Jack Reed

Mr. REED

Mr. REED. I ask unanimous consent that reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. REED. I call up amendment No. 2658 for Senator Obama.

Mr. REED. I ask unanimous consent that reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. REED. I ask unanimous consent that reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. REED. Mr. President, I wish to bring up several amendments for consideration. These amendments have been cleared on both sides of the aisle. Amendment No. 2661 I call up amendment No. 2661 for Senator Feingold regarding a VA mental health GAO report.

Mr. REED. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote, and lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. REED. I move to reconsider the vote and to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to. Amendment No. 2681

Mr. REED. I move to reconsider the vote and to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to. Amendment No. 2677

Mr. REED. I call up amendment No. 2677 for Senator Murray regarding the transfer of funds from the VA to the Secretary of Health and Human Services to train psychologists.

Mr. REED. Mr. President, I call up amendment No. 2681 for Senator Hutchison regarding a clinic lease in Texas.

Mr. REED. I ask unanimous consent that reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. REED. I ask unanimous consent that reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. REED. Madam President, I join Senator Feinstein and Senator Boxer in their efforts to preserve this property in west Los Angeles as a VA facility and not turn it over to developers. This is commensurate with the deed that originally granted this property to the United States back in 1888. The deed reads as follows: Whereas, by an act of Congress approved March 2, 1887, to provide for the location and erection of a branch home for the disabled volunteer soldiers west of the Rocky Mountains, the board of managers of the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers are authorized, empowered, and directed to locate, establish, construct and permanently maintain a branch of said National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers. The purpose of this donation and the purpose that has been preserved over these many years has been to provide a place where veterans can be hospitalized, and it has become part of not only the Veterans' Administration system, it has become part of the culture of the community of Los Angeles. The purpose of the original deed has been reaffirmed numerous times. It was reaffirmed in 2002 by then-VA Secretary Anthony Principi when he visited the site and when he issued a May 2004 decision regarding plans for the modernization of VA facilities nationwide. In fact, a document released by the VA previewing the September 6, 2005, Capital Asset Realignment for Enhanced Services--the CARES process--of the local advisory panel meeting regarding the west L.A. VA site states the following: It is important that the VA preserve the integrity of the land originally granted for use as an old Soldier's home. And that is the purpose of the language included in the appropriations bill by Senator Feinstein. The CARES process was akin to the BRAC process used for the military, going around and looking at the uses of all the Veterans' Administration facilities around the country and concluding what is the best and highest purpose. It is terribly important that the conclusion of this panel, very recently, is that it is important that the VA preserve the integrity of the land originally granted for use as an Old Soldiers' Home. That is what Senator Feinstein proposes to do, and it would be undercut by the amendment of Senator DeMint. I join Senator Feinstein and Senator Boxer as they are trying not only to preserve the integrity of this land but also to preserve the integrity of the community of west Los Angeles. I had occasion to drive by this area, and I will stand corrected by the local geographic experts, but it is a place of open space and tranquility in a very large metropolitan area. So it is a value beyond the VA system; it is a value to the community of Los Angeles. That is why there is a huge number of supporters of this initiative by Senator Feinstein and Senator Boxer: the County of Los Angeles, the city of Los Angeles, Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, chairman of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Representative Waxman, our colleagues in the House--all these individuals are standing shoulder to shoulder on this issue. This is consistent with the original donation of the land. It is consistent with the evaluation of the Veterans' Administration as to how they should use the land, and it is consistent with the community of Los Angeles. I applaud and commend the Senators from California for their efforts. I yield the floor.

Mr. REED. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the following be the only first-degree amendments remaining in order to H.R. 2642, that they be subject to second-degree amendments which are relevant to the amendment to which it is offered, that no other amendments be in order: Feingold amendment No. 2661, Obama amendment No. 2658, McCaskill amendment No. 2660, Hutchison amendment No. 2681, Coleman amendment relating to conventions, Sanders amendment No. 2664, Tester amendment No. 2669, Salazar amendment No. 2662, Murray amendment No. 2677, Landrieu amendment No. 2679, Stabenow amendment No. 2680, Stevens/ Inouye amendment No. 2682, Allard amendment relating to VA land transfer in Denver, the pending DeMint amendment, and the Brown amendment No. 2673; that when the Senate resumes consideration of the bill on Thursday, the only amendments remaining for disposition be No. 2664, No. 2662, No. 2673, and the Coleman amendment relating to conventions, and passage, with no further debate or motions in order except for debate specified in an order related to the vote sequence; that upon disposition of all amendments, the bill be read a third time and the Senate proceed to vote on passage of the bill; that upon passage, the Senate insist on its amendment, request a conference with the House on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses and the Chair be authorized to appoint conferees, with the previous order relating to points of order remaining in effect with respect to this bill; that upon disposition of H.R. 2642, the Senate then proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 265, H.R. 2764, the State, Foreign Operations Appropriations Act.

Mr. REED. That is correct.

Mr. REED. Mr. President, I call up amendment No. 2660 for Senator McCaskill regarding the VA Inspector General Web site.

Mr. REED. I move to reconsider the vote and to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to. Amendment No. 2660

Mr. REED

Mr. REED. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to a period of morning business, with Senators permitted to speak for up to 5 minutes each.

Mr. REED

Mr. REED. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Mr. REED

Mr. REED. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand adjourned until 9:30 a.m., Thursday, September 6; that on Thursday, following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, and the time of the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day; that there be a period of morning business for 60 minutes with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each, and that the time be equally divided and controlled between the leaders or their designees, with the majority controlling the first half and the Republicans controlling the final half; that at the close of morning business, the Senate resume consideration of the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act; that when the Senate resumes consideration of the bill, Senator Bunning be recognized to speak for up to 30 minutes; that at the conclusion of his remarks, there be 2 minutes of debate prior to a vote in relation to the Coleman amendment with the time equally divided between Senators Coleman and Bunning or their designees; that there be 2 minutes of debate prior to a vote in relation to all remaining amendments, equally divided and controlled in the usual form; that upon disposition of the Coleman amendment, the amendment vote sequence be: Sanders, Salazar, Brown, McConnell, and then final passage; that after the first vote of the sequence, vote time be limited to 10 minutes each.

Mr. REED

Mr. REED. Mr. President, if there is no further business today, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate stand in adjournment under the previous order.

Mr. REED

Mr. REED. Mr. President, on behalf of the Appropriations Committee, I call up an amendment in the form of a committee substitute which is at the desk.

Mr. REED. Mr. President, I am pleased to bring the fiscal year 2008 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and related agencies appropriations bill to the Senate. This is a unique bill for many reasons, not the least of which is it is the first appropriations bill that will be considered under the requirements of S. 1, the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007. On August 2, 2007, the Senate approved S. 1 by a vote of 83 to 14, clearing the measure for the President's signature. When signed by the President, this ethics reform legislation will significantly improve the transparency and accountability of the legislative process. Although the White House has requested the Senate not submit the legislation to the President until he returns from his overseas travels, I wish to assure Senators we intend to abide by the requirements of S. 1 during the consideration of this bill. The legislation requires that the chairman of the committee of jurisdiction certify that certain information related to congressionally directed spending be identified and that the required information be available on a publicly accessible congressional Web site in a searchable format at least 48 hours before a vote on the pending bill. The information required includes identification of the congressionally directed spending and the name of the Senator who requested such spending. This information is contained in the committee report numbered 110-85, dated June 18, 2007, and has been available on the Internet for over 2 months. In addition, pursuant to the standards required by Chairman Byrd and Senator Cochran, letters from each Member with a congressionally directed spending item in this bill or accompanying report are available on the Internet certifying that neither the Senator, nor his or her spouse, has a pecuniary interest in such spending item. I am submitting for the Record the certification by the chairman of the Committee on Appropriations.

Mr. REED. Before yielding to Senator Hutchison, I would like to thank Chairman Byrd and Senator Cochran for their leadership in bringing this bill to the floor. Also, I would like to thank the ranking member of our subcommittee, Senator Hutchison, for her support and assistance, her knowledge and experience on the subcommittee, and her dedication to veterans and the military have been tremendous assets in developing this bill. I am particularly pleased to bring the bill to the floor today in anticipation of welcoming Senator Johnson back. He is our subcommittee chairman. He will return tomorrow. This bill is a testament to Senator Johnson's tenacity in the face of adversity and to his leadership, even though as he recuperated, he was involved in the process and proceedings and he too shared the deep concerns of the Nation's military families and our Nation's veterans. I am deeply honored to be managing this bill on the floor for him. I yield to the Senator from Texas.

Mr. REED

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