Senator Stakeout with Sen. McConnell (R-KY), Sen. Lott (R-MS), and Sen. Kyl (R-AZ)
Interview
Senator Stakeout with Sen. McConnell (R-KY), Sen. Lott (R-MS), and Sen. Kyl (R-AZ)
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SEN. MCCONNELL: Okay, let me just make a couple of observations here at the beginning.
First, with regard to the Mukasey nomination, this is the longest time an attorney general nominee has been delayed in 20 years. To put that in context, the Cosby Show was the number one show on television at that time. Not only has the nomination been delayed, he's not even yet on the agenda. And I think it's important to remember that this was a nomination suggested by Senator Schumer, a response to an overwhelming Democratic desire to have a new attorney general and a new start. I don't know what else the president could have done to reach out to the Democratic majority with regard to the Justice Department nomination than to nominate a person suggested by one of the leaders of the Democratic Party who is by all accounts extraordinarily well-qualified.
Point number two, it has now become clear that we will be facing a minibus here in the next week or two, a combination of Labor, Health and Human Services, the Department of Defense and the veterans military construction all rolled into one. I think that's not the way we ought to proceed. We ought to send individual appropriation bills down to the president one at a time, and by the way, speaking of the last 20 years, this is the first time in 20 years that we've not sent a single appropriation bill to the president for his consideration by this point after the end of the fiscal year. The president's already indicated that he will veto this combination of appropriation bills that in all likelihood will dramatically exceed the spending that he has recommended and the majority of my conference thinks makes sense.
So we're looking at an empty Justice Department, even after a nominee that the Democrats seem to want; and no appropriation bills on the president's desk some five weeks after the end of the fiscal year; a train wreck with regard to three appropriation bills combined with a presidential veto that we're optimistic we'll be able to sustain. Not a pretty picture here after some -- a month or so, a month-and-a-half or so after the end of the fiscal year.
Senator Lott.
SEN. LOTT: I believe the Senate will this afternoon complete action on the Amtrak legislation, which includes significant reforms and improvements and requirements of Amtrak. I believe we need a national rail passenger system, and I'm hopeful we can complete that in a short time.
Here we are at Halloween, and the scary thing to me is that for the first time in 20 years we haven't sent a single appropriations bill to the president, as Leader McConnell was just pointing out. And we're, you know, 29 days into the new fiscal year. We are now talking about more political gamesmanship instead of sitting down and working out agreements on these appropriations bill that need budget requirements that the president has laid out. They're talking about combining three bills, sending them there and trying to set up another disagreement with the president. I think that's very unfortunate for the departments involved, which includes Defense -- our men and women need certainty in the defense appropriations there -- and also areas like Labor, Health and Human Services and Education. We're playing games with the education system in this country. It's indefensible.
Also, again, we're trying to find a way to get health care to genuinely poor children, and we should make sure that we insure poor children first. But the bill that once again has been passed by the House and may be coming up in the Senate winds up being worse than the bill -- the earlier bill we had. It costs more, insures less, still has a massive tax increase, still has provisions that would provide an express lane to illegal immigrants to get their children on the health insurance program for children, for poor children.
We don't need to do this. We can work this out. The compromises are obvious. The problem is that the Democrats in the Congress will not sit down with the majority of the Republicans and the administration and come to some agreements of how we can work through the Department of Health and Human Services and provide health insurance to the poorest of the children.
Thank you.
SEN. KYL: Just two quick things.
Last week, I came before you somewhat incredulous that as a member of the Judiciary Committee, Judge Mukasey's confirmation was not on our agenda. It's not on the agenda for this week either. And I share the leader's concern that with the Justice Department sorely in need of not only having a leader at the top but also other positions filled -- I think it's now either nine or 10 out of the top 15 positions are vacant -- we have got to get an attorney general confirmed, and certainly Judge Mukasey is that man.
With respect to this matter of the mismanagement of the appropriation process by the Democratic leadership, it is more than just a matter of timing, of not getting bills to the president and mismanagement of the process; it's a matter of taxes and spending. That's what it's substantively all about, and Democrats have reverted to form.
You now have the mother of all tax bills with Representative Rangel finally putting down on paper what Democrats have been talking about. And you've got spending which is in far in excess of the budget, which, as Senator Lott pointed out, the president is prepared to veto. The Democratic leadership has got to get serious about sitting down with Republicans and these working things out so that we can provide what's needed for the American people and not have a tax- and-spend Congress that, frankly, goes against everything that the American people have told us in the last election.
SEN. MCCONNELL: We'll take a couple of questions -- (inaudible).
Q On SCHIP,. do you get any sense that if there's any progress, have you spoken to Leader Reid about timing, whether you hold off on the cloture vote to give more time to the negotiation --
SEN. MCCONNELL: Yeah, well, he can announce the game plan, but my understanding is, Chuck, that he's going to move to SCHIP after we finish Amtrak. There are a variety of different discussions still going on, but I don't think anything has been resolved yet.
Q And Senator, will you, if cloture is invoked on SCHIP, will you hold the fort for 30 hours on this and use all the time that's available to you?
SEN. MCCONNELL: Well, we haven't decided. I mean, it's time to settle this. You know, this has been going on for quite some time. I think we all agree that a settlement is possible, and I think it's time to do it.
Q Last year, the Republican Congress didn't even try to send virtually every appropriation bill to the White House and now, you're criticizing the Democrats. And I'm wondering how you can --
SEN. MCCONNELL: Well, that's a good point. They promised to do it better and to do it differently, and they've done it worse. That's the main point. I mean, you know, both sides have malfunctioned from time to time on the appropriation process.
One of the principal promises the new Democratic majority made is they were going to do it differently. They were going to get the job done on time. That didn't happen. They were going to send individual appropriation bills. That didn't happen. I mean, here we are. The fiscal year ended September 30th; not one single appropriation bill on the desk of the president. The hypocrisy of that, I think, is stunning.
Q Senator, Ms. Nord, the Consumer Product Safety Commission head, has refused all help apparently on the appropriations, to deal with toys that are coming over from China, that problem. What do you make of her refusal to take the help that Congress seems to want to give her?
SEN. MCCONNELL: David, I just really am not up to speed on that. I think I should take a pass on commenting on that at this point.
Q Thank you, sir.
END.
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