National Sea Grant College Program Amendments Act of 2015
Floor Speech
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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, for all Members of the Senate, let me sum up where we are. There are three votes left to be cast. It is cleared on this side of the aisle to have all three of those votes momentarily. If there are objections to the consent request I am about to offer, the three votes would occur at 10:20 tonight. But whether we do it now or we do it then, there are three votes to finish the bill.
This bill is a product of a negotiation between the top Republican and the top Democrat on the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry which will protect middle-class families from unnecessary and unfair higher food prices, while also ensuring access to more information about the food we all purchase.
Chairman Roberts said this bipartisan bill will benefit consumers by greatly increasing the amount of food information at their fingertips, while avoiding devastating increases in the price of food.
The ranking Democrat on the committee, Senator Stabenow, noted that it will prevent a confusing patchwork of 50 different labeling requirements in 50 different States, and it recognizes the scientific consensus that biotechnology is safe.
It is the result of bipartisan work to address an issue that could negatively harm consumers and producers.
The amendments being bandied about threaten to derail this process, and the end result will be a tax on food for middle-class families.
So here is the deal, Mr. President. We need to pass it today. We need the House to take it up and pass it, and we need them to send it to the President to sign it. So the end game is clear. The only issue before the Senate at the moment is whether we do it in the near future or at 10:20 tonight.
Bearing that in mind, as I have said, we are prepared to vote on the Sanders alternative to the Roberts-Stabenow compromise language and to finish up this bill now rather than waiting until time expires at 10:20 tonight.
A bipartisan majority voted to end debate on the bill. Everyone has had an opportunity to be heard. It is time to finish this bill.
Under the regular order, there would be no further amendments on the bill. Under the consent agreement I am about to offer, the opponents would be able to vote on the Sanders alternative.
4948 to the motion to concur with further amendment; finally, that following the use or yielding back of that time, the Senate vote on the Sanders amendment, with a 60-affirmative-vote threshold needed for adoption; and that following disposition of the Sanders amendment, the remaining amendment be withdrawn and the Senate vote on the motion to concur in the House amendment with further amendment with no further intervening action or debate.
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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I believe everybody has objected.
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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, this evening, both sides will have an opportunity to take the next step and begin debate on the fiscal year 2017 Defense appropriations bill.
President Obama's announcement yesterday about our troops in Afghanistan only underscores the Senate's need to take up and pass the Defense appropriations bill right now. Although I support a high level of force to train and equip the Afghan forces and conduct counterterrorism operations, the President's announcement reminds us of the need for this bill.
The President made a commitment to our allies, and Senate Democrats must join us in meeting our commitment to the force. The training to prepare forces for deployment to Afghanistan, the weapons they will carry, the spare parts and fuel consumed in training, and operations and the ammunition needed to execute their missions, not to mention their basic pay, is funded through this bill.
Our all-volunteer force does not shrink from this commitment, and this Senate shouldn't fail our duty to provide for them. This funding is for current operations, for combat readiness, and for the commitment announced just yesterday by President Obama.
Last month, the Secretary of Defense made a long-term commitment, stating that ``the United States will remain the most powerful military and main underwriter of security in the [Asia Pacific] region for decades to come.'' He made that commitment knowing our allies and the Chinese were listening to analyze our Nation's intentions and our plans. These promises cannot be upheld if we fail to fund the weapons systems, munitions, training, and personnel required to balance against China's plans to expand its sphere of influence in the region.
We have a near-term and long-term need to pass this bill, and commitments like these made by the administration cannot be met--cannot be met--if our Democratic friends block this critical funding.
I would remind everyone that at a time when we face an array of terror threats around the globe, we cannot afford to put politics above support for our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines or our efforts to move the appropriations process forward. So I was troubled by a letter I received earlier today from Democratic leaders implying they might actually block this bipartisan bill and, with it, critical funding to provide for our warriors and provide for our national defense.
They called for regular order, but I will remind my colleagues this bill is the epitome--the epitome--of regular order. The Senate passed the authorizing legislation--the National Defense Authorization Act. The bipartisan bill respects the budget caps in place. And it was reported out of the Committee on Appropriations with the support of every single Democrat and every single Republican on the committee.
As the top Democrat on the Defense Subcommittee himself has said, ``This defense bill takes a responsible approach to protecting our country--honoring the bipartisan budget deal in place,'' and the senior Democrat on the committee said of this bill that she is ``happy to support'' the bill.
There is no excuse to filibuster this bill. Everybody in the committee supported it. It is consistent with the budget agreement reached last year. So I would urge all my colleagues to support moving forward to debate this important legislation they say they are in favor of.
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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, one thing my good friend the Democratic leader always used to remind me of when he was the majority leader is the majority leader always gets the last word. So I will take advantage of that tonight.
For anyone who may still be watching C-SPAN 2 at this late hour, let me suggest the Democratic Party ought to be renamed the ``dysfunction party.'' When they were in the majority they didn't function and when they are in the minority they do not function.
Let's just take a look at the last couple of weeks. A Zika MILCON bill goes through here with every Democrat supporting it, and then all of a sudden they do not like it. A CARA bill goes through here with not a single Democrat opposing it, and then they refuse to sign the conference report. And now what the Democratic leader is saying is that the Republican Senate needs to guarantee what the democratic House will do as a condition for passing a bill through the Senate that every single Democrat on the Committee on Appropriations supported. It came out of committee unanimously.
This is the definition of dysfunction. So, apparently, what we will witness here shortly is our Democratic friends, all of whom on the committee supported the bill, preventing us from taking it up because they want us to get a guarantee from the House as to what the House result will be. That is not the way it works. The way you pass a law is the Senate passes a bill, the House passes a bill, and you negotiate with each other and with the administration.
So the hour is late and the die seems to be cast.
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Mr. McCONNELL. It is my understanding, Mr. President, that Senator Merkley----
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Mr. McCONNELL. I don't know how long the Democratic leader wants to go on with this, but let me remind him of what he always reminded me-- that I will have the last word.
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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I see the ranking member of the Appropriations Committee on the floor. I would recount to everyone that I said to her weeks and weeks ago that we will devote as much time as it takes to try to get back to a regular process and move appropriation bills across the floor. So we have devoted an enormous amount of time to try to get the appropriations process functioning again here in the Senate.
I don't understand why the Democratic leadership refuses to honor what I think are the wishes of the majority of the Democrats on the committee who have been supporting these bills--most of which have come out of committee on an overwhelmingly bipartisan basis and this particular defense bill, unanimously. They don't even want to go to it and let the Senate function.
But I know the hour is late. That is the final observation I intend to make tonight.
I understand Senator Merkley is going to make a motion.
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