Jeff Merkley

Mr. MERKLEY

Mr. MERKLEY. I thank Senator Shaheen so much. It is enormously valuable to have her experience fighting for health care at the State level and bringing that to this conversation, recognizing we do have a partnership between what the State can do and what the Federal team can do and that the goal of reforming the way we deliver health care can have a huge impact on price. Next, we turn to Senator Michael Bennet from Colorado. As the highly successful superintendent of Denver Public Schools, Senator Bennet committed himself to ensuring the health and educational well-being of Denver's school-aged children. I yield 4 minutes to my friend from Colorado.

Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I thank Senator Hagan very much for her comments and her observations about how the current health care system, the current rules of insurance, including the ability to turn down patients and to deny folks with preexisting conditions, works to discriminate against women and prevent preventive health care. We will now turn to Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York. As a Member of the House of Representatives, Senator Gillibrand was a champion of children's and family health care issues and was a leading voice on the need to improve health care services for America's veterans. I yield my friend from New York 4 minutes.

Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I thank Senator Udall very much for his remarks. I thank the Senator for his emphasis on quality outcomes and patient-centered care as a way to improve care and to decrease costs. We will now turn to Senator Kay Hagan of North Carolina. As a State senator in North Carolina, Senator Hagan worked to extend health insurance to uninsured children, to expand care for uninsured patients living in rural areas of the State, and to end insurance discrimination against mental health care patients. I yield Senator Hagan 4 minutes.

Mr. MERKLEY. Madam President, I thank Senator Udall for his clarion call for primary prevention to save lives and save dollars. We now turn to Senator Mark Udall of Colorado. As a Member of the House of Representatives, Senator Udall championed legislation highlighting the health benefits of physical activity for the public. I yield 4 minutes to the Senator from Colorado.

Mr. MERKLEY. I thank the Senator from Virginia, particularly for noting the consequences if we fail to act and the absolute necessity to reform an inefficient delivery system. I turn now to Senator Tom Udall of New Mexico. As a Member of the House, Senator Udall was a champion of preventive health care initiatives, including legislation to encourage employers to offer wellness programs to workers. I yield 4 minutes to the Senator from New Mexico.

Mr. MERKLEY. I thank my colleague from Alaska for his remarks and his emphasis that prevention and management of chronic diseases are essential to bending the cost curve. I now turn to Senator Warner from Virginia. Before serving as Governor of Virginia, Senator Warner helped create the Virginia Health Care Foundation, which is providing health care to more than 600,000 underserved Virginians. I yield 4 minutes to Senator Warner.

Mr. MERKLEY. Madam President, a week ago, freshman Democratic Senators came to this floor to discuss as a group how our current health care system is broken and unsustainable. Today, we return to address the challenge of runaway costs and how health care reform can bend the cost curve, making health care more affordable and more accessible to our families and our businesses. Many folks have said to me: Is this really the time to take on health care reform, when we are in the middle of the worst recession since the Great Depression? The answer is an unequivocal yes. Now is the time. Now is the time because health care costs are a runaway train that can do great damage to our families and our small businesses and large businesses. Indeed, consider the situation of a family when health care costs have doubled in the last 9 years, so families who could afford insurance just a few years ago cannot afford it today. Now health care premiums are rising even faster. They are expected to double in the next 7 years. As a result, many families and many individuals who are struggling to pay those health care premiums right now won't be able to do so in just a few more years. So fixing our broken health care system cannot wait. Indeed, reform is essential to our families, our small businesses, and our large businesses. Consider this: For a working family, every additional dollar that goes into a health care premium comes out of the wages that would otherwise go to increase the family's purchasing power. So rising health care premiums are a tax on family wages, a tax on family purchasing power, making it much harder for our families to get ahead and provide for their children and establish a high quality of life. Controlling cost is also essential to small businesses. Small businesses want to offer health coverage to attract and keep good employees, to do what is right for their employees' quality of life. But runaway costs are making that more and more difficult. Consider the example of the Hawthorne Auto Clinic founded and operated by Jim Houser and his wife Liz Dally. When they opened 26 years ago, Jim and Liz were committed to offering those who worked for them and with them a good benefits package, including comprehensive health care. They are still able to provide health insurance to their employees, but it is getting tougher. Premiums have gone from 9 percent of their payroll to 18 percent in just the last 5 years. As a result, they have had to cut back on the benefits they have offered. Over the last decade, health care premiums have skyrocketed for small businesses across the board like they have for the Hawthorne Auto Clinic. Large businesses see the effect as well. If you build a car in America, it costs $1,500 in health care. If you build that same car across the border in Canada and Europe, the cost is zero. In fact, in 2007, GM spent more on health care than they did on steel. So controlling costs is essential for our large businesses to be competitive in the world, to be able to build products here in America. If we do not build products in America, we will not have a middle class in America. So health care reform cannot wait. Our families need help with runaway costs. Our small businesses are looking for us to help control costs, and our large businesses need reform to be competitive in the world and to build the strong economy that will raise all boats. Today, freshmen Democratic Senators are here to discuss this from a number of perspectives. First will be Senator Roland Burris of Illinois. As comptroller and attorney general of Illinois, Senator Burris committed himself to serving the health and well-being of underserved populations in his State. I yield 4 minutes to my distinguished friend from Illinois.

Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I thank my Democratic freshmen colleagues for coming to the floor today to talk about our broken health care system and the absolute necessity to control costs in this system, that we are on a train headed for a wreck. It is making it so difficult for families and small businesses and large businesses to afford health care, to establish a high quality of life, strong, thriving small businesses and international competitiveness for our large businesses. We can and must improve our health care system. The moment is now. I thank my colleagues for coming to the floor and sharing their vast experience in so many different capacities and bringing it to bear on this challenge that touches the life of every single American. I yield the floor.

Mr. MERKLEY

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

Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, it has become clear that our health care debate is entering the twilight zone. We have such a challenge in this Nation of individuals who have no health care, small businesses struggling to provide health care, and large businesses that are having a difficult time competing and producing products in America for the world because of the accelerating price of health care. So often, over the last couple of months, I have heard colleagues come and attack this effort to repair our broken system. Those repairs are essential to our family members. They are essential to our workers, to our small businesses, and to our big businesses. We have had very strange stories shared in this Chamber--stories, as my colleague from Hawaii mentioned, about death panels, a creation in the mind of the former Governor from Alaska, having nothing to do with anything that happens to be in any bill before this body. We have had strange stories about benefits provided to individuals who are here undocumented, in direct opposition to the straightforward language that is in the House bills and the Senate bills. We have had strange stories about a murky government takeover, when the heart of this plan is to create the same sort of marketplace that gives 8 million Federal workers access to multiple private plans, to create that same marketplace and access for every single American. Now, in the last day, there is something even more strange: an attack on States that are having the most difficult time in this recession. We are deep in the twilight zone when Members come to this body to attack efforts to assist the States most severely damaged by this recession--the States of Michigan, Rhode Island, Nevada, and my home State of Oregon. Oregon is having a difficult time for a host of reasons. We are a State that does a lot of trading, and a lot of the countries we trade with have had year-over-year recessions even worse than our own. For example, South Korea, 20-percent year-over-year drop in gross domestic product. We have a timber industry that provides a lot of dimensional lumber to build houses and build commercial buildings around this Nation. The collapse of building has damaged it severely. We have a wonderful section of our economy involving growing fruits and growing Christmas trees, and the Mexican tariffs have hit that very hard. Add it all up and Oregon is one of the four States worst hit. I read a few weeks ago that if we include the underemployed as well as the unemployed, Oregon is the single worst hit State in our Nation. I applaud the efforts of Members of this Chamber to say we have a broken health care system and we are going to repair it. They are absolutely right. I am pleased to be a member of that team working to make those repairs. I applaud the Members of this Chamber who said we must help those States worst hit by this recession, continuing a great American tradition. When a State is hard hit by drought, we reach out and assist. When a State is hard hit by a hurricane, we reach out as a nation to gather and assist. When a State is hard hit by a flood, there is a natural disaster called, and we as a nation respond. When an earthquake strikes, as a nation we are there. Now we have another disaster, an economic disaster, that is hitting particularly hard in four States. I applaud the efforts to reach out and assist those States together as a nation, as we have so many other States in so many other circumstances. Let's pull this conversation out of the ``Twilight Zone.'' Let's come together, as we have so many times before, to take on the challenge of a broken health care system, to take on assistance to the worst hit States and help them adjust to providing Medicaid that is so urgently needed by their populations. Thank you, Mr. President.

Mr. MERKLEY

Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, during 11 townhalls in Oregon this August I heard a lot of heartfelt anger and confusion from Oregonians about health care in our Nation. I am sure it echoed the confusion and frustration from voices across our Nation. A lot of Oregonians came out to tell me that they did not like one bit the description of the reform plan they were hearing on radio and on television. If reform means they would have to give up their insurance or give up their doctor, they did not want any of it. If reform meant that government panels would deny care to seniors, then they wanted me to know that was outrageous, that they would never support it. And I agree with them. If reform had those features, it sure would not get my vote. I do not think it would get a single vote in this Chamber. But as most of America now knows, those claims were lies told to scare the bejeebers out of citizens by folks who profit from our current health care system. It says a lot, does it not, that those who want to block repairs to our broken health care system have to resort to creating myths in order to whip up opposition. The opponents of reform have their own plan, which is continue to profit from the current system, our current broken system. Their plan, simply put, is a terrible plan for America. The opponents' status quo plan features shutting out folks with potential health care risks, those who most need health care, from our health care system. Their plan features denying coverage for citizens with preexisting conditions. Their plan involves dumping citizens out of coverage who, after years of paying their premiums, develop a health care problem and then they lose their health care. The opponents' status quo plan is to continue a broken system in which premiums double every 7 years, putting health care out of reach to America's working families and robbing workers of their pay raises that could improve their standard of living. The opponents' plan is to continue health care rationing by insurance company bureaucrats who make money denying the claims. The opponents' plan is to continue lifetime limits that pile massive debt on those unfortunate enough to get sick or injured. The opponent's plan is to continue a system in which health care costs drive more than half the bankruptcies in America, tearing the financial foundations out of our working families, setting them back decades, if, in fact, they ever recover at all. What I did hear from citizens back home is they do not like that status quo plan. They want to see those problems fixed. They want an individual to be able to join a pool and get a much better deal. They as a small business want to know that they will be able to control health care costs and keep providing health insurance, and maybe even get a better deal, and not have to pay the transfer costs of all of the folks who do not have health care and end up in the emergency room. So for small businesses to thrive in our Nation, for American families to thrive, for large businesses to compete internationally, we must fix our broken health care system. The status quo plan put forward by opponents is simply wrong for America, wrong for families and wrong for business.

Mr. MERKLEY

Mr. MERKLEY. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 265, submitted earlier today.

Mr. MERKLEY. I ask unanimous consent the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate, and any statements be printed in the Record.

Mr. MERKLEY

Mr. MERKLEY. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Judiciary Committee be discharged from further consideration of S. Res. 258 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. MERKLEY. I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate, and any statements related to the resolution be printed in the Record.

Mr. MERKLEY

Mr. MERKLEY. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 10 a.m. tomorrow, Tuesday, September 15; that following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and there then be a period of morning business for 1 hour, with the time equally divided and controlled between the two leaders or their designees, with the majority controlling the first half and the Republicans controlling the second half, with Senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each; that following morning business, the Senate resume consideration of Calendar No. 153, H.R. 3288, Transportation HUD appropriations; and finally, I ask the Senate recess from 12:30 until 2:15 p.m. to allow for the weekly caucus luncheons.

Mr. MERKLEY

Mr. MERKLEY. Madam President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent it adjourn under the previous order.

Mr. MERKLEY

Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I rise today to remember and honor our colleague Senator Edward Kennedy. I first had the pleasure of hearing Senator Kennedy speak in 1976. I wanted to come out to Washington, DC, to see how our Nation operated. I had the great privilege of serving as an intern for a Senator from my home State, Senator Hatfield. My father had always talked about Senator Kennedy as someone who spoke for the disenfranchised, someone who spoke for the dispossessed, someone who cared about the working man. So I was looking forward to possibly meeting him or at least hearing him, when lo and behold, I found out he was scheduled to speak as part of a series of lectures to the interns that summer. So I made sure to get there early, and what followed was exactly the type of address you might anticipate--a roaring voice, a passionate spirit, a principled presentation of the challenges we face to make our society better. I walked out of that lecture and thought: Thank goodness--thank goodness--we have leaders like Senator Kennedy fighting for the working people, the challenged, the dispossessed in our society. Through that summer, each time I heard Senator Kennedy was on the Senate floor I tried to slip over and go up to the staff section so I could sit in and see a little bit of the lion of the Senate in action. During that time I never anticipated that I would have a chance to come back and serve in the Senate with Senator Kennedy. But 33 years later, this last January, when I was sworn in, that unanticipated, miraculous event of serving with him occurred. I wanted to talk to him about the possibility of joining his Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee--a committee where so many battles for working Americans, so many battles for the disenfranchised Americans are waged. So with some trepidation I approached him on the Senate floor to speak with him and asked if he thought I might be able to serve on that committee, if he might whisper in the ear of our esteemed majority leader in that regard, if he thought I might serve well. It was with some pleasure that weeks later I had a message on my phone in which he went on at some length welcoming me to that committee. That was the first committee to which I received an assignment here, and I couldn't have been more excited and more pleased. I didn't have a chance to have a lot of conversations with Senator Kennedy. I was very struck when a bit more than a month ago his staff contacted me and said, in conversation with Senator Kennedy, they were wondering if I might like to carry on the torch on the Employment Non- Discrimination Act, a civil rights measure he cared a great deal about. They were asking me because it was a battle I had waged in the Oregon Legislature. It had been a hard battle, fought over a number of years, and a battle we had won. I was more than excited, more than honored to help carry the torch on such an important civil rights measure, and I hope I will be able to do that in a way he would have been satisfied and pleased. The Senator from New York, Mr. Schumer, talked about the many conversations that took place in Senator Kennedy's hideaway with freshmen Senators and the stories that were passed on. I didn't get to share much in those types of conversations, but as we were working on health care, Senator Kennedy invited a group of us to his hideaway to brainstorm. Through the course of about 2 hours we went through many of the features and many of the challenges and how we might be able to go forward and finally realize that dream of affordable, accessible health care for every single American. When the meeting concluded, I had a chance to speak with Senator Kennedy about the picture he had on his wall of his beautiful yacht-- the Maya. Senator Kennedy and I both have a passion for sailing. It connected us across the generation, it connected us from the west coast to the east coast, it connected us between the son of a millwright and the son of a U.S. ambassador. It was magic to see the twinkle in his eye as he started to talk of his love of sailing and some of the adventures he had on various boats over time and with family. I asked him if he was familiar with one of my favorite stories--an autobiography written by CAPT Joshua Slocum. Joshua Slocum had been raised in a large family and, to my recollection, a family of no great means. He had gone to sea when he was a young boy--as a cabin boy or a deckhand--and he learned to sail the tall sheets. Over time he advanced through the ranks until eventually he was the captain of a merchant tall-masted ship. He had amassed some considerable amount of investment and value and loaned to share that ship. When the ship went down, he lost everything. He saved his life, but he lost all of his possessions. He was up in New England wrestling with how to overcome this tragedy and what to do with his life, and Captain Slocum had a colonel of an idea. He was offered the gift of a ship. Not really a ship, a modest boat between 20 and 30 feet long, single-masted. He later overhauled it and added an after-mast. But he thought: I can rebuild this ship. He said he rebuilt it, in his story, Captain Slocum. He rebuilt it all but the name. The Spray stayed from the beginning to the end. He rebuilt it and went to sea to fish. But it wasn't much to his liking, and so Captain Slocum had an idea that he was going to perhaps sail around the world. He thought: Why not just sail right out across the Atlantic. It was a revolutionary idea because no one had ever tried to sail around the world by themselves, just a single person. But he set off and he went to Europe. I tell you this story at some length because Senator Kennedy knew this story well, and we enjoyed sharing pieces of it back and forth. He had gone forth in 1895 and taken 3 years to circumnavigate the globe and came back to New England 3 years later, in 1898. So this was well more than a century ago, and people around the world were astounded to see him sail into a harbor all by himself having crossed the broad expanse of an ocean. In some ways, the life of Captain Slocum represents a version of the life of Senator Kennedy--someone who faced great adversity, who faced great tragedy, but looked at all of it and said: I am going to go forward. I am going to go forward and do something bold, something important. For Senator Kennedy, it wasn't literally sailing around the world but it was sailing through a host of major issues that affect virtually every facet of our lives--certainly the issue of public service, the National Service Act, the issue of mental health and the issue of health care and the issue of education. Others who have served with him have spoken in far greater detail and more eloquently than I ever could, but I just want to say to Senator Kennedy: Thank you for your life of service. Thank you for overcoming adversity to undertake a bold journey, a journey that has touched every one of our lives. Thank you for reaching out to converse with this son of a mill worker from Oregon who felt so privileged to be on the floor of the Senate and to have had just a few months with this master of the Senate and who will hopefully carry forward some of the passion and the principle he so embodied.

Mr. MERKLEY

Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, in recent years, consumer credit has gone from providing convenience and short-term financing to a game of tricks and traps that strips families of hard earned resources and locks the middle class into a vicious cycle of debt. Today, I introduce legislation to end one of those deceptive practices--the unsolicited mailing of ``live'' loan checks. Deceptive loan checks have afflicted consumers, especially seniors, for far too long. In these schemes, financial institutions send unsuspecting customers checks made out to them for some amount. Customers often assume that their financial institutions have sent refunds or some other business-related sum and unknowingly deposit the checks. However, fine print on these checks actually makes them high- cost loans. Bank regulators have failed for years to rein in these deceptive products. In Oregon, one of my elderly constituents--a veteran of the Korean war--ended up in a subprime mortgage because he unknowingly deposited a deceptive loan check that he never requested. Sadly, instead of being able to cancel the loan, he was pushed into rolling this unwanted loan into his mortgage, which was then transformed from a safe, fixed rate mortgage that had nearly been paid off, into a brand new, subprime mortgage. As this case shows, deceptive products and practices lead our consumers into dangerous, high cost debt. If individuals wish to take out high cost loans, they should have every right to do so, but financial institutions should make those transactions plain and straightforward, not tricky and deceptive. To address this situation, I am introducing the Deceptive Loan Check Elimination Act. Under the act, financial institutions would be prohibited from sending a ``live'' loan check unless the consumer requested such a check in writing. Consumers would not be liable for any debt incurred in violation of the act. This common sense solution protects consumers without constricting credit for those who want it. The legislation is endorsed by Consumer Action, Consumers Federation of America, Consumers Union, the National Consumer Law Center, on behalf of its low income clients, and the U.S. Public Interest Research Group. I am hopeful that the Senate will act quickly to address this problem. In addition, the next step in restoring a fair playing field for working families is to move ahead quickly to create the Consumer Financial Protection Agency, a body with the authority to review and regulate financial tricks and traps like ``live'' loan checks. I urge my colleagues to join me in this and future efforts to restore honesty and plain dealing to our consumer credit markets.

Mr. MERKLEY

Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, in recent years, consumer credit has gone from providing convenience and short-term financing to a game of tricks and traps that strips families of hard earned resources and locks the middle class into a vicious cycle of debt. Today, I introduce legislation to end one of those deceptive practices--the unsolicited mailing of ``live'' loan checks. Deceptive loan checks have afflicted consumers, especially seniors, for far too long. In these schemes, financial institutions send unsuspecting customers checks made out to them for some amount. Customers often assume that their financial institutions have sent refunds or some other business-related sum and unknowingly deposit the checks. However, fine print on these checks actually makes them high- cost loans. Bank regulators have failed for years to rein in these deceptive products. In Oregon, one of my elderly constituents--a veteran of the Korean war--ended up in a subprime mortgage because he unknowingly deposited a deceptive loan check that he never requested. Sadly, instead of being able to cancel the loan, he was pushed into rolling this unwanted loan into his mortgage, which was then transformed from a safe, fixed rate mortgage that had nearly been paid off, into a brand new, subprime mortgage. As this case shows, deceptive products and practices lead our consumers into dangerous, high cost debt. If individuals wish to take out high cost loans, they should have every right to do so, but financial institutions should make those transactions plain and straightforward, not tricky and deceptive. To address this situation, I am introducing the Deceptive Loan Check Elimination Act. Under the act, financial institutions would be prohibited from sending a ``live'' loan check unless the consumer requested such a check in writing. Consumers would not be liable for any debt incurred in violation of the act. This common sense solution protects consumers without constricting credit for those who want it. The legislation is endorsed by Consumer Action, Consumers Federation of America, Consumers Union, the National Consumer Law Center, on behalf of its low income clients, and the U.S. Public Interest Research Group. I am hopeful that the Senate will act quickly to address this problem. In addition, the next step in restoring a fair playing field for working families is to move ahead quickly to create the Consumer Financial Protection Agency, a body with the authority to review and regulate financial tricks and traps like ``live'' loan checks. I urge my colleagues to join me in this and future efforts to restore honesty and plain dealing to our consumer credit markets.

Mr. MERKLEY

Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I rise today to bring attention to the serious, debilitating, chronic diseases of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. August is Psoriasis Awareness Month, and I urge you to support S. 571, the Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis Research, Cure, and Care Act for 2009--important legislation that I have cosponsored with my colleagues. This legislation will fill important gaps in psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis data collection and research, and is an important step in providing relief to the as many as 7.5 million Americans that the National Institutes of Health, NIH, estimates suffer from these non- contagious, genetic autoimmune diseases. Psoriasis is the most prevalent autoimmune disease, yet is widely misunderstood, minimized, and undertreated. Between 10 and 30 percent of people with psoriasis also develop psoriatic arthritis, which causes pain, stiffness and swelling in and around the joints. Without treatment, psoriatic arthritis can be disabling. Of serious concern is that people with psoriasis are at elevated risk for myriad co- morbidities, including but not limited to, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and mental health conditions. Psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis impose significant burdens on individuals and society. Psoriasis alone is estimated to cost the Nation 56 million hours of lost work and between $2 billion and $3 billion annually. The Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis Research, Cure, and Care Act would help combat the pain, suffering, and stigma of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis by expanding psoriasis research conducted by the NIH and strengthening patient data collection on these diseases by establishing a national psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis patient registry through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The bill also directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to convene a summit to discuss issues and opportunities in psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis research. Finally, the bill calls upon the Institute of Medicine to conduct a study and issue a report on recommendations with respect to access to care for people with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. Taken together, these efforts will help reduce and prevent suffering from these conditions. I would like to take a moment to recognize Paula Blount, a National Psoriasis Foundation volunteer whose 6-year-old daughter Hannah has psoriasis. While this disease is physically painful, for a child, the emotional pain can be just as debilitating. In the summer months, little Hannah endured many stares and rude remarks at the public pool. Her psoriasis was particularly bad, covering a large portion of her small body. Paula eventually bought a pool for the backyard so her daughter could swim at home without being teased and embarrassed. It is important that we do all we can to work with groups like the National Psoriasis Foundation to raise awareness about the disease and to fight the stigma that this serious autoimmune disease is just a case of ``dry skin.'' In my home State of Oregon there are over 89,000 of my constituents living with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. I encourage my colleagues to meet with psoriasis patients in your States to learn more about psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, and work to reduce the misconceptions surrounding these conditions. I further urge you to join with me and other colleagues in supporting people with psoriasis by cosponsoring S. 571.

Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President. I ask unanimous consent that the letter dated August 6, 2009, from Consumers Federation of America, et al., be printed in the Record.

Mr. MERKLEY

Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I rise today to discuss the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, a bill I introduced with Senators Susan Collins, Ted Kennedy, Olympia Snowe, and more than 30 others. This historic bill will prohibit employers from discriminating against those employed or seeking employment, on the basis of their perceived or actual sexual orientation or gender identity. Senator Kennedy has long been a champion for civil rights, and without his decades of leadership and determination, we would not have the strong coalition of support we exhibit today with the introduction of ENDA. I would also like to thank the Human Rights Campaign and the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights for their strong commitment to this legislation. Our country was founded on the principle of equal justice for all. It is that philosophy which has guided us through decades of progress. It is that philosophy which led to passage of the Civil Rights Act of l964. It was that act which paved the way for countless groundbreaking moments, and I am certain this is one of them. Passage of the Civil Rights Act was a defining time in our history, the result of generations of people willing to march and struggle for equality. Although we have made progress, we continue that fight today. We continue that fight for those who have, for too long, been left out. Let me be clear, discrimination on the basis of personal characteristics has no place in any workplace or in any State, and it is long overdue for Congress to extend American employees these protections. Under ENDA, employment decisions will be based upon merit and performance, not prejudice. This is not a new idea. In fact, many states have already confronted this challenge. I am proud that Oregon has long been a leader on equality issues, and already offers protections to those discriminated against based on both sexual orientation and gender identity. But it was not easy. It is never easy. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, ``Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable. Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals.'' For the first time in history, the Senate has before it a fully inclusive bill, extending employment protections to members of communities that have historically been left out. I am proud to be a part of this historic effort to ensure that no matter who you are, you have the right to earn a living. Corporate America is light years ahead. More than 85 percent of Fortune 500 companies have implemented non-discrimination policies that include sexual orientation, and another third have policies that include gender identity. Unfortunately, we are still faced with cases of employment discrimination that are entirely legal--a fact I find offensive and contradictory to the founding principles of this great nation. In 2000, Linda, an attorney, relocated to Virginia where her partner had accepted a faculty position at a university. During her job search, Linda was invited for a second interview with a local law firm. During the interview, Linda was asked why she was moving to Virginia, and she replied that her spouse had taken a position at a local university. The firm asked Linda to come back for a third interview, which included dinner with all the partners and their spouses to ``make sure they all got along.'' At that point, Linda told one of the partners at the firm that her spouse was a woman. It was not long before Linda was told that the firm would not hire a lesbian and the invitation to the final interview was rescinded. Thankfully, Linda spoke out, but there are still countless instances where victims of this type of discrimination remain silent. By extending the protection of Title VII to those victimized purely because of who they are, we move one step closer to that fundamental principle of equal justice for every American. I am proud that we are again taking a step toward progress. I hope my colleagues will move swiftly to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which will ensure that every American receives equality under the law. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. MERKLEY

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

Mr. MERKLEY

Mr. MERKLEY. Mr. President, I rise today to discuss the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, a bill I introduced with Senators Susan Collins, Ted Kennedy, Olympia Snowe, and more than 30 others. This historic bill will prohibit employers from discriminating against those employed or seeking employment, on the basis of their perceived or actual sexual orientation or gender identity. Senator Kennedy has long been a champion for civil rights, and without his decades of leadership and determination, we would not have the strong coalition of support we exhibit today with the introduction of ENDA. I would also like to thank the Human Rights Campaign and the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights for their strong commitment to this legislation. Our country was founded on the principle of equal justice for all. It is that philosophy which has guided us through decades of progress. It is that philosophy which led to passage of the Civil Rights Act of l964. It was that act which paved the way for countless groundbreaking moments, and I am certain this is one of them. Passage of the Civil Rights Act was a defining time in our history, the result of generations of people willing to march and struggle for equality. Although we have made progress, we continue that fight today. We continue that fight for those who have, for too long, been left out. Let me be clear, discrimination on the basis of personal characteristics has no place in any workplace or in any State, and it is long overdue for Congress to extend American employees these protections. Under ENDA, employment decisions will be based upon merit and performance, not prejudice. This is not a new idea. In fact, many states have already confronted this challenge. I am proud that Oregon has long been a leader on equality issues, and already offers protections to those discriminated against based on both sexual orientation and gender identity. But it was not easy. It is never easy. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, ``Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable. Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals.'' For the first time in history, the Senate has before it a fully inclusive bill, extending employment protections to members of communities that have historically been left out. I am proud to be a part of this historic effort to ensure that no matter who you are, you have the right to earn a living. Corporate America is light years ahead. More than 85 percent of Fortune 500 companies have implemented non-discrimination policies that include sexual orientation, and another third have policies that include gender identity. Unfortunately, we are still faced with cases of employment discrimination that are entirely legal--a fact I find offensive and contradictory to the founding principles of this great nation. In 2000, Linda, an attorney, relocated to Virginia where her partner had accepted a faculty position at a university. During her job search, Linda was invited for a second interview with a local law firm. During the interview, Linda was asked why she was moving to Virginia, and she replied that her spouse had taken a position at a local university. The firm asked Linda to come back for a third interview, which included dinner with all the partners and their spouses to ``make sure they all got along.'' At that point, Linda told one of the partners at the firm that her spouse was a woman. It was not long before Linda was told that the firm would not hire a lesbian and the invitation to the final interview was rescinded. Thankfully, Linda spoke out, but there are still countless instances where victims of this type of discrimination remain silent. By extending the protection of Title VII to those victimized purely because of who they are, we move one step closer to that fundamental principle of equal justice for every American. I am proud that we are again taking a step toward progress. I hope my colleagues will move swiftly to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which will ensure that every American receives equality under the law. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.