[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 10]
[Senate]
[Pages 13758-13759]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             SENATE AGENDA

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, in Roll Call today, we learned that the 
Republican majority is going to attempt to finish earlier than we 
anticipated. In fact, the quote is that the majority leader and the 
majority whip have ``scrapped plans to keep the Senate in session 
through the beginning of October, and will instead look to wrap up work 
on as many appropriations bills and other must pass measures before 
September 27.''
  This new adjournment date means the Senate has only 8 more weeks in 
which it will be in session, 40 business days. If we subtract Labor 
Day, that makes 39 days. If we subtract Mondays and Fridays--which seem 
to be what we subtract on a weekly basis--there are 23 legislative days 
left in the 109th Congress--23 days and so much to do.
  For months, this what others have deemed the do-nothing Republican 
Congress has wasted time on issues such as the nuclear option, the 
marriage amendment, drilling in the Arctic Wildlife Refuge, flag 
burning, bankruptcy class action, and, of course, time and again, the 
estate tax repeal.
  As a result, here we are with only a handful of weeks remaining--in 
fact, a handful of days, 23--to do so much and to address the 
priorities of the American people.
  I had a wonderful week last week in Las Vegas, in Searchlight. I 
traveled the State. I spent it all in southern Nevada. The concerns I 
heard from my constituents are the same concerns this Republican 
Congress has been ignoring for the last 18 months.
  For example, I traveled a few miles out of Las Vegas. Years ago it 
seemed as though it was a long way out of Las Vegas. From downtown Las 
Vegas, it is less than an hour to a place called Coyote Springs. It is 
partially in Lincoln County and partially in Clark County. We were 
there talking about a new development. At that place in the desert, 
they are going to build 159,000 new homes--159,000 new homes--creating 
half a million jobs. Those people who are going to be living in those 
homes and building those homes are concerned about the price of 
gasoline, as well they should be.
  The price of gas this past week has gone up 11 cents a gallon. The 
average price now in Nevada is over $3 a gallon, more than 50 cents a 
gallon than it was just a year ago. Families are pouring their savings 
into their gas tanks, but this Republican Congress has done nothing to 
help them--and I mean nothing.
  While they have been quick to address nonissues that the far right 
wants--and these issues have no hope of passing--they spend valuable 
time on the Senate floor sending a message to their base, is what we 
are told.
  For example, have we done anything about alternative energy? 
Nothing--nothing to harness the sun, the wind, geothermal.
  Have we done anything to look at global warming? No, nothing.
  Today in Nevada and across the West and, in fact, across the world, 
really, people are talking about how the weather has changed. In the 
West, in Nevada, we are concerned about early wildfires burning 
hundreds of thousands of acres already. New research seems to link 
these to the change in climate patterns. But has the administration or 
this Republican Congress taken steps to reduce the risk of global 
climate change? No. This administration doesn't even acknowledge it 
exists.
  When the documentary ``Inconvenient Truth'' came out, which is a 
tremendous movie showing the problems we have with global warming--ice 
caps dropping into the ocean, weather patterns that have changed 
significantly, and they are documented--when the President was asked if 
he was going to watch the movie, he said: Doubt it. In a cavalier 
fashion: I doubt it. No, not ``I doubt it,'' ``Doubt it.''
  As I have indicated, they are more than willing to debate pet issues 
of the far right, such as the definition of marriage--afraid, I guess, 
of angering their White House or political base by investigating and 
taking action on global warming.
  These are tough issues relating to global warming. We have to do 
something. It is not going to be easy.
  Health care is the same story. Today in Nevada there are almost 
450,000 individuals without health insurance; more than 100,000 of them 
are children. Has this Republican Congress done anything in the last 18 
months to help? No. We had Health Week that really wasn't a health 
week.
  We have 23 legislative days remaining and a list of items we need to 
accomplish that is a mile long. To say we need to get to work is an 
understatement.

[[Page 13759]]

  It is my hope that the majority will make time for these important 
issues before we adjourn. But this afternoon, I want to focus on just 
two issues that must come to the floor this month: the Voting Rights 
Act and stem cell legislation.
  There is no reason we have not dealt with these issues already. The 
House passed H.R. 810, the stem cell research bill, more than a year 
ago. The original timetable for extending the Voting Rights Act was 
May, the majority leader telling us he would bring the stem cell bill 
before the Senate came more than a year ago. But here we are with 23 
days left, and there is still no specific date set for debate on either 
issue.
  I understand we left for the recess with a stem cell agreement saying 
we would debate three stem cell measures, but when is not clear. We 
want to do it this month. That is July, finish the stem cell 
legislation in July. We can do it. There is 12 hours for each piece of 
legislation. We can do it in a few days, certainly in a week. We need 
to do this.
  I am told that the Judiciary Committee is going to schedule markup on 
the voting rights legislation on Thursday. That is good. That is 
progress. But we need more. We need the majority leader to schedule a 
specific date in July for each of these issues to come to the floor. 
Each day these bills are delayed, the majority is withholding hope from 
the American people.
  As to the Voting Rights Act, President Johnson came just a few feet 
off the Senate floor to the President's Room to sign the Voting Rights 
Act. People gave their lives, Mr. President, so the Voting Rights Act 
would pass; they literally gave their lives. I just finished reading a 
wonderful book called ``At Canaan's Edge'' by Taylor Branch. It is 800 
pages all about the last year or two of Dr. King's life and what these 
people went through to have civil rights legislation passed and the 
Voting Rights Act passed. Literally, they let their blood. They were 
beaten, stomped, kicked, shot, stabbed, and killed.
  We need to pass this Voting Rights Act. We need to move it on. It is 
going to expire. We need to pass it now. Reauthorizing it will help 
ensure that every American citizen has the ability to cast their ballot 
regardless of the language they speak or the color of their skin or 
where they live.
  This legislation should be above politics and partisanship. It is 
about living up to our founding creed of equality and justice for all. 
The Voting Rights Act needs to be extended, and there is no reason for 
us to wait.
  There is no reason for us to wait on stem cell research. Stem cell 
research holds promise for medical breakthroughs.
  I was in church a week ago Sunday. I am not going to mention his 
name, but he is there every Sunday I go. When we are home in 
Searchlight, we go to Boulder City to church. He is in a wheelchair. He 
tapped me on the shoulder. I turned around, and he said: H.R. 810.
  It took me a while to think what it was, and then I remembered. He 
has Parkinson's disease. He has hope that this will help him, as do 
people who are inflicted with diabetes, Lou Gehrig's disease, and 
Alzheimer's.
  In 23 days we need to do this. This has to be part of our program 
this month, July: the Voting Rights Act and stem cell legislation.
  So I hope my friend, the distinguished majority leader, in scheduling 
legislation for this month, when we get past the Homeland Security 
appropriations bill, will go to one of these two bills and then go to 
the other one and finish them. It will be a good day for the Senate and 
a really good day for our country.

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