Ted Stevens

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. That is my understanding, too.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 4846, which is at the desk.

Mr. STEVENS. I ask unanimous consent reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Let's run the first one here.

Mr. STEVENS. I have yielded back my time, if I had any.

Mr. STEVENS. Yes.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, parliamentary inquiry: Isn't there an order to vote back to back on these bills?

Mr. STEVENS. Is it the order, the unanimous consent agreement?

Mr. STEVENS. Has my time expired?

Mr. STEVENS. If I may answer that, with regard to the bill on which we are about ready to vote, I, as chairman, delegated some of the 302(b) allowance to Health and Human Services to VA-HUD and to the other bill, energy and water. It is because of the limits that were set in the 1997 act, not just the budget resolution. We have not lifted them to the point to have enough money to pass this bill.

Mr. STEVENS. Yesterday, this Senator completed 5 days of negotiations and finally got an agreement with the House and with everyone on how to lift the caps of the 1997 act. That did not take place because the Senator's side of the aisle objected at the last minute. We don't have a provision in this bill lifting the 1997 caps; we can't go forward until we do. We don't have the ability to go forward yet this afternoon and tomorrow and the next day. We have to lift those caps. It is enough to take abuse once in a while, but this Senator doesn't take it when it is undeserved. To accuse this side of the aisle for delay now is absolutely wrong. The President of the United States just came here and demanded 100 percent of what he asked for, but we don't know what it is.

Mr. STEVENS. Will the Senator yield?

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask the Senator, if the President said we can only have 24 hours, does that mean within 24 hours we will have the full scope of his demands under the Appropriations Committee? We have not seen the full scope of the President's demands, and until we do we will continue to have continuing resolutions.

Mr. STEVENS. Will the Senator yield?

Mr. STEVENS. Whatever it is, I am happy to yield back my time so we can vote.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I thank both Senators. I am delighted that I was able to be here at the time Senator Sessions made his remarks. I thank him for his kind remarks about my service, and I am delighted that he is on the Armed Services Committee because I like very much what he said. I had intended to make a statement on the Defense bill. But I have been engaged this week in sort of herding turtles around this place. If it is agreeable to my friend from Virginia, I will make my statement concerning the Defense bill next week and ask it be printed in the permanent record as part of this Record.

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

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. I would like to have the amendment read.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent for adoption of the amendment.

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

Mr. STEVENS. Will the Senator yield now? I thank the Senator very much. Mr. President, I thank Senator Bond and Senator Mikulski, who have worked so hard on this bill and brought us a bill now, through the negotiations they have had with the House, that I believe will be signed. It has been a very difficult bill. In working together, it is nice to see a good bipartisan effort on our appropriations bills. Amendment No. 4310 Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent it be in order for me to offer an amendment at this time. The amendment is at the desk.

Mr. STEVENS. I move to reconsider the vote and move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to. Ms. MIKULSKI addressed the Chair.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. That vote is not subject to reconsideration?

Mr. STEVENS. I move to reconsider the vote, and I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. He made those remarks at the time he announced this award yesterday in our presence in the Mansfield Room in the Senate. I also ask unanimous consent an article from the New York Times pertaining to this gift be printed in the Record.