[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 69 (Thursday, May 16, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3552-S3553]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
UNANIMOUS CONSENT REQUEST--S. CON. RES. 25
Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I am here today on the floor again to
ask that Senate Republicans stop blocking the next step in regular
order and allow us to move to a bipartisan budget conference with the
House of Representatives. We have waited long enough. In fact, we have
now waited 54 days, and it is time to get to work on a bipartisan
budget agreement.
The Senate Democrats see no reason for delay. We are very proud of
our budget, which puts forward a strong, fair vision for getting
Americans back to work, tackling our long-term debt and deficit
challenges, and laying a strong foundation for the middle class in the
future. It seems that some of our Republican colleagues in the Senate
and House would rather wait now until the next crisis and see if they
can extract political concessions with the clock ticking--or maybe they
don't want to air the details of the unpopular House budget.
Either way, there is no excuse for putting the American people
through another round of partisan brinkmanship. We have already seen
that that hurts our economy, and it causes Americans to question
whether their government is working for them.
Yesterday the House Republicans met to talk about what they are going
to demand in exchange for not tanking our economy. Apparently they are
considering a ``laundry list,'' including repealing ObamaCare--which
the House will vote on, by the way, for the 37th time today--and
restrictions on women's health choices.
House Republicans' practice of leveraging crises for their own gain
died with the Boehner rule, and no amount of wishing is going to bring
it back. House Republicans may think brinkmanship helps them win
political fights, but it does not help the American families and
communities we are here to serve.
I urge our Republican colleagues in the Senate to take a step toward
a responsible bipartisan budget agreement and a step away from
governing by crisis.
I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration
of Calendar No. 33, H. Con. Res. 25; that the amendment which is at the
desk, the text of S. Con. Res. 8, the budget resolution passed by the
Senate, be inserted in lieu thereof; that H. Con. Res. 25, as amended,
be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon
the table; that the Senate insist on its amendment, request a
conference with the House on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses,
and the Chair be authorized to appoint conferees on the part of the
Senate, all with no intervening action or debate.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there an objection to the request?
The Senator from Utah.
Mr. LEE. Madam President, reserving the right to object, we want to
proceed with this as well. We want a budget. It has been 4 years and it
has been far too long. What we want to avoid is a deal negotiated
behind closed doors, a backroom deal to raise the debt limit.
I ask unanimous consent that the Senator modify her request so that
it not be in order for the Senate to consider a conference report that
includes reconciliation instructions to raise the debt limit.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. Reserving the right to object, the Senator's request is
asking to disregard what the Senate did on those days--54 days ago--to
go through over 100 amendments and defeat those amendments time and
time again; to go to conference--not behind closed doors, I would add.
A conference committee is a committee that is out in the public.
What is happening right now is closed-door agreements. What we are
asking for is an open process where we are allowed to take the Senate-
passed budget and the House-passed budget, go to conference, and find
out where we can agree so we can put this behind us.
I object to the Senator's request and ask again for our unanimous
consent request to move to budget conference, as we do in regular
order, which is what the Republicans have been demanding for a very
long time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
Does the Senator from Utah object?
Mr. LEE. I object.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
The Senator from Alabama.
Mr. SESSIONS. Madam President, we have gone 4 years without a budget,
and the Democratic Senate did act this year and passed a budget. The
House has also passed a budget, and it is a historic proposal. It
balances in 10 years, it does not raise taxes, and it increases
spending every year by as much as 3 percent. It is the right way to go
for America, and it is the kind of budget we should be talking about.
Chairman Murray has indicated we should go through regular order. But
under regular order, what we should do is have the House budget at the
desk right now. It is a responsible budget. Under regular order, the
House budget should be brought to the floor under section 305(b) of the
Congressional Budget Act. Then we can have full debate on that budget
with 50 hours and the ability to offer amendments. I think this is what
we should be doing.
Instead, our Democratic colleagues and Senator Reid have offered
consent requests that short-circuit the regular order. Their request
would automatically bring the House budget off the calendar, replace it
entirely with the Senate's own budget and assume it passes without a
single minute of debate or without a single vote being taken. That is
not the regular order.
Madam President, first, I ask unanimous consent that after my remarks
Senator Inhofe be recognized.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I object. I wish to respond to the
Senator.
Mr. SESSIONS. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the
Senate now proceed to consideration of Calendar No. 33, H. Con. Res.
25, the House-passed budget resolution for fiscal year 2014.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, reserving the right to object, what the
[[Page S3553]]
Senator is requesting us to do is to take up the House-passed budget.
Remember, we have passed a Senate budget here. We had 50 hours of
debate, over 100 amendments were offered. We voted on all of them way
into the wee hours, 5 or 6 o'clock in the morning, as everyone here
will rightly remember. He is asking us to disregard all that action in
the Senate, take up the House bill and have 50 hours more of debate,
unlimited amendments, sitting here for weeks at a time again to go
through all the amendments.
Madam President, that is a waste of taxpayer money and it is a waste
of our time. We have done that work. It is time to go to conference.
Therefore, I object.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
The Senator from Oklahoma.
Mr. INHOFE. Madam President, it is my understanding that a colloquy
is in order between Senator Blumenthal and Senator Lee, but I ask
unanimous consent that at the conclusion of that I be recognized and
that following my remarks the Senator from Texas, Mr. Cornyn, be
recognized.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
The Senator from Virginia.
Mr. WARNER. Reserving the right to object, I believe I was listed in
the queue a bit earlier than that, but I only have a 3- or 4-minute
statement. I do not mind trading off, but I, similar to others, was
told the time was right after the vote that I would be recognized.
Mr. INHOFE. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to amend my
unanimous consent request to include the 3-minute remarks of the
Senator from Virginia.
Mr. WARNER. I thank the Senator. But reserving the right to object,
is that before or after the remarks of the Senator from Oklahoma?
Mr. INHOFE. That would be before the Senator from Oklahoma.
Mr. WARNER. I thank the Senator.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The Senator from Utah.
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