[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Pages 4928-4929]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             SENATE AGENDA

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, this week looks to be a busy one in the 
Senate. We have a lot of important legislation to consider. We are 
hoping our friends across the aisle will work with us to do so in an 
expeditious manner. For instance, we will begin the process of 
finishing our work on the balanced budget before the Senate, which the 
Senate passed just before Easter. Passing that balanced budget was a 
big moment for the new Senate. For years, the budget process was 
ignored almost entirely in this Chamber, and the idea of a balanced 
budget passing was basically unthinkable. But now the Senate is under 
new management. Things are changing. Soon we will conference with the 
House to work out a final budget that will be passed by the full 
Congress. That is just the latest example of Congress getting back to 
work. I know a lot of Americans are happy to see that.
  But the budget is far from the only item on the Senate's near-term 
agenda. The Senate will soon consider bipartisan legislation that is 
designed to ensure that seniors on Medicare don't lose access to their 
doctors. It is a solution to a broken Medicare payment system that has 
vexed congressional leaders of both parties for years. It would mean an 
end to the annual exercise of Congress passing a temporary fix to the 
problem one year and then coming right back to the very same cliff the 
next year without actually solving the underlying problem.
  So the fact that we have a bipartisan reform bill here is significant 
in itself. The fact that it passed the House overwhelmingly is even 
more significant. It doesn't mean the legislation is perfect. It 
doesn't mean we won't have some disagreements about it. But I do think 
the bill deserves a vote, and it is my hope that the Senate will soon 
take one.
  We will also continue to work to pass the bipartisan Justice for 
Victims of Trafficking Act. It is legislation designed to prevent women 
and children from being sold into modern-day slavery. It was reported 
out of the Judiciary Committee with the support of every single 
Democrat, and the Senate took up this bill with the consent of every 
single Democrat. There is no reason they should now turn around and 
filibuster this antislavery bill at this point. As a victims advocate 
put it, Senate Democrats should stop choosing a phantom problem over 
real victims.
  A large, bipartisan majority of the Senate has voted repeatedly to 
end a very regrettable Democratic filibuster of this antislavery bill. 
It will only take a few more votes from our friends across the aisle to 
bring hope to children in chains and women suffering in the shadows. So 
we have been reaching out to our friends to work with them to end this 
Democratic filibuster of human rights legislation. The Senate should 
pass this bipartisan bill right away, and as soon as that happens, we 
will turn to the Loretta Lynch nomination.
  Committees in the new Senate are also working hard to advance more 
bipartisan legislation. We already saw the Intelligence Committee vote 
14 to 1 to approve bipartisan legislation aimed at protecting the 
personal and financial information of middle-class Americans from cyber 
criminals. Over in the Finance Committee, we see the top Republican and 
the top Democrat continue to discuss the best way forward to increase 
American exports with new trade legislation. Today, we will see another 
product of negotiations between a top committee Republican and a top 
committee Democrat--legislation aimed at reforming our education 
system--considered in the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 
Committee. We hope to bring all of these issues to the Senate floor for 
debate in the very near future.
  Another important bipartisan bill that will be considered by 
committee today is the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act. The Foreign 
Relations Committee is set to mark that up today. The legislation is 
supported by a large number of Democrats, and it is no wonder why. The 
bill is aimed at giving Congress and the American people a say--a say--
in reviewing and approving an international agreement with such wide-
ranging consequences. And the American people should have a say.
  The interim agreement we saw from the administration would not only 
allow Iran to continue to enrich uranium and retain thousands of 
centrifuges but also allow it to continue researching and developing 
even more advanced centrifuges. In other words, it seems more like an 
agreement built around Iran's terms rather than a plan to advance what 
should be our national goal, which is ending Iran's nuclear program.
  It is a matter of great concern not just to our country but to the 
entire world. The concerns of our allies and partners with regard to 
Iran's aggressive behavior throughout the Middle East were made clear 
when I recently led a Senate delegation to Israel, Jordan, Iraq, and 
Afghanistan.
  This is a gravely important matter, and the American people aren't 
just spectators here; they and the representatives they elect deserve a 
seat at the table too. Today's bipartisan action in the Foreign 
Relations Committee will help ensure they do.
  As I mentioned earlier, there will be a lot of activity in the Senate 
this week on a range of issues. It is good for the functioning of the 
Senate, but it also helps underline one clear point: The new Congress 
is back to work again on behalf of the American people.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. REID. 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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