[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 204 (Tuesday, December 19, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S18904-S18905]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 1996--CONFERENCE 
                                 REPORT

  The Senate continued with consideration of the conference report.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I address this to the chairman and ranking 
member. Given the deteriorating weather and the need to have the vote 
tonight, the distinguished majority leader is quite amenable to leave 
the vote open for an extended period to accommodate a member or such 
Members that might be delayed.
  Mr. THURMOND. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that we yield 
back time remaining on both sides and proceed to a vote, and we keep 
the vote open for 30 minutes after those present have voted.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Mr. FORD. Reserving the right to object, I would like to have an 
opportunity for the Members that are at the White House to have an 
opportunity to come back. As I understand, the majority leader is 
willing to leave the vote open until they arrive. If it will just stay 
open.

  Mr. THURMOND. That is all right.
  Mr. NUNN. If the Senator would state it in a form that does not have 
a time limit.
  Mr. THURMOND. That would be all right. I ask unanimous consent that 
the vote remain open until Members now at the White House have an 
opportunity to return to the Senate and vote.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. WARNER. I ask for the yeas and nays.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
  There is a sufficient second.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the conference 
report.
  The clerk will call the roll.
  Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, on this vote I have a pair with the 
Senator from Texas, [Mr. Gramm]. If he were present and voting he would 
vote ``aye.'' If I were permitted to vote, I would vote ``nay.'' I 
therefore withhold my vote.
  Mr. LOTT. I announce that the Senator from Missouri [Mr. Bond], the 
Senator from Texas [Mr. Gramm], and the Senator from Delaware [Mr. 
Roth] are necessarily absent.
  Mr. FORD. I announce that the Senator from California [Mrs. Boxer] is 
necessarily absent.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber 
desiring to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 51, nays 43, as follows:
  The result was announced--yeas 51, nays 43, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 608 Leg.]

                                YEAS--51

     Abraham
     Ashcroft
     Bennett
     Brown
     Burns
     Campbell
     Chafee
     Coats
     Cochran
     Cohen
     Coverdell
     Craig
     D'Amato
     DeWine
     Dole
     Domenici
     Faircloth
     Frist
     Gorton
     Grams
     Grassley
     Gregg
     Hatch
     Heflin
     Helms
     Hollings
     Hutchison
     Inhofe
     Kassebaum
     Kempthorne
     Kyl
     Lieberman
     Lott
     Lugar
     Mack
     McConnell
     Murkowski
     Nickles
     Pressler
     Robb
     Santorum
     Shelby
     Simpson
     Smith
     Snowe
     Specter
     Stevens
     Thomas
     Thompson
     Thurmond
     Warner

                                NAYS--43

     Akaka
     Baucus
     Biden
     Bingaman
     Bradley
     Breaux
     Bryan
     Bumpers
     Byrd
     Conrad
     Daschle
     Dodd
     Dorgan
     Exon
     Feingold
     Feinstein
     Ford
     Glenn
     Graham
     Harkin
     Hatfield
     Inouye
     Johnston
     Kennedy
     Kerrey
     Kerry
     Kohl
     Lautenberg
     Leahy
     Levin
     McCain
     Mikulski
     Moseley-Braun
     Moynihan
     Murray
     Nunn
     Pell 
     
[[Page S18905]]

     Pryor
     Reid
     Rockefeller
     Sarbanes
     Simon
     Wellstone

                     PRESENT AND GIVING A LIVE PAIR

                           Jeffords, against

                             NOT VOTING--4

     Bond
     Boxer
     Gramm
       
     Roth
  So the conference report was agreed to.
  Mr. THURMOND. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.
  Mr. WARNER. I move to lay that motion on the table.
  The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader is recognized.
  Mr. DOLE. Mr. President, let me yield to the distinguished chairman 
of the Armed Services Committee, who did an outstanding job, and I 
congratulate him and members of our staff and our colleagues on this 
side for passing this most important conference report. I yield to the 
Senator from South Carolina.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from South Carolina.
  Mr. THURMOND. I would like to express my deep appreciation to all of 
the Members who worked hard to prepare this bill and who supported it. 
I also would like to express my deep appreciation to all the staff 
members who worked so hard to prepare this bill. This is a good bill. 
It serves the military well. It serves the country well. And I am sure 
all who support it will be proud that they did support it because it is 
going to help the soldiers and their families in every way possible.
  Thank you very much.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I wish to join other members of the Armed 
Services Committee in stating our profound appreciation to the 
distinguished chairman, Senator Thurmond, for his work on this bill. I 
am trying to recall a quote by the Duke of Wellington in the close of 
the Battle of Waterloo when he said:

       . . . a damned nice thing--the nearest-run thing you ever 
     saw in your life.

  The vote on this conference report was also very close, and I doubt 
if it would have been passed without the absolute determination and the 
total dedication of the distinguished chairman of the Senate Armed 
Services Committee, Mr. Thurmond of South Carolina, and we all render 
this fine gentleman a hand salute.

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