Arlen Specter

Mr. SPECTER

Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, if the Senator will yield, I will be glad to respond. The pending amendment will remain in the Chamber. The Senator from Illinois, [Mr. Durbin], had made a motion to table and then had withdrawn it at my request so that Senators who were not here might have an opportunity to debate tomorrow morning. But that will be the amendment which we will return to at 9:30 tomorrow morning.

Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, very briefly on the pending amendment offered by the distinguished Senator from Alabama, I think the debate this evening has been very useful. The comments by the distinguished Senator from Utah are cogent. We have had the hearings as noted by Senator Hatch in the Judiciary Committee. It is tempting to eliminate the very substantial tax break which is presented in the reconciliation bill. Perhaps that is something that can be done now although the considerations advanced by the Senator from Utah are very weighty. The amendment offered by the Senator from Alabama to curtail the attorney's fees is very much worth considering. I am not sure that the proper place for it is on this bill because we really do not know all the underlying facts. When you talk about $250 an hour, that is a substantial sum of money on an hourly rate. When you talk about a total of $5 million, that is a substantial sum of money. The reports are that the attorney's fees in the agreement run into the billions. It may well be that before an intelligent legislative decision can be made on this matter, we will have to know a great deal more about the arrangements made by each State with the attorneys, what their work has involved, evaluation of the contingent nature, that is, a likelihood of failure so that a contingent fee is set and some consideration on the likelihood of success because if there is no settlement, then there are no attorney's fees to be paid, and that may be a fact-specific inquiry which will take some considerable time ultimately by the Judiciary Committee. But in any event, the stage is set. There are other Senators who want to discuss this issue. We will proceed to the conclusion of it when we resume consideration of the bill tomorrow morning at 9:30. I yield the floor.

Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the pending amendment be set aside and that the Senate turn to the consideration of amendment No. 1095 to S. 1061 very briefly and temporarily for disposition.

Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, a few administrative matters here. I ask unanimous consent that Senator Domenici be added as a cosponsor to amendment No. 1121.

Mr. SPECTER. I thank the Senator. I yield the floor. Several Senators addressed the Chair.

Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, I renew my question. Did my colleague say he was prepared, after he discusses the amendment by Senator Sessions, to debate the issue today so we can vote tomorrow morning?

Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, did I understand my colleague from Minnesota to say that he preferred to offer and debate the amendment this evening?

Mr. SPECTER. We can enter into a unanimous-consent agreement right now that there be 1 hour, equally divided, with no second-degree amendments in order and then a motion on or in relation to the amendment to be offered at the conclusion of 1 hour of debate. I make that unanimous consent request.

Mr. SPECTER. I thank my friend from Illinois. Mr. President, we have made some progress in limiting the number of amendments. We have been advised by Senator Wellstone that he is prepared to withdraw a filed amendment on Pell grants. Senator Wellstone is prepared to withdraw a filed amendment on infrastructure, which leaves one pending Wellstone amendment on Head Start. I have been advised that Senator Wellstone is prepared to enter into a unanimous- consent agreement for 1 hour, equally divided, providing he has an opportunity to modify his amendment. I will not ask unanimous consent for the moment on that. Senator Wellstone has arrived on the floor. Mr. President, since the Senator has just arrived, perhaps I can ask my colleague if the information is correct that the Senator is prepared to enter into a unanimous-consent agreement for 1 hour, equally divided, on his Head Start amendment on the understanding that it may be modified, and he is prepared to withdraw the other two amendments, one relating to Pell grants and one to education infrastructure?

Mr. SPECTER. May I interrupt my distinguished colleague for a moment to say there will be no further rollcall votes tonight. I have just been able to make that determination, and I know there are many Senators on the campus waiting to find out what is going to happen. I regret interrupting Senator Durbin, but I think that is worth a statement. We have the list fairly well pared down. When Senator Durbin finishes, I will announce the prospects for tomorrow.

Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, I believe that the Senator from Kentucky has offered a worthwhile amendment. There is no doubt about the dislocation to tobacco growers occasioned by a settlement which will have the effect of crippling their business for public policy reasons which may yet be worked out. It is obviously uncertain at this point as to what will happen with the proposed global settlement on the tobacco industry, but I think this is another matter where public policy calls for certain action. There are some employees, some workers in the industry who are hurt. I think it is sensible to provide for those individual workers. Certainly, we have seen the demise in my State of the steel industry and the glass industry and the coal industry, and we have tried to take care of dislocated workers. As the distinguished Senator from Kentucky has articulated the amendment, the sense of the Senate to do that I think is acceptable. There may be a fair distance between the sense of the Senate and how it is going to be effectuated. With some frequency we see on this floor the Senate express its sense and then back off when it comes to putting dollars up to druthers. But in terms of the public policy behind looking out for the interests of the employees who will be injured by a global tobacco settlement, I believe the Senator from Kentucky has offered a worthwhile amendment, and we are prepared to accept it on this side.

Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, then I ask unanimous consent that we enter a time agreement on the amendment just referred to by the Senator from Washington, 1 hour equally divided, so she will have 30 minutes.

Mr. SPECTER. I thank our distinguished colleague, Senator Stevens, the chairman of the Appropriations Committee, for what he has just said and for his management of the overall appropriations process. He is exactly right. We had discussed this matter, and that is why I am pressing now to try to get time agreements. We do have a list, but we have not precluded under the customary arrangement second-degree amendments. We could not incorporate that type of limitation. May I inquire of the Senator from Minnesota, Mr. Wellstone, if he is in the Chamber, with respect to the amendments he has pending? Might I inquire of the Senator from Washington, Senator Murray, of her willingness to enter into a time agreement on the amendment relating to family violence?

Mr. SPECTER. We have such a list.

Mr. SPECTER

Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the following pending amendments be considered, en bloc: amendment No. 1119 by Senator Murray, providing for an additional $1 million for the National Institute of Literacy; amendment No. 1120 by Senator Bennett regarding school trust lands; amendment No. 1109 by Senator Nickles regarding the Social Security Administration and the reporting of employer contributions; amendment No. 1092 authored by Senators McCain and Kerry, regarding eligibility for benefits under Medicaid and SSI; amendment No. 1121, authored by Senator Kerrey, regarding child care funding allocation errors; amendments numbered 1085 and 1086 by Senators Durbin and Levin, regarding organ donation; amendment No. 1093 authored by Senators Craig and Bingaman regarding the maximum hour exemption for certain agricultural employees. Mr. President, I further ask unanimous consent that Senators Roth and Moynihan be added as cosponsors to amendment No. 1109. Each of these amendments I am advised, are appropriately offset and have the approval of both managers, as negotiated by staffs, and with the authorizing committees where necessary. I ask unanimous consent that the amendments be agreed to, en bloc.

Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, if my distinguished colleague will yield, I would be agreeable to that. I had discussed with Senator Durbin his being next in sequence. I think that would be appropriate to lock that in by unanimous consent. I am now advised, that even on recognition on our side of the aisle, we need to check with some other people. But let me say to Senator Durbin that it will be my effort to have him proceed at that time, but I want to consult with some of my colleagues, so that is not in the form of a unanimous-consent request.

Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, under a previous agreement, the distinguished Senator from Arizona, Senator McCain, will proceed with his amendment for 1 hour. I have discussed the amendment offered by the distinguished Senator from Washington, Senator Gorton. He has two amendments pending. Let me be sure which of the amendments we have here. It is an amendment denominated to allow States to use funds under the Social Security Act to provide health insurance coverage for children with incomes above the minimum Medicaid eligibility requirements. Senator Gorton advised me he would be agreeable to a time agreement of 1 hour equally divided. He is not now on the floor, but he made that representation to me. I do not, frankly, like to proceed without having him on the floor, but I ask unanimous consent that we may proceed-- well, I am advised there may be a question on the other side of the aisle. But let me proceed, Mr. President, to say that if we are able to lock in that time agreement, then the managers would like to proceed to the two debates, 1 hour each, which would bring us to 4:40, at which time we would have two votes stacked back to back. At the conclusion of those votes, or after the first vote, when the Senators are present, it would be my intention, as manager of the bill, to try to seek time agreements on the outstanding amendments which are pending at that time. The Senators will all be on the floor after the first vote and before the second vote. We are within striking distance of seeing some light at the end of the tunnel. If we could have Senators on the floor at that time, I think we could come to closure. We have the amendment by the distinguished Senator from Illinois, Senator Durbin, pending on the tax issue. It is my hope that we can get a 1-hour time agreement on that, equally divided. I know that is agreeable to Senator Durbin, but there are others who may offer a second-degree amendment, Senator Ford perhaps, and others who are not now present. If we could get that resolved after the first vote, it would be helpful on the management of the bill. Mr. DASCHLE addressed the Chair.

Mr. SPECTER. I move to reconsider the vote.

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

Mr. SPECTER. That amendment is agreeable to this side of the aisle.

Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, in the absence of any other Senator seeking recognition, I ask unanimous consent that the pending amendment be set aside.

Mr. SPECTER. So that our colleagues may be aware of the sequencing, Mr. President, the debate on the McCain amendment, the first hour should run at approximately 3:40, and the conclusion on a motion to waive would be either at 3:50 or 4 o'clock, then an hour of debate on the Gorton amendment, and then there would be a vote on the McCain amendment. And in between, votes to be stacked on McCain and Gorton and after the vote on the McCain amendment, we will try to reach time agreements on the remaining amendments and try to clear at that time an agreement that Senator Durbin proceed next on his amendment. I thank the Chair.

Mr. SPECTER. With that modification, I propound the request.

Mr. SPECTER. That is correct. It was more precisely stated. It is 10 minutes to debate the motion to waive the point of order.

Mr. SPECTER

Mr. SPECTER. I move to reconsider the vote.