Don Nickles

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. Mr. President, I object.

Mr. NICKLES. Mr. President, I yield to my friend and colleague.

Mr. NICKLES. Mr. President, we have to talk about what is doable. If people want to revisit what we did last year, I am happy to do that. We passed temporary Federal unemployment compensation extension last March or April. We passed that. It was a benefit. It passed overwhelmingly in the Congress. It expired on December 28. Several people said we need to extend that. Last year some people wanted to double the program from a 13-week Federal program to 26 weeks. This Senator, along with others, objected to that. The cost of that program or expansion was about $17- or $18 billion. I objected to it several times. I will object to it today. What I did agree to and what this Senate passed last year was a simple extension of present law. We agreed, Senator Clinton and myself, Senator Fitzgerald, Senator Specter, Senator Cantwell--by unanimous vote, the Senate agreed to a 3-month extension of the present program. That passed the Senate. It did not pass the House. The cost of that program was about $4.9 billion. The House had passed a program that cost a little less than $1 billion. I tried to work out the differences between the House and the Senate late in the legislative session. I was not successful. Some of us have been working, frankly, for some period of time trying to get something done now. We have a letter from the Secretary of Labor, Elaine Chao. I ask unanimous consent to print this letter in the Record. Secretary of Labor, Washington, DC, January 6, 2002. Hon. Bill Frist, Majority Leader, U.S. Senate, Capitol Building, Washington, DC. Dear Senator Frist: Although the economy is showing some positive signs, we believe that a short extension of Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation (TEUC) benefits is needed to give many unemployed workers continued access to the necessities of life while they look for new jobs. As the 108th Congress convenes, we urge you to quickly pass an extension of the TEUC program retroactive to December 28, 2002. The only way for states to continue paying TEUC benefits without disruption is if a bill is presented to the President for signature no later than Thursday, January 9, 2003. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to have a member of your staff contact Mr. Anthony Bedell, Senior Legislative Officer, Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs, who will coordinate a departmental response. Mr. Bedell can be reached at (202) 693-4600. Sincerely, Elaine L. Chao.

Mr. NICKLES. The essence of the letter says the only way for States to continue paying temporary unemployment compensation benefits without disruption is if a bill is presented to the President for signature no later than Thursday, January 9, the day after tomorrow. We had to resolve the differences between the House and the Senate. The Senate passed a $4.9 billion bill; the House passed a $1 billion bill. We have worked with our colleagues in the House. I think we have been successful. I believe we have been successful in getting them to accept a straight extension of present law. We were originally talking 3 months. After negotiations with the House, I consulted with my colleague and friend from New York and said, let's make it a 5-month extension. So we extended the program all the way through May, and then the phaseout would occur. So there would not be a shutoff date as there was December 28, a much better transition. It was my understanding that colleagues had agreed upon this 5-month extension. The cost of this proposal is estimated to be $7.2, $7.3 billion on a 2002 scoring base. It might go up if benefits go up on the calendar year. It might even be a little bit more than that. That is a significant change that I believe we have the House concurring with to pass. We will not pass and they will not concur with a doubling of the program to 26 weeks. I will not agree with it, and I don't believe my House colleagues will, either. If we are going to provide unemployment compensation extension benefits so it would be a seamless transition, so those people who are presently receiving Federal temporary unemployment compensation, if they are in this 13-week window, one week or 10, that they could continue to receive benefits without missing a week, we need to pass it. We need to pass it today. It needs to go to the House, and it needs to go to the President by Thursday for his signature. The only way that will happen will be by unanimous consent. I believe the only bill that will pass will be basically a clean extension of present law, and I believe the proposal we have before us is deserving of all of our support, just as the bill we passed last November, maybe October, we passed by unanimous consent a 3-month extension, this is a unanimous consent extension for 5 months with a phaseout. I urge my colleagues not to object to the majority leader's unanimous consent request.

Mr. NICKLES. I object.

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. Mr. President, one of the privileges we have of serving in this body is we get to work with a lot of outstanding men and women. I wish to mention a couple of those who are very good friends of mine, who will be leaving the service of the Senate, one of which is Bob Smith. Bob Smith has served in the Senate for 12 years. I had the pleasure of working with him. He is a respected veteran. He served in Vietnam. I have had the pleasure of knowing Bob Smith and his wife Mary Jo and their kids. Actually, their kids went to the same school as my children did. Bob was a high school teacher and a coach from the great State of New Hampshire. He was elected to Congress in 1984, but I did not really get to know Bob Smith until he was elected to the Senate in 1990. He was reelected in 1996. He served on the Armed Services Committee and was what I would call a very strong defender of our Nation's freedom, a very strong national patriot. He was always interested in improving our national defense and he did an outstanding job. He was a leader in trying to find out what happened to the men and women serving in the Army, Navy, and Air Force who were missing in action in Vietnam. He showed great courage on a lot of issues that were not popular. He led the fight in trying to ban partial-birth abortion, and my guess is we will pass that in the next Congress, and it will be because of the leadership of Bob Smith and his courageous effort in initiating that. On behalf of countless unborn children, on behalf of the men and women serving in the military, on behalf of a nation that is very grateful for patriots who have led the fight in Congress to make our country free, they have always had a friend in Senator Bob Smith. I congratulate him on his years of service in Congress, both in the House and the Senate, and I wish him and Mary Jo every best wish for their future. I also wish to make a couple of comments about our soon retiring colleague, Senator Fred Thompson. Senator Thompson's career was shorter than many of us had hoped. He only served 8 years in the Senate. He was elected in a special election in the State of Tennessee 8 years ago, and then was reelected. He has served this body very ably and very nobly well. Senator Thompson had remarkable achievements in his very short Senate career. After he was in the Senate for only 2 years, he was selected and elected chairman of the Governmental Affairs Committee, a remarkable accomplishment. He served as chairman of the Governmental Affairs Committee at a very interesting time. I was on that committee for a couple of years during the investigation of campaign abuses, primarily focused on the Clinton administration. Chairman Thompson conducted those hearings and investigations in a way that deserves great credit. It would have been quite easy to have the hearings evolve into nothing but a partisan allegation, and he did not do that. He conducted the hearings very nobly, in a very respected manner. I was proud to serve with him on that committee. It was an enormous responsibility to be investigating the sitting President. I believe Senator Thompson conducted those hearings very well. He also, in a very short period of time, was made a Member of the Senate Finance Committee. I had the pleasure of serving with him on the Senate Finance Committee, again, a committee where we were able to make some positive changes for the country regarding tax cuts. Senator Thompson has proven to be a real friend of taxpayers in enacting probably one of the largest tax cuts in our Nation's history, certainly in the last couple of decades. He always provided common sense, a sense of humor, as well. Certainly Senator Fred Thompson will be missed in the Senate. He is my friend from Tennessee. I wish Senator Fred Thompson and his lovely wife, Geri, every success in the future. No doubt he will have many. I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. I appreciate my colleagues comments and agree with them that the revenues collected through the federal gas tax should be used to maintain and improve our transportation infrastructure. I will work with my colleagues to ensure this is the case.

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Murkowski) is necessarily absent.

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Murkowski) is necessarily absent.

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Helms), the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Murkowski), and the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. Hutchinson) are necessarily absent.

Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Helms), the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. Hutchinson), and the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Murkowski) are necessarily absent.

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Helms), the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. T. Hutchinson), and the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Murkowski) are necessarily absent.

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Murkowski) is necessarily absent.

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Murkowski) is necessarily absent.

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Helms), the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Murkowski), and the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. Hutchinson) are necessarily absent.

Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Helms), the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. Hutchinson), and the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Murkowski) are necessarily absent.

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Helms), the Senator from Arkansas (Mr. T. Hutchinson), and the Senator from Alaska (Mr. Murkowski) are necessarily absent.

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. Mr. President, it is a pleasure and a privilege for all of us to serve in the Senate. One of the great benefits of serving in the Senate is we have the opportunity to serve with some outstanding individuals--outstanding leaders not only in their States but outstanding leaders in their country. One of those individuals that I will always rank as one of my favorite Senators, and one of the most effective Senators I have had the privilege and pleasure of serving with, is Senator Phil Gramm of Texas. Senator Gramm was elected to and served 6 years in the House. He was elected in 1978. He was elected as a Democrat. Eventually he resigned and ran as a Republican. I think he was the first person to do that in a century. It was a pretty phenomenal thing. Then he came to the Senate where he has served for 18 years. Much to my regret, he announced he would be retiring and will soon complete his very distinguished Senate career. Seldom do you find a person who makes such a difference in public policy over that period of time, as Senator Gramm has. I was elected to the Senate in 1980, and I remember very well the Gramm-Latta budget bill that passed the House of Representatives in 1981. That was Senator Gramm, a Democrat, working with Congressman Latta, a Republican, to basically pass President Reagan's economic budget, a phenomenal accomplishment; it laid the guidelines for reducing and changing taxes. The maximum tax rate actually, in 1981, was 70 percent; 6 years later it was 28 percent--a phenomenal achievement. Some might disagree with it, but it was a phenomenal achievement. And it was due, in great part, to the leadership of Phil Gramm. So every once in a while we have the privilege of serving with someone who can make a real difference. And Senator Gramm has done that. He did it in the House. He has done it in the Senate. He has made accomplishments. He has made legislation. He has angered his opponents, but I think in all cases, his adversaries or his opponents, while they may have disagreed with him on the issue, had to respect him for his conviction, for his commitment, for his effectiveness. I respect that. Many of us made tributes to Senator Wellstone. We regret the tragedy of his death. But we respected his commitment. Likewise, I can tell you, I know Senator Wellstone would say he would have to respect Senator Phil Gramm. He did not agree with him--he agreed with him very little--but he had to respect him. One of the great things about the Senate is that we can disagree on issues, but we can have respect and admiration for people who have convictions and commitments, and, on occasion, when they prove the effectiveness of that to actually change law. Most of us remember the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Balanced Budget Act that passed in 1985 and was basically reaffirmed in 1987. It gave us caps and targets and rescissions, and so on. That is still basically part of our budget law today. I have had the pleasure of serving with Senator Gramm on the Budget Committee for many years. Serving on the Budget Committee is a thankless task, but he has been a leader within the Budget Committee. He is a person who has believed in budgets, a person who has believed in discipline, and he was able to make that law. If you look at the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Financial Service Modernization Act, in 1998, again, he proved he could work with Democrats and Republicans to make significant revisions of law. He did that from his position as chairman of the Banking Committee. Today we are debating homeland security, and he is one of the principal authors of the President's homeland security bill, which I hope and pray we will finish tomorrow, and, again, in large part because of his leadership, and also the leadership of Senator Thompson, who, regrettably, also is retiring from the Senate. So we are losing some great Members who I hate to see leave. But, likewise, I would just like to say it has been a pleasure and a privilege to work with, in my opinion, one of the most effective, one of the most outstanding, Senators I have had the pleasure of knowing in my Senate tenure. It has been a pleasure to have Senator Gramm join me on the Senate floor. He has sat right behind me for the last 18 years. He has made a monumental contribution to this country and to his State of Texas. I am very happy for both Senator Gramm and his lovely wife Wendy and their family. I wish them every success. I am confident they will enjoy every success. Senator Gramm is an outstanding leader who has made invaluable contributions to make our country better. He has made the State of Texas better and he has made our country better. I thank him very much for his commitment, his effectiveness, and his public service. Mr. President, I yield the floor.

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

Mr. NICKLES. Mr. President, Senator Tim Hutchinson of Arkansas, one of our colleagues, will soon be leaving us. I thank him for his service to his State and also to our country. For the last 6 years, I have had the pleasure of working with Senator Hutchinson. He is a neighbor; he is a friend. I have gotten to know him very well. He served on my whip team. He is a very energetic and dynamic person who I think served his State and our country very well. He served in the Arkansas State House of Representatives for 8 years. He served in the U.S. House for 4 years. I got to know him when he served in the statehouse, and I was very impressed with him. Actually, his congressional district was adjacent to that of Oklahoma. So I got to know him then. When he came to the Senate, I asked him if he would serve on my whip team, and he did. We became very good friends. He is a very energetic and committed person who did an outstanding job in the Senate. He is also a very intelligent and diligent Member. He served on the Armed Services Committee and the HELP Committee and did a fantastic job. I worked with him. I was chairman of the task force dealing with the Patients' Bill of Rights and then was made chairman of the conference on the Patients' Bill of Rights. Senator Tim Hutchinson was there all the time, trying to pass a good and affordable Patients' Bill of Rights, one that would not bankrupt employers and one that would help provide good rights for patients all across this country. It has been a pleasure and privilege to serve with Tim Hutchinson in the Senate. In the Senate we have the opportunity to work with outstanding individuals. Tim Hutchinson is one of those individuals. The election did not work out for him, but I am very optimistic that his future is very bright indeed. I thank him for his service to this body. I think he has made the Senate a better place, and I compliment him for his service. Tribute to Senator Frank Murkowski Mr. President, I also wish to comment on our retiring colleague, Senator Frank Murkowski. Senator Murkowski and I were elected together in 1980, so we have been very good friends for the last 22 years. I have served with Senator Murkowski for the last 22 years on the Energy Committee. For the last several years, he has been the chairman of the Energy Committee. Talk about persistence, about dedication, and about a person who has really served his State of Alaska and served our country well; it is Senator Frank Murkowski. As a result of his leadership, many of us have gone to Alaska. Senator Stevens and Senator Murkowski love their State. We all love our States, but they love their State with great enthusiasm and are very successful, forceful advocates for their parochial interests, as well as for our country. Senator Murkowski was thinking about how he could improve his State, but he was also thinking about our national energy posture. Frankly, we find ourselves in very difficult shape; we are importing the majority of our oil, and it only gets worse. He has tried to reverse that trend. I compliment him for his leadership on the Energy Committee. He was a very effective and forceful chairman of the Energy Committee and served our country very well there. I also had the pleasure of serving with him on the Finance Committee. He is a person who is a very good friend of taxpayers, a person who really wanted to grow our economy, and a person who I think was recognized by his State for his outstanding leadership. He was recently elected as Governor of the State of Alaska, and I have no doubt he will be an outstanding Governor of that great State. So my compliments to Senator Frank Murkowski and to his lovely wife Nancy. They are very good friends of ours, a very outstanding senatorial couple who have made the Senate a better place and who make our country a better place. I thank and compliment him for his 22 years of service in the Senate and look forward to working with him as the next Governor of the State of Alaska. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Helms) and the Senator from Colorado (Mr. Campbell) are necessarily absent.

Mr. NICKLES. I object.

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

Mr. NICKLES

Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. Helms) is necessarily absent.