Richard Shelby

Mr. SHELBY

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, what is the pending business?

Mr. SHELBY

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I join my colleagues in urging passage of S. 2338, the FHA Modernization Act of 2007. The Banking Committee has invested a considerable amount of effort and time to reach agreement on this bill. Legislating can be a difficult process that requires not only patience but also a willingness to compromise. The Banking Committee has been able to compromise in a way that achieves a balanced bill. The bill makes the necessary changes to the FHA program so that it can meet the needs of today's mortgage marketplace. The bill also provides protections for the American taxpayer who ultimately bears the financial risks of the program. The end of a legislative session on the eve of an election year can be a very difficult time to reach consensus on just about anything. When we are able to come together, it is incumbent upon us to seize that opportunity and move forward. With that in mind, I commend Chairman Dodd's efforts to craft a bipartisan bill and I encourage all my colleagues, on both sides of the Hill, to support final passage of S. 2338 as passed by the Senate.

Mr. SHELBY

Mr. SHELBY. I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I think the intention of the Senator from North Carolina is good. I know she is concerned about border enforcement and everything that goes with it dealing with immigration. But that is the province of Homeland Security. We have an appropriations bill dealing with homeland security. I happen to serve, among others, on that committee too. But this bill deals with the Justice Department and related agencies. I do not think we should be taking money out of this bill to give to Homeland Security for some program or taking money out of Homeland Security to give to Justice. We have allocations, as the Presiding Officer sitting here knows. I think the Senator means well, but I think this is the wrong vehicle for what she is trying to do, and I oppose her amendment.

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I wish to take a second to thank Chairwoman Mikulski and her staff who helped us craft a very good bipartisan bill. I thank the majority clerk, Gabrielle Batkin; Erin Corcoran; Doug Disrude; Kevin Kimball; and Robert Rich. I also thank my staff who worked so diligently on this bill: Art Cameron, Goodloe Sutton, Allen Cutler, Rachelle Schroeder, and Augusta Wilson. Without them, we could not have done it.

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I rise in opposition to the motion to commit. Chairman Mikulski and I have worked hard with a lot of Members on both sides of the aisle to meet the priorities of the Senate and the Nation. This bill funds State and local law enforcement $1.6 billion over the administration's request. The budget proposed to cut law enforcement to an unacceptable level. The bill fully funds the President's vision for space and makes critical investments in science and education that will be needed to keep this country competitive. I urge my colleagues to support the bill Senator Mikulski and I have crafted to meet the needs of the Senate and the American people.

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

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. SHELBY. Madam President, I rise in support of the Vitter amendment No. 3277, pending before the Senate. I commend Senator Vitter from Louisiana for offering this important amendment. The Vitter amendment would seek to eliminate Federal COPS funds to local municipalities with what are commonly referred to as sanctuary policies, whereby law enforcement officials are barred from asking suspects about their immigration status or reporting them to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Generally, sanctuary policies instruct city employees not to notify the Federal Government of the presence of illegal aliens living in their communities. The policies end the distinction between legal and illegal immigration so illegal aliens often benefit from city services too. The amendment offered by the distinguished Senator from Louisiana, Senator Vitter, would ensure existing law is enforced uniformly across the country by withholding COPS Federal funds for cities that choose to violate the 1996 Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act. A similar amendment was added to the House CJS appropriations bill recently. In August, a poll conducted by Rasmussen reported a proportion of likely voters in favor of cutting Federal funding for sanctuary cities at 58 percent for, with only 29 percent opposed. It was an overwhelming vote. Sanctuary policies, official or otherwise, result in safe havens for illegal aliens and potential terrorists. Sanctuary policies allow criminal aliens to avoid deportation because they prevent local police from reporting aliens to the ICE, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Cities that blatantly ignore Federal law and put their cities at increased risk of harm by illegal aliens should not be awarded taxpayer dollars. I thank my colleague from Louisiana for offering this amendment and urge my colleagues to support the Vitter amendment.

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. SHELBY

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. SHELBY. I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. SHELBY. Madam President, I rise in opposition to amendment No. 3295 offered by the Senator from Nevada. This amendment seeks to take $150 million from NASA and will give it to the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program--a program that is already $400 million dollars over the budget request of zero. At first glance, a reduction of $150 million from NASA's $17 billion budget would seem minimal. However, let's look at the facts. After debating this bill, it is clear that NASA is a priority for the Senate. We debated and added an additional $1 billion to NASA in order to partially compensate for the funding shortfall NASA has endured since the Columbia disaster. This funding will only cover one-third of the $2.7 billion needed to keep NASA on track. To cut funding will endanger NASA missions that will inform us about the world we live in, and cripple our ability to be competitive in space. We are in a space race. While we are the current leader in space, there are many countries that want to take our place and are aggressively moving forward to do so. The administration has articulated, and Congress has endorsed, a vision for exploration. The return of our astronauts to the Moon is a Priority and we have provided the funding to accomplish that goal. Now this funding is in jeopardy. And what are we jeopardizing our future for? The State Criminal Alien Assistance Program--a program that was not requested by the administration, and currently is funded in this bill at $400 million. We are being asked to add $150 million to a program that barely touches many of our States. Since 2000, five States have received 77 percent of the $2.8 billion in funding for this program. Let me say that again--77 percent, or $2.2 of the $2.8 billion, for this program since 2000 has gone to only five States. This can hardly be called a national program, although I'm sure it is an important program. Yet, our Nation's space program benefits the lives of every American. The work that NASA does, from encouraging students into science and engineering careers, to innovative technology advances, improve our quality of life. The forward and innovative thinking at NASA helps to ensure our Nation has the ability to compete, and lead, in the global economy. We are committed to keeping our leadership role in space. In order to do so, we must make the right investments in space at the right times. That time is now. I encourage my colleagues to oppose the Ensign amendment. Madam President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. SHELBY

Mr. SHELBY. The GAO, the General Accounting Office, found that over 120 million in tax dollars were wasted by Federal agencies dealing with travel--first-class travel--when economy travel or something less than first class could do. That is unacceptable to all of us here. I commend my colleague from South Carolina, Senator DeMint, for bringing this to the Senate's attention, and I encourage all of my colleagues to vote ``aye'' on this amendment in a few minutes. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, we are nearing the hour of 12 o'clock, when we have agreed there will be a rollcall vote on the DeMint amendment. I rise today in support of the amendment offered by Senator DeMint from South Carolina and ask unanimous consent that I be added as a cosponsor.

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I commend the Senator from South Carolina, Mr. DeMint, for his amendment dealing with travel and spending. If we can save millions of dollars by people not flying first class, and so forth, and abusing the system, we ought to do it. The spirit of this amendment is good and I hope we can all vote on that at 12 noon, when we have agreed to do so. I commend him for offering the amendment. It will be good law for us to follow.

Mr. SHELBY. I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. SHELBY

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I want to speak on the pending bill before the Senate for a few minutes. This is the second day of consideration of the fiscal year 2008 Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations bill. This bill funds the Departments of Commerce and Justice, NASA, and the National Science Foundation. Given the extremely diverse subject matters contained within this bill's jurisdiction, we must entertain a wide range of amendments on the Senate floor. This has been true in the past and is true again this year. Chairwoman Mikulski and I are currently reviewing a substantial list of amendments and are working with various Members and staffs to determine appropriate resolutions to the list of amendments. I ask Members to come to the floor to discuss with the chairwoman and myself your concerns so we can move this critical funding bill forward. We hope and expect to finish this bill no later than mid-day tomorrow, but to accomplish this we will need every Senator's help. It is Monday afternoon and we can move some things tonight and get this bill moved tomorrow with the help of a lot of our colleagues on both sides of the aisle. I yield the floor.

Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.