Mark Udall

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from New Mexico for his courtesy. I rise in support of this legislation. I intend at some later date to spend additional time on the floor talking about my Uncle Stewart, who was a wonderful man, an uncle to me, but more than that, he was a mentor, he was a leader. In the last 12 years of his life after my father died, he really served as a second father to me; therefore, I feel as though I lost a second father recently. I thank the Senator on behalf of at least my side of the family. I know my cousin Tom will, at the right time and in the right way, express his thanks as well. My uncle was many things, but he was at his heart a student of the West. He was a son of the West. He always looked for the lessons that the landscapes and the people of the West could provide all of us. I know the Senator from New Mexico knows of the many books he wrote. He wrote over half a dozen books. One of the books I took the most insight from was a book called ``The Founding Fathers and Mothers of the West.'' He pointed out in that book that people came to the West-- the Presiding Officer will be interested in this--to find a new life. He continued in that vein by talking about the great western director of western movies, John Ford. He once asked John Ford if his movies portrayed the West as it was. Ford's answer was: No; they portrayed the West as it should have been, doggone it. My uncle's point was that the West was not settled by the gunfighters and those who had gotten into conflicts. The West was settled by those who came looking to create communities and to work together. It was the people standing on the wooden sidewalks watching the gunfights who in the end settled the West, established the West as we know the West today. My uncle in particular had great affection and respect for the Native populations in the West. That led him to have great passion and even outrage about the way Native Americans had been treated. In his later years, as the Presiding Officer knows, he went to battle in the courts through his words in every form possible advocating justice and fair treatment for our Native American brothers and sisters. In our family, we characterized him as being outraged without being outrageous. We are going to, obviously, miss him. I am going to miss his wise counsel. I will do everything I can to live by the credo he carried forward, I say to Senator Bingaman, which he believed deeply: We didn't inherit the Earth from our parents; we are borrowing it from our children. I think that is the fundamental lesson our uncle left with us. The inspiring step of the Senator from New Mexico to name the Interior Building after my uncle will help us keep that firmly in our view and keep committed to that purpose for our time on this Earth. I thank the Senator from New Mexico for his graciousness. I look forward to this bill becoming the law of the land.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, earlier, I listened to the colloquy between the two members of the Banking Committee as they outlined the importance of true Wall Street accountability and the Wall Street reforms we will consider in the future. I rise to speak about a particular opportunity we have as we consider this important and far-reaching reform legislation, and that is to discuss a piece of legislation I have introduced today called the Fair Access to Credit Scores Act of 2010. Senator Lugar and I joined along with eight other colleagues, to introduce this bill that would put consumers back in control of their finances. This bill takes a commonsense yet significant step in that direction by offering Americans annual access to their credit score when they access their annual free credit report. Making the distinction between your score and your report, a report tells consumers what outstanding credit accounts they have open, such as student loans or credit cards, maybe a car or home loan. Unfortunately, it tells Americans little else. Often, they already know--they hopefully should know that information in their credit report. In contrast, your credit score, which our legislation would make available, is what banks and lenders and increasingly even employers have access to. It is critical information that each one of us needs to know. Today, you and I would have to jump through hoop after hoop and ultimately have to pay to have access to our credit score, while banks and lenders can get this information more easily. Mr. President, I know you have been a strong advocate for fairness in America, and that is simply not fair. In 2003, Congress enacted legislation that required the three major consumer credit reporting agencies to provide a free annual report to each one of us on a yearly basis. This was known as the FACT Act. It was an important step in ensuring that financial records of American consumers are accurate. You could cross-check, as a consumer, what was in your report. Many of my constituents in Colorado have seen frequent television commercials and Internet advertisements, and they are led to believe that the annual credit report under law includes this credit score I am discussing. Unfortunately, we were all disappointed--I have been personally--to find out that you only have access to your credit report, not the critical information that helps you judge your creditworthiness. You actually have to purchase your score or subscribe to a credit-monitoring service that costs you up to $200 a year to receive it. There are some troubling cases that even go further, where consumers believe they are signing up for a free credit score, only to find out later that they have actually signed up for a costly monthly monitoring service instead. This is simply not fair. It is why the Consumer Federation of America and the Consumers Union support this legislation. Your credit score is a critical piece of information that impacts your interest rates, your monthly payments on home loans, and it could be the difference between whether a child is able to afford college or not. As I alluded to earlier, this information is increasingly being used to decide whether you will be offered a job. When you apply for a job, your potential employer has access to that information, and you don't even know what it is. This is personal information, and the consumers themselves seem to be the only people who don't have easy access to it. We are talking about empowering American consumers when we pass--and I know we will--Wall Street accountability legislation. We want to empower consumers to be able to shape their own financial futures and thereby the country's financial future. To do that, we have to have transparency. When you have free access to your credit score, although that is a small part of the larger reforms we need, it addresses one of the fundamental inequities that pervade our current financial system. Put simply, the one-sided marketplace today is rigged to benefit large financial institutions at the expense of hard-working Americans who are struggling to support their families and save for retirement. Consumers continually find themselves on the losing end of this bargain. With so much at stake, this legislation we filed today is a small step to help restore balance and put Americans back in charge of their financial health. My hope is that, as this Chamber considers the Wall Street accountability bill, we will consider adding this legislation as an amendment and restore a greater dose of fairness to consumers in Colorado, to the Presiding Officer's constituents, and to all the rest of our Nation. Let me close by thanking a group of Senators who have joined me: Senators Lugar, Scott Brown, Hagan, Levin, Lieberman, Klobuchar, Menendez, Shaheen, and Tom Udall. They have all joined me in putting consumers first by cosponsoring this commonsense, proconsumer legislation. I ask each one of my colleagues as well to join me in supporting its passage.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I also rise to express my appreciation to the Senator from Missouri, Mrs. McCaskill, for her leadership on this effort to reform the way the Senate advises and consents. Because I have great respect for the traditions of the Senate, I was curious as to why holds are a mechanism or a tool available to individual Senators. What I found out is basically speculative; that is, that in the past, there is a belief that Senators--because they could only get back to Washington by horse and buggy or by horse itself--needed time to study a potential nominee. It was a courtesy. It maybe made sense in those horse-and-buggy times, but these are modern times, and the secret hold now, in particular, is being used to accomplish, in many cases, political or perhaps even policy goals. I have great respect for the venerable traditions of the Senate, but this seems like one that should be set aside, frankly. I was also curious to study some of the statistics that I will share with the entire Senate. Since President Obama took office--I think it is 16 months, give or take a few days--we have voted on 49 nominations. Of those 49 votes, 36 of them--which is about 75 percent of the nominations--have been delayed. On average, these nominations languish or sit on the Executive Calendar for over 105 days. That is on average. Some have waited many months more. Then, when we look at the vote totals of the nominations that finally come to the floor, 17 received more than 90 votes, 10 received more than 80 votes, and 6 received more than 70 votes. So out of the 36 nominees, there were 33 that I think you could characterize as being approved overwhelmingly by the Senate, after a very long and unfortunate wait. Right now, on the Executive Calendar, there are 94 nominees awaiting the Senate's advice and consent action. At this time in George W. Bush's Presidency, there were 12 nominees. So we have 94 on the one hand and 12 on the other hand. It is time for my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to stop abusing the Senate's responsibility to provide advice and consent for the President's well-qualified nominees. Let me just end on this note. If a Senator wants to place a hold, that is all well and good, but it shouldn't be a secret hold. As the previous two speakers have said--and I think Senator McCaskill as well--I have never used a hold. If I wish to put a hold on a nominee, I will make it public. I will make the case and take a stand on the floor of the Senate. That is the way we want our debates to be in the Senate--the world's greatest deliberative body. We shouldn't be doing things such as this in secret. I yield the floor.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I yield the floor.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Casey.) Without objection, it is so ordered.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I listened intently to the Presiding Officer's remarks just before I took the floor, and I, too, wanted to add my congratulations to Bill George and associate myself with his remarks. I was particularly moved by the comments the Senator made about often organized labor in this country works on behalf of all Americans, all working Americans, and organized labor often does not receive acknowledgment. Sometimes it receives absolutely the opposite, slings and arrows that are often sent toward organized labor. There is much that organized labor has done over the years that we take for granted in the workplace, everything from workplace safety to pension protection to the 40-hour workweek. Children do not work in our factories anymore because of what organized labor did for many decades. So, again, that was very moving for me to hear. I salute Mr. George. I also took note of the mention of the six-time world champion Pittsburgh Steelers. In my State we have a two-time world champion football team, the Denver Broncos. It always seemed, though, we had to go through Pittsburgh. Often we fell short, but on two occasions we were able to make it to the Super Bowl itself. We also had to pass the test that the Steelers presented. (The remarks of Mr. Udall of Colorado pertaining to the introduction of S. 3201 are printed in today's Record under ``Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions.'')

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I rise to speak about health insurance reform. I wanted to remind all of us that last month we successfully passed health insurance reform, upon which I think we will have a very strong foundation to build, improve, and strengthen access to health care all across America. Throughout the long and critically important debate on how best to fix our system, I came to the floor on many occasions, as did the Presiding Officer and a lot of my freshman Senators, to discuss the need for reform. I believe the bill that President Obama signed into law will help struggling Colorado families and hopefully our struggling economy as well. So I think you and I agree there is a lot of work left to be done, and no bill of this magnitude and importance is perfect. To implement this new law is a major undertaking that will require us in the Congress to revisit and improve upon what we have already done. In that spirit, I come to the Senate floor to introduce a bill that I believe is a great way to start making those improvements. I thank Senators Begich and McCaskill for working with me to develop a bill, and Senator Mikulski for her hard work and energy and support as well. Our legislation is entitled ``The TRICARE Dependent Coverage Extension Act.'' It would help fulfill this important goal of the health insurance reform that the Presiding Officer and I support; that is, giving young adults the opportunity to remain on their parents' health care plan until the age of 26. Young adults across our country are struggling to enter the job market as we get our economy back on track, and this legislation will ensure that the families of our military servicemembers are not left behind when this benefit goes into effect later this year for millions of civilian families and their children. Currently, the TRICARE Program, which provides health insurance for military servicemembers, retirees, and their families, covers children up to the age of 21, or in some cases up to the age of 23 if they are full-time college students. The TRICARE Dependent Coverage Extension Act will give young adults of these military families who have not been able to find health care insurance through an employer the opportunity to pay a reasonable premium and remain covered until their 26th birthday on their parents' plan. Health reform, I think we agree, is meant to ensure that all Americans have access to affordable health care coverage. I cannot think of any of our countrymen more deserving of the peace of mind envisioned by this new law than members of our Armed Forces and their families. They, in countries all over the world, make tremendous sacrifices every day for our Nation. I think it is over 60 different countries that we have servicemembers serving around the world. They deserve benefits that will keep them healthy and secure. In addition to the three Senators I mentioned, Begich, McCaskill, and Mikulski, there are 19 of our Democratic colleagues who have also joined in supporting this legislation. I think this outpouring of support on short notice is indicative of how beneficial the bill will be for the families of our armed servicemembers. Now, we have had our disagreements with the other side of the aisle on how best to reform our health care system as a whole. But I think there are certain areas of common interest we can still find and come together on to improve the lives of the people we are here to serve. I think this is one of those instances, and I want to offer my hand to our Republican friends and hope they will join a group of us in cosponsoring this important piece of legislation. I sit on the Armed Services Committee in the Senate, and I served on the Armed Services Committee in the House. I would like to think I learned how to spot a good deal for our Nation's soldiers and their families, and this is a good deal. Again, I would encourage all 100 Senators to consider joining us in this important, straightforward, cost-efficient idea that I am presenting today.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Madam President, I thank Senator Warner. I did want to touch on the concerns of the people of Colorado with respect to the discussion we are having today. I want to start by saying that one of the fundamental roles of the Senate is to advise and consent the President of the United States. We do not even have a chance to advise the President, much less consent, because of the anonymous holds and the slowdown tactics that have been utilized when it comes to all these important nominees. We ought to have a chance to debate on the floor of the Senate, which is the advisory role, and we may find some judges do not pass muster, but they deserve an up-or-down vote on the floor of the greatest deliberative body in the world, the U.S. Senate. That is not happening. I note that some of my colleagues pointed out two cases where Judge Thompson from Rhode Island for months was stalled on the Executive Calendar. There was no reason given. When she was finally brought to the floor, there was a 98-to-0 vote, a unanimous vote. What was the problem? Why couldn't she be confirmed earlier? With Judge Keene from the State of the Senator from Virginia, we had to have a cloture vote to bring her to the floor--4 months. She was approved 99 to 0. There was no objection expressed to her sitting on the circuit court. This is senseless. This is absurd. In Colorado, we have had two vacancies on our district court for many months, going on years now. That bench is undermanned right now. Those judges are appealing to Senator Bennet and me to get two more judges for reinforcements so that docket can be reconsidered. Those district court judges are not being moved on the floor of the Senate so that we can advise and then, hopefully, consent. We have a Federal attorney whom we need to see confirmed. There has been no movement there as well. So for me, the Senate is not keeping faith with the people of our respective States and not keeping faith with the people of the United States. I know we can do better. I know the American people, when they look here to Washington right now, wonder why we are behaving like children. Children have an excuse, don't they, Senator? They are children. We are not. We have greater responsibilities. I hope we can set aside our differences, bring these nominees to the floor, across the board, and have an up-or- down vote. I would suggest that perhaps we ought to bring a block of nominees to the floor under a unanimous consent request. They have all been vetted. The President needs to have a full complement of people in his administration to do the work of the American people. Again, I thank Senator Warner. We will continue to beat these drums until these nominees have had a chance to be voted upon. This is crucial to me and to the challenges our country faces here today.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. I want to close and take advantage of another minute or two to speak on a separate note but a related note. I wish to talk about Sean Durkin. He was a soldier from Fort Carson whom we just lost from wounds that he suffered in Afghanistan in a roadside bomb attack. Those are the most casualty-ridden attacks that our forces have faced over and over, not only in Afghanistan but in Iraq. Last week, Army SGT Sean Durkin died at Walter Reed because of his wounds. He had been one of three Fort Carson soldiers who were presented a Purple Heart from President Obama when he visited Kabul and went to the military hospital when he was there. On his Facebook page, he included a quotation from an unnamed marine. This quotation said: This is my charge to you. Tell everyone of the heroism of the soldiers who lost their lives and of the soldiers who are fighting to recover what they have lost. I wanted to tell everyone here, everyone listening, everyone watching of Sergeant Durkin's heroism and ask that we keep in our prayers and our thoughts all of our service men and women and their families as they serve us all over the world. I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I rise to speak about health insurance reform. I wanted to remind all of us that last month we successfully passed health insurance reform, upon which I think we will have a very strong foundation to build, improve, and strengthen access to health care all across America. Throughout the long and critically important debate on how best to fix our system, I came to the floor on many occasions, as did the Presiding Officer and a lot of my freshman Senators, to discuss the need for reform. I believe the bill that President Obama signed into law will help struggling Colorado families and hopefully our struggling economy as well. So I think you and I agree there is a lot of work left to be done, and no bill of this magnitude and importance is perfect. To implement this new law is a major undertaking that will require us in the Congress to revisit and improve upon what we have already done. In that spirit, I come to the Senate floor to introduce a bill that I believe is a great way to start making those improvements. I thank Senators Begich and McCaskill for working with me to develop a bill, and Senator Mikulski for her hard work and energy and support as well. Our legislation is entitled ``The TRICARE Dependent Coverage Extension Act.'' It would help fulfill this important goal of the health insurance reform that the Presiding Officer and I support; that is, giving young adults the opportunity to remain on their parents' health care plan until the age of 26. Young adults across our country are struggling to enter the job market as we get our economy back on track, and this legislation will ensure that the families of our military servicemembers are not left behind when this benefit goes into effect later this year for millions of civilian families and their children. Currently, the TRICARE Program, which provides health insurance for military servicemembers, retirees, and their families, covers children up to the age of 21, or in some cases up to the age of 23 if they are full-time college students. The TRICARE Dependent Coverage Extension Act will give young adults of these military families who have not been able to find health care insurance through an employer the opportunity to pay a reasonable premium and remain covered until their 26th birthday on their parents' plan. Health reform, I think we agree, is meant to ensure that all Americans have access to affordable health care coverage. I cannot think of any of our countrymen more deserving of the peace of mind envisioned by this new law than members of our Armed Forces and their families. They, in countries all over the world, make tremendous sacrifices every day for our Nation. I think it is over 60 different countries that we have servicemembers serving around the world. They deserve benefits that will keep them healthy and secure. In addition to the three Senators I mentioned, Begich, McCaskill, and Mikulski, there are 19 of our Democratic colleagues who have also joined in supporting this legislation. I think this outpouring of support on short notice is indicative of how beneficial the bill will be for the families of our armed servicemembers. Now, we have had our disagreements with the other side of the aisle on how best to reform our health care system as a whole. But I think there are certain areas of common interest we can still find and come together on to improve the lives of the people we are here to serve. I think this is one of those instances, and I want to offer my hand to our Republican friends and hope they will join a group of us in cosponsoring this important piece of legislation. I sit on the Armed Services Committee in the Senate, and I served on the Armed Services Committee in the House. I would like to think I learned how to spot a good deal for our Nation's soldiers and their families, and this is a good deal. Again, I would encourage all 100 Senators to consider joining us in this important, straightforward, cost-efficient idea that I am presenting today.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

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

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Madam President, I rise today to discuss President Obama's proposed fiscal year 2011 budget and the proposed path forward for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration which we all know as NASA. Even though Colorado doesn't have a NASA facility, this proposed budget and the major changes to NASA's direction included in it have major implications for thousands of Coloradans. I was the chairman on the House side of the Space Subcommittee and I know what space means to Colorado and I know what it means to our Nation. Yesterday, Senator Bennet and I had the opportunity to meet with former General and now NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden to urge him to reevaluate the decision included in the President's budget request for NASA to terminate the Constellation Program. This program is developing the successor to the retiring space shuttle known as the Orion capsule and Ares rocket. Those two technologies will be teamed up in the planning that was brought together. We had a frank and productive discussion with Administrator Bolden. Senator Bennet and I impressed upon him the importance of this program--especially the development of the Orion capsule--to thousands of jobs in Colorado and, frankly, to America's leadership more broadly in space. General Bolden assured us that he wants to be flexible and work with Congress on this NASA budget and that he is committed to human space flight. In other words, the President's budget request is the beginning of a long process, and I was pleased to hear General Bolden is set on working with Congress to chart a future course for NASA and America's leadership in space. I look forward to working with General Bolden as this unfolds. If I might, I will take a few moments to describe the aerospace community in Colorado. Although we don't host a NASA facility, Colorado has the second largest aerospace economy in the Nation, behind only California. We have a talented and educated workforce and our colleges and universities have deep ties to NASA, private aerospace companies, and Federal research laboratories. We have many businesses that partner with NASA and the military to provide launch services and satellite development as well as a number of startup companies that are pushing the boundaries of what is possible in privately financed access to space. We can also in Colorado boast of the two key military space commands--NORAD and the Air Force Space Command--and three Air Force bases with strong space missions: Buckley, Peterson, and Schriever. In short, Colorado's aerospace enterprise brings together the government and commercial sectors as well as the military and civil sectors. For all of these reasons, I pay close attention to NASA and to the administration's vision for the agency, and the significant changes in the President's fiscal 2011 budget request demand an especially hard look. I know many of my Senate colleagues feel the same way. I have been reviewing the President's NASA budget since it was released in February and, as I noted earlier, Senator Bennet and I shared our concerns with General Bolden yesterday. Let me start by saying there is much to like in the President's budget. First, it supports an extension of the International Space Station until 2020 and possibly beyond. Completing this station has been a long time coming and I am pleased to see that this administration's commitment to fully utilizing it past the previous end date of 2015. Second, the budget includes important new investments in science and aeronautics research. My goal is to balance each of NASA's four mission priorities: earth science, space science, space exploration, and aeronautics. The President's request for nonexploration priorities represented a farsighted investment that should pay large dividends. Also, the budget includes an additional $6 billion over 5 years, which is especially notable at a time when many agencies are seeing flat or declining budgets. Much of this investment will go toward developing transformative technologies and propulsion systems that will help NASA cross into new frontiers. However, the elephant in the room is understandably the proposed cancellation of the Constellation Program, which is to be supplanted by commercial development of human space flight. A purely commercial approach to human space flight may be the future, but I am concerned that it also runs the risk of diminishing American leadership in space. If that happens, that would be a great shame. It would be penny wise, but I fear it would be pound foolish. Let me be frank. This move would hit Colorado especially hard. Well over 1,000 Coloradans work directly on one aspect or another of Constellation. In addition, the Jefferson County Economic Council estimates that work on Constellation supports nearly 4,000 additional Colorado jobs and $300 million worth of economic activity in the Metro Denver area. As the Presiding Officer can imagine, those kinds of numbers give me real pause. They are especially worrisome in today's economic conditions. The budget proposal leaves broader questions unanswered as well. After the planned retirement of the space shuttle next year, the United States will be without the capacity to launch humans into space, including to the International Space Station. At that point, we will be forced to purchase access to space on Russian Soyuz spacecraft. Constellation was supposed to minimize the gap in our ability to access Low Earth Orbit, otherwise known as LEO, and now the President is proposing to rely on the commercial sector to minimize the gap instead. I strongly support development of commercial launch capabilities and space services, and I look forward to the day when the commercial sector can provide these services for NASA to focus on development of new exploration technologies and human missions beyond Low Earth Orbit. I am confident that day will come. However, I have not seen sufficient proof from the administration that day is close at hand. The commercial sector has yet to prove it can safely put a human into orbit. Should the commercial sector fail to deliver human access to space, America will be reliant on Russian-procured launch services to the space station and LEO for the foreseeable future. In my opinion, that is an unacceptable position for our Nation. The United States and Russia have enjoyed a very productive partnership in space. It has been good for our country and good for space exploration. We should cooperate and share resources wherever possible. But I am concerned about what an indefinite reliance on Russian launch services will mean for our leadership in space. Cancelling Constellation has other important implications for our national security. NASA is a prime customer for the U.S. space launch industrial base, which we rely on to sustain our strategic deterrence mission and to ensure access to space. These issues are especially important to me, as I sit on the Armed Services Committee. Department of Defense officials have stated that Constellation's cancellation could increase the current price of propulsion systems for our launch vehicles. The Department of Defense is looking at the cost impacts, but we will not have clear answers until this summer. Congress needs this information before deciding whether to approve the President's budget request. I do not want to appear naive about the problems this administration faced in crafting a NASA budget and direction for the future. The Constellation Program, as currently resourced, is clearly ``unsustainable,'' in the words of the Review of Human Spaceflight Plans Committee--more commonly known as the Augustine Committee. The committee went on to say that we are ``perpetrating the perilous practice of pursuing goals that do not match allocated resources.'' That is simply not a recipe for U.S. leadership in space either. In the midst of crafting this budget for NASA, the administration also faced the worst economic conditions in a generation. I can appreciate the difficulty of designing a sustainable plan for NASA with today's fiscal constraints. We cannot and should not ask NASA to do more with less. Transferring routine space operations to the commercial sector appears to be an attractive, potentially money-saving alternative. I know I am not alone in believing that Congress should not support this budget based on what we know now. Terminating Constellation does not make sense. But we should be open to restructuring the program in a way that preserves American leadership in space and protects jobs. Madam President, where do we go from here? The President will be speaking later this week in Florida. It will be his first set of comments on the proposed NASA budget. I appreciate the fact that the President is tackling the problems with Constellation head on. However, he needs to explain his plan better. I hope the President will begin to answer the questions that I and many of my colleagues in Congress have asked. I hope he will begin to articulate a plan for NASA that is, in the words of the Augustine Committee, ``worthy of a great nation.'' I do not believe we are there yet, but we will get there. One of the lessons I learned as a mountaineer came on the 10th day of what was supposed to be a 7-day climb of Mount McKinley. At that critical moment in our climb, I learned that when you are all the way in, you will find a way. I believe the American people are all the way in with NASA. I know this Congress is. NASA's mission of exploration resonates with each of us. That mission transcends programs, budgets, and politics. It has endured the end of Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo, and it will soon endure the end of the space shuttle. Unfortunately, the history of NASA is littered with canceled programs with little to show for them. I don't want to see the same happen with Constellation, nor do I want to continue on an unsustainable course. The challenge before us is to ensure that NASA's programs and budgets are worthy of its mission. Over the coming weeks and months, I will be working with my colleagues in Congress and the administration to find the right way to further NASA's mission. I believe there is a sweet spot to be found that includes many of the positive aspects of the President's proposal. But the American people deserve answers on the President's vision for our Nation's leadership in human space travel. While some changes need to be made, I believe the Constellation Program has advanced an important mission. It would be highly disappointing to leave behind the significant investments we have made in Constellation without anything to show for them. We will find a budget that works for NASA, for Congress, and for Colorado. We have to because we are in all the way. I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I rise today to speak on behalf of the millions of Americans who know our Nation is desperately in need of health care reform. Traveling across Colorado this past year, a common theme surfaced as I spoke with families, health care providers, and businesses alike. They all want a health care system that tackles costs, improves quality, and puts their needs first. I have heard, as I know the Presiding Officer has in his home State of Delaware, stories of Coloradans who paid a lifetime of health care premiums in order to provide for their families, all to have an insurance company drop their coverage because a wife or a husband or a child became ill. Visiting with health care providers, I heard about the waste and abuse in our system. They have all pleaded with me to have commonsense reforms that get them back to the business they thought they were entering years ago--the business of caring for their fellow Americans beset by illness and disease. I heard from small business owners who continue to see double-digit increases in insurance costs, in many cases for the ninth or the tenth or even more years in a row. These small business owners want to see relief, not for themselves but because they do not want to have to choose between laying off workers and leaving their workers vulnerable to medical bankruptcies. Decade after decade, we see how the fine print of insurance company policies puts shareholder interests above those of American families and how partisanship has prevented the kind of progress everyone agrees is sorely needed. I have good news. Despite all the ugly rhetoric, distortions, and misrepresentations we have heard, Coloradans and the rest of the country can finally rest assured that someone has put their interests first. This week, I watched as President Obama signed into law the kind of reforms that will free Americans from the shackles of never-ending cost increases, dropped coverage, and unfair practices that put profits above the provision of care. Throughout this past fall and winter, I joined you, Mr. President, and the rest of our freshman class in the Chamber repeatedly to talk about the urgent need for health care reform. We shot down false claims, challenged the phony reasoning that was out there, and pointed out where the rhetoric ends and reality begins. Over the past few days, many more of our colleagues from this side of the aisle have compellingly and eloquently explained how important the new health reform law is to both the American people and the American economy. The fact is that this historic bill signed by the President saves lives, saves money, and it saves Medicare. Bringing this long debate to a close, I wish to speak directly to the people of Colorado. It is important that they know how these health insurance reforms will benefit their families and the rest of our great State. As a result of the President signing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act into law, the parents of Colorado's 1.2 million children can sleep easy starting this year knowing that insurance companies no longer have the right to deny their kids health care coverage because of a preexisting condition. Also starting in 2010, almost half a million, 500,000 young adults in Colorado who would otherwise be kicked off their parents' health care policies can maintain that coverage through to their 27th birthday. This is particularly welcome to me, as I know it is for many Coloradans, because I have two college-age kids who fit into the category I just described. We have 575,000 seniors in our Medicare Program, and for every single one of them, this new law will protect--I want to emphasize that--will protect their guaranteed benefits and immediately allow them to get preventive care with absolutely no copay or out-of-pocket costs. This added benefit, contrary to what we have heard, will increase their health care coverage under the Medicare Program so that our seniors can continue to live happy and healthy lives. This new law goes to great lengths to help slow the growth of health care costs and, by doing so, it is projected that these lower costs will allow Colorado's employers to hire up to 6,500 new employees in our State. And for as many as 68,000 small businesses, health reform will begin providing millions of dollars in tax credits so they can afford to offer health insurance to their employees. Yesterday, we sat here and cast 56 votes as Democrats to make final improvements to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. That reconciliation measure we passed yesterday will provide prescription drug relief as well for our Colorado seniors. More than 100,000 Colorado seniors, such as my friend Frank Blakely in Colorado Springs, will pay less for prescription drugs. Right now, these seniors hit what we all know here as the Medicare part D doughnut hole, which means they have to pay thousands of dollars directly out of pocket for their medicines. But beginning this year, every one of these seniors will receive a $250 check to help them offset those costs, and we will begin to close the overall gap in Medicare coverage so that we completely fill this doughnut hole by the year 2020. I know this will be welcome relief to those on fixed incomes all across the United States, because it will free up scarce retirement dollars to visit family members, help pay a grandchild's college tuition or even to help, in some cases, put food on the table. I think one of the overriding features of health reform is the freedom it will give to Coloradans and hard-working Americans--the freedom to change jobs, to launch a business, to even start a family while knowing that health care coverage will be there for them when they need it. Americans need to know their country won't leave them to fend for themselves when an insurance company denies or drops their coverage. They deserve peace of mind to know that someone is on their side. Over the last few days we have heard a lot of the same misleading rhetoric that we did back in August by those who were dead set on levying accusations rather than working on real reform. Well, health reform has become the law of the land and the American people don't have to wait any longer for these important reforms. The legislation we passed will establish a sturdy foundation upon which we will build, improve, and strengthen access to health care in America. Will there be mistakes made along the way? I don't doubt it. I am a lifelong mountain climber, and I know from experience that any difficult climb includes storms, and you make a mistake finding your route along the way. But what matters is that you dust yourself off and you move forward. I think there have been a lot of storms on this journey so far, and it hasn't been perfectly smooth. But it has been in the right direction. Despite our stumbles and twists and turns along the way, we kept our eye on the summit in front of us, where providing quality affordable coverage for every American is a reality. Every successful expedition, in my experience, has a leader, and I want to take a moment to recognize our leader, Senate Majority Leader Reid. He has literally had the health and well-being of millions of Americans on his shoulders--some would say the weight of the world. That is a heavy backpack. But at the same time he has shouldered that load, been an unwavering advocate for reform, and he has exemplified the American resiliency which has helped make our Nation the greatest Nation on Earth. I would also like to thank my staff, especially Jake Swanton and John Rayburn, who have worked tirelessly to fight for Colorado and make quality affordable health coverage a reality for millions of Americans. As I close, I want to say how proud I am that the health care bills we passed this week will modernize our health care delivery system, increase much-needed choice and competition within the health insurance industry, and help put our economy back on track, while clearly improving the financial security of middle-class working families. This has been an historic week for Colorado and for the American people. The victory, of course, isn't for the Senate or the House, or the President, or for our political parties, it is for the American people. I have certainly been humbled to have been given the opportunity to serve my great State during this unforgettable, long, and sustained debate, and I look forward to the important climbs that still await us as we implement this very important piece of legislation. Mr. President, I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I was unable to cast a vote for rollcall No. 99 in the second session of the 111th Congress--the motion to waive the Budget Act point of order against Vitter amendment No. 3665 to H.R. 4872, the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no'' on the motion.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I want to speak about a bill that is born from the forward-thinking ideas of our constituents--a bill that will help spur our Nation's new energy economy and create jobs. To that end, tomorrow I will introduce the Solar Uniting Neighborhoods Act, or the SUN Act. Last year, I began traveling across Colorado as part of a workforce tour to listen directly to Coloradans and hear their innovative policy ideas to create jobs. These ongoing efforts not only make me proud to be a Coloradan but they help me identify ways the Federal Government can help--or in some cases get out of the way--in supporting economic development and investing in Colorado. The SUN Act comes from directly visiting with Coloradans. It was one of the several job creation proposals developed after I hosted an energy jobs summit last month in Colorado. Our summit brought together leading clean energy stakeholders from the worlds of business and public interest and government. Many of our top elected officials were there, including Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Governor Bill Ritter, Senator Michael Bennet, and Congressman Ed Perlmutter. They were there to discuss ways to sensibly spur job growth in our emerging clean energy economy. In the coming weeks, I will be introducing further legislation developed in part from the creative ideas that flowed from the clean energy summit. The SUN Act will bring common sense to our Tax Code, get government out of the way of developing solar energy and spur job growth in every community across the United States. Americans currently qualify for a 30-percent Federal tax credit for the cost of installing solar panels on their homes. These solar panels are a great way to convert sunlight to electricity, and over time they save American families money on their utility bills. A few years ago, I installed panels on my own home to take advantage of the Sun, which is very strong in the great State of Colorado. But I have come to understand that this option isn't available for all American families who want to receive their electricity from solar power. Why? Well, there can be difficulties attaching solar panels to your home, which is why more and more neighborhoods and towns are creating so-called ``community solar'' projects. In those projects, instead of attaching the panels on every roof on the block, an increasing number of families have decided to place those same solar panels together in one open and unobstructed sunny area near their homes. By grouping these solar panels, you can reduce the cost by 30 percent compared to installing a panel or a set of panels on every roof in the neighborhood. Moreover, community solar projects streamline maintenance and optimize energy production by avoiding trees, buildings, and other obstructions. Whether used by neighbors living at the end of a cul-de-sac or developed by a rural energy cooperative, creating these group solar projects to share energy is a great way to lower the cost of making electricity through the marvelous technology of photovoltaic units. But there is a problem. Our Tax Code gets in the way. Why? Well, we have seen the Federal Tax Code discourage neighborhood solar projects because it requires the panels to be on your property. To put it simply, Federal law is telling Americans they need to have their solar panels affixed to their roofs instead of being able to partner with their neighbors on a community solar project. So this discourages innovation and slows the growth of solar power as an alternative energy source. Back to the reason why I am introducing the SUN Act. It makes a small change in the Tax Code so that we no longer will be constrained in this innovative solar energy opportunity. By eliminating the requirement that the solar panel be on one individual's property, it frees Americans to work together on community projects where each individual can claim a tax credit on part of a shared project. This simple turnkey solution makes it easier to adopt and use clean renewable energy. As more and more Americans are realizing, weaning ourselves off sources of foreign energy is a bipartisan imperative no matter what you think about global warming. Back in 2004, Colorado took a big step forward into the emerging clean energy economy when we approved a renewable electricity standard--a so-called RES. I know the Presiding Officer supports such a concept. It wasn't an easy transition. There were a lot of skeptics who feared setting a goal for renewable energy would result in job losses. I remember it well. I cochaired the campaign for this RES in the State of Colorado with the Republican Speaker of our Statehouse, Lola Spradley, who is a close friend. She and I toured the State during election season in a bipartisan effort. It was a surprise to a lot of people, who thought Republicans and Democrats only fight and disagree. We in fact agreed, and we had a wonderful time campaigning together. We passed the RES. Colorado has initiated other efforts as well and we have easily created over 20,000 jobs. We have the fourth highest concentration of renewable energy and energy research jobs in our country. Estimates are that the solar energy requirement in the RES--because the RES allows for wind, biomass, and other kinds of renewable energies--created over 1,500 jobs. So what does this tell us? It tells us what we already know well-- that American capitalism can take the seeds of an idea and create positive economic change. So wherever possible, our Federal Government should encourage, not hinder, such entrepreneurial ideas and entrepreneurs. Other important issues are at play as well. As we find our way out of the current recession, we are witness to the emergence of powerful economic competitors abroad, and we have an increasingly dangerous alliance on foreign fossil fuels. So with these factors in mind for our own economic and national security, Americans must become the world leader in adopting clean energy and creating homegrown jobs. The story must be told that clean energy is one of the greatest economic opportunities of the 21st century. Fortunately, that is a promise we can meet as the global demand for clean energy is growing by $1 trillion every year. Let me say that again--$1 trillion every year. And what excites me about this bill, like many measures currently being debated here in our Chamber, is that it will create jobs for Americans in every neighborhood where these community solar projects are developed. This bill reduces many of the barriers which currently prevent Americans from adopting solar energy, opens up new markets and creates a simple structure to allow people to utilize clean energy for their home. As I close, I can tell you there is nothing more thrilling than making electricity, which I do in my own home. And then, when you need to use it at your home, you use it there. And also, when it is not needed, you send it back on the grid for your neighbors to use. So I urge my colleagues in both parties to join me in supporting this legislation. I thank the Presiding Officer for his attention. I yield the floor.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, before I speak to the topic that brought me to the floor tonight, I want to acknowledge the Presiding Officer's remarks on the situation with Lehman Brothers and others on Wall Street. I know that the Senator is on a mission, and nothing would make him happier, nor me happier, if the story of Lehman Brothers is a story that is told for the last time, much less written for the last time. I listened with great interest to the narrative that is now unfolding, and with that interest also the sense of horror and outrage and anger that the Presiding Officer clearly carries. A crime is a crime, as it was pointed out, whether it is $500 from a cash register or literally billions, in fact trillions of dollars of net worth that we have seen taken from Americans and American families. I commend the Presiding Officer for his leadership, and I think he put it well when he pointed out if you are too big to fail, you are too big to exist, and too bad. Never again should that happen. So I wanted to acknowledge the Presiding Officer.

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

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I rise, along with my colleagues this morning, to draw attention to the growing dysfunction exacted on this institution's ability to confirm both judicial and executive branch nominees. Having served five terms in the House of Representatives, I have come to expect a certain amount of political revelry and combat. While I was honored to serve in the House, and I have fond memories of the often raucous debates there, I had high expectations that the Senate would truly be a place of deliberation and bipartisan goodwill. Of late, however, it seems the worst political gamesmanship has infiltrated the Senate. Perhaps the proverb ``the grass is always greener on the other side'' applies here, but I do have to tell you, I think the level of gridlock we have faced in the last year is unprecedented. We have seen roadblock after roadblock as we have tried to exercise one of the most basic functions of the Senate, that of making sure we have a full complement of Federal judges and ensuring the departments and agencies of the sitting administration are filled with competent public servants. In contrast, by this date during President Bush's first term in office, the Senate, with a Democratic majority, had confirmed twice as many circuit and district court nominations. The obstruction of present judicial nominees is all the more galling when you note that they were reported by the Judiciary Committee without dissent. Two weeks ago today, we were forced to invoke cloture on Barbara Milano Keenan to be U.S. circuit judge. Her nomination was held up for months. We finally had to say enough is enough and shut off the filibuster. When we finally voted on cloture, it was invoked 99 to 0, meaning not a single Senator was willing to stand and oppose the nominee. You know in your State, Mr. President, this is the kind of superficial partisanship the American people are fed up with. In addition to judicial nominees, President Obama's executive branch appointments have suffered from a similar kind of gamesmanship. One would be hard-pressed to find one single department in this administration whose work has not been interrupted by phony delays. Let me give you an example. After having invoked cloture and overcome a filibuster on Martha Johnson to be the Director of the General Services Administration, not a single Senator was willing to stand in opposition to the nominee. Cloture was invoked and she was confirmed by a 96-to-0 margin. I know partisanship is rampant in this town, but the American people deserve to know what is happening in the Senate. We are reaching a heightened level of imprudence, the kind George Washington warned us about in his farewell address in 1796. In outlaying the principle we first all have an obligation to govern, Washington stated, ``All obstructions to the execution of the national laws [ . . . ] with the real design to direct, control, counteract, or awe the regular deliberation and action of the constituted authorities are destructive of this fundamental principle.'' As I close, the American people know this town causes grown men and women to bicker and fight like children. Children have an excuse, they are children. We are not. We can do better, and I urge my colleagues to set aside their partisan differences, end this gridlock, and begin working together for the good of the American people. I yield the floor. The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Franken.) The Senator from North Carolina.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I wish to recognize Latoya Lucas of Colorado Springs, who will be awarded today with the 2009 Tony Snow Public Service Award. This distinction was created to ``honor extraordinary individuals who are passionate about serving their country while dealing courageously with debilitating intestinal diseases and ostomy surgery.'' In 2003, Latoya was a new mother and an Army specialist serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom when her humvee was attacked by rocket- propelled grenades. She thankfully survived the incident, but her injuries resulted in a colostomy and 2 years of intensive rehabilitation. Latoya's brave service has been recognized by such honors and distinctions as the Purple Heart Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal, and the Soroptimist International Woman of Distinction Award. In 2005, she became the first female recipient of the Military Order of the Purple Heart's Region V Patriot of the Year Award. After her retirement from the Army, Latoya became a motivational speaker and writer to share her remarkable story with others and encourage people to draw strength from their struggles. Latoya's book, ``The Immeasurable Spirit: Lessons of a Wounded Warrior about Faith and Perseverance,'' received the Gold Medal Award from the Military Writers Society of America. Additionally, Latoya is the chair of the Wounded Warrior Welcome Home Social. She has inspired so many others to draw strength from adversity. As Latoya has said, ``There are so many soldiers who come back home with injuries and untold numbers having ostomy surgery. I answer questions they have and show them that they can lead a full life with an ostomy.'' There are thousands of veterans and Active-Duty members who call Colorado home, a fact that is a source of pride for me. Coloradans like Latoya are a testament to the bravery and strength of our veterans and their remarkable ability to deal with life-changing injuries. Latoya has become a leader and a source of strength for fellow citizens who face similar injuries, and I want to thank her for her service to this country. I am proud to have this opportunity to share just some examples of Latoya's bravery and achievements, and I congratulate her and the other Great Comebacks Award recipients.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Record remain open today until 12:30 p.m. for the submission of statements, adding cosponsors, bill introductions, and the submission of resolutions.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, there will be no rollcall votes on Monday. The next rollcall vote will be at 12:15 p.m. Tuesday, March 2, on the motion to invoke cloture on the nomination of Barbara Keenan to be U.S. circuit judge for the Fourth Circuit.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I understand there are two bills at the desk, and I ask for their first reading en bloc.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I now ask for a second reading en bloc, and I object to my own request en bloc.

Mr. UDALL of Colorado

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. If there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that it adjourn under the previous order.