[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Pages 646-647]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 LOBBYING AND ETHICS REFORM LEGISLATION

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I would like to say to my good friend, 
the majority leader, I share his view that we ought to make progress on 
this bill. There are a number of amendments already pending. We will be 
working together during the course of the morning to get some votes 
scheduled. I share his view that we ought to finish this bill next 
week. So we will be going forward in a cooperative frame of mind.
  This is an important piece of legislation. It has bipartisan support, 
as illustrated by the fact that the majority leader and myself are 
cosponsors of the substitute he offered yesterday. This is a piece of 
legislation that ought to be passed and ought to be passed soon in the 
Senate and will be done with a broad bipartisan basis of support.
  So I look forward to working with my friend during the course of the 
day to get votes in the queue so we can move forward.

[[Page 647]]

  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The majority leader is recognized.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, if I could say one thing before the 
Republican leader leaves. I want everyone to hear what I said before. 
The first measure Senator McConnell and I introduced, S. 1, will be the 
most significant lobbying and ethics reform bill since Watergate, if 
nothing else happens. And then we went a step further and, on a 
bipartisan basis, offered the substitute amendment which moves the ball 
down the field by a long way.
  This bill is significant, and if nothing else happens other than S. 1 
and the substitute, this will be a tremendously important piece of 
legislation in the annals of the history of this country. We have a lot 
of other people who want to improve the bill in their mind, and that is 
what this amendment process is all about. But we cannot lose sight of 
the fact that this is a significant move forward in ethics and lobbying 
reform with the two measures that have been put forward on a bipartisan 
basis. We have done already, some good work for the Senate.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Republican leader is 
recognized.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I might add, I agree with everything 
the majority leader said. This substitute is essentially what passed 
the Senate last year 90 to 8. The Senate is ready to act or close to 
ready to finish this important piece of legislation. We were last year. 
It was bogged down in the legislative process in dealing with the other 
body. But we are going to pass this next week with an overwhelming 
bipartisan vote. And the majority leader and I will be working together 
to make that possible.
  I yield the floor.

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