[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 15]
[Senate]
[Page 19643]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                                SCHEDULE

  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, today we will begin the session with a 1-
hour period of morning business. At the conclusion of the morning 
business period, we will address the pending bill, H.R. 6061, the 
secure fence legislation.
  I filed cloture on the pending amendment and the underlying bill last 
night, and I will speak to that process in a moment. I do want to 
remind everyone that the consent agreement now provides that all first-
degree amendments to the secure fence bill must be filed at the desk no 
later than 2:30 today in order to qualify under rule XXII.
  Today we will recess from 12:30 to 2:15 in order to accommodate one 
of our weekly policy meetings.
  To further explain, last night I filed an amendment to the secure 
fence bill, and that amendment included language to establish the 
military tribunals, the legislation that is in response to the Hamdan 
legislation from several months ago which the Supreme Court has handed 
down, which reflects the agreement announced last week between the 
President and Senate Republicans. I also filed cloture on this 
amendment last night, as well as cloture on the secure fence bill. 
There will be a cloture vote Wednesday on the Hamdan amendment. If that 
cloture on the amendment is invoked, there would be time for 
postcloture debate on the amendment. Once all postcloture time is 
expired, there would then be a vote on the adoption of the amendment, 
followed immediately by a cloture vote on the secure fence legislation. 
All those votes would be Thursday.
  I explained that last night, and I explain it again now because it 
illustrates the procedural moves that have to be made in order to 
finish this bill with certainty before we depart on Friday or Saturday. 
It is critical that we do so. The very important, critical, high-value 
interrogation programs cannot continue until we legislate, and indeed 
the military tribunals, military commissions cannot take place in terms 
of trying these enemy combatants until we act.
  It is important with regard to what I said for people to understand 
that the Democratic leader and I and our caucuses are working very hard 
to get a unanimous consent agreement to consider the Hamdan legislation 
freestanding. However, last night we did not reach that agreement, or 
early this morning, but I am very hopeful that we can do so shortly.
  Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. CHAMBLISS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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