[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 11]
[Senate]
[Page 16680]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




EMPLOYMENT NON-DISCRIMINATION ACT OF 2013--MOTION TO PROCEED--Continued

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, there will be 2 
minutes of debate equally divided in the usual form prior to a vote on 
the motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to S. 815.
  Who yields time?
  The Senator from Iowa.
  Mr. HARKIN. Madam President, the Senate is about to take another 
historic step. Think about it. In 1964 we had the Civil Rights Act. In 
1990--23 years ago--I stood here when we passed the Americans with 
Disabilities Act, which extended civil rights to people with 
disabilities.
  Today we are taking one more step to make the American family more 
inclusive and once and for all ban employment discrimination against 
gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Americans.
  This is a historic opportunity for the Senate once again to say that 
we are all members of the American family. No one should be 
discriminated against because of race, sex, religion, or national 
origin. They should not be discriminated against because of who they 
love, who they are or whether they are gay, lesbian, bisexual, or 
transgender.
  This is a historic step for the Senate to take today.
  I urge a yea vote on the motion to proceed.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time in opposition?
  Mr. REID. Madam President, I yield back time on the motion to invoke 
cloture.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, all time has been yielded 
back.


                             Cloture Motion

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. By unanimous consent, pursuant to rule XXII, 
the Chair lays before the Senate the pending cloture motion, which the 
clerk will report.

                             Cloture Motion

  We, the undersigned Senators, in accordance with the provisions of 
rule XXII of the Standing Rules of the Senate, hereby move to bring to 
a close debate on the motion to proceed to Calendar No. 184, S. 815, a 
bill to prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of sexual 
orientation or gender identity.
         Richard J. Durbin, Tom Harkin, Jeff Merkley, Benjamin L. 
           Cardin, Michael F. Bennet, Barbara Mikulski, Charles E. 
           Schumer, Martin Heinrich, Patrick J. Leahy, Robert 
           Menendez, Barbara Boxer, Kirsten E. Gillibrand, Mazie 
           K. Hirono, Tammy Baldwin, Amy Klobuchar, Jack Reed, 
           Harry Reid.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. By unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum 
call has been waived.
  The question is, Is it the sense of the Senate that debate on the 
motion to proceed to S. 815, a bill to prohibit employment 
discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, 
and for other purposes, shall be brought to a close.
  The yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule.
  The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk called the roll.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Donnelly). Are there any other Senators in 
the Chamber desiring to vote?
  Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Missouri (Mrs. 
McCaskill) is necessarily absent.
  Mr. CORNYN. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the 
Senator from Missouri (Mr. Blunt), the Senator from North Carolina (Mr. 
Burr), the Senator from Georgia (Mr. Chambliss), the Senator from 
Oklahoma (Mr. Coburn), the Senator from Arizona (Mr. McCain), the 
Senator from Kansas (Mr. Moran), the Senator from Louisiana (Mr. 
Vitter), and the Senator from Alaska (Ms. Murkowski).
  The yeas and nays resulted--yeas 61, nays 30, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 229 Leg.]

                                YEAS--61

     Ayotte
     Baldwin
     Baucus
     Begich
     Bennet
     Blumenthal
     Booker
     Boxer
     Brown
     Cantwell
     Cardin
     Carper
     Casey
     Collins
     Coons
     Donnelly
     Durbin
     Feinstein
     Franken
     Gillibrand
     Hagan
     Harkin
     Hatch
     Heinrich
     Heitkamp
     Heller
     Hirono
     Johnson (SD)
     Kaine
     King
     Kirk
     Klobuchar
     Landrieu
     Leahy
     Levin
     Manchin
     Markey
     Menendez
     Merkley
     Mikulski
     Murphy
     Murray
     Nelson
     Portman
     Pryor
     Reed
     Reid
     Rockefeller
     Sanders
     Schatz
     Schumer
     Shaheen
     Stabenow
     Tester
     Toomey
     Udall (CO)
     Udall (NM)
     Warner
     Warren
     Whitehouse
     Wyden

                                NAYS--30

     Alexander
     Barrasso
     Boozman
     Coats
     Cochran
     Corker
     Cornyn
     Crapo
     Cruz
     Enzi
     Fischer
     Flake
     Graham
     Grassley
     Hoeven
     Inhofe
     Isakson
     Johanns
     Johnson (WI)
     Lee
     McConnell
     Paul
     Risch
     Roberts
     Rubio
     Scott
     Sessions
     Shelby
     Thune
     Wicker

                             NOT VOTING--9

     Blunt
     Burr
     Chambliss
     Coburn
     McCain
     McCaskill
     Moran
     Murkowski
     Vitter
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. On this vote, the yeas are 61, the nays are 
30. Three-fifths of the Senators duly chosen and sworn having voted in 
the affirmative, the motion is agreed to.
  (Disturbance in the visitors gallery.)
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. No expressions of approval are permitted in 
the gallery.
  The Senator from Louisiana.
  Ms. LANDRIEU. I thank my colleagues who led this effort on this 
nondiscrimination bill, which is historic, and I am pleased we had a 
bipartisan vote to make America more accepting and a just place. It is 
a work-in-progress, and I am very pleased we could find the support on 
this floor to do that. Now the bill goes to the House, and I urge my 
colleagues in my congressional delegation and others to look at this 
bill with an open mind and an open heart and end discrimination in the 
workplace. I urge them to support this bill.
  (The further remarks of Ms. Landrieu pertaining to the introduction 
of S. 1642 are printed in today's Record under ``Statements on 
Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions.)
  Ms. LANDRIEU. I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a 
quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. BENNET. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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