[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 150 (Friday, October 31, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S11511]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           ORDER OF PROCEDURE

  Mr. LOTT. I do this, Mr. President, just so that Senator Daschle and 
I can explain what is transpiring.
  As you know, we are prepared now to go to the cloture vote on the DOD 
authorization conference report. However, the interested parties on 
both sides of the aisle and on both sides of the issue involved, 
regarding the depots, wanted a few minutes to talk about what would be 
the situation beyond this, and so there are a lot of conversations 
going on now in the back of the Chamber. I would like to give them a 
few more minutes to discuss the various options. As soon as we then 
call off the quorum call, we would proceed to a cloture vote.
  It is my thinking that we would probably go to this cloture vote, but 
it is going to be a few more minutes before we can actually proceed to 
that vote. But we will not let it languish very long. The interested 
parties asked for a few minutes to talk. That is what we are doing. I 
realize Members have other commitments. But we will, probably within 
the next 15 or 20 minutes, have some final decision, and then we will 
know whether we will have a vote on cloture at that point or not.
  Mr. THURMOND. Mr. President, in a few moments, the Senate will vote 
to invoke cloture on the Defense authorization bill for fiscal year 
1998. As all of you know, we have had a difficult time getting to this 
point. After months of negotiating on the depot maintenance issue, we 
finally achieved a breakthrough when those Members of Congress who have 
depots agreed to a compromise heretofore believed to be unachievable.
  Those Members who have depots gave up on issues extremely important 
to them substantively and politically. At that time, those of us who 
had worked over many months to achieve such a compromise believed that 
we could finally put this very divisive issue behind us. It was simply 
unthinkable to us that after those with depots had come so far toward 
the other side's position that the Senators from Texas and California 
would oppose this compromise. They have always said they only wanted 
the opportunity to compete. This compromise gives them that opportunity 
on what the Armed Services Committee believes is clearly a level 
playing field.
  All 18 members of the Armed Services Committee have signed this 
conference report indicating their support of the compromise. The 
ranking member of the committee, Senator Levin, supported the Senators 
from Texas and California up to the point when this compromise was 
negotiated. He and his staff were totally involved in drafting and 
negotiating the compromise. Senator Levin and I join in total support 
of this compromise which is fair and equitable to all parties.
  This bill is important to the young men and women who serve in our 
military forces. The bill includes pay raises and increases to special 
incentive pay including vital aviator bonuses. Provisions in this bill 
affect every aspect of our national defense including quality of life 
initiatives, modernization, and readiness. I remind all Senators that 
all military construction projects require an authorization as well as 
an appropriation and cannot be executed without this bill.
  All members of the committee support this bill. The House has already 
passed it by a veto-proof majority of 286 to 123. The leaders of the 
Defense Department have indicated that they can make this compromise 
work and that they need this bill passed. It is hard for me to believe 
that any Senator would oppose and delay the entire Defense 
authorization bill at a time when American troops are deployed in 
Bosnia and trouble appears to be brewing again in the Middle East.
  I strongly encourage all Senators to vote to invoke cloture on this 
bill. We must send a strong signal to the White House to demonstrate to 
the President that this bill which is so important to our national 
security should be passed now. I also ask the support of all Senators 
to defeat any further attempts to delay this bill. Show the young men 
and women in uniform serving our Nation around the world that we are 
strongly behind them.
  I yield the floor. I observe the absence of a quorum, Mr. President.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Bennett). Is there objection?
  Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I move to waive rule XXII to use a couple 
minutes of my leader time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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