[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Page 898]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      SUCCESSFUL LEGISLATIVE WEEK

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, we had a very successful week legislatively. 
I extend my appreciation to Senators on both sides of the aisle, 
especially my friends on the Republican side. There were no 30 hours 
used. It worked out extremely well. There was ample time for debate, 
and there were issues that were of concern to both parties. Of course, 
the issues are important to the country.
  Without belaboring the issues on which we voted, I wish to spend just 
a minute on two issues--first, the pay-go rules we passed.
  The Presiding Officer has been a great asset to the Senate. He has 
worked with the chairman of the Budget Committee, Senator Conrad, and 
others to focus on finances of our country. The Presiding Officer was a 
very successful Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia and noted for 
what he did with budgetary matters in Virginia.
  Pay-go rules are so important. We have rules now, like people have in 
their individual homes. We are working to do what people who work for a 
living do, and that is spend money we have. It is not as if we are 
inventing something new. During the Clinton years, we had pay-go rules. 
As a result of that, we were able to spend less money than we were 
taking in. For the first time in decades, in the last 3 years of the 
Clinton administration, we paid down the national debt by hundreds of 
billions of dollars. So I hope, looking into the future, we can 
continue doing that; that is, do it again. It is so important.
  I extend my appreciation to Members of the House of Representatives, 
especially the Speaker and the majority leader, Steny Hoyer. They have 
been focused on this pay-go for more than a year.
  We were finally able to get it done over here. It is going to be good 
for the country. I think the things we did will continue to focus on 
the money that we do not have and the way we have to get our budget in 
order. I am especially happy we were able to give the doctors 5 years' 
reprieve from the Draconian rules that were facing doctors who take 
Medicare patients.
  The other issue I wish to spend a minute on is last evening, again 
with the cooperation of all Senators, we were able to pass the Iran 
sanctions law. It is so important. We all know what that country is 
doing to its citizens. It is time this country of ours stepped forward 
and did some things to focus on what they are doing; that is, what Iran 
is doing. The legislation we passed will certainly allow this to take 
place.
  We have a conference with the House. I will have a conversation later 
today with the chairman of the committee over there, Howard Berman, who 
has been such a good friend of mine personally. He and I came to 
Washington together in the House of Representatives, but he has also 
been a great representative of our country in his chairmanship of the 
Foreign Affairs Committee in the House.
  Senator McCain had an amendment about which he is concerned. I 
appreciate his not offering it last night because it would have caused 
other amendments from this side being offered.
  As a result of the cooperation between both sides of the aisle, we 
got this legislation passed. We hope to get it out of conference 
quickly and have the President sign it. It is certainly what we need to 
do. Iran is a country on which all the world is focusing. We must do 
everything we can to stop them from acquiring nuclear weapons.

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