4, 2007, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.