[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Page 9839]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              SENATE RULES

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, as I have talked about repeatedly over 
the last few weeks, there is a cloud hanging over the Senate, an unease 
throughout the Senate entirely on the Republican side and some on the 
Democratic side as well, and that is this: We had a discussion at the 
beginning of this Congress about what the rules of the Senate would be 
for this Congress this year and next year. After that bipartisan 
discussion, we passed two rules changes and two standing orders. The 
majority leader said we had determined what the rules of the Senate 
were going to be for the next 2 years. He gave his word that we would 
not break the rules of the Senate in order to change the rules of the 
Senate--the so-called nuclear option. Yet he has continued to hint that 
maybe that was not what he had in mind.
  So what my colleagues and I are asking the majority leader to do is 
to stand by his word. Your word is the currency of the realm here in 
the Senate. We expect the majority leader to keep his word. His word 
was given unequivocally in January of this year. In fact, it was given 
in January 2 years before that for the next two Congresses.
  So it is time to lift this cloud which is hanging over the Senate so 
all the Members of the Senate can understand what the rules are for 
this Congress because we already made that decision back in January. We 
await the majority leader finally addressing the matter and making it 
clear that his word is good.
  I yield the floor.

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