[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Pages 307-308]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                INTRODUCING DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP BILLS

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, in the beginning of each session of 
Congress, the majority and minority introduce their bills. The first 10 
bills are those of the majority. That is the tradition of the Senate. 
The distinguished Republican leader has worked hard, as have I, putting 
forward the bills that represent the majority. I have worked hard 
putting forward the bills that represent the minority, and I with 
Senator Durbin, Senator Stabenow, and Senator Schumer today in the 
Lyndon Johnson Room presented our bills to the public.
  The promise of America is a simple one. It is a promise that says if 
one works hard and plays by the rules, they can build a stronger, 
brighter future for themselves and their family. This promise has lived 
on for generations in this great country of ours. It is one that I have 
lived personally.
  As a result of hard work and the generosity of people who helped me 
with my education, I received a good education, and in the process many 
doors were opened. After completing my education, I was able to go into 
business and now have what I believe is the best job in the world--a 
Member of the Senate representing the people of the State of Nevada.
  My story is not unique. As many know, I was born and raised in 
Searchlight. Searchlight represents many places throughout this 
country. It represents countless individuals whose lives have been 
blessed, as mine has. I am sorry to say that these stories about a 
young boy or girl from a place like Searchlight are becoming fewer and 
fewer. We now have crumbling schools. The average school in America is 
50 years old. We have schools such as those in the southern Nevada 
area, the Las Vegas area, that are being built at a rapid place. As 
many as 18 in 1 year have to be dedicated to keep up with the growth of 
Las Vegas. The superintendent of public education has become a 
superintendent of public construction. School districts need help with 
their schools, in inner cities and in rural communities.
  Good-paying jobs are giving way to jobs that, no matter how hard one 
works, just don't pay the bills. There are 45 million people without 
health care. That means there are too many Americans who are not 
getting the care they need to live healthy and prosperous lives.
  This is the America we live in today, a country whose founding 
promise is slipping further away from reality for far too many American 
families, a country where a kid like me from Searchlight finds it 
harder to get ahead, despite the generosity of people in the community, 
the good will of teachers, and a work ethic, which is important.
  Why do we find ourselves in this state today? Why is the promise of 
America, the promise that led me and others to this great Chamber, not 
still alive and well for all of us? In part, it is because we have a 
Government that simply does not live up to the values upon which the 
promise was made. We have leaders whose poor planning and mismanagement 
have sent young men and women into battle overseas, some say without 
the equipment and support they deserve to succeed in the battlefield.
  Some way, and I certainly underscore this, there was a plan to win 
the war but not a plan to win the peace. We have a Government that by 
any measure fails to do all it can to make our country safe and secure. 
We have leaders who love to create crises when they do not exist, such 
as Social Security, which will be funded for many decades into the 
future, some say as far as the year 2055.
  Some say there is a crisis with judges. This morning someone asked: 
What happens if you do to President Bush this next 4 years what you did 
the first 4? I say, well, he should jump with joy. That would mean 408 
judges he would get approved and 20 disapproved.
  The Constitution has in it a clause that deals with advise and 
consent. If the oath I took just a few weeks ago to uphold the 
Constitution means anything, certainly that part of the oath that says 
I must live up to the Constitution, it says the Senate of the United 
States has an obligation, legal in nature, to give advice and consent 
to the President of his nominations. I will continue to do that. I 
believe that is a role we have.
  There are real crises. I have talked about some of them. I talked 
about others: education, health care, the environment that we do not 
talk about much anymore. Energy is a crisis we have in this country. 
The staggering deficit we have developed these past 4 years is a 
crisis. I believe there are real crises that are crippling our economy, 
hurting the large and small businesses, and pricing too many families 
out of quality health care. That is what our legislation we introduce 
today deals with. We have a Government that has forgotten who it is 
responsible to, one that has become content with feeding tens of 
billions to the special interests while failing in its commitment to 
tens of millions of seniors.
  America's promise will not stay alive if America's Government betrays 
it, and that is why at the outset of this Congress Senate Democrats are 
committed to restoring the promise of America by pursuing an agenda 
that honors the values behind it, the values of security, opportunity, 
and responsibility. These values are at the core of America's promise.
  The ten Democratic bills which I will introduce today deal first with 
America's security. For example, we need to work to increase our 
Special Operations Forces by 2,000 individuals. We need to expand the 
pace and scope of programs to eliminate and safeguard nuclear materials 
and enhance efforts to prevent radioactive and other deadly materials 
from entering the United States. That is Nunn-Lugar. We must do more 
than what we have done with the Nunn-Lugar legislation.
  We must increase our military. Our legislation calls for an increase 
by 40,000--30,000 in the Army and 10,000 in the Marines--so that we 
have enough troops to win the peace in Iraq and fight terrorism around 
the world without extending tours of duty to the breaking point.
  We will create a Guard and Reserve bill of rights to protect and 
promote the interests of our dedicated citizen soldiers and fight for 
the families of those who serve to recognize the sacrifices they have 
made. S. 13 will fulfill our duty to America's veterans. It will ensure 
that all veterans get the health care and prescription drugs they 
deserve while also expanding the availability and accessibility of 
mental health care. We will ensure that no veteran is forced to choose 
between a retirement and disability check, and launch a 21st century GI 
bill that tells soldiers of today that we will help them to succeed 
when they return, just as we did for those great heroes who returned 
from World War II, Korea, and Vietnam.
  We need to expand opportunities to all Americans, and economic 
opportunity is going to be extended through S. 14. We, for example, 
will end tax incentives that encourage companies to ship jobs overseas. 
We are going to restore overtime rights for 6 million workers who lost 
that guarantee last year.
  S. 15 will help us with education. It must be a cornerstone of equal 
opportunity. Democrats will keep our promise to our children by 
increasing support for preschool education, fully

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funding No Child Left Behind and making sure it is implemented the 
right way. We will address the shortfall of math, science, and special 
education teachers by creating tuition incentives for college students 
to major in these fields, and we will work to make sure every American 
who wants it can afford 4 years of college with new tuition tax credits 
and relief from burdensome loans.
  There are problems in rural school districts in Kansas, Nevada, 
Illinois, Nebraska and Utah. I have found, in my travels through rural 
Nevada, one of the biggest problems the school districts in rural 
Nevada have is school buses. That might not seem like much in the 
overall scheme of things, but it is rare for a bus in Nevada rural 
schools to be new. They buy used, old buses. Most of the buses are worn 
out before they get them. We could help rural America in lots of 
different ways, but we could help rural America so much if we provided 
a way where they could buy new buses. We need to do that. When school 
districts have these old buses, children have no choice but to ride in 
outdated, unsafe buses. That is why we will create a Federal program to 
help rural school districts purchase new buses that will get kids to 
school in a reliable and safe manner.
  S. 16 will make sure health care is more affordable to families and 
businesses. We know health care costs have spiraled. That is why we 
will bring down the price of prescription drugs by legalizing safe 
importation of FDA-approved prescription drugs from industrialized 
countries. We will also ensure that every child in America has access 
to health care and that every pregnant woman in America can get the 
maternity care she needs and deserves. We will reduce health care costs 
by creating incentives to modernize health care and by offering tax 
credits to small businesses.
  Finally, we want to build a government that meets its 
responsibilities both to Americans today and in the future. S. 18 will 
help America's seniors. Medicare should work for seniors, not the HMOs 
and drug companies. First we will eliminate the provision that actually 
prohibits Medicare from using the negotiating power of its 41 million 
beneficiaries to get lower prices. The Medicare bill has a provision in 
it that says Medicare cannot negotiate for lower prices. They have to 
go to Rite Aid and other places, just like the rest of us. They cannot 
compete with the HMOs which can buy their drugs in bulk.
  We will eliminate the giveaways like the $10 billion slush funds for 
hospitals in the Medicare bill. We will improve the prescription drug 
benefit by phasing out the current donut hole where seniors pay a 
premium but get no credit. Seniors across the country were shocked by 
the record increase in Medicare Part B premiums this year. This must be 
addressed. We must be a government that honors its responsibilities to 
future generations. We have had reckless spending these last 4 years. 
It has turned record surpluses into record deficits and has mortgaged 
our children's future. It is long past time for Washington to return to 
the same commonsense budget that families use around the kitchen table 
every day, and that is why we will call for pay-as-you-go budgeting.
  Our final bill, S. 20, will support women in making responsible 
choices about their health. The United States has the highest rate of 
unintended pregnancies among all industrialized nations. Half of all 
pregnancies in this country are unintended and nearly half of those end 
in abortion. By increasing access to family planning services, 
Democrats will improve women's health, reduce the rate of unintended 
pregnancies, and reduce the number of abortions, all while saving 
scarce public health dollars.
  Security, opportunity, and responsibility--these are more than just 
three words or three values. They are the foundation on which America's 
promise is built. Senate Democrats open the 109th Congress steadfastly 
committed to keeping this promise alive, so that all Americans who work 
hard can build a stronger and brighter future for their families. While 
these 10 bills do not represent all the goals of the 109th Congress, 
they represent the start and the core of our mission.
  No doubt we will tackle many other important issues before Congress 
closes, but we will never lose sight of the values for which we fight 
and the promises we must keep.
  For instance, when it comes to strengthening Social Security, 
Democrats will keep America's promise. The program is our bargain that 
says those who work hard and pay their taxes have earned a secure 
retirement. Our values compel us to keep the promise of security to our 
seniors, and Senate Democrats will do this. We will not irresponsibly 
cut benefits or jeopardize the opportunity of future generations with 
$2 trillion in new debt. This is keeping America's promise, and that is 
what Senate Democrats will do.
  In closing, I would like to say a few words to my colleagues across 
the aisle. We hope and believe many Republicans share our view that we 
must not allow partisanship to stand in the way of America's promise, 
or let politics get in the way of keeping alive the American dream. 
That is our pledge. We will work with the majority in meeting the 
demands of America.
  I recognize the first 30 minutes of morning business time was that of 
the majority. How much time did I use?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The distinguished Senator used 14\1/2\ 
minutes.
  Mr. REID. I apologize to my friends on the other side of the aisle. 
Ten minutes of that will be leader time. The rest Senator Durbin will 
use for whatever he feels appropriate when our time comes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The distinguished Senator from Illinois.

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