[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 200 (Friday, December 15, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Page S18698]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      ANOTHER GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN

  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, this year the American people have been 
treated to what can only be referred to as political theater of the 
absurd. The Republicans took control of Congress in January touting 
their so-called Contract With America as the vehicle for change and as 
the vehicle for the end of business as usual. Well, they weren't 
kidding. This year has truly defied all legislative logic. In some 
respects 206 years of process have been literally thrown out of the 
window.
  There have been lots of talk and press events and, of course, photo-
ops galore. Creative gimmicks have been used to highlight the grandiose 
plans of this new crowd. We have seen ostriches and bloodhounds and 
even golf clubs used to represent various points of view. Through all 
these shenanigans, the Nation has waited with bated breath for some 
real results.
  To put it bluntly, the grinch seems to have stolen Congress' 
sensibilities. Here it is December 15, and the Nation is still waiting. 
The Nation has already lived through one record-breaking Government 
shutdown, and now we are facing the very real possibility that Federal 
workers will be furloughed for Christmas and Government services will 
once again be curtailed.
  Today's deadline for keeping the Government running is looming and 
still there are no assurances that an agreement can be reached. While 
we in Congress jockey from one position to another seeming to be 
concerned only with protecting our collective political hides, the 
American people are wondering if we ever stop to worry about them or 
about the fate of the Nation.
  Under the Constitution, the only real responsibility we elected 
Members of Congress have to worry ourselves with is that of ensuring 
the passage of the 13 appropriations bills that fund the Federal 
Government. That is all we really have to do. This year while Members 
of Congress have spent months and months raising the public's 
expectations for an end to legislative gridlock and a new blueprint for 
governing, we seem to be more preoccupied with one petty political 
nuance after another. Instead of ensuring that the people's needs are 
met, we are arguing over the size of the negotiating table, how many 
people can attend, and which door of the airplane we can use.
  All of this is an unnecessary and unwarranted diversion. This year, 
as always, there are differences in priorities between the Democrats 
and the Republicans and between the Congress and the White House.
  What is disturbing about our current situation is that we seem to 
have forgotten the concept of legislative compromise. No legislative 
product ever embodies the wishes and desires of all involved. 
Unfortunately, the political give and take that make our system of 
government work are sorely lacking. There is no give and take. Instead, 
members seem more concerned with sowing the landscape with political 
seeds that can be cultivated and harvested during next year's election 
campaigns. As I have often said, there really are matters that are 
simply more important than political party--more important than either 
political party. Responding to our elected responsibility to the people 
is one of them. We cannot let the American people down again or we all 
surely risk the wrath of the voters. And I say this to those who are 
focused more on November 1996: You will surely reap what you have sown!
  Mr. President, I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Burns). The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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