[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 38 (Tuesday, March 6, 2007)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D264-D266]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                             Tuesday, March 6, 2007

[[Page D264]]

                              Daily Digest

                                 Senate


Chamber Action
Routine Proceedings, pages S2649-S2742
Measures Introduced: Twenty-one bills and four resolutions were 
introduced, as follows: S. 765-785, and S. Res. 95-98.
  Pages S2693-94
Measures Passed:
  Congressional Gold Medal: Committee on Rules and Administration was 
discharged from further consideration of S. Con. Res. 15, authorizing 
the Rotunda of the Capitol to be used on March 29, 2007, for a ceremony 
to award the Congressional Gold Medal to the Tuskegee Airmen, and the 
resolution was then agreed to.
  Page S2662
  Honoring Former Senator Thomas F. Eagleton: Senate agreed to S. Res. 
97, relative to the death of Thomas F. Eagleton, former United States 
Senator for the State of Missouri.
  Pages S2741-42
  Joint Committee on Printing and Joint Committee on Library: Senate 
agreed to S. Res. 98, providing for members on the part of the Senate 
of the Joint Committee on Printing and the Joint Committee of Congress 
on the Library.
  Page S2742
Improving America's Security by Implementing Unfinished Recommendations 
of the 9/11 Commission Act: Senate continued consideration of S. 4, to 
make the United States more secure by implementing unfinished 
recommendations of the 9/11 Commission to fight the war on terror more 
effectively, to improve homeland security, withdrawing the committee 
amendment in the nature of a substitute, taking action on the following 
amendments proposed thereto:
  Pages S2653-90
Rejected:
  DeMint Amendment No. 314 (to Amendment No. 275), to strike the 
provision that revises the personnel management practices of the 
Transportation Security Administration. (By 51 yeas to 46 nays (Vote 
No. 60), Senate tabled the amendment).
Pages S2657-58, S2659-61
  Feinstein Amendment No. 335 (to Amendment No. 275), to improve the 
allocation of grants through the Department of Homeland Security. (By 
56 yeas to 43 nays (Vote No. 61), Senate tabled the amendment.) 
                                               Pages S2678-83, S2684-85
  Obama Amendment No. 338 (to Amendment No. 275), to require 
consideration of high-risk qualifying criteria in allocating funds 
under the State Homeland Security Grant Program. (By 59 yeas to 40 nays 
(Vote No. 62), Senate tabled the amendment.) 
                                        Pages S2663-69, S2673-75, S2685
  By 49 yeas to 50 nays (Vote No. 63), Leahy Amendment No. 333 (to 
Amendment No. 275), to increase the minimum allocation for States under 
the State Homeland Security Grant Program.
Pages S2653-56, S2685
Withdrawn:
  Menendez Amendment No. 352 (to Amendment No. 275), to improve the 
security of cargo containers destined for the United States. 
                                                  Pages S2657, S2661-62
Pending:
  Reid Amendment No. 275, in the nature of a substitute.
Page S2653
  Sununu Amendment No. 291 (to Amendment No. 275), to ensure that the 
emergency communications and interoperability communications grant 
program does not exclude Internet Protocol-based interoperable 
solutions.
Page S2653
  Salazar/Lieberman Modified Amendment No. 290 (to Amendment No. 275), 
to require a quadrennial homeland security review.
Page S2653
  Lieberman Amendment No. 315 (to Amendment No. 275), to provide appeal 
rights and employee engagement mechanisms for passenger and property 
screeners.
Page S2653
  McCaskill Amendment No. 316 (to Amendment No. 315), to provide appeal 
rights and employee engagement mechanisms for passenger and property 
screeners.
Page S2653
  Dorgan/Conrad Amendment No. 313 (to Amendment No. 275), to require a 
report to Congress on the hunt for Osama Bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri, 
and the leadership of al Qaeda.
Page S2653
  Landrieu Amendment No. 321 (to Amendment No. 275), to require the 
Secretary of Homeland Security to include levees in the list of 
critical infrastructure sectors.
Page S2653
  Landrieu Amendment No. 296 (to Amendment No. 275), to permit the 
cancellation of certain loans

[[Page D265]]

under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 
Act.
Page S2653
  Landrieu Amendment No. 295 (to Amendment No. 275), to provide 
adequate funding for local governments harmed by Hurricane Katrina of 
2005 or Hurricane Rita of 2005.
Page S2657
  Allard Amendment No. 272 (to Amendment No. 275), to prevent the 
fraudulent use of social security account numbers by allowing the 
sharing of social security data among agencies of the United States for 
identity theft prevention and immigration enforcement purposes. 
                                                             Page S2653
  McConnell (for Sessions) Amendment No. 305 (to Amendment No. 275), to 
clarify the voluntary inherent authority of States to assist in the 
enforcement of the immigration laws of the United States and to require 
the Secretary of Homeland Security to provide information related to 
aliens found to have violated certain immigration laws to the National 
Crime Information Center.
Page S2653
  McConnell (for Cornyn) Amendment No. 310 (to Amendment No. 275), to 
strengthen the Federal Government's ability to detain dangerous 
criminal aliens, including murderers, rapists, and child molesters, 
until they can be removed from the United States.
Page S2653
  McConnell (for Cornyn) Amendment No. 311 (to Amendment No. 275), to 
provide for immigration injunction reform.
Page S2653
  McConnell (for Cornyn) Amendment No. 312 (to Amendment No. 275), to 
prohibit the recruitment of persons to participate in terrorism. 
                                                             Page S2653
  McConnell (for Kyl) Modified Amendment No. 317 (to Amendment No. 
275), to prohibit the rewarding of suicide bombings and allow adequate 
punishments for terrorist murders, kidnappings, and sexual assaults. 
                                                  Pages S2653, S2669-70
  McConnell (for Kyl) Amendment No. 318 (to Amendment No. 275), to 
protect classified information.
Page S2653
  McConnell (for Kyl) Amendment No. 319 (to Amendment No. 275), to 
provide for relief from (a)(3)(B) immigration bars from the Hmong and 
other groups who do not pose a threat to the United States, to 
designate the Taliban as a terrorist organization for immigration 
purposes.
Page S2653
  McConnell (for Kyl) Amendment No. 320 (to Amendment No. 275), to 
improve the Classified Information Procedures Act.
Page S2653
  McConnell (for Grassley) Amendment No. 300 (to Amendment No. 275), to 
clarify the revocation of an alien's visa or other documentation is not 
subject to judicial review.
Page S2653
  McConnell (for Grassley) Amendment No. 309 (to Amendment No. 275), to 
improve the prohibitions on money laundering.
Page S2653
  Thune Amendment No. 308 (to Amendment No. 275), to expand and improve 
the Proliferation Security Initiative while protecting the national 
security interests of the United States.
Page S2653
  Cardin Amendment No. 326 (to Amendment No. 275), to provide for a 
study of modification of area of jurisdiction of Office of National 
Capital Region Coordination.
Page S2653
  Cardin Amendment No. 327 (to Amendment No. 275), to reform mutual aid 
agreements for the National Capital Region.
Page S2653
  Cardin Modified Amendment No. 328 (to Amendment No. 275), to require 
Amtrak contracts and leases involving the State of Maryland to be 
governed by the laws of the District of Columbia.
Page S2653
  Schumer/Clinton Amendment No. 336 (to Amendment No. 275), to prohibit 
the use of the peer review process in determining the allocation of 
funds among metropolitan areas applying for grants under the Urban Area 
Security Initiative.
Page S2653
  Schumer/Clinton Amendment No. 337 (to Amendment No. 275), to provide 
for the use of funds in any grant under the Homeland Security Grant 
Program for personnel costs.
Page S 2653
  Collins Amendment No. 342 (to Amendment No. 275), to provide certain 
employment rights and an employee engagement mechanism for passenger 
and property screeners.
Page S2653
  Coburn Amendment No. 325 (to Amendment No. 275), to ensure the fiscal 
integrity of grants awarded by the Department of Homeland Security. 
                                                             Page S2653
  Sessions Amendment No. 347 (to Amendment No. 275), to express the 
sense of the Congress regarding the funding of Senate approved 
construction of fencing and vehicle barriers along the southwest border 
of the United States.
Page S2653
  Coburn Amendment No. 345 (to Amendment No. 275), to authorize funding 
for the Emergency Communications and Interoperability Grants program, 
to require the Secretary to examine the possibility of allowing 
commercial entities to develop public safety communications networks. 
                                                  Pages S2656, S2687-90
  Coburn Amendment No. 301 (to Amendment No. 275), to prohibit grant 
recipients under grant programs administered by the Department from 
expending funds until the Secretary has reported to Congress that risk 
assessments of all programs and activities have been performed and 
completed, improper payments have been estimated, and corrective action 
plans have been developed and reported as required under the Improper 
Payments Act of 2002 (31 U.S.C. 3321 note).
Pages S2656-57

[[Page D266]]


  Coburn Amendment No. 294 (to Amendment No. 275), to provide that the 
provisions of the Act shall cease to have any force or effect on and 
after December 31, 2012, to ensure congressional review and oversight 
of the Act.
Pages S2658-59, S2675-77
  Lieberman (for Menendez) Amendment No. 354 (to Amendment No. 275), to 
improve the security of cargo containers destined for the United 
States.
Pages S2662-63
  Specter Amendment No. 286 (to Amendment No. 275), to restore habeas 
corpus for those detained by the United States.
Page S2663
  Kyl Modified Amendment No. 357 (to Amendment No. 275), to amend the 
data-mining technology reporting requirement to avoid revealing 
existing patents, trade secrets, and confidential business processes, 
and to adopt a narrower definition of data-mining in order to exclude 
routine computer searches.
Pages S2670-73, S2686-87
  Ensign Amendment No. 363 (to Amendment No. 275), to establish a Law 
Enforcement Assistance Force in the Department of Homeland Security to 
facilitate the contributions of retired law enforcement officers during 
major disasters.
Pages S2683-84
  A unanimous-consent-time agreement was reached providing for further 
consideration of the bill at approximately 9:30 a.m., on Wednesday, 
March 7, 2007; provided that Senate then resume consideration of 
McCaskill Amendment No. 315 and Collins Amendment No. 342 (both listed 
above), and debate concurrently until 10 a.m., with the time equally 
divided and controlled between Senators McCaskill and Collins, or their 
designees; that no amendments be in order to either amendment prior to 
the vote; that at 10 a.m., Senate vote on, or in relation to, McCaskill 
Amendment No. 315, that upon disposition of that amendment, Senate then 
vote on, or in relation to Collins Amendment No. 342; that there be 2 
minutes equally divided between the votes; and that following the 
second vote, Senate proceed as a body to the House of Representatives 
for the joint meeting to hear an address by the King of Jordan; that 
Senate then stand in recess subject to the call of the chair. 
                                                             Page S2742
Nomination Confirmed: Senate confirmed the following nomination:
  Ryan C. Crocker, of Washington, to be Ambassador to the Republic of 
Iraq.
Pages S2741, S2742
Messages from the House:
  Pages S2691-92
Messages Referred:
  Page S2692
Measures Placed on the Calendar:
  Pages S2649, S2692
Executive Reports of Committees:
  Pages S2692-93
Additional Cosponsors:
  Pages S2694-96
Statements on Introduced Bills/Resolutions:
  Pages S2696-S2724
Additional Statements:
  Pages S2690-91
Amendments Submitted:
  Pages S2724-41
Notices of Hearings/Meetings:
  Page S2741
Authorities for Committees to Meet:
  Page S2741
Record Votes: Four record votes were taken today. (Total--63) 
                                                  Pages S2661, S2684-85
Adjournment: Senate convened at 10 a.m., and as a further mark of 
respect to the memory of the late Honorable Thomas F. Eagleton, United 
States Senator from the State of Missouri, in accordance with S. Res. 
97, adjourned at 7:43 p.m., until 9:30 a.m., on Wednesday, March 7, 
2007. (For Senate's program, see the remarks of the Majority Leader in 
today's Record on page S2742.)