Harry Reid

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, today the Senate will proceed to consider the motion to proceed to a resolution of disapproval filed by the Republican leader, which would cause the country to default on its debts for the first time in its history. The Democrats will oppose this motion and vote to preserve the full faith and credit of our great country. I remind my Republican friends that every Democrat and 27 Republicans in the Senate, as well as 285 Members of the House of Representatives, already voted to do the right thing and pay the Nation's debts. I look forward to quickly dispensing with this Republican resolution, which would risk America's economic security, as well as a global depression. This vote will take place this afternoon, after our weekly business meetings. I want to spend a little bit of time talking about nominations. Directly after the vote on the default legislation, we will have the vote to break a filibuster of President Obama's nomination of Richard Griffin to serve as general counsel of the National Labor Relations Board. There have already been 67 of President Obama's nominations filibustered. Let's just vote on these nominations. I cannot imagine why it would be a good thing for this country, or the Senate, to not allow us to go forward on the nomination. If you don't like him, vote against him, but don't stop the debate from going forward. If cloture is invoked, there will be up to 8 hours of debate under the new rules we have established in the Senate. We will have 4 hours and the minority will have 4 hours. So I think that would be appropriate. Few Americans are aware of the job that the National Labor Relations Board does. It looks out for the rights of millions of U.S. workers every day--Democratic workers, Republican workers, independents, tea party workers--regardless of whether they are in a union. Mr. Griffin has extensive experience in employment law. He is highly respected by his fellow labor lawyers on both the union and the business sides. As general counsel for the NLRB, he will safeguard fair compensation and working conditions for all American workers. This week the Senate will also vote on a number of other crucial executive nominations, some of which have been stalled for more than a year. The Senate will consider the nomination of Katherine Archuleta to serve as Director of the Office of Personnel Management. That is an extremely important position. She started her career in public service as an elementary school teacher. She will be the agency's first Hispanic director. Her desire to serve is earnest. This is what she said: You do it [as a public service] because you have a deep passion for public good, for civic engagement. She has worked in both the Transportation and Energy Departments under President Clinton. She served as chief of staff to Labor Secretary Hilda Solis for 3 years. She is eminently qualified. Yet Ms. Archuleta is the first OPM Director to be filibustered in the entire history of this agency. This week the Senate will also consider the stalled nomination of Alan Estevez to be Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense. This man's nomination has been stalled for 402 days. He will be responsible for a $170 billion logistics budget--$170 billion. That is a year. This budget supports our men and women in uniform as well as millions of machines that take them where they want to go. He specialized in military logistics for more than 10 years. It is unfortunate that Republicans will hold up confirmation of such a crucial Defense Department nomination. I am told most of it is that it is held up for an unrelated matter, dealing with some other issue. It is just wrong. If you do not like this guy, stand and say why you don't like him and vote against him. Don't stop us from moving forward on the nomination. Most of the opposition to this man, who has been held up for 200 days, is, I am told, by the senior Senator from Texas. The junior Senator from Texas has placed a hold on another nomination, a man by the name of Tom Wheeler to be Democratic member of the Federal Communications Commission, FCC, a very important agency. In addition to writing two books, Mr. Wheeler has founded several technological companies--important companies. He cofound the largest online targeted news service and helped develop the U.S. Government's telecommunications policy. President Obama nominated Tom Wheeler as well as Republican Michael O'Rielly to fill two vacant seats on the FCC; so what is stopping us from filling these vacancies with a bipartisan pair of nominees? Listen to this. The Senator from Texas has stalled the nomination because he opposes legislation proposed by Democrats in Congress that would require shadowy groups that spend millions on political advertising to disclose their donors. This next one is really a doozy: the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury. It is an extremely important job. This man is qualified. He has run the Office of Management and Budget. He has been the President's Chief of Staff. He is now Secretary of the Treasury. What a fine, fine man--Jack Lew. Jack Lew, even though he is the Secretary of the Treasury of this great country, cannot go to meetings that other finance ministers from around the world can go to. Why? Because Republicans are holding up his nominations to all these important bank boards, finance boards, the International Monetary Fund. He is supposed to be there. He cannot go. He is a talented and dedicated public servant. He has already been approved by the Senate, confirmed by the Senate. Every Treasury Secretary serves as the U.S. representative on the international bank boards and offers input on America's position on global financial matters. That is his job. He cannot do that because of what I have just said. It is an embarrassment that we have not acted more swiftly to confirm him in this role. To think that we have to file cloture on this. Yet the junior Senator from Kentucky has subjected this nomination to partisan wrangling--and others have joined with him, I assume--as he threatens to do with the nomination of Janet Yellen to serve as the Chairman of the Federal Reserve. The Presiding Officer and others who serve in this body and have served in the House of Representatives have served with a fine public servant by the name of Mel Watt. I got to know Mel Watt when he was chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus. He would come over and visit with me every month or so--a fine man. He has represented North Carolina's 12th Congressional District since 1993, and as senior Member of the House Financial Services Committee he understands the mistakes that led to the housing crisis. He also has proposed legislation to crack down on the worst abuses in mortgage lending and helped to pass the Dodd-Frank bill to prevent predatory lending. By any measure Congressman Watt is qualified to help struggling homeowners recover from the worst downturn in generations. My Republican colleagues should give him the up-or-down vote he deserves, not filibuster him. I know some Republicans do not like Dodd-Frank. Obviously, they didn't mind the abuses that took place that led to the crashing of Wall Street. But he should not be punished for that. At a time when America faces difficult economic times at home and various threats abroad, it is crucial the Senate confirm these talented and dedicated individuals to serve in the executive branch of government. Let us vote on these nominations. These normally easily confirmable positions should not have a filibuster. Not long ago I can remember Republicans who, in this body, were concerned because they could not get the votes they wanted on their nominees for President Bush. They spread on this record, clearly, that it is a right of the President to choose the players on his team. We should return to that custom, remove partisanship from the confirmation process and ensure highly qualified nominees receive the fair and speedy confirmation they deserve.

Mr. REID

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

Mr. REID. Madam President, I am sorry I am a little late here. I see my colleague, the senior Senator from Mississippi. I have had the pleasure of knowing Thad Cochran during my entire stay in Washington. He is a fine man. He has had experience in the House and the Senate, as I have. I have always appreciated his courtesies. He is just such a fine human being. Before his election to Congress, he served honorably in the U.S. Navy. He was a lieutenant in the Navy. After his tour of duty, while attending law school at Ole Miss, Senator Cochran returned to active duty for his naval work, even while he was going to law school. After graduating from law school in 1965, he joined the very prestigious law firm Watkins & Eager in Jackson, MS, and in less than 2 years he became a partner in that law firm--which was remarkable. It speaks well for his acumen in the law and for being a nice person. His break from public service did not last long, though. From the Navy he ran for Congress in 1972 and served in the House for 6 years before running for the Senate. He served as Chairman of the Republican Conference, the Agriculture Committee, and the Appropriations Committee. Throughout his time in Congress, Senator Cochran has promoted the best interests of Mississippi's citizens. Even when we were on different sides of the issues, I always respected Senator Cochran's service to his country, his dedication to the people of Mississippi and to the people of this country. I congratulate him on this impressive milestone and appreciate most of all his friendship.

Mr. REID

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

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to executive session to consider the following nominations: Calendar Nos. 242 and 377; that the nominations be confirmed en bloc; that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate; that no further motions be in order to any of the nominations; that any related statements be printed in the Record; that the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action and the Senate then resume legislative session.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. I ask unanimous consent that the Judiciary Committee be discharged from further consideration and the Senate now proceed to S. Res. 254.

Mr. REID. I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 276, which was submitted earlier today.

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

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. The first rollcall vote will be at 10:30 a.m. tomorrow morning on the motion to invoke cloture on the nomination of Alan Estevez to be a Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. If there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that it stand adjourned under the previous order.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until 9:30 a.m., Wednesday, October 30, 2013, and that 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 proceed to executive session to consider the Estevez nomination, with the time until 10:30 a.m. equally divided and controlled in the usual form.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, following leader remarks, the Senate will be in a period of morning business until 4:30 this afternoon, with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each. At 4:30 p.m. the Senate will proceed to executive session to consider the nomination of Richard F. Griffin, Jr., to be general counsel for the National Labor Relations Board for a term of 4 years. At 5:30 p.m. there will be a cloture vote. Order of Procedure I ask unanimous consent the time until 4 p.m. be for debate only.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, I welcome back the President pro tempore. I hope he had a productive week in Vermont, and that all my colleagues enjoyed visiting with constituents at home. This work period is going to be 4 weeks long. We have a great deal to accomplish during this 4-week period and it will go by quickly. We are attempting to work things out so we don't have to work during the holidays for a change. The last several years we have been stuck up to Thanksgiving and right through Christmas on a couple of occasions. It is obvious Senators aren't making these Monday votes a priority. We have a lot of people not showing up. So everyone should understand, this vote tonight is a very important vote. I am disappointed some Senators aren't going to be here. But in the future the next Mondays we can be expecting a vote or series of votes. I think we have become very complacent and not worrying about the Monday night votes. We will have some votes that may be more meaningful, as this one is. During this next work period, the only time we will have off will be November 11 for the celebration of Veterans Day. Therefore, if we are going to finish our work in this 4-week period, that means we are going to have to work on Mondays and Fridays. I hope we don't have to work weekends, but we have to get this work done. (Mr. KAINE assumed the Chair.)

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, this week we are going to say goodbye to our colleague who was appointed to represent the State of New Jersey after the untimely death of Frank Lautenberg, but we also will welcome a new Member to the Senate, Senator-elect from the State of New Jersey Cory Booker. What a remarkable young man he is. He was a student at Stanford, and to get into Stanford you have to be a very good student. I am impressed with his academic skills, but he was also a tight end for the football team at Stanford, No. 5 in the Nation. They have a great football program. Everyone will meet Cory Booker and find that he is a very big man physically. After graduating with a degree from Stanford in political science, he got his master's degree in sociology from Stanford. He then became a Rhodes Scholar and studied U.S. history at Oxford. He received his law degree from Yale. What an outstanding record: Stanford, a couple of degrees; Rhodes Scholar, Oxford; Yale Law School. That is quite impressive. Then he served on the Newark City Council and was mayor for 2 years, a job that has been noticed all over the country, recognizing the great work he has done.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. Mr. President, during this 4-week period we are going to do a number of things, not necessarily in this order, but we are going to consider ENDA, known as the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which would provide basic protections against workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. We haven't taken this up for a number of years. We tried and failed in the House of Representatives before, but we are going to take it up here again. We are going to consider a bipartisan bill to make compounding drugs safer. As we will recall, there was a terrible tragedy in the Northeast, where a number of people died as a result of not compounding these products properly. This bipartisan legislation will allow us to have safer compounding drugs and track prescription medicines from factory to the drug store. We are going to consider job creation legislation that will build on the economic recovery and strengthen middle-class families, and we are going to take up the Defense authorization bill which supports our troops and ensures this Nation does everything in its power to keep America safe from those who would do us harm. Before we debate any of these matters, we must consider a number of vital Presidential nominations, including several that have been stalled for more than 1 year. One of those is somebody who has been wanting to work in the Defense Department, something vitally important for the Pentagon, and has been held up for 1 year on an unrelated matter. It is too bad, but this has been held up by one Republican Senator. So we are going to move forward and do it very quickly. It is no secret the Republicans have systemically slow-walked and blocked scores of President Obama's judicial and executive branch nominations. Pending executive nominations wait an average of 5 months. Democrats have broken filibusters of 66 of the President's nominations. Republicans have blocked or delayed more than that with secret holds and procedural holds. As a Senate, we reached an agreement the first of the year to consider a number of important nominations that have been stalled for months and, in far too many cases, for years. But obstructionism once again has reared its ugly head and we have a backlog now. It is time to move forward without delay and fill those crucial roles. In the wake of a Republican government shutdown, the Nation is watching for a sign the Senate can function efficiently and normally. It is time to show the American people how well and how quickly the Senate can work when cooperation is present. Likewise, our colleagues in the House of Representatives owe the American people to stop wasting time on political show votes and start legislating. I have enough trouble with my schedule, but I just have to briefly comment on the House schedule. They are going to work until noon on Wednesday and then they are taking off the next 10 days. From now until the first of the year, they have scheduled 18 working days. That is all I will say on that. Our colleagues in the House owe it to the American people to move forward on legislation. On many of the most important issues of the day, the Republican leaders have refused to allow the House of Representatives to be heard. Some are allowed to be heard, but Speaker Boehner has a rule that Democrats don't get to participate unless he can first prove there is a majority of the majority to vote on an issue. That is not the way it needs to be. We are going to have a celebration here tomorrow on the life of Tom Foley. I had the good fortune of serving with him in the House. He came from a real conservative district in the State of Washington. He served for many years. He was the majority leader, he was the Speaker and a fine man. He, similar to the other leaders I served with, O'Neill and Wright, tried to get 218 votes to pass a measure. They didn't try to get 218 from the Democrats. They had plenty of Democrats and could have done that. But everyone was allowed to vote. That is the way it should be now. It is too bad it isn't. What has happened over there is the Republican leadership has refused to allow the whole House of Representatives to work its will. Immigration reform is one of the most glaring examples of their not allowing the body to run as it used to. Last June the Senate passed a commonsense bipartisan bill to fix the broken illegal immigration system. It would have strengthened our borders, required undocumented people to get right with the law, and put them on a path to citizenship. There are about 11 million people. But for 4 months--120- plus days--the House of Representatives has failed to act on immigration legislation. If we brought up a bill, the Senate bill would pass overwhelmingly. Even many mainstream Republicans believe House Republican leadership should allow a vote on the comprehensive plan to amend the broken immigration system. I repeat, if the whole House were allowed to vote, it would pass. The House also failed to take up the Senate's bipartisan agricultural jobs bill--the farm bill, as we call it--a bill that cuts the debt by $23 billion and supports 16 million American jobs. They have also refused to bring up something so common sense. The Presiding Officer, before coming here, was Governor of the State of Virginia. I am sure the Presiding Officer, as I have, has gone through towns and neighborhoods and seen those little strip malls with all these places for lease. If we passed in Congress, as we have done in the Senate, the so-called Workplace Fairness Act, it would allow these small businesses to get back and rent space allowing it to survive. Think of the advantages online retailers have. They don't have to pay 5 percent, 7 percent of what the others pay. So it is very unfair for these brick-and-mortar places to be left to the mercy of these big online folks. When we brought up this bill, I got a call from one of the major online organizations. They said: We will support your legislation if you will put a ceiling that we don't have to do anything until there is $5 million in sales. They want $5 million in sales and then pay no sales tax--a pretty good deal. We passed--rightfully so--a bipartisan bill. The House will not take this up. It is too bad. So on these and other issues, it is time for reasonable Republicans to raise their voice in the Senate and of course in the House of Representatives. There has been a troubling trend over the last 3 years. I have been troubled to watch these so-called mainstream Republicans be marginalized by Members of their own party. It is not the marginal people who are being marginalized. It is the mainstream Republicans. Even more troubling, moderate Republicans have been complicit in allowing this disturbing trend to continue. It is no surprise when tea party extremists force our economy to the brink of disaster when they shut down the government for the sake of ideological stunts. We saw what happened. We weren't surprised that the tea party did this, but I was surprised that the sensible mainstream Republicans didn't speak up--and speak up sooner--and many didn't speak up at all in defense of reason and responsibility. Think about that. There are 232 Republicans in the House of Representatives. On a vote to open the government after 16 days of being closed and defaulting on the debt, only 85 of the 232 voted to reopen the government and keep us from defaulting on our debt. That is a scary number. So the vast majority of the Republicans in the House wanted to keep the government closed and to default on the debt. Wow, that is spooky. As their more radical colleagues drove the nation and the world to the brink of economic collapse, most middle-of-the-road Republicans said nothing and did nothing to stop it, which was certainly a surprise to me. Although I deplore the behavior of the extremists who sparked this month's manufactured crisis--and many of the crises over the past 3 years--I do not blame only them for holding the United States Government's full faith and credit hostage. I also blame the so-called main stream Republican colleagues who remained silent even as these anarchists among us committed political malpractice. They knew better. They should have known better. They know the consequence of default, and they know the cost of a government shutdown. Yet they allowed members of their own party to take the country down a dangerous road, doing irreparable harm to the country and, I believe, to the Republican Party. As a conference committee sits down to negotiate a long-term budget agreement and sets a course for fiscal responsibility, reasonable and moderate Republicans, main stream Republicans, must not absent themselves from these discussions. A significant number of radical Republicans have said they would rather risk default than cooperate or compromise with Democrats. Sensible Republicans must not allow these radicals to rule the day. We, the Democrats, are ready to do the difficult work of finding common ground for the good of our country. We don't expect radical tea party Republicans to join us, but we do hope our mainstream Republican colleagues will find their voices, reclaim their party, and work with Democrats to govern once again.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. I now move to proceed to executive session to consider Calendar No. 63.

Mr. REID. I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. REID. I ask unanimous consent that the mandatory quorum under rule XXII be waived.

Mr. REID

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

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

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. REID. I ask consent that the mandatory quorum under rule XXII be waived.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. I now move to proceed to legislative session.

Mr. REID

Mr. REID. I send a cloture motion to the desk.