[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 31 (Monday, March 18, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Page S2002]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           BIPARTISAN CAMPAIGN REFORM ACT OF 2002--Continued

                             CLOTURE MOTION

  Mr. DASCHLE. Madam President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The cloture motion having been presented under 
rule XXII, the Chair directs the clerk to read the motion.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

                             Cloture Motion

       We, the undersigned Senators, in accordance with the 
     provisions of rule XXII of the Standing Rules of the Senate, 
     hereby move to bring to a close the debate on Calendar No. 
     318, H.R. 2356, a bill to provide bipartisan campaign reform:
         Russell D. Feingold, Tom Daschle, Tim Johnson, Byron L. 
           Dorgan, Bob Graham, Daniel K. Inouye, Joseph R. Biden, 
           Jr., Patty Murray, James M. Jeffords, Jeff Bingaman, 
           Debbie Stabenow, Max Baucus, E. Benjamin Nelson, Harry 
           Reid, Richard J. Durbin, Jon Corzine, Thomas R. Carper.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader is recognized.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Madam President, we anticipate a cloture vote on 
Wednesday on campaign reform. I have talked with the Senator from 
Kentucky. I am not averse to--in fact, I would encourage our colleagues 
to return to the energy bill and continue the debate on the energy 
bill. But if Senators have a desire to speak on campaign reform, to be 
heard on it, they are certainly entitled to do so. We will be on 
campaign reform on Wednesday.
  If we get a unanimous consent agreement, it may be for a shorter 
period of time. Barring that, we will then stay on it through the end 
of the period, assuming we get cloture on Wednesday.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Will the Senator yield?
  Mr. DASCHLE. Yes.
  Mr. McCONNELL. I want to give the leader an update. We have had very 
fruitful negotiations today on the technical corrections package. I see 
my friend from Wisconsin. We have been bouncing back and forth for a 
couple of days. We are very close to finishing that. I hope we will be 
able to enter into a unanimous consent agreement that would advance the 
cloture vote sooner and have a limited time agreement under which you 
can have a scheduled cloture vote; then, hopefully, some kind of 
agreement related to the technical package--a Senate resolution that 
both sides agree on, with a brief debate, giving the proponents and 
opponents of the bill enough time to describe their views, and then go 
to final passage, all of which I hope can be done in a few hours. I am 
optimistic that it won't take much of the Senate's time to complete 
this job.
  I see my friend from Wisconsin on the floor. I hope he will see 
things the same way I do and we might be able to get this off of your 
plate sometime tomorrow.

  Mr. DASCHLE. Madam President, I am very pleased to receive that 
report. I look forward to talking more with the Senator from Kentucky, 
the Senator from Wisconsin, and others, as the day unfolds tomorrow.
  Senators should be prepared, beginning tomorrow morning, for votes. 
We will see if we can schedule some debate on the energy bill and move 
forward with amendments on the energy bill until some agreement can be 
reached.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Mississippi is recognized.

                          ____________________