[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Page 693]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    CENTRIST/WHITE HOUSE COMPROMISE

  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, the distinguished majority leader 
announced yesterday he is going to kill this bill if he does not 
prevail on the first cloture vote. Of course, we know if he did get 
cloture, many good amendments that have been offered to try to improve 
Senator Daschle's skeletal bill will fall. We will not be able to vote 
on them. All we have asked for all along on this side, and even some 
Members on that side, is a vote on the bipartisan centrist-White House 
bill that I have offered as an amendment, along with Senator Snowe.
  In fact, that bill is a product of the work of people such as Senator 
Snowe and Senator Collins, and Democrats on this side of the aisle such 
as Senators Nelson, Miller, and Breaux. There is a long list of 
amendments. I do not think I will go through the long list of 
amendments that we will not have a chance to vote on, but I am going to 
highlight a couple because I think Senator Nickles did a good job of 
highlighting those most important amendments.
  Let me take a look at a couple that will be killed if Senator 
Daschle's cloture motion is invoked. My friend, the majority whip, who 
is with us, Senator Reid, offered, along with Senator Kyl, so it is 
bipartisan, an amendment that is designed to help the travel industry. 
We were told during the debate that this tax credit was very important. 
If it is that important, we ought to have a chance to vote on it.
  Guess what. If the Democratic leadership prevails on the first 
cloture motion, Senator Reid's amendment falls. I guess I can only 
assume that since this amendment is so important for Nevada and other 
States where there is a lot of tourism, the majority leader would 
oppose cloture. Surely he would not vote to kill his own amendment. 
That is what I would think. I am afraid I am probably being optimistic 
or maybe naive.
  Other Democrats have offered amendments, too. For those Senators, a 
vote for cloture is a vote to kill their own very important amendment. 
So I hope these Democratic Senators are not telling their constituents 
they are for something and then turning around and voting to kill it by 
supporting this cloture vote.
  Let us take a look at Senator Allard's amendment, one that is so 
important to have the United States competitive, particularly in 
manufacturing and information technology, the R&D tax credit. If 
cloture is invoked, that amendment is dead as well. We had 70 Senators 
vote for that amendment on a previous tax bill, as an example. So make 
no mistake about it, if the distinguished leader's cloture motion is 
supported, every one of these amendments will be killed, as well as the 
ones Senator Nickles brought to our attention.
  If the distinguished leader prevails on his cloture motion, then we 
end up with another conference with the House and that could take weeks 
or months to resolve. The best we can hope for is delay. That means 
delay for the unemployed, delay for the stimulus, not helping those who 
are dislocated because of September 11.
  By contrast, the Democratic leadership will not let us vote on the 
only plan that has majority support in the Senate. They are 
filibustering the only bipartisan stimulus plan and preventing 
unemployment benefits from reaching the workers who need them. That is 
what the second cloture vote is all about. The second cloture vote 
guarantees an up-or-down vote on the White House-centrist stimulus 
plan. A vote for that plan is a vote for a bill that the President will 
sign. He said he would sign it.
  If cloture is voted for, Senators are saying with their vote they 
want to send a bill to the President that he will sign in a New York 
minute. That means these things will happen and happen fast. Unemployed 
workers get checks. For the first time, unemployed workers get health 
care assistance. Payroll-tax payers get a rebate. Income-tax payers get 
a little more tax relief in their paycheck. Businesses, large and 
small, get stimulative accelerated depreciation, which is going to mean 
more jobs. So we have two cloture votes coming up very shortly.
  The first cloture vote is an effort by the majority to block further 
amendments to the bill, which will effectively kill the bill. I urge my 
colleagues to oppose that cloture vote. The second cloture vote is an 
effort by our side to force a vote on the bipartisan centrist amendment 
that the majority leader has been furiously blocking to this point. But 
we cannot get to this vote unless the majority leader fails his first 
vote.
  Therefore, Mr. President, these votes come down to a choice between 
action now or endless delay. If we want action now, Senators should 
vote for cloture on the White House-centrist agreement. If Members want 
delay, vote for cloture on the Daschle amendment.
  How much leadership time remains?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Four minutes.
  Mr. REID. How much time remains on the majority side?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Six minutes.

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