Harry Reid

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask for its second reading but object to my own request.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding the upcoming recess or adjournment of the Senate, the President of the Senate, the President pro tempore, and the majority and minority leaders be authorized to make appointments to commissions, committees, boards, conferences or interparliamentary conferences authorized by law, by concurrent action of the two Houses, or by order of the Senate.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that during the adjournment or recess of the Senate from Thursday, January 16, through Monday, January 27, Senators Levin, Warner, and Rockefeller be authorized to sign duly enrolled bills or joint resolutions.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn and convene for pro forma sessions only with no business conducted on the following dates and times and that following each pro forma session, the Senate adjourn until the next pro forma session: Friday, January 17, at 11:15 a.m.; Tuesday, January 21 at 10:30 a.m.; and Friday, January 24 at 9:30 a.m.; that the Senate adjourn on Friday, January 24, 2014, until 2 p.m. on Monday, January 27, 2014; that on Monday, following the prayer and pledge, the morning hour be deemed expired, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, and the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day; that following any leader remarks, the Senate resume consideration of the motion to proceed to S. 1926, the flood insurance legislation.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, the next rollcall vote will be Monday, January 27, at 5:30 p.m.

Mr. REID

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

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 336.

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate.

Mr. REID

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

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. I move to proceed to Calendar No. 266.

Mr. REID. Mr. President, on this issue we have a bipartisan coalition that badly wants to get this done. So we are going to do everything we can to move forward. At this stage the Republicans have not cleared the proposed consent agreement. I have indicated to the Republican leader that later today I would ask that. But also, to stopgap, we have started a rule XIV procedure which in just a minute I will move to, and we will have a second reading so that, if we can't work anything out on the consent agreement, we will tee this up so this will be the first vote we have when we get back after our recess.

Mr. REID. Certainly.

Mr. REID. On our side, Senator Landrieu has been persistent for months now. So she and Senator Isakson, I hope, can work something out so we can maybe work on this before we leave. Schedule Mr. President, following my remarks, and those of the Republican leader, the time until noon will be equally divided and controlled between the two of us or our designees. At noon the Senate will begin consideration of H.J. Res. 106, which is the short-term continuing resolution. At 12:15 there will be a rollcall vote on the joint resolution. Just before coming here I was told the vote in the House will be between 3 and 5 o'clock this afternoon. So we should get that at a reasonable hour today. We expect to begin consideration of the omnibus bill when it is received from the House, as I have indicated, later today. measures placed on the calendar--s. 1917 and s. 1926

Mr. REID. Mr. President, there are two bills at the desk due for a second reading.

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I object to further proceedings on either one of these measures at this time.

Mr. REID. Mr. President, last night's vote to block emergency unemployment insurance was, I am sorry to say, what goes on and has been going on for a number of years here. It was blocked by the Republicans. It is really a tragedy for millions of Americans who are relying on Congress to help them get through these hard times. Today's long-term unemployment is double what it was at any other time Congress has allowed emergency benefits to lapse. Yet Republicans refuse even to allow an up-or-down vote on our plan to restore benefits to 1.5 million Americans, and there are 2.3 million children. I thought we had satisfied every complaint and demand my Republican colleagues made throughout the week. They said they wouldn't vote on an extension which would provide an average of $300 a week to families struggling to get by unless the bill was paid for. So we proposed an offset. That wasn't unique for us. It was originally proposed by Congressman Paul Ryan, chairman of the Budget Committee in the House and the Republican candidate for Vice President in the last election. Then Republicans said they couldn't vote for an extension of unemployment insurance without reforms to the program. We also did that. What we did will prevent double dipping and reduce the number of weeks recipients could receive unemployment benefits. Then Republicans said they couldn't vote to extend unemployment benefits unless they were allowed to offer amendments. So Democrats agreed to vote on up to 20 amendments, 10 on each side. They again refused. So, Mr. President, unless Democrats agree to vote on an unlimited number of unrelated, irrelevant minority amendments, the minority will filibuster the bill that will help people who have been looking for work for a long time. This callous vote yesterday proves Republicans want it to seem like they support an extension of unemployment insurance even though they didn't vote and wouldn't vote for an extension. The minority has hidden behind one process argument after another as they voted to end a program that has been successful for millions of Americans, including, as I indicated, more than a half million children, which has kept them out of poverty in recent years. Middle-class Americans can see right through these flimsy Republican excuses. They see last night's vote for what it was--a slap in the face to almost 1.5 million Americans, including tens of thousands of veterans; a slap in the face for 18,000 Nevadans who are still looking for work, and 2.3 million children whose parents don't have jobs; and a slap in the face for 70,000 more people who will lose their unemployment benefits each week until Congress acts. But the fight is not over. We are not going to give up on Americans struggling to get back on their feet. We are working on other proposals. We can move forward at any time on a 3-month extension, unpaid for, and that is really what we should have done 2 weeks ago, so that during this 3-month period we could continue working on a long- term solution. We must take up this short-term continuing resolution, which, by the way, is bipartisan. Senator Heller from Nevada joined with Senator Reed of Rhode Island--the two States who lead the Nation in unemployment. The economy can't afford another manufactured crisis over whether the U.S. Government will stay open for business or pay its bills. But soon Republicans will be faced with the same choice: Put their middle-class constituents first or keep playing political games. I received a letter this week from a Nevadan who, by the way, is a lifelong Republican. Here is what happened to him. After 13 years at a job he loved, this 54-year-old man was laid off, through no fault of his own. He hasn't been able to find work for 10 months, despite having applied for dozens and dozens of jobs. He is appalled at the way his own party has treated him and other unemployed Americans. This is what he wrote: ``I am shocked and dismayed and outraged at how Republicans have dealt with this matter.'' Let me read this again: I am shocked and dismayed and outraged at how Republicans have dealt with this matter. The Republican leadership has talked about people like me as if we're thieves, not worthy of help. That will cost Republicans their jobs and should cost them their jobs. This Nevadan is not alone. People all over America feel the same way. Republicans around the country support the extension of unemployment benefits.

Mr. REID. Sure.

Mr. REID. It is actually now up to about 1.5 million.

Mr. REID. That is true, Mr. President.

Mr. REID. That is true.

Mr. REID. And the pay-for was originally discovered by Paul Ryan.

Mr. REID. Would my friend repeat the question?

Mr. REID. No.

Mr. REID. That is true. And the biggest advocate we had for that on this side of the aisle was the whip, the senior Senator from Illinois.