[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 19 (Thursday, February 13, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1417-S1418]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                PROVIDING FOR ADJOURNMENT OF BOTH HOUSES

  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the consideration of House Concurrent Resolution 21, the 
adjournment resolution.
  I further ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, and 
the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 21) providing for an 
     adjournment of both Houses.

  Mr. WELLSTONE. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, I shall 
not object, I just wanted to bring up two quick questions with the 
majority leader.
  Last time after the swearing-in ceremony, the majority leader will 
remember that I said I might object and I asked the majority leader 
whether I could get some kind of a commitment for a clear timeframe for 
taking up comprehensive campaign finance reform. I do not know whether 
the majority leader is prepared to make that commitment tonight, but I 
do want to be clear that if by March when we come back there has been 
no commitment made as to when we will have a bill on the floor and how 
we will move forward on it--because otherwise I fear delay and delay 
and delay, much like we did with gift ban--I will start to take 
amendments, campaign finance reform amendments, and attach those 
amendments to other bills because I believe we have to move this 
discussion forward. I think people want action.
  I am interested in the response of the majority leader. I want to 
make clear to colleagues, because I think you need to give people a 
warning, that when we come to our next recess it may be the case that I 
will not agree to a unanimous consent. So I am using the model the 
majority leader and I worked out together at the end on gift ban and we 
came up with reform. I am using that model, and I think it is important 
for Senators to be out here on the floor really pushing very hard for 
this. I wonder whether the majority leader could tell me whether he has 
any plan now, whether we could get a specific time when we could have a 
bill--again, I am not trying to predetermine what the piece of 
legislation would be--on this floor.
  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, if I could respond to the Senator's 
question. First of all, it is very hard to pick a date, to say by a 
date certain we will get something done. For instance, on the matter 
that has been pending before the Senate, Senate Joint Resolution 1, the 
constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget, we had hoped we 
could have a reasonable and fair debate and amendments being offered--I 
believe the Senator from Minnesota has had three or so and maybe he had 
some more--and that by the end of the month we would have a vote on 
that after having had a good, fair debate and amendments being offered.
  But now we are having trouble getting amendments up and getting a 
time agreed to. Now I understand we may have, I do not know, 20 or 25 
amendments lurking around out there. So now I have to begin to consider 
filing cloture on something that--we do not want to start the cloture 
wars this year. So I try to take into consideration everybody's needs, 
and we have problems we have to take into consideration, like funerals 
of relatives or the Ambassador today. So it is very hard to say a time 
certain.
  Another example is, before we have reform, I think we ought to find 
out, first of all, what laws have been violated already on the books. 
Today we have in the paper that China is working, perhaps, on trying to 
get some foreign contributions, illegal contributions in the 
Presidential campaign. There seems to be an article every day--every 
day.
  Before we start trying to reform a law, I think we ought to see a law 
that is already on the books that I voted for back in 1973 or 1974 that 
is being used or abused. Yet we are seeing an all-out fight to stop the 
funding for the Governmental Affairs Committee to begin its work to 
find out what happened so we will know what laws have been violated, so 
we will know what kind of reform we may or may not need. Unfortunately, 
as it is being delayed and the appearance of obstruction in getting 
that hearing started, that has an impact on when we might get to a vote 
on legislation here in the Senate.
  The next thing is we would like to have hearings on this issue in the 
Rules Committee. In fact, we will have. And yet the Rules Committee has 
been tied up for almost 2 weeks on trying to get the committee funding 
resolution and the resolution of the question with regard to the 
alleged illegal contributions in the Presidential campaign in 1996.
  Then, also, I have to say to the Senator, are we ready now to begin 
to work on a bill that maybe both sides can agree to, or will it be one 
where you want to stick it to our side? Are you ready now to begin to 
get some language in there that would say that we must have paycheck 
equity? In other words, when I talk to my friends in my hometown, union 
members, some of which I used to represent when I practiced law, and my 
father was one, they get irate that their dues are being used for 
campaign purposes across this country without their approval or 
designation.
  So, there is not going to be a campaign finance bill that does not 
address a question like that. So, is the Senator ready to include 
something like that in the legislation?
  Mr. WELLSTONE. I am pleased to respond to the majority leader. I did 
not know we would have quite this debate but I understand----
  Mr. LOTT. Do I have the floor?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader has the floor.
  Mr. LOTT. I try to be calm and respond gently, but when the Senator 
pricks me a little bit, I have to try to respond in a way that explains 
why I can't just say, ``April 15 on tax day we are going to take this 
bill up.'' I need help. I need cooperation on your side. We have done 
that.
  The Senator from Minnesota knows that last year I worked with him, I 
kept my word to him even one time when there was a little 
misunderstanding, but we worked through it and got it done. I am 
willing to do that, but you have to keep in mind what we are trying to 
accomplish here on a number of issues that do interrelate.
  I am happy to yield for a response to that.
  Mr. WELLSTONE. I shall be brief, Mr. President. The majority leader, 
I appreciate his graciousness. I actually like his passion. It does not 
trouble me at all.
  Mr. President, I actually made it very clear that I am not trying 
to--he has his own ideas about what should be in a bill. I did not 
insist on a particular piece of legislation. We have the McCain-
Feingold bill that has been much talked about and could be a vehicle 
that people could work with.
  My point is I learned through the gift ban we only finally took 
action when we just started putting that piece of legislation on other 
bills. The majority leader is, after all, the majority leader, and, 
yes, we are now on the constitutional amendment to balance the budget, 
but the majority leader, I think, can be a real leader on this if we 
can get a commitment that says, look, we will not have delay and delay 
and delay. We will have a bill on the floor and resolve this by July 4 
or whatever date the majority leader picks out, and that makes it clear 
to people in the country that we are not going to just stall and stall.
  The majority leader is talking about today's piece in the Washington 
Post, but the point is we do not really need to find out that there are 
problems in the way campaigns are financed. This has been going on for 
a long time. There is plenty to be fixed. People in the country are 
experts at what they do not like. There is no reason whatever that we 
cannot move forward with a bill. I just would like to get a commitment. 
I take it from what the majority leader has said today and the way he 
said it that he is not ready to make such a commitment. That is fine, 
but I want to be clear that if that is the case come March, I think the 
majority leader can expect to see at least

[[Page S1418]]

on my part as a Senator from Minnesota, some different parts of 
campaign finance reform as amendments on other bills. I want colleagues 
to know that this time I am not objecting to the UC for recess. But, 
come next spring--and this is plenty of warning--that may very well 
happen.

  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I reclaim my time. I understand. As I have 
said earlier this year, and again here today, every Senator is within 
his or her rights to offer amendments. I know, as we go forward, there 
will be disagreements, and I know that the Senator from Minnesota is 
going to pursue this issue. He is entitled to do that. I appreciate his 
comments today and that he is not going to object. We will have to see 
how it moves forward in the future.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. If there is no objection, the resolution is 
agreed to.
  The concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 21) was agreed to, as 
follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 21

       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That when the House adjourns on the legislative 
     day of Thursday, February 13, 1997, it stand adjourned until 
     12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, February 25, 1997, or until noon on 
     the second day after Members are notified to reassemble 
     pursuant to section 2 of this concurrent resolution, 
     whichever occurs first; and that when the Senate adjourns or 
     recesses at the close of business on Thursday, February 13, 
     1997, pursuant to a motion made by the Majority Leader, or 
     his designee, in accordance with this concurrent resolution, 
     it stand recessed or adjourned until 11:30 a.m. on Monday, 
     February 24, 1997, or such time on that day as may be 
     specified by the Majority Leader or his designee in the 
     motion to recess or adjourn, or until noon on the second day 
     after Members are notified to reassemble pursuant to section 
     2 of this concurrent resolution, whichever occurs first.
       Sec. 2. The Speaker of the House and the Majority Leader of 
     the Senate, acting jointly after consultation with the 
     Minority Leader of the House and the Minority Leader of the 
     Senate, shall notify the Members of the House and the Senate, 
     respectively, to reassemble whenever, in their opinion, the 
     public interest shall warrant it.

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