Harry Reid

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Madam President, I had it in my notes, but I didn't do it. I wish to express my appreciation for the majority staff on the Finance Committee. The chairman of this powerful Finance Committee is Orrin Hatch. We have served together in the Senate for these many years. There is not a finer gentleman in the Senate than Orrin Hatch. I apologize for reading over my notes. I appreciate very much his friendship and his leadership.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, the Republican leader and I are both long- time appropriators. I love the Appropriations Committee. But over time, the appropriations process has broken down. There are differing opinions about the causes of the breakdown. Opinions typically vary depending on whether Senators serve in the majority or minority. But there is a bipartisan consensus that we can and must do better. I hope that in the coming session, both sides can work together to restore the appropriations process to what it once was--a thoroughly bipartisan process focused on governing, not a partisan process focused on scoring political points. The need for bipartisanship should be obvious. After all, during the next session, we will continue to be a divided government. Republicans will be in charge of the legislative branch, and President Obama will continue to control the administration. Neither side can force the other to accept its preferred process or its preferred outcomes. The only way to make this work is for both sides to work together throughout the year and to make the compromises needed to get appropriations bills not just passed but signed into law. Among other things, this means that both parties will have to be part of the decisionmaking process from the beginning, at both the committee and leadership levels. This doesn't just mean developing individual bills in a bipartisan way. It means reaching bipartisan agreements on the sequencing and packaging of legislation, so that one party's priorities are not pursued at the expense of the other's priorities. True bipartisanship also requires both parties to resist the temptation to pursue poison pill riders that appeal to their own supporters but that are so strongly opposed by the other party that their inclusion in appropriations bills would grind the process to a halt. No doubt there will be many opportunities next year for both sides to score political points. But the appropriations process is not the place for that. And I hope Members in both parties will agree that it is more important to fund the government than to play politics. I am convinced that if we can restore the appropriations process to one based on bipartisan cooperation at every stage, all Senators will benefit. It will give Members in both parties a meaningful opportunity for input, and it will avoid the need for invoking cloture on motions to proceed to appropriations bills. With some luck, it also will allow us to complete our work next year without a lameduck session and without another end of year crisis. And that is something everyone should be able to agree on. In today's polarized environment, that may seem like wishful thinking. But there is no reason we can't make it happen. We should build upon the momentum created by adoption of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, which the Senate passed with a 64-to-35 vote on October 30. And the key is really quite simple--genuine bipartisan cooperation at every step of the process.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Madam President, will my friend allow me to interrupt for just a second?

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Madam President, the accomplishments of the first session of this Senate has been a demonstration of what can happen when the minority is not trying to block everything. There has been no need this last year for scores and scores of cloture petitions being filed because we didn't block things; we rarely did that. In the past, of course, it was done all the time. So we have demonstrated that it is important to have a minority that is responsible. Of course, we know the issues that have passed this year are issues that we worked on for a number of years and that had been blocked by Republicans. We are glad to have been part of this Congress and able to move forward on a number of issues that have been languishing for a long time. Of course, next year we need to do more for the middle class. There are lots of things that we haven't been able to do and should do-- minimum wage, making sure that my daughter and my granddaughter are paid the same as a man who does the same work. We also have to understand that the lack of college affordability is crushing our country. It is often said it is a larger debt than credit cards, and we have to do something to relieve that pressure on the American people. It is often said that legislation is the art of compromise, and I know that is true. Crafting bipartisan legislation is hard, tedious work. It requires a complex calibration of competing interests, needs, and realities. The legislation that will soon be before this body, the combined omnibus spending bill and tax extenders package, is a perfect example of a bipartisan compromise wrought in good faith. It wasn't easy. In fact, coming to an agreement on this package was a painstaking endeavor by Senate and House leaders and by House and Senate Members, but it was especially hard for our staffs. I am so appreciative of their exceptionally good work. I know it meant long hours, late nights and weekends spent here in the Capitol. Without their diligent efforts, we wouldn't be here voting on this legislation today. On my leadership staff, no one worked harder than my chief of staff, Drew Willison. He was my lead negotiator, and he did an admirable job-- a tremendous job. He worked very, very hard. I won't go into all the hard work that he did, but I remember one night I was having trouble dozing off. I called him at midnight, and he responded on the phone. For the next three hours I still didn't do too well sleeping, so I called him at 3 a.m. He still responded. He was here at the Capitol working--working to make this agreement a reality. In all his years here, I have found that Drew, a congressional fellow who came in from the Environmental Protection Agency, was so good that I wouldn't let him leave, and he has been a Senate person since then. He was selected by me to be Assistant Sergeant at Arms. In everything he has been asked to do, he has done a remarkably good job. So I wasn't surprised at all that he was able to do the work he did on these bills with tremendously difficult legislative issues that will be before this body shortly. I want to speak for just a minute about Gary Myrick, Secretary for the minority. He has been my floor general and my chief of staff. I depend on his expertise on the issues now before us, which soon will be before us, and on everything we do here in the Senate. He is an expert on Senate rules, and I appreciate very much his good work. Bill Dauster, my deputy chief of staff--nobody on Capitol Hill better understands policy or legislation than Bill. Anytime legislative staff--not just mine, but anyone's staff in the Senate--has an issue dealing with legislation, they know Bill will be available. I admire him. He is a fine man. I so appreciate the example he sets in being good to everybody. Kate Leone is my senior health counsel. To say she does an exceptional job is an understatement. Kate is probably the world's leading expert on ObamaCare, and she is an absolute expert on all health policy issues. She brought her expertise to this agreement in full force with the able assistance of McKenzie Bennett, who also works on health care issues for me. Again, I appreciate very much her hard work. Ellen Doneski, my chief tax policy adviser, deserves praise. Tax policy is difficult. I took a couple of courses in law school on tax policy. To be honest with you, it didn't interest me very much, but for my lack of interest, Ellen has been stupendous. Even while not feeling well, she has worked her way through the last few weeks exhausted, working with Democrats, Republican counterparts, and making intricate tax decisions and putting intricate tax provisions in the agreement that is before this body. Alex McDonough, my senior policy adviser, handles my energy and environmental problems. This legislation is one of the greatest investments in renewable energy in American history. It is amazing what we have done in this legislation. The writing of this legislation was done by Alex. This work that has been done on this bill dealing with renewable energy--picture 65 coal-fired powerplants with an average megawatt production, let's say, of 800 megawatts. Sixty-five coal-fired plants would be gone, and they will be gone. That is how much pollution from fossil fuel will be saved as a result of the work done here. If you don't like that example, try 50 million automobiles will be taken off the roads--not 5 million, 50 million. Alex, I appreciate your good work very much. This legislation wouldn't be what it is today without Alex. Gavin Parke, my senior policy adviser and counsel was here working hard on banking and financial in this legislation. He worked like everyone: long, hard hours on very complicated banking issues, housing issues. I appreciate and admire his good work and his pleasant personality. He was assisted by Sammi Swing, who worked with him on some housing issues that were extremely difficult in this bill. My brilliant chief counsel, Ayesha Khanna, oversaw cyber security, surveillance, and all kinds of things when I needed a good legal mind to help me work my way through understanding these issues. I appreciate her tireless efforts. My senior adviser, Tyler Moran, I don't think there is anyone in Washington who understands immigration issues more than Tyler. She worked in the White House. I was able to coax her into coming from the White House to work with us, and she has done an outstanding job on everything dealing with immigration--whether it is the DREAMers, whether it is litigation that followed the President doing an Executive order, helping the DREAMers' parents, whatever it is, children coming across the border, all related issues, including refugees and visas. Jessica Lewis is one of the most pleasant, nicest people I have ever known. She is my national security advisor. I so appreciate her demeanor, her intellect, and her hard work. Late yesterday, when we finished work here, we went to one of the secure rooms in the Capitol, and we spent time with her telling me what is going on around the world. A lot of it is not very pleasant, but that is her job. I appreciate her work on foreign policy and intelligence issues. She is assisted by my deputy national security advisor, Julie Klein, who is also a good person and knows foreign policy. Sara Moffat worked on interior-related issues and many other environmental issues but especially wild horses, sage grouse, and many other environmental issues that kept popping up on this bill. George Holman helped me to fend off attacks on campaign finance reform and other issues as they arose. Caren Street spent weeks on the EB-5 visa issue. I found her to be someone who is very intelligent and always available. I appreciate her good work and her wonderful smile. Bruce King is stunningly smart. He is a Stanford person. He is my adviser, my confidant on issues relating to budget and finance. He is formerly staff director of the Budget Committee. He worked on all budget components of this bill and there were lots of them. I admire his soft speaking and his directness. I really like him as a person. Jason Unger is my legislative director. I have such admiration for him. He also is quiet and very effective. He is a person who believes in public service. This young man, who graduated with high honors from UCLA, decided he wanted to do something in public service, so he taught for the Teach For America Program for 5 years in Compton, CA. It is a very difficult job. He taught little kids, and I bet he did a wonderful job, as he has done in the Capitol working with me as my legislative director. My staffers were not alone in their efforts. They were helped tremendously by staff from other offices. The four principal leadership negotiators were, as I mentioned, Drew Willison, my chief of staff; Hazen Marshall from Senator McConnell's staff; Dick Meltzer from Leader Pelosi's staff; Austin Smythe; and Cindy Herrle from Speaker Ryan's office. They worked well together. I am sure once in a while they would raise their voices with one another, but it worked out real well. It was a good team, and we have the result to prove it. As I indicated, these were tough negotiations, but these five individuals worked very hard. They made tough choices and brought them to their principal and decisions were made. It was amazingly cooperative. It was done in a collegial manner. I believe that all the leaders were exceptionally well represented by these men and women. I would be remiss not to mention Barbara Mikulski's outstanding appropriations team. The entire staff deserves our thanks but especially Staff Director Chuck Kieffer, who is an institution of the U.S. Senate. He is a fine person, a hard worker, and no one understands the appropriations process better than he does, and of course Deputy Staff Director Jean Eisen, who has been remarkably involved. This leaves me to say a word about Barbara Mikulski. When the history books are written of what has taken place in the U.S. Senate during the last 40 years, she will be a principal of that history. I had the good fortune of being able to come to the Senate with her. We served on the same committees. We have served on the Appropriations Committee for sure and enjoyed our relationship. There is no one I have served with in public office I have more respect for than Barbara Mikulski. I admire her. I admire how she has been so dynamic in the U.S. Senate. She is one of the finest orators we have ever had in the Senate while I have been here. She does it in a unique way, but we all listen. Barbara Mikulski, thank you very much. We also had to work hard with the Finance Committee. I extend my appreciation to our ranking member, Ron Wyden. He and I have served together in Congress for a long time, more than three decades, but not only do I appreciate his work but also his staff director, Josh Sheinkman. I may not pronounce his name just right, but everybody knows Josh. I want the Finance Committee and all of their staff to know how much we appreciate this product that they were responsible for piecing together. I already talked a day or so ago about Dennis McDonough, the President's Chief of Staff. He is a remarkably fine man. Brian Deese, Senior Adviser to the President, was one of the reasons we got the great agreement we got out of Paris with those accords dealing with the environment. Katie Beirne Fallon, President Obama's Legislative Affairs Director, I have already laid out on the record what a wonderful person she is. Jason Furman, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, I extend my appreciation to him and his entire family whom I know. Marty Paone, I talked about him. We really care a great deal about them. There are many others who helped craft this compromise. From the Republican Leader's office: Brendan Dunn and Scott Rabb. From Speaker Ryan's office: George Callas and Matt Hoffman. From Leader Pelosi's office: Katherine Monge and Wendell Primus. From Senator Cornyn's office: Monica Popp. From the Senate Finance Committee: Ryan Abraham, Brett Baker, Kim Brandt, Chris Campbell, Adam Carrasco, Anne Dwyer, Karen Fisher, Liz Jurinka, Matt Kazan, Jay Khosla, Jim Lyons, Juan Machado, Todd Metcalf, Matt Prater, Josh Sheinkman, Katie Simeon, Tiffany Smith, and Todd Wooten. From the Senate HELP Committee: Nick Bath and Andi Fristedt. From the Senate Banking Committee: Mark Powden. From the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources: Angela Becker-Dippmann and Sam Fowler. From Senator Schumer's office: Meghan Taira. From Senator Gillibrand's office: Brooke Jamison. From Congressman Levin's office: Karen McAffe. I realize I may be missing some people. So to everyone who helped push this legislation across the finish line, thank you. You have done America a great service.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Madam President, in Section 303 of the House amendment No. 1 to the Senate amendment to H.R. 2029, the text of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016, the section 48 Investment Tax Credit, 26 U.S.C. section 48, is extended for 5 years, beginning on January 1, 2017, and phased down to 26 percent in 2020 and 22 percent in 2021. Section 303 inadvertently only extends the credit for solar energy technologies, rather than all of the technologies currently eligible to receive the credit. The intention of the agreement that I reached with the majority leader was to extend the section 48 Investment Tax Credit for all of the eligible technologies for 5 years and to treat each technology eligible for a 30 percent credit the same with respect to a phase down in the years 2020 and 2021. The permanent 10 percent credit for eligible technologies under section 48 will remain in place. The majority leader and I hope to address this early next year in an appropriate legislative vehicle.

Mr. REID. I associate myself with the comments of the Senator from Ohio, Mr. Brown. If it turns out to be in the best interest of borrowers, the economy or to protect taxpayers, the next administration could elect to end the conservatorship on January 2, 2018. This is the view of the Treasury Department as well. I would like to submit a letter written to me on this issue that states that the provision binds the Treasury only until January 1, 2018, and has no effect after that. The agreement for this language to be included in the omnibus was that the prohibition would sunset after 2 years and not create a perpetual conservatorship. As then-Secretary Paulson described, conservatorship was meant to be a ``time out'' not an indefinite state of being. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Treasury letter be printed in the Record at the conclusion of the remarks by Senator Brown.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I wish to recognize the 10th anniversary of Hermandad Mexicana Transnacional, Org. Since it was established in 2005, Hermandad Mexicana Transnacional has been a strong advocate for the Latino community in southern Nevada. In working to fulfill its mission of promoting family unity and community empowerment, the organization ensures that Latinos in Nevada have the legal, social, educational, and economic support they need to thrive, regardless of their immigration status. Hermandad Mexicana Transnacional provides the Latino community with essential immigration services including assistance with navigating the immigration system to become naturalized U.S. citizens; applying for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, DACA, program; renewing work permits and legal permanent resident cards; and filing U-Visa and Violence Against Women Act petitions. Hermandad Mexicana Transnacional has formed important partnerships with other entities to enhance the resources it provides. These resources include supportive services for victims of violence and free tax preparation services, voter registration assistance for newly naturalized U.S. citizens, and attorney consultation services for immigration cases at no cost to the client. Furthermore, Hermandad Mexicana Transnacional offers a variety of literacy and education courses for English language learners through its adult education program. These courses include elementary and middle school education classes and a preparation course for Spanish-speaking students to obtain a General Education diploma. I applaud Hermandad Mexicana Transnacional for 10 years of dedicated service to the Latino community in southern Nevada. Hermandad Mexicana Transnacional is the only organization of its kind in the Silver State, and its work is truly appreciated and admired. I also commend the distinguished leadership of Hermandad Mexicana Transnacional, particularly Ms. Luz Marin Mosquera, Ms. Dora Lopez, and Ms. Kathia Pereira. Under their direction, Hermandad Mexicana Transnacional has assisted more than 45,000 people in southern Nevada with a variety of immigration-related issues. This includes 4,000 people who are now U.S. citizens and 5,300 people who are now DACA beneficiaries. I wish Hermandad Mexicana Transnacional continued success as the organization continues its meaningful work.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Ryan Willbrand, a congressional fellow in Senator Kaine's office, be granted floor privileges for the remainder of the session today.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, 18,000 Puerto Ricans served in the Armed Forces in World War I; 65,000 in the Second World War; 61,000 during the Korean war; 48,000 in the Vietnam war. Since 1917, more than 200,000 American citizens from Puerto Rico have served in the U.S. Armed Forces, serving in every conflict since World War I. A previous leader of the Senate asked me to represent the Senate in a ceremony in Puerto Rico a number of years ago as they were dedicating the monument to fallen soldiers of Puerto Rico in conflicts involving the United States and other countries. I have never forgotten that. I have a warm spot in my heart for Puerto Rico, a wonderful part of our country and a territory of the United States with a beautiful rain forest. I have been there. I have fond memories. I have been there a few times, but I really like Puerto Rico. Today, as they have helped us in these battles, Puerto Ricans who live in Puerto Rico need our help. Right now, the people of Puerto Rico are drowning in over $72 billion in debt. It is a sparsely populated territory with, I think, about 3.5 million people. They have more debt per capita than any U.S. State, of course. The territory is facing a severe economic and fiscal crisis, and it is becoming a humanitarian crisis. Leader Pelosi and I fought to include meaningful provisions in an omnibus spending package to assist Puerto Rico, including empowering Puerto Rico to readjust a significant portion of its debt. Unfortunately, Republicans refused to work with us to address Puerto Rico's massive debt in a meaningful way. Instead of seizing the last chance Congress has this year to do the right thing for Puerto Ricans, they turned their backs on 3.5 million citizens of the United States who are Puerto Ricans and live in Puerto Rico. To be clear, helping Puerto Rico doesn't mean bailing the island out of its massive debt. They don't need that. They don't need a massive check from the taxpayers. This is about giving Puerto Rico and their leaders the same tools that every State has--the same tools that are currently available in every State. Puerto Rico is part of the United States, and the people of Puerto Rico are looking to Members of Congress to step in as partners. That is our job. The territory is facing a massive $900 million payment in bond payments on January 1 to its bond holders. Puerto Rico's Governor said yesterday that the island will default in January or May. We can't wait. Next year--likely the first half of 2016, the same period in which Puerto Rico is expected to default on its debt--Congress will present a Congressional Gold Medal in honor of the 65th Infantry Regiment, which suffered such massive casualties over time. This infantry regiment was a U.S. Army unit consisting mostly of Puerto Rican soldiers that distinguished itself for its remarkable service during the Korean war. It is shameful to think that Congress can at once recognize the extraordinary contributions of Puerto Ricans, who have made the ultimate sacrifice for their country, and then do nothing to protect Puerto Ricans when they turn to us for help in a time of crisis. Inaction is not an option. Puerto Rico needs to do its part, and so must Congress. As Puerto Rico's Resident Commissioner has said: ``This is not just a Puerto Rican problem; this is an American problem, requiring an American solution.'' We can do something to help, and we must do something to help. We can work together to pass legislation that allows Puerto Rico to restructure a significant part of its debt without costing U.S. taxpayers a penny. These bonds are not bonds of the U.S. Government. People have made investments. Like every other investment, sometimes they go bad. Theirs went bad as a result of the crash we had here 9 years ago or so on Wall Street. The Obama administration and congressional Democrats want to do something to help. We have asked Republicans to join us in this effort, but so far they have only stood in the way. All we want is to simply say that a territory of the United States--and we will limit it, of course, to Puerto Rico--has the ability, like every other State, to file for bankruptcy protection. Just last week, the senior Senator from New York asked for unanimous consent to adopt the Puerto Rico Chapter 9 Uniformity Act--a bill that would extend chapter 9 of the bankruptcy code to Puerto Rico and allow it to restructure its municipal debt in the same way other States can. But instead of giving Puerto Rico the same rights as Kentucky, Nevada, Illinois or Utah, the chairman of the Finance Committee, from Utah, blocked this critical legislation. I understand there are important issues that must be discussed, such as the nature and scope of this authority, but to deny Puerto Rico any restructuring authority, as the Republicans have done, is negligent. I hope that recent comments by Republican leaders, including Speaker Ryan, will translate into meaningful action. Senate Democrats are ready to work across the aisle on a real solution for Puerto Rico, with the understanding that any viable plan moving forward will be a Federal process that allows Puerto Rico to adjust its debt. To deny Puerto Rico any restructuring authority is not just bad for Puerto Rico, it is bad for the creditors as well. So I say to my Republican colleagues: Let's work together to extend a helping hand to our fellow citizens in Puerto Rico. It should be in this bill that we are going to vote on tomorrow. Giving the people of Puerto Rico the tools necessary to resolve this fiscal crisis is the right thing to do. It is the moral thing to do. Mr. President, would you announce the business of the day.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, before the Republican leader leaves the floor, I wish to say a few things. In the years I have served in public office, I brush aside most press and don't let it bother me, but once in a while something comes along that does. There was an article in one of the Hill newspapers this day that really troubled me: ``Bad blood: Reid-McConnell relationship hits new low.'' I have a difficult job, and so does he. We both have done our respective jobs. We started out in leadership positions here doing different things, but where we first started working closely together was when we were both whips. No one knows our personal relationship except him and me. There are things he does that disappoint me; there are things I do that disappoint him. Our caucuses have different views on a lot of things. I just want the record to be spread that the Reid-McConnell relationship hasn't hit a new low. We have a personal relationship. Nobody knows how many times we visit with each other on the telephone and personally. I will always remember him and his wonderful wife. Within the last few years my wife was involved in a terrible automobile accident. The first people to step up and ask if there was anything they could do were Mitch and his wife. Shortly thereafter, my wife had a bruising battle with breast cancer. There is no one who can comfort a wife more than another wife. On January 1 of this year, I blinded myself in an exercise accident, and Mitch McConnell was there. His wife was there. So I want the record to reflect--people might write all these things they want to write, but Mitch McConnell and I are friends. People may think that is difficult with all the things we do here opposing each other, but that is the job we have. I want the record--I repeat--to be totally reflective of the fact that I have admiration for Mitch McConnell and the work that he has to do. Do I always agree with what he does? Of course not. I am sure the same applies to his feelings about me. But no one can judge what our personal relationship is except McConnell and Reid.

Mr. REID. Yes.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. No objection.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, as the Republican leader mentioned, last night the Senate and House leaders finalized a bipartisan compromise that keeps our government open and funded and extends important tax policies for American families and businesses. I said last night--define ``last night.'' The last email I got was 2:45 this morning from my chief of staff, who was one of the negotiators. Sometime in the darkness, the bill was finalized. When I say ``the bill,'' it is really two bills--a bipartisan compromise keeps our doors opened and funded and extends important tax policies for American businesses. This was not an easy process. Members and our staffs worked intensely for weeks to craft this agreement. As I mentioned yesterday and I say again today, I appreciate the cooperation, expertise, and all the good work done by Speaker Ryan, Leader Pelosi, Senator McConnell, and their staffs. They were, I am told--and in all my dealings with them, I underscore and underline what my chief of staff Drew Willison, chief negotiator, said of the staff. They were a pleasure to work with. They were professional and did exceptional work on the agreement that we reached. It is a good compromise. The Presiding Officer, not being a longtime Member of Congress but a longtime legislator, knows that no legislation is perfect, but this is good legislation. This is truly a fine definition of legislation--the art of compromise. When we say ``compromise,'' it doesn't mean anyone is doing away with their principles; what it simply means is that people can't be bullheaded and unreasonable in what they are doing to accomplish their goals. In spite of Republican majorities in the Senate and the House, we Democrats were able to ensure that this legislation creates and saves middle-class jobs, protects the environment, and invests in renewable energy sources. For example, by extending tax incentives for wind, solar, geothermal, and other technologies, the omnibus spending bill will create and protect over 100,000 jobs in the clean energy sector. A 5-year extension of wind and solar credits will promote growth and help curb carbon emission by roughly 25 percent by the year 2020. And to those who will argue that lifting the oil export ban will counteract these important steps to limit pollution, that is simply not the case. It is not true. Extending the wind and solar tax incentives will eliminate over 10 times more carbon emissions than lifting the oil export ban will create. The omnibus spending bill is good for jobs, and good for clean energy and the environment. It also helps American families by including a provision that will lower health insurance premiums. To fully appreciate the compromise, we can't simply tick off the many beneficial policies the agreement includes. We must also consider that many troublesome provisions the Democrats fought to exclude didn't wind up in the legislation. When this matter came from the House, there were more than 200 so-called riders, and they didn't wind up in the bill. Many of these riders represented the worst of legislative priorities: weaken Dodd-Frank banking regulations; undermine the Department of Labor's fiduciary rule; roll back the National Labor Relations Board's joint employer standard; eliminate protections for clean air, water, land, and climate; weaken the consumer protection bureau's ability to protect consumers; curb the President's powers under the Antiquities Act to create national monuments; and destroy the candidate contribution limits. These are only a few of the many special riders that were sent to us from the House, and we did not allow 99 percent of these to be included because they are harmful policies. I say again, this compromise isn't perfect, but it is good. It is good for the American people. And if it weren't for Democratic efforts, it would have been a lot worse. I also extend my appreciation to the great staff of the White House-- first of all, the President's Chief of Staff, Denis McDonough. He is a former college football player, he is a strong man emotionally and physically, and he is very forthright, which I appreciate in the positions that he takes with everybody. He helped guide this legislation through. We have a number of people who work at the White House with whom we worked intensely. All the Cabinet officers--we had a very good relationship with Brian Deese, who is a jack-of-all-trades at the White House and does so much in many different areas. I appreciate very much his involvement in many different ways. Longtime Senate employee Katie Beirne Fallon has been available anytime we needed her, and this has been very difficult for her because she is a new mom to two little twins. She was always available. We were disappointed when she went to the White House from the Senate, but her knowledge of the Senate has been helpful in our being able to move this bill as far as it has been. A longtime staffer who operated on the floor here for many, many years was Marty Paone, who was available whenever we needed him. He is a fine man. We still miss him here in the Senate. He does such a great job for the country and the Senate. We must pass the legislation, as the Republican leader said, as quickly as we can. Christmas is fast approaching. I hope Republicans in the House and the Senate will move quickly to move this legislation to the floor so we can vote on it and give the American people every confidence their government will remain open. Would the Presiding Officer state what the Senate will be doing the rest of the day.

Mr. REID

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

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, as my friend, the Republican leader, stated, we are continuing to work toward a bipartisan compromise on the omnibus and tax extenders legislation. I have worked hard--we have all worked hard--to get to yes on this massive undertaking, this huge appropriations bill and this big tax bill. I have been involved on a personal basis in every twist and turn of the way. I want to say a word about the status. We all know that this agreement is not completed, but I have been so impressed with the endurance and the massive amount of experience that these men and women have--both Democrats and Republicans. Senator McConnell and I had an event last week. We sat next to one another. I sent him a note about how impressed I was with one of his staff people who is working intimately with one of mine. So I want to tell all the staff in all these buildings here on Capitol Hill who have been working on this night and day how much I appreciate their hard work and how the American people are so fortunate to have these good men and women working on their behalf. We find that most everyone engaged and working here on Capitol Hill are not involved for the money. They are involved because they want to do something to help change policy and to try to do what they can to be involved in what goes on in this great country. So I appreciate all they have done to this point. I think we have done a good job as responsible legislators, working to find common ground and strike a balance that can pass Congress and be signed into law by the President. But it is time for a reality check on where we stand on things. An agreement could be filed right now that covers most everything that we have discussed and would keep the government funded fully for a year. At this point, the only major outstanding issue is Republicans' insistence on raising the export ban on crude oil. We have made very clear to Republicans that if they insist on including the oil export ban, there must be included in this robust policies to reduce our carbon emissions and encourage the use of renewable energy. So for the past many days I have worked hard--as a number of others have--to strike the right balance. We have made multiple offers to Republicans that were certainly doable, reasonable, and all Republicans had to do was say yes. Saying yes to any of the offers we put on the table dealing with renewables over the past few days--especially the last 3 days--the ink would be dry, the entire package would be filed, and we would be moving ahead on the floor. I made it very clear to my Republican colleagues that there are offers out there that have been unanswered, and I hope they are answered very quickly. I have appreciated getting to know the Speaker better than I did before. I found him to be available and someone who understands the policy, and I am encouraged that last night he said when he had his teleconference with all of his Members that he thought we were going to have a deal completed. I hope that in fact is the case. Republicans can take yes for an answer. That is all they have to do. But Congress is now faced with two clear paths forward. The first is very simple: Pair the oil export ban with much needed policies to reduce our carbon emissions and build more renewable energy. The second path is that we move ahead on the government funding bill and tax package without the package of oil and renewable policies. That would not be my first preference, but we would have to live with it. We don't have the legislative language yet on the tax package. This isn't pointing fingers at anyone adversely. It is simply the fact that we need to get this done. We don't have the legislative language done yet. At this pace, we are going to be here through Christmas. We need to get that done now. So these are the two choices. Either path forward will keep the government open and funded. I certainly hope so. Republicans must decide which they prefer. If Republicans think reducing our carbon emissions and encouraging the use of renewable energy is an unacceptable price to pay, we can move the rest of the package without the oil export ban, but we need not delay anymore. There is no reason to delay any further. So I say to everyone who is listening here this morning: It is decision time. Mr. President, would the Chair announce the business of the day.

Mr. REID

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

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Objection.

Mr. REID. Yes.

Mr. REID. Other Senators are concerned about it, and I made the objection on my behalf.

Mr. REID. I am it.

Mr. REID. No. Mr. JOHNSON addressed the Chair.

Mr. REID

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

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Madam President, I want to underscore what the Republican leader has said: Everyone is working hard toward a bipartisan compromise in the omnibus and the so-called tax extenders legislation. Many of us in the Senate and the House and our staffs worked through the weekend and have made a lot of progress. We are not there yet. Keeping the Federal Government open and funded is a congressional responsibility. I am confident we will fulfill this most basic constitutional duty. It is just a question of when we do it. I hope it is sooner rather than later.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Madam President, this past weekend President Obama and the United States took yet another historic step in addressing climate change. The landmark agreement forged in Paris by the United States and about 200 other nations will go far in protecting our planet for future generations. Climate change poses one of the greatest threats our world has ever known. Here in the United States, we are beginning to see the devastation caused by all kinds of things--in the Western part of the United States, raging wildfires that we have never, ever seen before; in arid places like Nevada and in very, very non-arid places like in the mountains of California, Washington, and Oregon, rising sea levels; our military bases, coastal bases--those in Virginia and Florida--are feeling this impact, changing operation of the bases, with extreme weather and droughts. Now is the time to act to stem the tide of climate change. I applaud President Obama for his work on this issue. His leadership has inspired the international community to address climate change and its catastrophic effects.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Madam President, on a note that I feel important to make for my staff and me, it is important to recognize the accomplishments of everyone here in Washington, here on Capitol Hill, here in the Senate; it is important to recognize the accomplishments of our staff. We have such remarkably dedicated people. I am so proud of my staff. They have worked this past week tirelessly. I want to talk today, though, about just one of those who has worked for me. His name is BG Robert T. Herbert. He came to me as a congressional fellow two decades ago, and he never left. He was so good. This month marks the 40th year of General Herbert's service in the United States Armed Forces. In 1975, he joined the Army and embarked on a remarkable military career. He grew up in a military family and always dreamed of becoming a military aviator. He made that dream a reality, logging over 7,000 flight hours in all different kinds of aircraft--fixed-wing and rotary--spending time in virtually every aircraft within the United States Army inventory. As with all pilots, as they get a little older and have different assignments, they just can't stand the fact that they can't fly as they used to. So he no longer spends his days in the cockpit when he does his duties at the National Guard. He is Special Assistant to the Chief of the National Guard Bureau for National Security Policy here in Washington. He previously worked as Nevada's assistant adjunct general. I am grateful for Bob's service to our Nation. A 40-year military career is an incredible achievement. But I am also thankful for his work here in the Senate. He has been a tireless worker for the people of Nevada and for the country. Congratulations to BG Robert T. Herbert on this important milestone, and I look forward to his many other accomplishments as Bob's illustrious career continues. Would the Presiding Officer announce to the Senate what we are going to be doing the rest of the day.