[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 35 (Thursday, March 24, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: March 24, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                    PROPOSED CHANGE IN SENATE RULES

  Mr. BENNETT. Last night--or more accurately, earlier this morning--we 
had an interesting time in the Senate, staying until 3 o'clock. When I 
went home and my wife asked me what we were doing, I had a hard time 
explaining it to her. We were not declaring war. We were not dealing 
with major national emergencies.
  We were dealing with a circumstance that was inside baseball, if I 
might use that term, which I had a hard time explaining to her.
  If I have a hard time explaining it to the wife of a Senator and the 
daughter-in-law of another Senator, I would have an even harder time 
explaining it to my constituents.
  Therefore, I have today asked my staff to start drawing legislative 
language, which I will introduce after the recess is over, which will 
make this change in the Senate rules.
  Whenever a conference report contains language that does not arise 
from the language passed in either House or deletes language that was 
passed by both Houses, that report will be subject to a point of order 
and require 60 votes to pass.
  We are seeing, Mr. President, a circumstance where legislation by 
conferees is replacing legislation by the two elected bodies.
  As a freshman, I do not have enough seniority to get appointed to a 
conference committee, and that means that I am disfranchised from 
voting on the actual language if the votes that are taken in this 
Chamber are disregarded by the conferees.
  I think if we had had such a rule in the Senate prior to last night, 
we would not have had the circumstance that we had last night where one 
Senator was sufficiently offended by the fact that his amendment which 
had passed both Houses was removed by the conferees, that he exercised 
the rights that he exercised last night and caused us the circumstance 
that we went through.
  The language, as I say, is being drafted now. I intend to speak more 
at length about it. But I wanted to make this statement on the floor at 
this time while the memory of last night's experience was still fresh 
in our minds.
  I thank the Chair.

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