all of them will come home and not all of them will come home without casualties this is serious business and it requires our full attention with the knowledge of the nature of the threat we cannot send them to do this job without being willing to provide them the funding that they need to sustain their effort and part of the debate today is ensuring that at least for the next four months they will have enough money to get the job done and by the same token we have an enemy all over the world including in the united states which is plotting which our intelligence community assesses with high confidence will carry out a devastating attack if they have the opportunity to do so and it is critical that we use the assets  that we have available to collect intelligence against these organizations and people wherever they are the best way to defeat the radical islamics who mean to do us harm is to prevent it in the first place and that's what good intelligence allows us to do and that's why it's important for us to be able to reauthorize the foreign intelligence surveillance act my point is that on two of the great issues that are before us today we have a violent enemy that needs to be defeated and the best way to do that is to support our troops and to support our intelligence agencies and men and women who are carrying out the mission that we've asked them to carry out in defeating this enemy we have to understand the threat and understand that in america in this great democratic republic of ours the american people are really the center of gravity in any war it is their support that is needed in order to achieve victory and our young men and women on the battlefield and our people serving us in the intelligence community are counting on us the representatives of the american people to see to it that they have what they need to carry out their missions cooperation of everyone these are very difficult issues and there's a lot of work that we have not done but that's where it is always at the end of a session like this so i appreciate everyone cooperation i hope that no one has been offended with my being a little push here than usual but i've been had a little pushing on my side anyway pushing me to get this done everyone has a lot to do we have one senator who needs to get things done tonight she has a sick daughter has to go home so there are a lot of issues that we need to address so we'll now hear from senator reid and senator brown and then we'll be on the bill objection sure as president i rise to pay tribute to an outstanding rhode islander and a subprogram ploy of the united states senate who is retiring after thirty four years of federal service my friend my colleague someone i admire immensely denis p riley dennis has worked in my providence office since i was elected to the united states senate but before that he was a longtime employee of senator  one he taught history for a brief time in the talk at school system and was a graduate student in the masses in teaching program at rotman college in one nine hundred seventy two he became the field coordinator for united states sen reelection campaign and he formed a bond with senator pell and public service that last today dennis came to serve on the personal staff of senator pell first as a staff assistant in washington manager for his next successful reelection effort and so dennis returned to rhode island and successfully planned and executed the senator's reelection campaign from one hundred seventy nine to  enter the pells final day in office dennis worked as assistant director of the senator's rhode island office he was a trusted employee of senator pell and more importantly dennis remains close to the pell family today  a diplomat and he served with distinction as chairman of the foreign relations committee senator pelz legacy is a model for all of us particularly for myself and then as riley is a testament and a part of that tradition of talented and conscientious public servants that labor perhaps in the shadows but it's their work that is decisive in our success here on the floor after senator pell retard of the people  me the chance to get into his good works senator pelz spoke so highly of dennis that i asked him to join my staff and it's one of the best decisions that i have ever made he brought with him a k knowledge of the workings of the united states senate history and knowledge of rhode island politics good judgment great wisdom and great character in the ensuing years we have become dear friends and he is a trusted adviser during his tenure with my office dennis's worked on special projects and of the system hundreds of agencies and organizations as they sought federal assistance and thousands of rhode island is who needed help needed to listen to someone to hear their stories listen to those people and let them know that there is a government that cares about them because dennis  a person that cares deeply not just about government about the people we serve in rhode island he's been involved in crafting many public policy initiatives and he's been particularly active as the point person on my federal grants and applications process for the appropriations committee he's shepherd projects through he's brought people together for the common good he's made a significant impact on the economic economic vitality of my state and although dennis his name will never be lauded in the news reports or press releases his hand is seen as so many efforts to make our state an even better place to live work and raise our families everyone who knows then is sees him as a kind and decent man with a great heart a great mind someone we're proud to call a dear friend his compassion is quick wit are legendary for years transplant at rhode island is in washington d c and politicos in our state eagerly awaited every day the riley report a carefully crafted summary of the day's top stories political news and a retelling of the events of the day in rhode island this complete and unbiased commentary of the author provided the real story very often of what was going on in well after this distinguished service for the senate after thirty four years then us now will be retiring to his beloved home in little compton rhode island with his wife the love of his life kathy michael often riley kathy is a woman lovely person who  devoted her alive to educating children is an elementary teacher at the elizabeth baldwin school and to talk it and she will soon join dennis in retirement and in their well deserved retirement dennis and kathy plan to travel extensively they are avid baseball and these asked and they plan to visit all the ball pods they haven't yet seen it will be an inspiring and interesting trip for both of them and  spending time caring for his family clued in creating more memories for his many nieces and nephews who treasure his company i wish both kathy and dennis much happiness and fulfillment in the years ahead now on behalf of myself and also i will take the liberty to speak on behalf of my esteemed predecessor senator claiborne pell i'd ask all my colleagues in the senate who treasure as i do the we've formed a lasting bond with that will never be severed and we treasure that bond as then as files the final rylan report i wish you every good wish now dennis is irish and that means he has a rather somber view of the world he has a saying on his office door that reads there is nothing so bad that it can't get worse that isn't typically irises son of it as we send  nother sentiment that has made the saddest day of your future be no worse than the happiest day of your past thank you for your friendship and thank you for his service mr president i w president center from ohio and you mr president one monday in hocking county is us small town rural county in southeast ohio residents began forming a line at the smith chapel united methodist church pantry before dawn by eight thirty when volunteers volunteers began distributing food the line of cars stretch for more than a mile and a half by early afternoon more than two thousand residents can receive food that's over seven percent of the local population one out of fourteen people in this county in research and receive food in this food pantry just eight years ago the same pantry was serving seventeen families a month two thousand people in one day seventeen families for the whole month eight years ago the freestore food bank in cincinnati has seen a fifty two percent increase in demand this year and many of these new patrons are working people they're working men away wage jobs some hold two jobs they're not just the homeless are not just the dispossessed they're people all kinds of people who have had a serious a series of bad luck in the last last several months food prices going up fuel prices going up wages stagnating sub prime foreclosures continuing to hit home working middle class americans are finding it difficult to find room in their budgets for food more americans in need less food is available the result is far too much human suffering think of this mr president the wealthiest nation in the world people are waiting in line for a subsistence level of food and some of them are not even receiving that the men and women and children waiting in line for food are men and women and children you've passed on the street mothers and fathers trying to feed their kids children too proud to admit there is no lunch money in their pocket no food in their refrigerator no house deal holiday meals ahead no food grandmothers raising their grandchildren living on fixed incomes relying because they have no choice but to rely on food pantries on food donations on food banks the unemployed the sick the aged the homeless the mentally ill and hocking county one out of forty team people went to one food bank and one day there are people who live in the communities that all of us serve food banks in ohio in montana in michigan and illinois in arizona new york in new mexico in north dakota and rhode island in every state of the union are underfunded and overextended food banks too often are rationing rations trying to vent prevent children and families from going hungry over the holidays in lorain ohio my hometown the salvation army food pantry ran out of food completely was forced to close temporarily the society of st florent vents and depaul food pantry in cincinnati has been forced to give families three or four days of food instead of the customary six or seven days of food when people come to see them in athens county ohio earlier this month the director of the family and friends choice pantry was actually quote praising god we're in a snowstorm and not many people showed up unquote because they had her pantry had run out of food in ohio as a whole seventy percent of food pantries don't have enough food to serve everyone in need mr president that's that's why earlier last week i offered legislation to actually v a to current food shortage that's why i want to see yes include forty million dollars in emergency food aid for food pantries across the state of my state and across the country i appreciate the leadership of senator durbin and leader reid and wanting to include this at the next opportunity come january to get this forty million dollars out to the states out to churches and food banks and food pantries so that people in fact  issue you're new to the senate new to this issue and those of us who are know that times have changed in america and not for the better when it comes to food pantries and people that need help i just this sunday visited the greater chicago food depository and learned that there is an eleven percent increase over last year the number of people coming in to food pantries serve in the greater chicago land area and most of them have jobs these are people who when they fill up the gas tank and need another twenty dollars to fill the tank realize they're not going to have enough money to buy the food for their children that they planned on buying and they make a stop at the food pantry i'd like to ask the senator from ohio if he is familiar with second harvest which is a major national organization that involves itself and in processing contributions from private industry in the federal government into food pantries and if he would if he has any experience in dealing with second harvest food pantries in his area or other food pantries the last point i'd like to make is that we were told on sunday that people who care particularly this holiday season should go to second harvest dot org where they can find their local pantry find where they can drop off food volunteer for an hour make a donation do something that will make you feel good about yourself in this holiday season but i'd like to ask the senator from ohio if he has been in contact with these agencies dealing with second harvest i think  the senior senator from illinois for his work on on food issues and other issues on everything from sub prime to minimum wage and all that really can or we can play a role in improving the lives of of people who are as you say are working most gave most of these cases working full time jobs food stamps second harvest is one of the great organizations in this country in illinois in ohio in nevada in from on all over this country and and i would urge people who understanding that second harvest is not getting the donations they used to get or not getting enough help from them from the government they're not getting as much from supermarkets and from business because they got before and they're frankly not getting as many charitable donations because people who gave before sometimes are in need themselves because it's often people that don't make a lot of money that are most generous with their money and with their assistance so any any plea that any of us can make to people in our states businesses individuals who are as lucky as some of us are we are in this chamber that could help second harvest that can go on websites and go into the yellow pages and look around their communities where they can help people so that this will absolutely make a difference and i think that ensure the center from illinois for his interest as majority leader i mentioned to my friend from ohio a fact that i just heard i hope it's wrong but if it's wrong it's not much wrong the average income of people who vote in america today is seventy thousand dollars a year i'm very happy we have people who have a little you know people of means who are voting but the reason i mention that the last two issues of them brought before the senate one dealing with life that has helped people stay warm in the winter time and the other that was  the center from vermont senator sanders and now the central ohio talking about food banks in nevada twenty five percent of the homeless are veterans and we have adriel difficult problem especially in las vegas the weather warm most of the time and we have people who are homeless there who are desperate to food banks the difference between being real hungry and  having something to eat it's i have i i saw one time mr president in disguise i spent two days in with the homeless a number of years ago that i did that but it's something i will never  forget people are not there because they want to be is they're not there because they're lazy there are some who are alcoholics and there are some who have drug problems there's no question about that but we have so many of these people who have emotional problems we have no community health centers they can go to so they are just down and down and all that center for miles asking is that the food banks place where the poorest poor get to go to get a meal i don't run out of food and i want t be directed to the last two things we've tried to work on keeping people warm in the winter time and having people so they're not starving so i appreciate i hope that that even though these people that is you know those people that are cold in the winter time they don't have people to come in lobby for the people who are homeless don't have people here lobbying for them coming in there and limousines in the parking lot here in constitution avenue and sometimes they are there in their gucci shoes have to walk all the way across to half a block to come in lobby for some of the tax breaks they want with people who are hungry and people are cold that is the case so i appreciate very much someone high on bringing to the attention of senate something that needs need be done department of state or operations or related programs for the fiscal year ended september thirtieth two thousand and eight for other purpose purposes with and then those i moved to concur in the amendments the house and i have a a close position has already been chair of the foreign operations subcommittee committee senator byrd has designated senator leahy to manage this bill that during the hour that's prior to this cloture vote we have a few people want to speak maybe not all the time will be used and i would hope during the evening that people would be considerate of talking when they have to these issues are fairly well pronounced now we know what they are we have a domestic spending bill that has been worked out through the house senate democrats and republicans we have the white house has been involved in that that part should be fairly easy it may not be everything that we want and may be more than what some want but it should be take a lot of time on that we have three amendments that are going to be may of this next year leaving their troops to take care of counterterrorism force protection training iraqis to a limited extent when we have amendment will be offered by senators levin and reid that will call for additional funding for iraq but in addition to that it will have some accountability that's now not in existence i would doubt mr president as the majority leader does make senator leahy has a control of our time during the debate on this matter the previous order there will be one or basically divided between the two leaders or the designees prior to a vote on the motion to invoke cloture center from vermont president i would alter not even need the no more than five minutes on a separate issue before we get heavily into the debate on the on that mr president the time has been equally divided and i ask consent that the the senate mind a whole be able when recognized to take five minutes from the time set aside to the republican side with the objection thank you sort of i must present i'm pleased that the congress is going to send the openness promotes a practice of our national government act that you open government active for those who follow this it's poil they're going to send it to the president before the end of this year and  the american people are going to have a new law honoring the public's right to know and they'll have it during this holiday season and i commend the house government reform and oversight committee chairman henry wa supported the idea of the freedom of the information that we all know that no matter who is in the administration was a democratic administration or republican administration there when they do things there was know about the press releases flow when they make a mistake and all of ministrations do they just assume we not know about where the money's been wasted whether a policy has not been fall and that's where the freedom of information act comes in because that allows the american public now after all the government serves them and allows him merican public to find out that when the vigil private citizens of the press and others what happened is save the  or dollars over the years because of what they found out but more importantly is kept our government not us i wrote the electronic grid bit of information act so i'll just use the internet and electronic  files for that but this one this open government act the first major reform in more than a decade it's going to help reverse a troubling trend of excessive delays  actually lax compliance with oil and i government now i think that helps restore public trust in our government and improve transparency and restore meaningful deadlines for agency action under  president what we have said no matter who is the next president he will have to run a government is more openness been the past all three hundred million americans a better chance to know what happens result of a lot of hard work and there is a lot to be proud of at the same time i regret that over the last month we have had to strip some two point one billion dollars in resources out of it as all of us know the omnibus bill that is now before us has a total cost that is just slightly higher than the levels requested by president bush and much of the press coverage surrounding this bill has highlighted the fact that we have shrunk this bill down to the levels that were requested by the president but when it comes to the transportation and housing division of this bill i want to make it clear to my colleagues that the budget reflected in this bill is not the president's budget instead this bill makes great  rejecting president bush's hard and harshest cuts in transportation and housing and it includes critical initiatives that are new that will make important improvements to transportation safety mr president i am proud of what this bill accomplishes it provides funding to hire and train new air traffic controllers and it rejects the president's efforts to cut funding to modernize the air traffic control system it responds to our need to address crumbling infrastructure especially our nation's highway bridges and in response to the worsening congestion our families our families experience on our highways and our runways mr president this bill rejects the efforts by the administration to slash funding that would ease congestion at our airports to reject his efforts to push amtrak into bankruptcy and leave millions of americans stranded on the platform and it rejects his attempts to walk away from the needs of millions of americans who depend on the federal government to keep a roof over their heads including our elderly and our disabled and finally mr president this bill reaches a helping hand to the millions of families who are worried at this holiday season about whether they will be able to keep their homes in the coming year mr president millions of people are facing foreclosure on their homes in the coming months mortgage payments are rising out of control there are communities in this country where every third home or even every other home is being abandoned by homeowners who can't make their payments this bill addresses that crisis by targeting almost a quarter of a billion dollars to ensure that our families get the counseling they need this kind of housing counseling can make all the difference for homeowners who are struggling to make payments and to keep their homes the amount that this bill provides for housing counseling is more than four and a half times the level that was asked for by president bush vice president earlier this year my very able partner senator bond and i held numerous hearings on the most important transportation housing challenges that face this nation together and we negotiated every line of a very complicated spending bell with each other and then with our colleagues in the house we were able to put together an appropriations bill that was reported in fact unanimously by our committee and passed the senate with eighty eight we then negotiated a conference agreement that earns the signature of every single contrary on both sides of the aisle on both sides of the capitol so we produced a truly cameral bipartisan bill unfortunately even though with house democrats house republicans senate democrats and senate republicans were greed on a balanced package that really did address our transportation housing needs the one person who didn't agree with us was president bush because of that we were blocked from sending our transportation bipartisan bill to his desk for a veto now since that time we've had a couple of very different difficult negotiation and ask the result of that we have had to strip almost two point one billion dollars of funding out of our part of the bill now there are real consequences to those additional cuts that the president insisted on transit riders across the country are going to write an outdated buses because there is not enough money to replace them construction of new light rail systems in some of our most congested cities is going to be an discretionary highway programs have been stripped of the dollars that would have been available for national competition because of the president's demands we were required to cut matching funds that we're sending to the states to support expanded passenger rail service we reduced the initial commitment made by our conferees to expand the number of family unification vouchers that's the program that provides the necessary housing assistance so foster children and their struggling parents can be reunited in a stable household and mr president we were required to slow the release of a satellite navigation throughout our national heroes air space so mr president like i said i've got mixed feelings about this bill we were dealt a very difficult hand by the president's budget demands and in order to live within those constraints and move forward we had to make some difficult and those cuts mean we have had to put up an important investment in transport in highways and in community development among many other areas  still appreciate the work of my colleagues to ensure that this bill rejects the president's worst transportation housing instead the spill response we most critical needs in transportation housing and make sure that our broken bridges and highways get repaired that are crowded airports are safe and track is protected from bankruptcy and we are protecting our most vulnerable citizens from homelessness funniest president i do want to spend a couple minutes on a related subject in the last few days the appropriations and finance committees were able to reach an agreement on the way f a a funding will be made available in the future i'd ask mr president i would just let my colleagues know that this past the school year was supposed to be the year that congress finished important legislation to reauthorize our federal aviation programs and that included the corps authorizations for the operations of the f a a as well as the agency's prepared budget research budget and federal grant program that are used to improve and expand our nation's airports now i regret that congress was not able to make more progress on the legislation this year but thankfully this appropriations bill now includes a number of important authorities in funding that will keep the f a a functioning and keep the airport and airway trust fund solvent this conference agreement extends the current aviation excise taxes and tell the end of february and includes provisions to extend the existing war insurance risk program as well a third party liability project protection the bill to include funding that rejects the president's proposed cuts to central air services which guarantees their service to a lot of our rural communities something that many of us care about and it rejects the president's proposed cuts to our effort to modernize the air traffic control system and invest in airport infrastructure mr president congress has not been able to finish the f a a reauthorization process in part because of the disagreements among the senate committees about what their role is in overseeing and funding f a a programs and there are also disagreements about what type and mix of taxes and fees are supposed to be used to fund the f a a but i am pleased to report that we have now successfully worked through one of those disagreements over the last two days two committees have come to an understanding about how a program will be moving forward and i ask unanimous consent that the exchange of letters between the leadership of the two committees be included in the record at this point mr president the fi paragraph of the letter our committee received from chairman baucus and ranking member grassley of the finance committee states that's a look forward to working with our appropriations committee as partners in advancing the needs of our aviation system as one member of the subcommittee that oversees aviation from maine i want to express my strong interest in working as a partner with both committees to come up with a bill that fully addresses the future needs of our national efficient system senator from new hampshire request without objection this session of congress and there may be a lot of issues out there that will be brought to a final vote and i think for all of us as any session concludes we have to look at the work product and say that's a job well done or a job not so well done and frankly for those of us on the republican side who stayed together and fought the fight and exchanged our differences with those on the democrat side to bring a budget back into constraints that are at or near the president's proposal is without question a victory and some of us will recognize that and on our that tonight as we conclude this first session of congress there is something else that is being concluded tonight or upon the time we sign a die and that is the career of senator trent lott of mississippi and while many have come to the floor over the course of the day to speak about trent i had not had that opportunity because of several other meetings and a committee that was in session so i want to take a few moments to visit with all of you about my friend and my associate there is not a lot i can say to add to what has already been said about his quality as a person his ability as a leader i first got to know trent in one thousand nine hundred eighty one when i came to the u s house and he had already been there for ten years and was rapidly growing in stature amongst republicans as a leader who would ultimately be chosen to work as a republican whip in the house so he and i grew to know each other and our wives got to know each other during that period of time and a clear friendship developed but it wasn't until the both of us left the house and came to the senate that we developed a different kind of relationship and friendship that frankly most senators don't have the opportunity to do trent lott and i and john ashcroft the senator missouri who became u s attorney general under this administration and a former republican then to become a democrat senator then to retire senator jim jeffords of vermont all four of us developed a very unique relationship that no other senator shared amongst the four of us we found that we could sing together and that in doing so we could not only have fun ourselves but that other people sometimes with a smile would suggest they enjoyed listening to us we formed a group called the singing senators and over a period of about four years we traveled from los angeles to springfield missouri to branson to houston to nashville we were on the today show we sung at the kennedy center and what was most interesting was we shocked folks not only after a lot of practice did we begin to sound pretty good but can you imagine stuffy blue suit pinstripe senators all of a sudden singing elvira that we did and we had a lot of fun doing it and we entertained people all over the united states but what came out of that was a friendship and a bond that probably few others had because the four of us traveled together with our spouses in all of these locations that i mentioned and a good many more not only to entertain the public and to show that we were human by our character while we could still be united states senators but also to raise money for our party or to raise money for a senate candidate and i'll never forget the time when we were in los angeles and there were about  thousand people out there waiting to hear us and we were singing off from a c d with our background accompanied with music and the systems broke down and what do you do when the music stops well most people quit singing but we found out that we could sing apollo or without a company and so we sang god bless america we sang a couple of other songs and they got the music picks and i think the audience enjoyed us without music more than they enjoyed this with music anyway we had a lot of fun but in the end we did something else we went today phil and put all of our songs together on a cd produced several thousands of cds just to give away finding out that they were in demand and so we sold the ball and all of the money wind to the ronald and nancy reagan alzheimer's fund and frankly we found out to our great surprise that it raised a lot of money and i know that trent and john and jim and i still today every so often will get a phone call from somebody who says i just listened to your cd again and you know you guys were amazingly good for united states senators well that's probably a side of trent lott that was not spoken to today but it's a side of trent lott that you all oughta know the smile the joy of the fun we had of singing the kind of songs we song in a way that the united states senators are just not supposed to do or in the end united states senators are like an awful lot of other folks out there we are human we have a very human side to us with our friends and our families and that is what we learned about friends and tricia lott and john ashcroft and his wife and jim jeffords and his wife as we traveled around the country singing on behalf of republicans but really singing on behalf of america because we enjoyed it and we hope others would enjoy it and that's something i'll miss when print lot leaves because we've had an opportunity since that time to get senator from maine mr president i ask unanimous consent that i be permitted to proceed until the vote incurs which is two minutes from now without objection thank you mr president mr president i rise to discuss the funding for the low income home heating assistance program to this program and steps a lovely vital to the people of my state this we seeing record high prices for home heating oil i want to thank the appropriators for including additional funding for the law he programs as tired of the omnibus spending bill b mr president i was hoping that we would proceed to consideration of the a member and heard by the senator from vermont which i'm proud to be a co sponsor which would have provided eight hundred million additional dollars for the law he program mr president this is a real crisis i consider the amount of money that spills to be a significant step forward but it is not adequate to meet the overwhelming need for the constituents that live in cold weather states and were struggling and literally choosing between paying their bills buying food purchasing prescription drugs and staying warm mr president that is a choice that no family in this country should have to make i am pleased with this down payment on the law he program it is a major step forward that's going to make a significant difference but frankly mr president is it simply not adequate to meet the overwhelming need mr president i would ask unanimous consent that the balance of under the previous order the clerk will now report the motion to invoke cloture the undersigned senators in accordance with the provisions of rule twenty two of the standing rules of the senate here by move to bring to a clo is is it the sense of the senate the debate on the motions of paper in the house amendments to the senate amendment h r twenty seven sixty four manager apartment of a state foreign operations and related programs appropriations act we usually wait until the bells finishes ringing mr rockefeller  are there any senators in the chamber who have not voted or who wish to change their vote on this vote the yeas are forty four the nays are fifty one three fifths of the senators duly chosen answer or not having voted in the affirmative the motion is not agreed to the senator from kentucky mr mcconnell moved to concur in the house amendment number two to the senate amendment to h r twenty seven sixty four with an amendment number thirty eight seventy four mr president of the consent agreement how much time do we have the the agreement contemplates the second degree amendment the feingold amendment where there will be a one out or they'll be one hour of debate equally divided on that amendment this friend that i'll just use later time now the republican leader misread and a lot has changed since last december at this time last year america and its allies were desperate for good news out of iraq the security situation was dire mr president we still don't have order in the senate the senator is correct senator is entitled to be heard the senate please come to order the senators please take their conversations off the floor so that we hear the republican leader the senate is not in order on the democratic side order so that we can hear the senator from kentucky the republican leader as friend a lot of change since last december and this time last year america and its allies were desperate for good news out of iraq the security situation was dire and getting worse and all eyes civil war threaten to undermine the heroic work of u s forces and frustrate the hopes of millions of iraqis then general petraeus stepped forward with a bold new plan we can f security situation in and around baghdad has changed dramatically attacks on u s troops are down civilian casualties in baghdad are down seventy five percent iraqi refugees are streaming back over the borders outside the cities local leaders are forging agreements among themselves and with u s forces to ensure even greater security there is simply no it's still not an order t the republican leader i thank the chair there is simply no question that on the military and tactical levels of betrayers plan has been a tremendous success so as we stand here today we have new hope that u s servicemen and women are beginning to return home with a sense of achievement a lot of change in iraq and here in washington we should take notice before us is an amendment sent to us by the house of representatives that underfund our troops and only provides for those fighting in afghanistan it leaves the troops in iraq to fend for themselves and that's unacceptable mr president what's the difference between funding the troops in afghanistan and funding troops in iraq where both our troops even those of us who disagreed on the war have always agreed on at least one thing and that is that troops in the field will not be left without the resources they need so the amendment that i sent to the desk provides for our men and women in uniform in iraq and afghanistan because i believe it's our duty to protect all those who are putting their lives on the line it's also important to understand and i hope everybody in the chamber and anybody listening gets this fundamental point if this amendment does not pass the mcconnell lieberman amendment does not pass in its current form the underlying bill will not become law the passage of the mcconnell lieberman proposal is essential to getting a presidential signature on the omnibus appropriation and the iraq funding betray us plan provides for a gradual reduction of our forces and a transition of the mission iraqi security forces will eventually shift from partnering with coalition forces to leading forces on their own we must not impose an arbitrary timeline for withdrawal or accelerate this timeline at an unrealistic pace this is a moment of real hope for our nation and for the people of iraq it's a moment of real urgency here in the senate we need to pass the spending bill with troop bonds without any strings and without further delay and mr president at the risk of being redundant let me say one more time the president has made it absolutely clear that to get a presidential signature and to wrap up this session having succeeded in passing all of our appropriation bills will require the passage of the mcconnell lieberman amendment so when we get to that a member will have a couple of votes before them but when we get to that amendment it is essential if we want to complete our work in a way that implements the appropriations process as all of us feel it should be implemented on a reid and senators late he died boxer cannady kerry harkin white house wyden durbin schumer obama and and as l again and i'd add that the seventeen co sponsors of the greatest number we've ever had for this amendment requires the president to begin safely redeploying u s troops from iraq within ninety days of an accident and requires redeployment to be completed within nine months at that point with the bulk of our troops safely out of iraq funding for the war would be ended with four narrow exceptions providing security for u s government personnel and infrastructure training iraqi security forces providing training and equipment to u s servicemen and women to ensure their safety and security and conducting targeted operations limited in duration  against members of al qaeda and other affiliated international terrorist organizations also my colleagues complained we spent too much time debating iraq this year they'd rather be talking about other issues well we have a lot of important priorities here but nothing is more important to me or my constituents than ending this disastrous war as i do every year i held a town hall meeting in every county in wisconsin this year that seventy two meetings for those of you aren't from the bad your state i heard a lot from my constituents at these meetings about health care and education but the number one issue i heard about was foreign affairs particularly the war in iraq when it comes to order it is now in order the senator from wisconsin thank you mr president the number one issue i heard about was foreign affairs particularly the war in iraq let me tell you they weren't asking why congress is spending so much time on this issue they were asking us to give the president more time for his so called surge like americans all across the country they want an end of this war and they want to know what's stopping us the senate needs to address the concerns and demands of our constituents who more than a year ago voted for a change in congressional leadership in large measure because of the debacle in iraq we have yet to follow through and end this misguided war before more americans are injured and killed and we're about to adjourn for the year and let the war drag on even longer we hear a lot of supporters of the president and the supporters of the president violence in iraq is down right now and therefore we're on the path to victory that argument would be a lot more convincing if the administration had a viable strategy for success the surge may buy time but as long as there is no political solution to iraq's problems we're just postponing the inevitable resurgence and violence in our brave troops will continue to bear the brunt of it all that's not a strategy for success it's not even a strategy it's just a way of pushing this problem to the next president and the next congress while our troops put their lives on the line and our constituents foot the bill or i should say our constituents children and grandchildren foot the bill because we can't even be bothered to figure out a way to really pay for the war we're just handing the tab to future generations sticking them with hundreds of billions of dollars of more deficit spending mr president i am certainly pleased that violence in iraq has declined in the last few months once again our troops have shown that they excel in any challenge which with they are t this doesn't change the fact that this year was the bloodiest year for americans since the war began and there are still a few weeks to go in two thousand and seven indeed let us remember that nearly four thousand americans have died and thirty thousand have been wounded in a war that has no clear strategy and no end in sight of the president is bringing home a token number of troops over one hundred sixty five thousand troops remain as the war drags its fifth year what are we supposed to tell them and their families to wait another year until a new administration and a new congress starts listening to the american people and bring this tragedy to a close mr president i appears no closer to legitimate political reconciliation at the national level than it was before the surge began equally worrisome as it is a part of the president's plan we appear to be deepening our dependence upon former insurgents and militias infiltrated security forces with questionable loyalties supporting the shakes and bar and elsewhere may help to reduce violence in the near term but by supporting both sides in a civil war we are risking greater violence down the road such tactics are likely to undermine the prospects for long term stability as they could lead to greater political fragmentation and ultimately jeopardize iraq's territorial integrity again mr president without an illegitimate national reconciliation violence may ebb and flow but it won't end and will be no closer to a settlement no longer no matter how long we keep a significant military presence in iraq that's not the fault of our heroic men and women in uniform it's the fault of the administration's disastrous policies there's another dirty secret behind a temporary drop in violence and it relates to the segregation of baghdad and the neighborhoods on its outskirts with so many iraqis fleeing their homes in search of greater safety and security large scale displacement as resulted in very different demographics previously mixed neighborhoods have ceased to exist thereby curtailing one of the chief sources of sectarian violence this ethnic cleansing is hardly evidence of a successful service and it sure isn't a whole will sign or peacher future peace and stability in iraq surge the administration said its goal was to keep a lid on violence to give time and space for reconciliation in iraq now that we are no closer to reconciliation the administration is trying once again to move the goal don't hear as much about reconciliation now and when we do it sounds very different from the national reconciliation that was supposedly our goal instead we hear about bottom up reconciliation whatever that means all the administration can do is stall for time just as it did in two thousand and four just as it did in two thousand and five does it did in two thousand and six now the slogan made of the difference mission accomplished day of the course the new way forward or even return on success each time we are told we are on the right road if we just keep walking a little longer until that is we reach another dead end and a new slogan is invented to justify heading in a new but equally futile direction as the administration blunders from one mistake to another brave american troops are being injured and killed in iraq our military is being overstretched countless billions of dollars are being spent the american people are growing more and more frustrated and outraged and our national security is being undermined instead of focusing on iraq we should be focusing on our top national security priority and that of course is going after al qaeda and its affiliates all around the globe this administration has sadly proven we cannot do both al qaeda is waging a global campaign from north africa where the algerian government is blamed an al qaeda affiliate or two major bombings last week for the border region between ganna stand in pakistan where while we've been distracted by iraq al qaeda has reconstituted and strengthened itself there is a price to pay for our neglect mr president and this administration has failed to acknowledge it because of its narrow focus on iraq the administration has been so distracted it is not adequately address the deteriorating security conditions in afghanistan where the resurgent taliban the same movement that harbored and support of the terrorist elements that attacked our country and nine eleven are gaining ground violence may be done in iraq mr president but it is up significantly in afghanistan there was seventy seven suicide attacks in afghanistan in just the first six months of two thousand and seven which is about twice the number for the same period in two thousand and six and twenty six times higher than from january to june two thousand and five now this worrisome escalation of suicide bombings is one of the many signs that afghanistan's already tenuous stability is even shakier and while earlier this week the pentagon confirmed that the us military and its nato partners are reviewing plans for afghanistan it's awfully late in the game to try to put that country in a solid path to stabilization and development nonetheless we have to drive because we still have an opportunity to really finish the job we started six years ago in afghanistan eliminating the taliban and destroying a safe haven for terrorist networks  seek to harm us and this opportunity is critical because until bin laden and his reconstituted al qaeda leadership are killed or captured afghanistan's future cannot be separated from our own national security s president instead of seeing the big picture instead of approaching iraq in the context of a comprehensive and global campaign against a ruthless enemy this administration persists with its tragic policy and its tragic mistakes as the president digs in his heels is simultaneously deepening instability throughout the middle east undermining the international support and cooperation we need to defeat al qaeda providing al qaeda and its allies with a rallying cry a recruiting tool and increasing our own vulnerability president's promise to redeploy a few battalions leaving one hundred sixty thousand troops in iraq is not nearly enough that is why once again i am offering this amendment with majority leader re it is up to us here in congress to reverse what continues to be an intractable policy it is our job to listen to the american people to save american lives and to protect our nation security by redeploying our troops from iraq because the president will not do it i am not suggesting that we abandon the people of iraq or that we ignore the political impasse there we cannot ignore the ongoing humanitarian crisis that has unfolded within iraq the one that followed millions of iraqis as they fled to jordan and syria these issues do require the attention and constructive engagement of u s policymakers key regional players and the international community they require high level consistent and multilateral engagement and cooperation but iraqi reconciliation cannot and will not be brought about by a massive american military engagement an acting feingold raid we can finally bring our troops out of iraq and focus on what should be our  national security priority waging a global campaign against al qaeda and its affiliates some of my colleagues will oppose this amendment that is their right but i hope none of them will suggested feingold reid would hurt the troops by denying them equipment or support because there is no truth to that argument not passing this legislation would result in our troops being safely redeployed within nine months at that point mr president at that point with the troops safely out of iraq funding for the war or would and with the narrow exceptions i mentioned earlier well that's just what congress did in one thousand nine hundred three when we voted overwhelmingly to bring our military mission in somalia to end and that is what congress must do again to terminate the president's on ending mission in iraq this amendment is almost identical to the version i offered with senator reid and others to the defense department authorization bill and once again we have specified that nothing in this amendment will prevent us troops from receiving the training or equipment they need to ensure maintain or improve their safety and security so i hope i won't be hearing any more spirits arguments about troops on the battlefield not getting the supplies they need t president this war is exhausting our country overstretching our military and tarnishing our credibility even with the recent decline in violence the american people know the war is wrong and they continue to call for it's and so i urge my colleagues to vote yes on feingold reid so we can finally heed their call to action present i yield for of the thirty one billion dollars in funding for the war in afghanistan one hundred thirty thousand or more troops in iraq for six years yet over the number of u s deaths has reached three thousand eight hundred ninety and the numbers  twenty eight thousand while production is buttering shortages of basics like electricity and water fight the boondoggle that this war has been and for private contractors evidence of ethnic cleansing s forces continue to care the bulk of the security burden es and the reduction of violence in certain areas of iraq as gratification for continuing the occupation using mercenary forces to expand used for domestic disasters is shipped off to iraq and our national guardsmen the first responders in emergencies sit in the sand the hot san to vote this amendment is to vote for our troops and again a reasonable new policy for iraq to vote for this amendment is given again to reassert their constitutional role of the congress as the people check on the executive using the most powerful tool that there ever was and ever will be in the congressional arsenal the power of the purse to vote for this amendment is to show the american people that we are listening patriotism we must not rule the dice again recklessly risking american lives and american treasur senator from arizona a surprise and i rise to oppose the pending amendment by senator from wisconsin my friend and i strongly support the amendment offer that will be offered by the republican leader that would deliver vital funding for our troops in iraq the underlying house passed bill is not only responsive to the facts on the ground in iraq simply irresponsible it fails to provide any funding for our troops fighting in iraq and actually contains an explicit prohibition against the use of funds for operation iraqi freedom the authorship compiled a bill of some fourteen hundred pages and an even larger joint explanitory explanatory statement chock full of unnecessary spending but they conclude not a dime for our troops in iraq they include not a dime for our troops in iraq i'd like our friends and colleagues and others to consider that the bill on the floor today contains one point six million dollars for animal vaccines in greenport new york but not a penny for our soldiers in iraq seventy six four hundred seventy seven thousand dollars for barley he food benefits but nothing for the troops in iraq eight hundred forty six thousand dollars for the father's day rally committee of philadelphia not a dime for our sons and daughters who are fighting we're well into spent two hundred forty four thousand dollars for the research and will last go texas but not a dollar for our fighting men and women in baghdad care coote and and bar to sad day said day indeed when in the middle of a war this country must win the congress provides more funds for b research and for the brave americans risking their lives on our behalf for congress to fail to provide the funds needed by our soldiers in the field it is inexcusable under any circumstances but it is especially disappointing right now at the very moment general david petraeus and his troops are achieving the kind of progress in iraq that many dismissed as impossible a few months ago clude ng suspending disbelief in order to believe that the surge was working one has to suspend disbelief to believe that it is not the bill's proponents seek i suppose so precipitous withdrawal of u s combat forces from iraq regardless of conditions on the ground or the views of our commanders in the field if that sounds f should should sound for me and my friends the majority is thus far engaged in no less than forty legislative attempts to achieve this misguided outcome the choice today is simple that we build upon the clear successes of our current strategy and give general petraeus and the troops under his command the support they require to complete their mission or do we ignore the realities and legislative pre mature into our efforts in iraq accepting thereby all the terrible consequences that will ensue in case my colleagues missed it just a couple nights ago there was a piece on the evening news of one of the major networks that pointed out that for the first time in a long time there was twenty four hours in baghdad without a single incident of violence how you would can ignore these facts on the ground is something that i don't will not comprehend i had the privilege along with my colleagues senator lieberman of connecticut and senator graham of south carolina spending thanksgiving with our troops in iraq and on that trip i saw and heard firsthand about the remarkable transformation that these brave men and women in uniform have brought about this year after nearly four years of mismanaged war our military in cooperation with the iraqi security forces has made significant gains under the new american counterinsurgency strategy the so called s overall violence in iraq has fallen to its lowest level since the first year of the invasion we turn to general ray odierno the second command in iraq said this week that this improvement is due to the increase in american troops and better trained iraqi forces due to the increase in american troops and better trained iraqi forces now you can believe general ray odierno or you can believe those on the other side of just this week major general joseph fil a commander for baghdad stated that attacks in baghdad fall and nearly eighty percent since november two thousand and six murders in baghdad province are down by some ninety percent over the same period and vehicle borne bombs have dropped by seventy percent so as the president as ronald reagan used to say facts are stubborn things facts are stubborn things and these are the facts not rhetoric but facts major general phil added that today there is no longer any part of baghdad under al qaeda control though the terrorist group is still quote still lurking in the shadows and i agree they are on the run but they are not defeated they are on the run but they are not defeated last week the violence in anbar province was the lowest ever recorded the british handed control of southern bodger to the iraqi government and in diallo one of the most dangerous regions in qaeda militants tried to retake several villages around the town of colonies only to see u s backed local volunteers drive the terrorists away that's the success of a classic counterinsurgency strategy tens of thousands of volunteers have joined quote awakening councils that aim to combat al qaida and al qaida is number two imo al zawahiri has begun warning of traitors among the insurgents of iraq as a result of the hard worn gains one gains our troops have secured general petraeus has been able to initiate a drawdown of u s forces a drawdown tied not to an artificial timetable but based on security gains in country this drawdown beginning with the removal without replacement of some five thousand american troops has commenced following a dramatic drop in american casualty rates and enhanced security throughout the country is leadership knows which side is winning in iraq it may not be aware in some parts of america and in this body but al qaida knows a kite and knows who is winning in iraq our soldiers know they have ceded the momentum in this fight a majority party understand that we're succeeding under the new strategy the proponents of this bill cannot continue forever to deny or disparage the reality of progress in iraq or reject its connection to our new counterinsurgency strategy as general odierno explained with the new counterinsurgency operations quote we have been able to eliminate key safe areas liberate portions of the population and hamper the enemy's ability to conduct coordinated attacks general odierno went on to add that quote we have experienced a consistent and steady trend of increased security and i believe continued aggressive operations by both iraqi and coalition forces are the most effective way to extend our gains and continue to protect the citizens of iraq given these realities some proponents of for syphilis withdrawal from iraq have shifted their focus while conceding finally that there have been dramatic security gains they begun seizing on the lackluster performance of the iraqi government to insist that we should abandon the successful strategy and withdraw u s forces this would be a terrible mistake of course there's no question that iraqis national leaders must do more to promote reconciliation and improve governance and that the reduction in violence has created a window for political and economic progress that iraqi leaders must seize but let's not close that terms of national interest or simple morality of banning it to the oft al qaida terrorists and iranian backed militias by trying to destroy none of this is to argue that iraq has become completely say where the violence has come down to an acceptable level where the victory lies just around the corner on the contrary the road ahead remains as it always has been long and hard violence is still in an acceptable level in some parts of the country unemployment remains high in many areas and the maliki government remains on willing to function as it must no one can guarantee success or be certain process progress or its prospects we can however be certain about the prospects for defeat if we fail to fund our troops make no mistake quite the progress i've outlined there is no cause for complacency just as we have managed to turn failure into success in two thousand and seven we can likewise turn success back into failure in two thousand and eight if we're not care major general bill recently put it progress toward securing the city remains fragile and there is absolutely a risk of going to quickly in drawing down troops and immediate pullout too quickly would be a real serious threat to stability here in iraq in baghdad he said al qaeda is off balance but they will come back swinging at us if we give them the chance of magine for a moment if one of those forty attempts to force it would draw from iraq had been successful earlier this year rather than hearing from our commanders and troops in the field about the enormous progress the decline in violence the iraqis seeking to return home the decrease in al qaeda influence we would hear instead a very different story a darker one with terrible implications for the people of iraq the wider middle east and the security of the united states of america some of my colleagues would like to believe that should the bill we're currently considering become law without funding our troops in iraq it would mark the end of this long effort they are wrong for the congress for some perceptiveness withdraw from iraq it would mark a new beginning the start of a new more dangerous effort to contain the forces unleashed by our disengagement if we leave we will be back with we leave will be back in iraq and elsewhere in many more desperate fights to protect our security and at  greater cost in american lives and treasure now is not the time for us to lose our resolve that's why the senate must adopt the mcconnell amendment the funding contained in this amendment is not as some of characterized it quote the president's money it is money for their troops it is money for the brave americans who are in harm's way as we speak this funding is to provide them with the equipment and proper training they required to fulfill their mission funding to protect our men and women from roadside bombs and other attacks funding to enable him to bring this war to a successful and honorable end and if the funding is not included the president will be very rightly veto this omnibus measure my colleagues i say to my friends on the other side the i understand the frustration that many feel after nearly four years of mismanaged war i share their frustration and song but we must remember to whom we owe our allegiance not to short term political gain but to the security of america to those brave men and women who risk all due in short and to the ideals upon which our nation was founded that responsibility is our dearest privilege and to be judged by history to have judged discharged honorabl matter so much more to all of us and any fleeting glory of popular acclaim electoral advantage or office let us not sacrifice the remarkable gains our servicemen and women have made by engaging in a game of political brinksmanship was far far too much at stake i urge my colleagues to support the mcconnell amendment to reject this amendment to fund our troops and or support them so that when they do return to us they return with the honor and success there valiant efforts have earned they in the american people whom they are entrusted to protect deserve nothing less president i'm a share my concerns about a provision included in the interior division of the omnibus appropriations bill which i am addressing at this point in time this provision was added on the house floor and was unfortunately retained by the conference committee the language of this provision will prohibit the l m from preparing or publishing final regular as for oil shale commercial leasing on public lands this provision is opposed by the department of interior and i have a letter stating their concerns from secretary dirk kempthorne and i ask unanimous consent that it be submitted for the record without objection in two thousand and five i worked closely with my colleagues in the house and the senate on provisions which were included in section three sixty nine of the energy policy act of two thousand and five these will help lead to commercialization after the research and demonstration projects currently underway have proven themselves as those of us who have to run the business know it's a bad practice to pour millions of dollars into research and development projects with no hint of assurance that these projects will lead to commercialization understanding the regulatory framework within which development must take place it is important to companies making investment decisions i believe as i did in two thousand and five that it is critical to give companies investing tens of millions of dollars into these research projects a pro verb real light at the end of the a timeline included in this section of the energy policy act for setting up a regulatory framework for oil shale development require the department of interior to develop a program matic environmental impact statement for oil shale by february of two thousand and seven and to finalize oil shale regulations by august of two thousand and seven although these dates of slipped many who are concerned with decreasing our country's dependence on foreign sources of oil remain interested in thing this process moves forward a regulatory framework is needed in order to clarify the range of development options during the last several years a handful of companies have worked to develop technologies that will allow for economically and environmentally feasible development of this resource while it may take many years of research to establish whether commercial leasing is liable it is essential in guiding the scope of study and further analysis including additional sites specific environmental impact statements that are likely to be needed prior to any commercial scale development some of complain that it is too soon to begin drafting commercialization regulations or that the pace at which the development is moving is too quick i'm not advocating that we move forward  appropriately or in a way that is not sustainable it should be noted that section three hundred sixty nine of the energy policy act also requires the department of interior to host a commercial least sale in february of two thousand and eight by all who are involved in this process are aware that is premature to take that step too soon i have been supportive of moving back the date of the first commercial leigh sales however this fact does not mean that we should not bring the rest of the process to a grinding halt we are in the midst of a deliberate and thoughtful process for approaching the research and eventual commercial development of oil the potential of this abundant domestic resource is too important to take lightly it is estimated that there are potentially over three trillion barrels of recoverable oil  let me repeat that a potential of over three trillion barrels of recoverable oil available from oil shale at a time when this country is struggling to  oil for this country's consumption this could be the thing gl largest contributor to winning us off with imports from other countries many of whom are in political turmoil moreover bringing online another large domestic supply of energy can lower prices for consumers bring in royalties to states and the federal government and enhance the stability of oil prices in the marketplace cautious but deliberately deliberate approach that involves consultation with state and local governments we have the best opportunity of determining if producing oil from shale is possible we must give this process an opportunity to work before we cut it off at the knees the language included in this bill does just that it is not sound policy for our country and from a process standpoint we should not be undoing carefully crafted policy choices that were negotiated for months by the authorizing committees of jurisdiction and passed by the congress on a massive appropriation bill that is being pushed through this chamber at the minutes without objection i withdraw my request to yield the floor and senator i commend you i understand you're the ranking member on that subcommittee this and you tried your best to inform those who are working on this that this was not the way to handle one of america's most significant resources that might indeed sooner rather than less it or take the place of the crude oil we import from all over the world right now some of the major companies in america are investing in technology which will completely change the way this asset oil shale will be developed is that not right it's going to be in said to instead of the old mining system that would have been so tough environmentally this is a new process and i thank the senator from new mexico for his question which not which is becoming economically feasible and certainly protects the environment and i know that you've been working hard on this particular issue in the committees in which you have shown some leadership and i appreciate your recognizing the importance of us being less dependent on foreign oil and the importance of this huge reserves that exists in several states throughout the west and this is new technology it's very promising it's exciting and the byproduct from this particular  and i've seen samples of it is a high grade jet fuel that needs further east refining for because of the high sulfur nitrogen content but it's a remarkable product and it's done in an environmentally friendly way thank you senator and i want to just say this is exactly what we should not be doing putting on a moratorium that stops rule making and the ordinary professional evolution of standards by the appropriate federal agencies to address the utilization of one of america's most profound solutions to our energy crisis because the price of oil has gotten so high it is indeed feasible to develop shale oil in america and substituted for days still in crude oil products that are that are bought from overseas i know that i need not ask anybody any questions about that that's why we put the language in the big energy package and that's why candidate running for senate in the state of colorado should not pander to those who just want to take out after this product that could indeed be one of america's salvation and the people in your state and in america ought to know it the person that did this that put the moratorium on wants be a senator i understand well the first thing we ought to find out is as you want america to have a chance to be independent of foreign oil this is one that might do it you can imagine in fifteen or twenty years that all would be produced from this shale and it could be taken right out of the ground and you because they boil it in the ground that's the new technology and i'm not very impressed with somebody who comes along on a bill like this and deals with this recurring a resource in a willy nilly manner just to respond or pander to those who don't want the united states to do anything to develop energy on its on its own and they might say we couldn't do it before of course not you couldn't develop it at twenty five dollars a barrel oil but you can add fifty you certainly can it sixty and there's no question you can it eighty or ninety and that's what america's future is all about i thank you for your work i'm sorry it did not work but at least those who put that in know somebody is looking out for it it won't be there next year if we have to do another appropriation bill this senator will see to it that we have a vote in a debate on the floor on that issue before that happens i assure you and i thank you for your opening and i thank you senator cruz comments and support on this the very very important issue senator from mass mr president how much time remains on this many the proponents have six minutes and forty one seconds the opponents have five minutes and twenty seconds minute remaining without object mr president i i support to this amendment and i commend my friend and colleague senator feingold it's it's wrong basically and fundamentally wrong to give another blank check to president bush for his failed iraq policy i support our troops but i oppose our war mr president so we have heard here in the last few minutes in the last few hours the rather rosy picture about what is happening over in iraq and i think everyone in this chamber everyone in this chamber salutes the brave men and women  their courage and their bravery and their balor over the last five years this war has been going on for five years and we do know that there has been some progress made in recent times on the military aspect but as every member of the armed services committee understands that everyone that is had responsibility for iraq that has appeared before that committee has said there are two dimensions to finally getting  in iraq one is military and one is a political reconciliation and that has not taken place day after day after day after day our men and women are on the streets of baghdad and around iraq and more american servicemen have lost their lives this year than any other year of the iraq war make no mistake about it and as we see that these brave men and women in baghdad and all over are still being targeted in iraq they are basically mr president being held hostage by the iraqi political establishment american military personnel american service men and women are being hostage held hostage by iraqis political leadership that refuses to come together and reconcile their differences and form a government and every day that goes on american taxpayers money is being poured into the sance of iraq because iraqi politicians rates you repeal those reconciliation and political judgments in iraq that is to what is going on over there today that was going on yesterday as being going on for five is and what the other side says let's give this administration and then is president a pla the armed forces have done what they at the nasta do and the best way you can honor them is to get the policy right to get the policy correct and that is let the feingold amendment does and how very simple it says ok mr rocky politicians ok you've had your chance you've had your day now you have to take responsibility for your own country and the way that you're going to do that is that we are going to start bringing american servicemen and women home they have been unwilling to take the political decisions up till now the other side just says or more money and here those more american lives ingo as that change policy it says we believe that with the judgment and decision that we are going to take a certain american servicemen than then they will make the judgment and decision that is in the interest of their country the way as and work this way well why not give it a chance why not give it a try and mr president what are some of the american military personnel say over there listen to brigadier general john campbell deputy commanding general first calvary in iraq spoke bluntly about the faults of the iraqi political leaders he said the ministers they don't get out they don't know what the hell is going on in the ground this is  more billions of dollars you have to span let alone will never recover the eighty one brave men and women of my state of massachusetts have lost their lives that count be recovered we just think of this mr president for every month that goes on in that battle over there in iraq we could have two hundred and fifty thousand more school teachers that were expert in math and science teaching our young people for every month that goes on just say that every child that needs afterschool help and assistance would be able to receive it here in the united states of america just think of this that for every month this goes on mr president we could provide a headstart for every young person that needs it and just  and it matters to those that are supporting the senate fine go amendment mr president it's wrong to neglect priorities like he said hope for hundreds of billions of dollars into the black hole that iraq war has become it's wrong to give the president another huge blank check for the war in iraq and not is it up enough is enough enough and i urge my colleagues to take a strong stand in the boat against this gigantic blank check for more war time remaining on the side there is seventeen seconds remaining president consent and we have one minute evenly divided handed to the time is their objective without objection senator from vermont president came here at the time of the vietnam war i remember our people said well maybe it's true then maybe we should do maybe we should do something the vietnam war has gone one vote and the war ended two years later it's hard to find anybody who supported the war in iraq i paid for it a long time we've been in iraq longer than we were in world war two it's time to bring our brave men and women home is and we are a great nation we're not at liberty to flip flop around every ten as change of foot some polling data we voted this summer eighty to fourteen to give general petraeus a chance we funded the surge and we funded his new strategy and at the time we did that things were not going well in iraq we had a tough year there's no doubt about it and in the last him to conduct this war less loud general petraeus i proven later to do so less reject the tactical decisions of a general feingold and general can candidate we've got a professional there is achieving things very young on what i would have thought possible just a few months ago actually i hope and believe we were going to see progress but the extent of which is remarkable the last thing we need to do is to take action paula rock out from under the fabulous men and women who are serving us at great risk this very moment the highest and deepest wish is of a successful to execute the policy of the quorum call be dispensed with without objection public and leaders as such credit i would urge my colleagues to oppose the feingold amendment simply put this amendment mandates withdrawal from iraq within ninety days notwithstanding the substantial progress that even the harshest critics acknowledge is occurring there further it cuts off funds for those troops and nine months we've taken this about three times already this year that's three times we've voted on this just this year mr lugar mr martinez mr mccain mrs mccaskill mr mcconnell mr menendez ms mccall mr rockefeller mr salazar mr sanders mr schumer mr sessions mr shelby mr reid of nevada mr reid of nevada mr coleman mr coleman no mr gregg mr gregg no mr smith mr smith no mr by mr by no mr stevens mr  mr pryor mr pryor now mr white house mr white house  mr tester mr tester no mrs lincoln no mr rockefeller mr rockefeller  is there any senator wishing to cast a vote is there any senator wishing to change their vote if not on this vote the yeas are twenty four the nays are seventy one under the previous water requiring sixty votes for the adoption of this amendment the amendment is withdrawn under the previous order the senator from michigan is recognized to offer an amendment and must present as our time a lot on the senate for michigan's that month one hour the senator from michigan mr levin proposes memon him a thirty eight seventy six to a mammoth number thirty eight seventy four at the appropriate place and start the file section it is a sense the senate present ask for the reading of the amendment be dispensed with without objection mr president are amendment expresses the sense of the congress that we should have a goal for the removal of most of our forces in a reasonable time namely as a way of telling the iraqi leaders that they must accept responsibility for their own future are remembered expresses the sense of the congress is not legally binding it puts us on record and it sends a message it says that it's the sense of the congress that quote the united states armed forces in iraq should transition to the more limited set of missions laid out by president bush is september thirteenth two thousand and seven address the nation and counterterrorism operations and training of quipping and supporting iraqi forces and we add in addition to the necessary mission of force protection with the goal of completing that transition by the end of two thousand and eight the primary of this amendment is to keep the pressure on the iraqi politicians to do it only they can do work out compromise as they promised to do long ago to compromise the differences which divide so as to ensure the currently relatively calm situation in many parts of iraq including baghdad remains calm our sense of congress language is aimed to pressuring the iraqi politicians to seize the window of opportunity is general odierno put it to avoid a return to the violence t characterized the pre surge period the new york times in a story on december the fifth quoted iraqi prime minister sali as saying deputy prime minister sali is saying about the present situation in iraq i more a ceasefire than a peace well we need to make it clear to those iraqi political leaders that a cease fire is not good enough they must take the steps to turn that cease fire into a real peace from all accounts the surge has already produced some military progress the problem is that while the surge has up to this point achieve some military progress it has not accomplished its primary purpose as announced by president bush last january president bush said that the surge is purpose was to give the iraqi government quote the breathing space that it needs to make progress in other critical areas close quote and that quote reducing the violence in baghdad will help make reconciliation possible close quote the president also said that quote america will hold the iraqi government t announced those legislative benchmarks include approving a hydrocarbon law approving a de bath occasion law completing the work of a constitutional review committee and holding provincial elections those commitments made one of the half years ago which were to have been completed by january of two thousand and seven have not yet been kept by the iraqi political leaders despite the breathing space that has provided despite the breathing space which the brave men and women wearing our uniform have provided the iraqi leaders despite the breathing room and the breathing space which young men and women putting their lives in harm's way on behalf of this nation to give the iraqis an opportunity to create a nation they have not used that breathing space and as a matter of fact the iraqi leaders appear to be farther apart today than they were at the start of the surge iraqi political leadership to response to the breathing space provided by the surge has been stunning in action the iraqi parliament is suspended its session until new years thus ensuring that not one not one of the eighteen legislative benchmarks that they committed to meet will be met this year the president stated that he will hold the iraqi government to the benchmarks it has announced is hollow rhetoric that date there have been no consequences for rocky's failures to meet those benchmarks now whether the iraqi political leaders decide to take advantage of this window of opportunity is of course their decision united states can't make that decision for them their sovereign country and have to decide what is best for them the whether the united states keeps an open ended commitment or establishes a goal or redeployment of most of our forces is our decision that's not the iraqis decision they can decide whether or not to live up to the commitments they made to themselves  us solemn can that means as far as i'm concerned because it involves the lives of american troops those solemn commitments have not been kept we cannot force them to keep them but we can decide whether we're going to maintain an open ended commitment of our troops as president how much time do we have left to suffer from a she has twenty four minutes with you and myself three additional minutes mr president according to our own state department the key threat to our effort in iraq is the failure of the iraqi military the iraqi political leaders to reach a political settlement the what the state department said in its own weekly status report of november twenty first two thousand and seven this is our state department quote senior military commanders u s commanders now portray the of iraq's shiite dominated government as the key threat facing the u s effort in iraq rather than al qaeda terrorists sunni insurgents or iranian back militias now let me just read that once again this is our state department saying what is the key threat to our forces in iraq and what they're saying is it's not the iranian backed militias it's not the sun now we've got to break that intransigence how can congress do it how do we put pressure on the iraqi political leaders at a minimum by at least expressing our view at least  that u s forces in iraq should transition to a more supporting and a less direct role with a goal a goal just the goal of completing that transition by the end of two thousand and eight the message that the iraqi political leaders need need to hear is that congress has lost patience with them as has the american people by their own prime ministers acknowledging a political solution is the only way to end the conflict and that ending the conflict is in their own hands and i wish we could legislate a legally binding way forward for u s forces in iraq we've tried to do that we have not been able to break the filibuster to get the sixty votes but at least expressing the sense of the congress on this matter is better than silence because silence implies acquiesce the open and in this of our current presence it is that open ended commitment which takes the pressure off the iraqi political leaders and congress needs to act to correct that our amendment is a small but important step in that the restore resources they need to continue the mission they have been assigned it will also eliminate the distinction proposed by the house to fund all of those troops that are assigned to afghanistan in my view it unconscionable for congress to send a message to our troops that they will only get what they need if they're lucky enough to be assigned to fight the war in afghanistan what if they were assigned to iraq should they go without funds i believe it is our duty as senators to support the troops in the field and provide them all the resources they need to commit to complete the mission they have been a song unlike us they do not get to choose which battle  they go where duty calls without hesitation senator know and i were in iraq during the thanksgiving recess and i can tell the senate that the troops are watching what is going on right here they will get the message over there and if the house of amendment is approved it will be a real a real blow to the morale of our forces it's particularly concerns me that some of my colleagues would consider cutting off funds in iraq at a time when we're starting to see real progress and reconciliation i listen to the comments made by the scent of arizona senator mccain and i really am pleased to see his strong simple prove all of the funding of our troops that are deployed in harm's way mr president in march and pastor crocker and general petraeus will be testifying before congress to give us a cesspit of the situation in iraq we know that general petraeus plans are working there withhold funding our only invite defeat and step back from the progress that has been hard fought and won over the last few months i have urged congress for quite some time to approve this funding and allow progress to continue and wait until we hear from our leaders on the ground in iraq the funds that are sent as the president sent us the question these funds ten months or mr president for the past three years the committee appropriations has cleared the bridge funding as part of the annual appropriations bill to cover the cost of war until the full supplement supplemental bill was passed and the following year this amendment would continue what congress has done in prior years by providing funds to cover the cost of continuing operations including special pay and subsistence to our troops fuel transportation supplies and equipment recess and  intended to cover a half year cost for keeping troops in the field it also provides resources to prepare critical force protection equipment including body armor helmets armor plate for vehicles and aircraft survivability equipment billion dollars military pay and benefits to include support for our wounded warriors and desperate to appease fifty point two billion for operation and maintenance activities to include fuel spare parts transportation and equipment maintenance including five hundred million dollars to the commander's emergency response program one point four billion dollars for body armor and personnel protection equipment nine billion dollars for depot maintenance to reset equipment and maintain force writing this this amendment also provides funds to continue our efforts to train and equip their raqi and afghan security forces that funding is critical so that the elected governments in those countries can effectively provide for their own security and our troops can come home there is also a four point three billion  and improvised explosive device that the fund which will help our troops defeat and detect the number one the number one killer of our troops in iraq those are the i e t f mr president the end the improvi explosive devices we've heard so much about six point one billion dollars is included for the current of equipment ammunition vehicles missiles and aircraft including nine hundred forty six million dollars for aircraft army aircraft three point four six billion dollars for army vehicles and equipment seven hundred three million dollars for marine corps vehicles and equipment two hundred sixty six million dollars for special operations force equipment their member also includes one one billion dollars for the defense working capital to ask and it also provides one hundred forty million dollars for increased fuel costs three point seven billion dollars to continue enhance our intelligence activities and stater six hundred million dollars for the defense health programs to revive for the to pay for the cost of war out of the regular d o d monies that we've already appropriate in this sense bill the cost of this war is approaching fifteen million dollars billion dollars a month with the army spending four point two million of that every month i would urge the senate not  i rise today in speaker speak in favor of the eleven amendment on iraq as my colleagues know i have long supported a greater level of oversight in the war in iraq many of us feel that we should have done a better job of course oversight at the beginning of the war i was quite taken with a quote from kind of these are rice recently who said i wish we'd known more about iraq before we went in while in iraq in august i witnessed a great deal of progress on the ground and they gave me and courage meant however i was also convinced that it would not be possible to sustain the current level of troops in funding for reco over the long term without damaging our national security and long term fiscal he as a stated before i believe we need to implement a plan to reduce our military presence in iraq and focus the remaining military presence on a more limited role this is clearly the plan that general petraeus is implementing now and it's a stated goal of the president as  mentioned in the levin amendment supported by secretary gates and others who are concerned about our force level and that we need more troops in afghanistan i've been working with senator levin for several months now to come up with a piece of legislation that  bipartisan support in the senate and send a message to the president and the world that the congress intends to exercise oversight to ensure that we're making progress toward this goal i've been careful to avoid supporting in a measure that i thought would hurt our troops in any way tie the hands of our brave commanders in the field or prevent the president from responding to the situation on the ground september i introduced a bill with senators alexander coleman and told to strive for a goal to reduce our military presence and we had bipartisan support for that but senator levin i had a problem with the date and unfortunately it fell on the wayside i support the levin amendment and i am a co sponsor to this legislation because i believe it is a very simple piece of legislation that accomplish the goals that we all share it sends a message that we support the president's declared goal of reducing our presence in iraq over time so we can play a more supportive role bring our forces home and reduce the burden on our military it is a sense of congress that will not bind the president any way or tie the commanders hands in the field it is supportive of the president's own declared goals and that of his commander general petraeus who is doing by the way it incredible job that provides a goal for limiting our role in iraq and that goal is and at the end of next year but unlike other pass legislation this date is not legally binding and would allow the president to respond accordingly to the security conditions on the ground i believe as the men will that hurt our aspirations in iraq anyway but will actually help our president and general petraeus who are striving  hand over more responsibility to the iraqis this week it was announced that the iraq's government is ready to take over local security groups with our support this is an important step and it's a step and it's a step in the right direction we need to continue in this direction we need to make it our goal we need to let the iraqis know that we must they must take more responsibilities for their own security we must make it clear to them that we spent over five hundred fifty billion dollars that we have lost almost three thousand nine hundred individuals twenty six thousand people that have been wounded over there half of them are going to for the rest of their life are going to be disabled we paid a tremendous price and it's tie for them to step up to the table and start doing more for themselves mr president i support this amendment so that congress can send that message we are not simply funding a never ending conflict in iraq we have a goal of reducing our presence there and we're working toward it i hope my colleagues realize that much and to my friend from virginia thank you and i do hope you will take an opportunity to speak because your voice needs to be heard on this tonight good friend senator levin we've had a lot of chances to work together i'm afraid this is not one of those moments  what does all this name at this language passes it will get the bill will get they towed and when you read the language what is so bad about it i know the intent of the author is to try to make iraq a better place and he said for a long time i don't want to misquote and that is long we have this many troops in iraq they're not going to do what they need to do politically they use the troops as a crutch i think that's the general thing that we need to somehow let the iraqi government know that we're not going to be there forever with this number of troops and you need to step up the plate generally speaking i think that's your view of how to put pressure on the maliki government to reconcile but again i'll let you speak for yourself my view is that the lack of security has been the biggest impediment to reconciliation and that the security changes in iraq give us the best hope we've had in four years of finding a way forward politically in iraq and if we changed by word or deed our perception our commitment to the military strategy this currently working that we would be undercutting our best chance for reconciliation and this i'm in the sense that the senate really doesn't do anything positive it sends a signal that i've been trying to avoid for a while over a year now for three and a half years we had the wrong strategy file and we have the right strategy in my opinion the best sensible thing the senate could do is allow most outstanding military operation in counterinsurgency history and we shouldn't have any more debates about that is a fact now we should support it without reservation and this  will send a confusing signal about what we intend to do militarily the senate in my opinion should not try to change the mission the mission is to win very simply put it is not goal in iraq my goal is to win a war we can't afford to lose to have a military footprint in iraq as long as it takes to keep al qaeda on the run and when we come home which we surely will to come home with victory at hand and let the military commanders who are election decide when that transition should take place quite frankly as much as all of our colleagues in this body i don't trust anybody including myself to transition this mission other than general petra and this statement will be seized upon by people who are following this battle very closely and will send all the wrong signals and that's why it will be vetoed the most sensible thing the united states senate could do and we should have done this for five months ago is allow surge to go forward without political interference this is not the time to take command of the operation in iraq from general petraeus and his command team and give it to the united states senate i hope and pray that we will allow the surge to be funded to go forward and to achieve the goal that is in the national interest of the united states and that is victory victory over extremism and support of moderation so this attempt at making a political statement comes at the wrong time there's the wrong signal in the most sensible thing the senate could do is reject this and allow our military commanders t five minutes thank this president mr president senator levin has very eloquently pointed out the premise of the president's surge strategy that was to broaden the political space so that the iraqi government could essentially begin to reconciliation among its own people begin to function effectively little or none of that has happened what has happened is that the violence has been reduced and that is commendable it is  tribesmen have finally figured out that allocators is much a threat to them as to anyone else particularly the americans and they have banded together with us to attack al qaeda elements there how  relationship of convenience last is a question that is not to resolve within baghdad there's been significant ethnic cleansing in fact we recall just weeks ago where refugees that are coming back they were told by the government  baghdad don't come back you're going to provoke another destabilizing situation that ethnic cleansing is one of the factors sighter the leader of the the shia in the south a wonderful leaders in the south has basically told his mahdi army to stand down for six months so he can reorganize and so he can regroup so that when he feels the moment is right he's in a much more powerful position destroyed and then the administration has finally embraced some diplomatic efforts quietly i think with their radiance much more publicly with the syrians and all this all these factors together have contributed to this violence but here is one of those significant salient facts that i think we have to recognize the surge is over our force structure will not allow a continuation of one hundred sixty thousand american forces in iraq beyond the middle of this year beyond this summer that's not because some politician in washington says that's because the chairman of joint chiefs of staff because the chief of staff of the army understands the operation temple want to allow that and so the question before us now is well what's the strategy now mr president is a strategy is coming here and asking for a billions of dollars every three of all months asking for troops that can't be actively or effectively are botted because our force structure is too small the essence of this amendment an amendment that senator levin and i and others have been pursuing for months now is to focus on a strategy that can be sustained and supported so that we can do what we must do and that strategy in our view boils down to three very specific missions go after the terrorists the al qaeda people wherever they are iraqi security forces to support their country because ultimately the iraqi people and their leaders will decide whether their country will survive and prosper not american forces and finally protect our forces on the ground those are three discrete missions that can be done should be done there is no attempt in this amendment to cut off funding there is an attempt to focus our policy on a strategy that will work over time what we have here is no simple simple situation in which you've got a groups that were going political forces have to be settled only be settled internally by the iraqis standing up this the men will help direct that policy force them to recognize that we are not there indefinitely with a blank check it will also guide our forces to missions that we can't reform that will be essential to our security and will allow us i believe to do what we can to help that country stabilize itself this is a message it's a message to the troops that we are going to adopt a wise sustainable policy that is worthy of their sacrifice it's a message i hope to the president  he just can't come back here every six months and ask a five ten fifty seventy eighty one hundred billion dollars and it's a message to the iraqi politicians that they must seize this moment i our troops general petraeus in the field the funding they need to carry on the fight they're carrying on so successfully and as a result there rise to oppose the amendment introduced my but my friend from michigan and others mr president nine months ago when general petraeus took command in baghdad people of good conscience could disagree about whether his new counterinsurgency strategy would succeed unless he had decided that everything lost in iraq or it wasn't it didn't matter if we lost in iraq and i think most of us don't feel that way we know it would matter because we are engaged in a battle with al qaida the same outcome data that attacked us on nine eleven and iran the most significant state sponsor of terrorism according to our own state department supporting militias and extremists in iraq so if it matters but nine months ago people cared about whether we want our laws to direct that argue about whether the surge strategy would work after so many mistakes frankly in the conduct of the war in iraq many americans many members of this chamber were understandably success skeptical about the possibility of this new counterinsurgency strategy succeeding now however the evidence is unequivocal i will say it is remarkable and some cases it is downright miraculous the surge is working and as a result it is time to support general put trace his plan and his troops not to second guess not to editorialize about it not to add conditions or our goals to it  let's do something that we in congress don't do very well which is to remain silent in the face of something that's working let us with all respect the levin amendment is a classic case of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory because we are on the road to victory in iraq the extra american troops of played a critical part the the broad scale counterinsurgency strategy and what's happened violence is down i think this number has been cited but just this week major general joseph feel those the commander of our operations in  that attacks in the capital the a fall in the early eighty percent since november of two thousand and six murder in murders in baghdad province are down by ninety percent over the same period and vehicle borne bombs which of killed so many of our troops and the iraqi people have dropped by seventy percent there is a people's uprising a curl occurring in iraq today it started with the awakening in ambar it's now gone on to baghdad and other provinces throughout the country i know the sponsors of this amendment have said that they want to send it as a message to the iraqi national political leadership to get with it to reconcile of course we're all frustrated by their elected progress in doing that and a lot of us thought that the political changes in iraq would come from the top down but what's happened is something not to disparage not to ignore what's happened is classically democratic in the best traditions of america that the political changes interact are coming from the bottom up from the grassroots up local councils are governing in area after area the local people