[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 3]
[Senate]
[Page 3292]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             SPENDING CUTS

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, thank you. I have a longer statement that I 
will give after we finish this colloquy.
  At 4 o'clock yesterday afternoon, we met in the Vice President's 
office. It was a very fine meeting. Vice President Biden was there. My 
friend, the Republican leader, me, the Speaker, and the minority leader 
of the House were there--McConnell, Reid, Boehner, and Pelosi. We spent 
about an hour there.
  The arrangement was that we would have a vote on H.R. 1 sometime next 
week and also a vote on the bill that we have just laid down, which is 
our alternative as to what we think should be done with the economy. I 
know our bill--because it is the way we have to do things here--is a 
long bill, and I am sure the minority wants to spend some time looking 
at that. But one way or the other we will either do it with an 
agreement or through my filing different procedural motions. We will 
get to a point next week where we will vote on H.R. 1, which we 
Democrats want to do. We will vote on the bill. Anyway, it has been 
here for a while. Whatever the number it is, it is a Democratic 
alternative, which Senator Inouye laid down.
  We believe, and I am confident that the Speaker feels the same way, 
that we should vote on H.R. 1, which we have had calls for voting on 
for more than a week now. I have had statements from the press: Why 
doesn't Reid set up a vote on H.R. 1? We will either do that with a 
unanimous consent agreement with my friend, the Republican leader, or 
we will do it through a procedural motion that I will file later today.
  The amendment to that bill is No. 149, and that is Senator Inouye's. 
It cuts some $51 billion from what the President's budget was.
  To move the process forward, I think this is a place to start. We 
have some confidence that we will get votes on our bill, and we will 
move this matter forward. Regardless, if H.R. 1 does not pass--and it 
will not pass--and if ours does not pass, we at least know where we 
stand to move this ball down the road a little further.
  The Speaker said that would allow the negotiations to start. I am 
paraphrasing, but that is about what he said. That is what all of us in 
the room decided to do yesterday.
  Today I seek to set those two votes for Tuesday afternoon: one vote 
on passing H.R. 1, as it came over from the House, and after that we 
would have a vote on passing the alternative, which Chairman Inouye has 
drafted and is amendment No. 149. Once we get that, it would seem a 
fair proposition to move forward.
  As I said, I know my friend, the Republican leader, has a scheduling 
problem. I understand that. I would have liked to have come in earlier 
today, and so would he, but we were not able to do that. I will give a 
more full explanatory statement in a few minutes.


                   Unanimous Consent Requests--H.R. 1

  But right now, I ask unanimous consent that upon disposition of S. 
23, which is the patent bill, the Senate proceed to the consideration 
of Calendar No. 14, H.R. 1, the Defense appropriations long-term 
continuing resolution for fiscal year 2011; that Senator Reid be 
recognized to offer a substitute amendment, the text of which is at the 
desk; that there be 4 hours of debate equally divided between the two 
leaders or their designees prior to a vote in relation to the 
substitute amendment; that upon disposition of the substitute 
amendment, the Senate proceed to vote on H.R. 1, as amended, if 
amended, with no intervening action or debate; that no motions or 
amendments be in order to the substitute amendment or to the bill prior 
to the votes; that the substitute amendment and the bill be subject to 
a 60-vote threshold; and that if H.R. 1, as amended, if amended, does 
not achieve 60 affirmative votes, it be returned to the calendar.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Mr. McCONNELL. Reserving the right to object, and for the short term 
I am going to object today, we received this 350-page amendment at 
11:45. We need a chance over the weekend to take a look at what our 
friends have offered. It could well be by Monday we will conclude this 
proposal the majority leader has laid out as the best way to go 
forward. We will continue to talk about that over the weekend. But for 
today I object.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that upon 
disposition of S. 23, the patent bill, the Senate proceed to H.R. 1, 
the Defense appropriations long-term continuing resolution for fiscal 
year 2011.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Mr. McCONNELL. For the same reason, I object.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.

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