[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 21 (Tuesday, February 4, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S736-S738]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
EMERGENCY UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION EXTENSION ACT
Mr. REID. Madam President, what is now pending before the Senate?
The PRESIDING OFFICER. S. 1845, which the clerk will report by title.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A bill (S. 1845) to provide for the extension of certain
unemployment benefits, and for other purposes.
Pending:
[[Page S737]]
Reid (for Reed) amendment No. 2631, relating to extension
and modification of emergency unemployment compensation
program.
Reid amendment No. 2632 (to amendment No. 2631), to change
the enactment date.
Reid motion to commit the bill to the Committee on Finance,
with instructions, Reid amendment No. 2633, to change the
enactment date.
Reid amendment No. 2634 (to (the instructions) amendment
No. 2633), of a perfecting nature.
Reid amendment No. 2635 (to amendment No. 2634), of a
perfecting nature.
Motion To Commit Withdrawn
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask that the pending motion to commit be
withdrawn.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Manchin). Is there objection?
Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to withdraw the
pending amendment No. 2631.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, reserving the right to object.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Republican leader.
Mr. McCONNELL. Could we have order in the Chamber.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senate will be in order.
Mr. McCONNELL. We have a number of ideas on this side of the aisle to
promote economic growth and job creation, and we would like the
opportunity to offer amendments to implement these ideas.
For example, Senator Paul has an amendment to create economic freedom
zones to help struggling areas of our country to recover from the
economic downturn. Senator Tim Scott's SKILLS Act would improve job
training programs for the very long-term unemployed that this extension
is actually designed to help. In addition, Senators Ayotte, Collins,
Portman, and others have been working very hard--Senator Coats as
well--to come up with a path forward on a meaningful offset that would
extend unemployment benefits without adding to the deficit.
Their ideas have so far been blocked. So I would like to ask the
majority leader to modify his request to provide for an orderly process
for amendments. I ask unanimous consent that the pending amendments and
motions be withdrawn and that the minority and majority sides be
permitted to offer amendments in alternating fashion so that these
important ideas can be considered.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Does the majority leader so modify his
request?
Mr. REID. Reserving the right to object, Mr. President, when we last
dealt with unemployment insurance, I offered a unanimous consent
request at that time that would have allowed up to 20 relevant
amendments--20.
Mr. President, my friend, the Republican leader--he is again, through
a lot of words, saying: We do not want this. We are not going to help
you pass it. There is more than one way to filibuster a bill. Providing
for an endless number of amendments is one of those ways to kill this
bill.
Mr. President, what we are going to do here is offer a fully paid for
3-month extension of unemployment insurance. Simple as that. Simple as
that. That is what the Republicans said they wanted, and we agreed to
do it.
We will not agree to an unlimited number of amendments. I look
forward to hearing from my Republican colleagues if they have a
proposal that is different than this, which is, again, a different way
of saying: We do not care about unemployment compensation as it is now
focused, and we are not going to support it.
In the meantime, I object to an order providing amendments without
limit and without any commitment to vote on passage of the bill.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
Is there objection to the original request?
Mr. McCONNELL. I object.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I move to table the pending amendment No.
2631.
Mr. McCONNELL. I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
There appears to be a sufficient second.
The question is on agreeing to the motion.
The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Virginia (Mr. Kaine) is
necessarily absent
Mr. CORNYN. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator
from South Carolina (Mr. Scott).
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber
desiring to vote?
The result was announced--yeas 98, nays 0, as follows:
[Rollcall Vote No. 22 Leg.]
YEAS--98
Alexander
Ayotte
Baldwin
Barrasso
Baucus
Begich
Bennet
Blumenthal
Blunt
Booker
Boozman
Boxer
Brown
Burr
Cantwell
Cardin
Carper
Casey
Chambliss
Coats
Coburn
Cochran
Collins
Coons
Corker
Cornyn
Crapo
Cruz
Donnelly
Durbin
Enzi
Feinstein
Fischer
Flake
Franken
Gillibrand
Graham
Grassley
Hagan
Harkin
Hatch
Heinrich
Heitkamp
Heller
Hirono
Hoeven
Inhofe
Isakson
Johanns
Johnson (SD)
Johnson (WI)
King
Kirk
Klobuchar
Landrieu
Leahy
Lee
Levin
Manchin
Markey
McCain
McCaskill
McConnell
Menendez
Merkley
Mikulski
Moran
Murkowski
Murphy
Murray
Nelson
Paul
Portman
Pryor
Reed
Reid
Risch
Roberts
Rockefeller
Rubio
Sanders
Schatz
Schumer
Sessions
Shaheen
Shelby
Stabenow
Tester
Thune
Toomey
Udall (CO)
Udall (NM)
Vitter
Warner
Warren
Whitehouse
Wicker
Wyden
NOT VOTING--2
Kaine
Scott
The motion was agreed to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.
Amendment No. 2714
Mr. REID. On behalf of Senator Reed of Rhode Island, I have an
amendment at the desk.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
The Senator from Nevada [Mr. Reid], for Mr. Reed of Rhode
Island, proposes an amendment numbered 2714.
(The amendment is printed in today's Record under ``Text of
Amendments.'')
Mr. REID. I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
There is a sufficient second.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
Amendment No. 2715 to Amendment No. 2714
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I have a second-degree amendment at the
desk.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
The Senator from Nevada [Mr. Reid] proposes an amendment
numbered 2715 to amendment numbered 2714.
The amendment is as follows:
At the end, add the following:
This Act shall become effective 7 days after enactment.
Cloture Motion
Mr. REID. I have a cloture motion on the Reed of Rhode Island
amendment and ask that it be reported.
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 debate on the Reed (RI)
amendment No. 2714 to S. 1845, a bill to provide for the
extension of certain unemployment benefits, and for other
purposes.
Harry Reid, Jack Reed, Kirsten E. Gillibrand, Sheldon
Whitehouse, Brian Schatz, Barbara Boxer, Robert P.
Casey, Jr., Thomas R. Carper, Elizabeth Warren, Patty
Murray, Mark Begich, Sherrod Brown, Jeff Merkley, Angus
S. King, Jr., Charles E. Schumer, Bill Nelson,
Christopher A. Coons.
Motion to Commit with Amendment No. 2716
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I have a motion to commit S. 1845, with
instructions.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the motion.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
The Senator from Nevada [Mr. Reid] moves to commit the bill
to the Committee on Finance with instructions to report back
with the following amendment numbered 2716.
[[Page S738]]
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
There appears to be a sufficient second.
Amendment No. 2717
Mr. REID. I have an amendment to the instructions at the desk.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
The Senator from Nevada [Mr. Reid] proposes an amendment
numbered 2717 to the instructions of the motion to commit.
The amendment is as follows:
In the amendment, strike ``8 days'' and insert ``9 days''.
Mr. REID. I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
There appears to be a sufficient second.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
Amendment No. 2718 to Amendment No. 2717
Mr. REID. I have a second-degree amendment at the desk.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
The Senator from Nevada [Mr. Reid] proposes amendment
numbered 2718 to amendment numbered 2717.
The amendment is as follows:
In the amendment, strike ``9 days'' and insert ``10 days''.
Cloture Motion
Mr. REID. I have a cloture motion at 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: Senators.
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 debate on S. 1845, a bill to
provide for the extension of certain unemployment benefits,
and for other purposes.
Harry Reid, Jack Reed, Kirsten E. Gillibrand, Sheldon
Whitehouse, Barbara Boxer, Brian Schatz, Robert P.
Casey, Jr., Thomas R. Carper, Elizabeth Warren, Patty
Murray, Mark Begich, Sherrod Brown, Jeff Merkley, Angus
S. King, Jr., Charles E. Schumer, Bill Nelson,
Christopher A. Coons.
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