uniting to help the members of this body to work together common ground and resolving differences match  fervent with compassion there is zero with civility erase from their spirits all feelings of arrogance or contempt may they strive to understand and respect each other with a spirit of humility lord make our senators an example to the nation of how to strive together for the common good give them a fresh burst of enthusiasm for the next chapter in the unfolding drama of the american dream energize their efforts with the power of your spirit we pray in your sacred name please join me in reciting the pledge of allegiance to the flag  the clerk will read a communication to the senate president but to this president majority leader we're going to be in a period of mourning business following this my statement those of the republican leader will have centers allowed to speak for up to ten minutes each times equally divided  control between the two leaders the majority will control the first house republicans the final half then we will begin again the consideration h r thirty two twenty one the housing  will be two fifteen this afternoon on emotion and look cloture on the substitute amendment to h r thirty two twenty one is present as we speak there are six trillion porton hearings taking place here on capitol hill today before the armed services committee in the foreign relations committee these two committees are chaired by two of our most senior senators and to our most able senator senator levin and senator biden the parents  these good an honorable man petraeus and crocker met to create an all of an honest and productive dialogue with congress on the state of the war in iraq and the future of military operations in iraq i hope that it does occur just in that manner that there be an open honest grokked of dialogue with us as americans people weigh the testimony consider the best course of action in far off iraq only two questions matter first is a troop surge brought us closer to the day when our troops can come home second is a war in iraq making america safer said in president by all accounts the answer both questions is no stated purpose of the surge according to president bush was quote return on success and to quote meaning that if the surge worked our troops could come home now the present claim success where is the return it's clear to anyone that tacksman green zone have intensified that is supposed to be the safest part of iraq the green zone conflict between al saud are all maliki show no signs of progress in deterioration as a surge brought us closer they want to troops come home come home we've already heard that general petraeus his request to freeze of troop levels the president wished likely to accept that request has the surge brought us closer they want to troops come home clearly the answer is no has a war made us safer now military experts agree that our armed forces are stretched thin beyond sustainable levels we're taking on thirteen percent of our recruits our young men and women who have committed crimes felonies violent crime thirteen percent one out of every eight of the people we're bringing in the military today are people who have criminal records because our manpower equipment is in iraq we're not committing this resource on down our number one enemy bin laden and his al qaeda network because we're bogged down in iraq we're not fully engaged in the global challenges that ghana stand pakistan around in the middle east among others mothe already of our great nation suffered great damage with our former he's refusing to stand was with us even greater numbers because the war in iraq made america safer there's no question that it is not a surge may have provided a temporary window for the iraqi government to make progress but it is becoming increasingly clear every day the iraqi government has squandered that opportunity even now with a warning six year president bush has failed to articulate an exit strategy the person running for president some mccain has said we should be there are another fifty or one hundred years present bush likes to say that we will only leave iraq once victory has been achieved it is time for the pres the be honest with the american people what does victory look like to president bush how does all this and it was not commit our courageous troops to the endless task of policing another nation's bloody civil war the job of america's armed forces job which they risk and often give their lives and limb is to protect our country and centers it's time to recommit to that crucial purpose and begin to responsibly end this   last night i assume that's the reason for his presence let him address that or whatever about other matter he may have morning business but i'd note in his presence i do want to even though i know he has some case date leanings nevertheless must be incredibly proud of the kansas jayhawks as a i won the national championship last night mr president on a on another matter and to start with the news of the passing of john hanford john was a world war two that great patriot and the dear brother of our colleague senator dole who i know was very close to him and will miss him terribly this is a said day for the dole family and i want to extend our deepest sympathies to senator dole and all of her relatives and entrench mr president i know the main event today isn't housing but i would like to start by thanking the majority leader once again for realizing the only way to address the housing crisis was to do so on a bipartisan basis and we're on the verge of doing just that we've now made significant progress and i'm confident that before the week is out we'll be able to stand together to announce completion of a good and responsible bill most homeowners will be relieved to know that one of the earlier proposals we heard from the other side a proposal to let bankruptcy judges rewrite the terms of existing mortgages will not be a part of the senate's final product though well intentioned this proposal would have led to a sharp increase in mortgage rates for millions of homeowners and republicans were going and weren't going to allow that at a time when families are already stretched really quite sent the final bill will help neighborhoods that have been hit hard by foreclosure with provisions that limit the amount of time empty homes sit on the market the proposal by senator isaacson this along with the economic growth package we passed earlier this year will put more money in the pockets of homeowners and it will help home builders climb back from the slowdown americans don't want to bail out for speculators and those who try to game the system at everyone else's expense so this is a targeted bill that will help home homeowners in the short term without jeopardizing the long term economy its likely passage later this week is something we can be proud of on both sides of the aisle now mr president to the testimony being made in iraq less than a year after our counterinsurgency plan went into full effect we've been getting a steady flow of positive reports on the security situation in iraq overall violence in iraq is down civilian deaths are down sectarian killing is down attacks on american forces are down and as a result of this thousands of u s troops troops have already begun to come back home another measure of the betray us plan success is the dramatic increase in iraqi security forces since the full implementation of the counterinsurgency strategy just last year between december two thousand and seven and last month iraqi security forces have increased by more than forty thousand bringing the total number to more than five hundred and thirty thousand this includes one hundred forty one thousand assigned soldiers and officers and a police force three hundred forty seven thousand strong over the last year the so called surge of iraqi security forces has been three or four times larger than our own s and as we stand here they are wreckage security forces continue to expand with young iraqis standing up for local police forces to protect the border and for special aeration as iraqis take over more of their own security needs congress can help by passing a supplemental appropriation bill that's been on request for more than a year these funds are also needed to ensure the combat readiness of the force and our forces over in afghanistan as well increase security in iraq has led to political progress in iraq those significant benchmarks remain on met progress on other significant bend benchmarks that same far off just a few months ago is now under way these include such things as passage in approval of the investigation legislation an amnesty law and measures leading to greater centralization of the iraqi security forces it's also worth noting that the iraqi government is starting to meet more of its own expenses including three fourths of the cost of its security forces and a new jobs program the success of general petraeus strategy is the best reason we have for listening closely to his advice as we move forward last august he said security and local political progress will enable us to reduce the number of u s troops to pre surgery levels and we have reason to hope the progress that's been made both politically and in security will in fact lead to a reduction in troop levels but general petraeus has a better grasp than most on whether the gains we have seen are secure enough for a full reduction to begin for the sake of our long term security we should listen very closely to what he has to say when democrats on the campaign trail tout their plans for iraq and afghanistan they often cite the need to listen to the generals the senior senator from new york likes to say that one of her first actions as president would be to convene the joint chiefs of staff to help her draw up a plan for withdrawal of u s troops from iraq if military advisors needed to draw plans for withdrawal should it be important drawing up plans for success our friends on the other side are rightly concerned about military readiness i share their concern but the best way to ensure the military's readiness is not to scrap a plan that's been working in iraq the best way to improve readiness is to approve the defense supplemental without arbitrary date for a withdrawal and a fully fund two thousand and defense appropriations bill like most americans on eager to hear what you are up the trail as an investor crocker have to say about the military and political progress that iraq is made of spent literally decades mastering their respective professional feels they deserve our respect and over the last year they have heard our admiration i know we will all welcome them and give them fair hearing that they are in and that this all important mission certainly deserve leader i too recognize the senator from kansas on the floor today i have to admit that i was pulling for kansas because they were very lucky and great basketball legacy and certainly i wished them many years and good fortune the future and congratulate senator roberts of kansas jayhawks for the great victory last night under the previous sort of leadership time is reserved for the previous order the senate will proceed to a more period of mourning business for sixty minutes with senators permitted to speak for up to ten minutes each with the time equally divided in control between the two leaders or their designees with the majority controlling serving on the senate armed services committee and having been in that theater over there more than any other member from the very beginning it's so obvious to see what the cost to defeat would be when you look at still in like a rainy and did a job saying that if the americans cut and run and there's a void we will fill that void that would be a disaster for freedom and that would bring the fight from over our soil we can't let that happen having just returned a few days ago from my fourteenth trip in that area i think it particularly meaningful to me to remember the life and sacrifice of a remarkable young man army staff sergeant christopher hate chris died in the twenty third of march of two thousand and eight of injuries he sustained when an i near his bradley fighting vehicle in baghdad chris grew up and he did oklahoma with his two sisters shannon and kerry his two brothers achree and scott i was in e did yesterday and i looked around  could see that area the type of place where chris grew up he spent his time as most of the oklahoma boys did attending school playing ball driving his car spending time with family and friends going to church what he wanted to do after graduating from oklahoma bible cademy chris enlisted in the army in two thousand he excelled during basic training at fort benning and was selected to serve as a member of the old guard one of the oldest and most respected infantry regiment in the united states army as a member of the old guard chris was responsible for guarding the tomb of the unknowns in arlington national cemetery and escorting deceased army service members to their final rest in the garden of stones as arlington is sometimes referred to by serving in the guard unit the pentagon was attacked on september eleventh chris was immediately called upon to clear the pentagon after the attack this illiterate side chris is commitment to the fight for freedom in the world and to protect the people of america he saw that opportunity in iraq in two thousand  chris transferred to the third infantry division at fort stewart georgia it was home during the summer of two thousand and four he met kelly short it was love at first sight they were married on the twenty first of december two thousand  chris deployed on his first iraq tour in january chris was disillusioned after his first tour feeling that many of the decisions being made back in d c were negatively impacting the ability to accomplish mission i know this is true because i've talked to the troops when i was over there and the fourteen trips that i've made in right now as we speak the senate armed services committee general petraeus is telling us the truth about what's happening over there but chris returned to fort stewart after his year in iraq and on fourteenth of october two thousand and six kelly gave birth to gage christopher michael a chris was both a loving husband and a proud father his focus and his love with his family spending time with them playing games with him sitting for hours just to be with them working on their house together chris returned to iraq on his second tour in october of zero seven he fought back his emotions as he said goodbye to his one year old son but he knew what he had to do and why he loved serving his country once in iraq again chris s a difference in the mission and what was happening to the right with the iraqi people during his second tour chris said he knew he should be there and talk to the love of the iraqi people for him and the troops chris's father remembers him saying you couldn't pay me to come home early that's going to dedication christian so many others have been there on easter sunday twenty third of march two thousand and eight sergeant chris hake tragically died of injuries he sustained when an i e d detonated near his vehicle in baghdad three other soldiers it is battalion and under his command were killed alongside with chris christie's father recounted that chris had said they would die for each other and quote and they did they gave the ultimate sacrifice and serving their country in a recent email to his mom and dad he said that he wanted to dedicate his second tour in iraq to becoming a closer a follower of jesus chris wrote quote if anything were to happen to me gage would always be able to know that his father died so that he could live in peace and i know jesus did the same thing for me so it's comforting i don't have a nervous bone in my body this time more peace than i have been my whole life on the thirty first of march christian returned home to oklahoma and was rated an honor guard from fort sill members of the pager guard riders i read through some of the comet's written in chris's online yes the i'd like to share just a few of these with you one thank you for your sacrifice my children will know what men like you have done for them i am the mom of a soldier serving in iraq and just wanted to tell you how proud i am of your son has been a daddy i know that first squad will always maintain and exceed the standards you have fit we miss you i read through all of the entries in cried i hope it is comforting to know that there are so many of us praying for you john fifteen thirteen greater love has no man than this that he lay down his life for his friends the spartans will keep you close to our hearts forever in time inside and they thank you for being my son thank you for gage a little copy of you thank you for fighting and making a stand by my second baby boy they sold your pride and joy today we remember staff sergeant chris take young man who loved his family who loved his country chris was doing the lord's work in the lord is richly blessing you now i yield the floor our men and women in uniform and thank him for his comments on behalf of another brave patriot place paid the ultimate sacrifice and his tribute to one of america's heroes from oklahoma t five o five along with myself and mr brownback and it is my hope that it will be considered hotline on both sides and passed later this afternoon at this resolution as a commendation resolution in behalf of the university of kansas men's basketball team for winning the two thousand and eight national collegiate athletic association and see double a division one basketball championship as of last night now this might be a little unique in that i am a graduate of kansas state university home by the ever optimistic confiding wildcats and sometimes we're rivals but in this particular case all of kansas including every case state fan and it is clearly rock up time in kansas i would ask unanimous consent that the entire resolution be printed in the record at this point without objections or and i will skip to the bottom line where it says whereas the families of the players students and alumni and faculty at the university of kansas and all the supporters of the university of kansas are to be congratulated for their commitment to and pride in the basketball program at the university now there for me at the result at their senate commands the university of kansas men's basketball team for winning the two thousand and eight n c double a division one basket championship and that the secretary of the senate will transmit enrolled copies of this resolution to the university of kansas so they can display it the chancellor of the university bob same way a great friend the athletic director the university of kansas lou perkins and the head coach of the university of kansas men's basketball team self who should remain at the university of kansas those remarks were not fair but that's my advice and for those of you who did not see the game last night and that it started at nine p m and i know most senators asleep or at least somewhere at nine o'clock at night trailing sixty to fifty one with two point one two seconds left in regulation kansas close their second half weather twelve three run mr president capped off by mario chalmers three point basket with two point one seconds remaining to force overtime kansas then outscored memphis twelve to five in overtime to claim its third national championship and so mr president as general petraeus is here testifying before four committees in regards to national security in the war with iraq and when this senate is considering a housing bailout and a stimulus package to help the economy let us hope that the example of the university of kansas men's basketball team and regards to their perseverance and their dedication will enable us to achieve our goals as well and you know across the appalachians and clear to the east coast in our nation's capital if you listen hard you can hear that chant rock they are a few and if we l hard maybe we can work together follow their example of dedication perseverance and an unbelievable unbelievable a rolex to win the n c double a championship say is this champion of kansas state athletics in behalf of the university of kansas and their basketball team the floor president center from washington thank you mr president mr president i come to the floor this morning to talk about very special person on my staff bill kamila came to head my health subcommittee on employment and workplace safety about five years ago and ever since that day he has been a very critical part of my staff he is a trusted advisor and i think what impresses all of us the most is that he truly is a visionary when it comes to making the federal government a strong partner in worker training and safety thanks to the work of bill kamila across the country today fewer employers employees have to worry about the dangerous hazards or unsafe working conditions that they go to work every day and see and because of his good work and insistence more workers today can get access to good paying jobs to the training they need and to advancement i come to the floor today because bill is now preparing to move on to the next phase of his career and while we're all  in my office i'm very happy for him we are all extremely sad to see him go so i wanted to come to the floor today to take just a couple minutes to recognize bill's tremendous contribution on behalf of working families throughout the entire country as president bill grew up in buffalo new york where he learned the values of hard work and public service and i so he left buffalo for washington d c many years ago anyone who has  and spent time with him knows that his passion are all things buffalo especially his beloved beloved buffalo bills and we know when it comes to them they take precedence over anything else that is going on and anyone who's worked with bill also knows that he took to heart those lessons he learned growing up there about the importance of public service bill has dedicated his life and his career to helping kids and young people and families everywhere find success he's worked with the national urban coalition in the office of congressman gus hawkins at the national safe kids campaign and with a number of non profits in every one of those positions he has worked behind the scenes for policies that keep our working families strong before he came to my staff bill spent six years at the department of labor labor under president clinton where he served as chief of staff for the employment and training and ministration at the labor department when he worked there one of his responsibilities was to implement the workforce investment act which is as we all know the cornerstone of our national  job training system since coming to my staff he has worked diligently and we and thanks to him workers today have access to the training that they need so that they can still be successful in life no matter what happens to them bill has been the staff director for my employment and work force safety subcommittee and his dedication to those working families as well as his passion for public service have made it possible for us to make progress on the key piece of legislation that he has devoted so many years to the workforce investment act what impresses many of us here in the senate is that he works across the aisle and he brings people of all kinds to the table to get things done he has worked tirelessly as i said to fund and strengthen we have and other job training programs to help workers find and keep good paying jobs he also worked extremely hard and impressively on the miner a which improved safety and ensured coal miners have better access to lifesaving equipment air and water in case of an accident but i think one of the things that i will remember bill the most for is his work on helping us to pass in the senate the ban on a specif in america act he sat with me on countless meetings he talked to so many families he held the hands of widows who spouses had died as a result of their exposure to asbestos and he brought so many people to the table and diligently worked detail after detail after detail to we could bring this bill up in the senate and after many years finally pass it i ow debt of gratitude for that and i want him to know as he leaves my office we're going to keep working under his name to get that bill done and to the president so that those people he has worked with can finally see this bill become law and mr president i have to say that he's been again instrumental in our efforts to make the federal government a strong partner he brings together educators workforce folks labor employers because he knows everyone needs a seat at the table so that our workforce can compete in this global economy but mr president his contributions go far beyond legislation outside of my office his attention to building personal relationships has earned him tremendous respect and admiration of workforce leaders across my state inside my office he's earned all of our respect he's a mentor to all of his coworkers he has never been one close the door behind him he's always generous with his time and he's helped bring up the next generation of staffers who rely on him so much for his founded by or a good pep talk whichever they need bill has an uncanny knack for keeping everything balanced on staff he sets realistic expectations but he doesn't ever let anyone get discouraged i know that will carry him far in this world so i come to the floor today to thank bill for his work and for  dedication to our country and i want to thank him for his personal and advice so many times his enthusiasm and his passion for working families in my state and across the country i wish him the best as he moves on thank you mr president i conclude my remarks i will yield to the center stabenow of michigan who will also talk about trade adjustment assistance and michigan and ohio and in all that our states are going through in large part because of mr recht a trade policy yesterday mr president president bush announced he'd send the proposed colombia free trade agreement to congress for a vote he does this over the opposition of the democratic leadership in the house and in the senate in defiance of our desire to work on a bipartisan basis in a direct direct opposition to the desires of a growing number of ohioans in michigan and americans all over this country in doing so president bush has nailed shut the fastrack coffin is my colleagues know this agreement was negotiated under the so called fast track provisions it's an extraordinary procedure provided only for trade agreements not for any other kind of legislation trade is that special and that important to a very narrow but very powerful very influential group of people in this country congress decided years ago to delegate an enormous amount of power to the executive branch to negotiate trade agreements in nothing else does this body charged under the constitution was specific duties a abilities and nothing else as its body give that much power to the executive branch as it does with these trade agreements now under the fast track provisions mr president once presented to congress a so called free trade agreement triggers a ninety day clock for consideration of the agreement no amendments can be offered to improve it unlike anything else here no minutes can be offered to improve it to approve it improve it seesmic congress is given a take it or leave it decision much of the talk about this agreement centers around the violence in impunity in colombia especially as it relates to trade unionists and for good reason international organizations and human rights groups look at colombia's record with urgency and with alarm human rights defenders trade unionist colombia leaders community leaders in colombia are today receiving death threats from the rearmed paramilitary groups such as the black eagles in are reeling from  new wave of violence this leaflet blown up of course was distributed at a march sixth rally in columbia and the beginning says death to the leaders who march for peace and justice this was a peace and justice rally and they handed out this leaflet to state their point of view if you will to black eagles before during and after this country wide rally and march six against paramilitary in all forms of violence at least to march organizers were killed union leaders carlos burbank no and carmen cecilia karva how were killed for trying to voice their views at least three other leaders were killed in events also associated with the march march organizers all over the country received death threats like these one organizers house was attacked with gunfire a week before the rally on february twenty ninth these human rights issues are exceedingly serious yet the administration cavalierly cast them aside barely acknowledging the culture of violence and impunity now mr president just the merits of the agreement the colombia free trade agreement is another fundamentally flawed trade pac in the in the long line of trade agreements like nafta and cast in the long line of bad trade policies like p n t r with china mr president these are really free trade agreements if it did what its supporters tell us simply knocking down trade agreements it would be a smaller document it would be something like this couple of pages just getting rid of tariffs instead it's more like something like this like nafta nafta was nine hundred pages of rules and regulations having little do with trade because instead of something like this simply eliminating tariffs which we would like to do instead of that these agreements are packed with rules on  on services on procurement on telecommunications when drug patents on more so why do we get thousands of pages of seemingly non trade issues and a trade agreement because these trade agreements are rules to protect corporation not rules to protect workers these trade agreements are rules to protect the drug companies not to protect the environment rules to protect hedge funds not rules to protect consumers rules to protect wall street not rules to protect mainstream notice the word protect they toral writers the harvard economist the c e o s the wall street bankers the corporate lobbyists the big time lawyers the hedge fund managers try to label people like us protectionists guess it depends on whom mr president you want to protect nafta caf to colombia they protect the drug companies and the investment banks they protect the corporate interests there's a sort of a high class kind of protectionism but protecting labor protecting consumers that's not protection if that's the duty of government many in this chamber will recall the debate on the central america free trade agreement we had a coalition of religious people consumer advocates environmentalist small business medium size manufacturers organized labor in opposition to catholic captors proponents said if it didn't pass poverty would get worse in central america kaptur they promised would promote economic growth would curb the violence in central america would serve as a model for strengthening democracy the united states trade rep mr zoellick said of calf to stumbles labor rights in central america will not be strengthened as if anybody in that  mr president wanted to strengthen labor rights the reality is that there been disturbing developments in the region including the recent passage by the hundred or in government of a lot of create exception zones that will allow foreign factories to pay less the national minimum wage how does that help under and workers so that there is a zone that they pay sub minimum wage labor ministries and central american countries still laugh this lack the staffing and the resources to met them and implement their programs budgets in many cases of actually been reduced since the passage of the central american free trade agreement consistent with its history of repeating the same act and expecting different results the administration now wants columb congress to approve a deal with colombia a country where there are increased continued death threats against labor activists followed up by by assassinations of labor activists followed up by nothing followed up by no prosecution no attempts to find the killers and continued excuses from president uribe a and continued excuses from the u s chamber of commerce in the united states trade representative and frankly yesterday president bush himself shown no willingness to enforce labor environmental rules at home so it's hardly surprising it would ignore violations among our trading partners there's been well documented abuses in sweatshops in jordan despite the supposedly better labor standards in that agreement to its credit the king of jordan has taken steps to crack down on these companies to work with nat and with with non government organizations and others in promoting the standards intended in that agreement it's important to note the bush administration however did not use the enforcement tools available to it in that trade agreement to require labor compliance so why do we think they will use the provisions in this trade agreement in the colombia treat a grain trade agreement to require labor compliance of course they won't but when there's a commercial dispute mr president or a drug patent dispute the administration comes down on a country with all the fury it can muster protect the drug companies the administration says yes protect workers no thanks protect  interests the administration says of course protect environment the administration says no thanks protect the banks in the financial institutions the administration says we're do i sign up for tech food safety for our children protect ois for our children food safety for families ministrations not particularly interested why then mr president should we consider a trade agreement with a country like colombia which is known as the most dangerous country in the world to be a union activist in fact colombia has an unbroken record in recent decades of leading the world in trade unionist killings violence against unionist continues at extremely high levels the vast majority of trade union assassinations remains unsolved figures show that between twelve and seventeen trade unionists were killed in the first three months of two thousand and eight among those murdered was carmen ramirez a teacher and a member of the teacher's union she was killed on her way to work on march fourth or the director of the national union of bank workers he disappeared on march fifth was found dead three days later a sub unit of the attorney general's office was established in two thousand and six in bogota to exhilarate resolutions of assassinations unionists despite more resources for these cases convictions continue to lack blag behind murders leaving the unsolved and unconvicted rate at ninety eight percent of the twenty two hundred eighty three murders between one thousand nine hundred one and two thousand and seven one twenty two hundred eighty three murders of union activists in that seventeen year period fifty convictions have been fifty convictions out of twenty two hundred eighty three to that sounds like the government really is interested in going after hate groups like this we need to craft trade policies mr and mr president to deliver the long term results we need not just the short term profits a few multinational companies crave when it comes to trade and the bush administration ideology trumps outcomes special interests always always trump u s interests congress needs to reject this agreement the senate needs to make a clear statement that we stand for a better approach to trade one based on using our market as leverage to raise living standards in latin america in michigan in montana and ohio in our whole country thanks as president i've joining joining me today is senator stabenow of michigan who is in her almost seven and a half years in the senate and time in the house has been a stalwart advocate for workers in michigan and across this country and particularly interested in the trade adjustment work with the problems in michigan she has stood to trade we just want to export our products that are jobs that's what we want to export and it seems to me mr president that the administration one more time is getting the cart before the horse here  hear all the time about the interest and beefing up trade enforcement and passing trade adjustment assistance or dealing with currency manipulation and so on and yet those things are not happening and the ministration comes forward one more time with another trade agreement without those things in place and i first want to thank the chairman of the finance committee for speaking out very strongly not only introducing a bipartisan trade adjustment assistance bill th indicated must be passed before this trade agreement is even considered i appreciate that very much and his willingness to report from committee the finance committee of which i'm honored to serve a bill dealing with currency manipulation and we have a trade important bill as well but the reality is that we've not received support from the administration and we've not seen the willingness to make this the priority that needs to happen first in terms of our families i know it's a priority for our leader i know it's a priority for the chairman of the finance committee and the majority of us on that committee but yet still today we are here one more time with the administration rather than listening to the leadership the speaker rather than listening to our leader our leadership and being willing to address the needs of workers who have lost their jobs because of trade they instead send up another trade agreement which as my friend from ohio has indicated is now one that focuses on what is right in terms of workers either the workers in columbia or the workers in michigan or ohio or montana or across the country i mean from my perspective it is hard to imagine when we have lost since the beginning of this administration now almost eight years ago three point six million manufacturing jobs million three point six million families that had great middle class jobs with health benefits and pensions now find themselves either unemployed or underemployed in many many in many many situations in my home state of michigan  president we've lost four hundred twenty five thousand jobs i don't know how many folks are in montana for sure but my guess is that would be a pretty big percentage of the folks who live in a state that i know you love dearly and advocate for every day four hundred twenty five thousand people in the last seven half years and again we know the economy is changing we know we're focused on advanced manufacturing we're focused on new technology michigan is is becoming a leader in alternative energy and will be a leader in alternative energy but you know we've got to continue to make things in this country that's what manufacturing is about i happen to believe that in a can we doesn't should make things and grow things and then you add leverage to it yad value to it that's how you have an economy that's how we have had an economy in a middle class that then the envy of the world and frankly when we look at creating a level playing field we are to be talking about bringing other countries up to us not racing to the bottom americans have been asked if you only work for less lose your health care benefits lose your pension we can be competitive you know even when when senator brown talks about colombia setting up zones or other other countries where you don't have to even pay minimum wage in those countries if you come in as a as an american company or companies from another another part of the world you can come in there and pay workers last that's a race to the bottom that is not a race we can win and i don't want to win it because we win that race and we have lost the american dream we have lost the middle class of this country but we want as a race up in that means education innovation changing the way we fund health care and yes it means a level playing field on trade and mr president i believe that before we can go further with trade agreements there's four things that we have to make clear that we're going to get done on behalf of american workers and american families trade adjustment assistance there's an excellent bill isn't introduced in the senate bipartisan that has a bill that would extend any improve upon trade adjustment assistance which was set up so that if somebody loses their job because of trade that they're going to be able to go back to school they going to have their health care benefits continued for a couple of years while they get retraining to be able to go into that new economy and that we all talk about secondly we have to have a stronger trade enforcement operation in this country you know we have some two hundred and thirty different trade agreements and according to former commerce secretary mickey kantor who came before the finance committee we have the smallest trade enforcement office of any place in the world anyplace in the industrialized world smallest trade in forstmann office so we need to be fed up and again we have legislation to do that we just need to pass it it's signed into law here that the president will support it it includes a provision that senator lindsey graham and i've been working on a  bipartisan provision that we worked and now for years to create what we call a u s trade prosecutor but basically a chief enforcement officer a place for businesses to go when their patent is stolen or when there's been an unfair trade practices against them so that we have somebody fighting for american businesses and american workers that need to get done and we need the strongest possible currency bill to address what is in fact against the law and creating an unfair advantage particularly for china but in the case of the auto industry japan as well where they are manipulating their currency selling products to us they get anywhere from a five percent up to forty percent discount right off the top because of the valuation of their currency that needs to change that's called a level playing field and then finally mr president we need to make sure that we extend unemployment benefits for folks now who have been unemployed due to our inaction on trade or through other parts of the economic upheaval that we have been in in so many parts of the country which unfortunately growing across the country i think michigan was the canary in the coal mine in many ways where we we were hit hardest first the epicenter of manufacturing but this is now spreading out across the country and we need to make sure that that middle class person who has lost their job has the opportunity to at least put food on the table and pay the mortgage while they're continuing to look for work so those things mr president i believe need to be put in place before we send any more trade agreement forward as it relates to one more time a trade agreement that we don't have the capacity to enforce we're not helping the workers who have lost their or will lose their jobs we're dressing the broader issues that have cost us jobs every single day you know i got the new numbers on friday for what has happened the last week's dismal jobs report was released it was reported that our nation has lost eighty three thousand jobs last month eighty six eighty three thousand jobs last month we know what's happening we know that we are in a recession that we've known in michigan for a long time and yet president bush's chief economist edward  are said that quote i don't focus too much on the monthly unemployment rate because it's been a bit volatile a bit volatile three weeks four weeks ago we were hearing that well you know the underlying fundamentals of the country are good you know we had a little housing a little higher housing problem but the underlying fundamentals are good i don't know with all due respect mr president what planet these folks are on the reality is that we have seen a convergence of issues from the housing situation to the broader financial markets to the trade imbalance trade deficit huge deficits in our budget we have seen lack of enforcement on trade agreements jobs three point six million manufacturing jobs alone this is more than just a little bit of volatility in the economy so mr president i am extremely hopeful that we will say no to this commie and free trade agreement and that we will stand up for americans will stand up for americans that have  lived their lives working hard trying to play by the rules who expect us to stand up for them and american businesses who have done the same thing that's passed trade adjustment assistance the right kind of way let's make sure that we have a strong policy and currency manipulation let's make sure that we toughen our trade enforcement laws and that's most certainly  of thousands millions at this point of those who are on unemployment insurance who are asking us to extend those benefits as has been done in every other time of recession so that they have the ability to be able to care for their families while they are looking for a job mr president i hope that we would value the dignity of work and what millions of americans are going through every day now a d understand that it's our job first and foremost to fight for them thank you so much important information and i would hope that we would heed what they are saying regrettably i must tell you too many in the democratic party remain in denial over the progress being made in iraq and still remain politically vested in defeat we've heard the leaders of the party say oh we've already lost they believe that might give them an advantage in the november elections that's certainly a bad way to decide what arch rata g should be to defend the security of the united states we've made great progress in our fight against terrorism the war is far from won but today there's no question that the central caliphate we're fighting that war there so that future generations of americans will not have to fight them on our own soil tomorrow or my colleagues who argue that we should be fighting them in iraq should be not be fighting in iraq but in  afghanistan let me get you a little bit of intelligence news al qaeda is not in afghanistan al qaida left afghanistan after we deposed saddam hussein what we're fighting there are the indigenous taliban insurgents not al qaeda more than anyone else our brave veterans who are fighting rock against the al qaida know the dangers of defeat they know what they and others like them have done their word to us is we as a nation  specifically we as your military have made too many contributions and too many sacrifices to walk away from this essential battle for our freedom and declare defeat if my colleagues will listen today to the voices of veterans on the hill and their tan gulf here they are the voice of people who have been in the field the vets for freedom with whom i've had the honor of being this morning and to general petraeus and admiral crocker we these are the people we not we need to listen to not the voices of move on dot org and the code pink extremists we need to bring our troops home but we need to bring them home on success that's what they've fought for that's what they're there for as one man in the film said reported today you can't be for us for the troops and against the war because we are in the war now despite the evidence of progress in iraq the media seems trigger happy to report bad news less than forty eight hours after iraqi security forces began their campaign against the militant shia factions in the media already was declaring the opera actions of failure the operations initiated on march twenty five were designed to quell rogue factions factions of nakagawa solders mahdi army and covering the fighting the press displayed is fire i don't know of any commander who's declared a cease fire when he's winning right now general petraeus and ambassador crocker are testifying before the senate on the progress being made in iraq and i expect that that testimony will show that the new counterinsurgency or coin strategy backed up by the surge has been working and has brought iraqi citizens to our side in the fight against  sectarian killings and attack on american forces are all down coalition forces have captured or killed thousands of extremists in iraq and clearing hundreds of key al qaeda leaders and operatives and american troops are beginning to return home one success in addition to security progress iraqis are also making critical political progress while this run has been the slowest and we must continue to demand that their rocky's assume greater members to reenergize political and civic life it has passed a budget that focuses spending on security reconstruction projects in provincial governments and is an act in an amnesty law and it has reached agreement on a provincial powers law that will ensure the iraqis the right to be heard in upcoming elections democrats are in denial of the progress in iraq despite this evidence of both security and political gain their rejection of the reality and iraq does not extend just to the current betray us and crocker testimony avar some who favor a retreat and defeat in iraq have also taken issue with a classified iraq national intelligence estimate or an i e d distributed to lawmakers last week always quick to tout and cherry pick information from an n i e that could be twisted support their motives the retreat in defeat gang as outright rejected the latest iraqi intelligence report they call they claim it's too rosy unfortunately this denial is more than rhetoric and fodder for the mainstream media because we know that defeat in iraq would have serious national security implications and do great harm to our image around the world and image that so many of my colleagues on the other side say they wish to repair iraq is the central battleground in the war on terror in addition to giving al qaeda safe haven defeat in iraq would embolden and possibly nuclear armed iran the intelligence community has stated in an open hearing before the intelligence committee earlier this year that if we draw withdraw from iraq before their army and police can maintain security violence and chaos will spread across the region mr president has been a tough fight we've lost over four thousand of our bravest men and women president the senator from georgia is also waiting to speak so i'd like to be notified at four and a half minutes and i will split it down the middle with the senator from georgia mr president  i rise today to speak about general petraeus his testimony i was able to watch a little bit of it before i came over here and i was beginning to see of course the questioning from the armed services committee and i think it is so important that we look at the big picture and what general petraeus is saying also of course we have ambassador crocker who is doing a terrific job over there i was there at the end of february just six weeks ago i met with both of them but what i saw was an incredible change from the other time that i had been in iraq as general petraeus said himself from june two thousand and seven through february two thousand and eight deaths from ethno sectarian violence in baghdad have fallen nine hundred percent american casualties have fallen sharply down by seventy percent in the last year the number of high profile attacks has fallen by fifty percent now all of us believe that one american death is not worth the price that  we would pay if we had a choice but mr president every one of those who are there understand our mission and how important it is and every one of those that i have met with both the people who have returned from iraq and afghanistan and the families of those who have lost loved ones say do not leave do not leave without a victory without seeing through the successes that we have gained they understand this mission unfortunately it doesn't seem that the majority in the united states congress sees it as those who are on the ground and who have suffered the most do as recently as february the senate leadership was trying to stop the surge by requiring an immediate and arbitrary withdrawal of u s forces from iraq when we didn't even have the results and yet those of us who have been there recently have seen the results i went to a police station with our embedded forces and to a security regional center with embedded forces i did that because i was very concerned and i wanted to see it myself and i was very very pleased with the fact that our troops embedded there were causing the iraqis to come forward and do more and help us the sons of iraq which are now ninety one thousand strong are serving as neighborhood watches as they are manning the checkpoints they are taking us to the weapons caches do you know that we have overcome we have found the cause of the sons of iraq's cooperation the the more weapons than we discovered in all of two thousand and six before we had their help we are making progress twenty one thousand of the sons of iraq have now been accepted into our security forces it is amazing mr president that we are seeing military gains and we are seeing political gains it is not as fast as we would like to see it of course but it is progress in the right direction and the consequences of leaving for separatists only are consequences that would be unthinkable people talk about the cost of iraq's the cost of the war on terror as if the costs are prohibitive the costs are high but mr president the cost of of leaving and letting al qaeda have a base in iraq are much more expensive we are talking about nine eleven talking three point five billion dollars so if you put it in monetary terms which i don't think we should mr president this is not the thing that we should even be considering we should be supporting our  and we should be supporting the effort that would require complete success for our country this is the united states of america i met with the vets for freedom that were just time as experiment by senator bond as well they are the patriots who have been there who know what it's like and who are saying stay and fight and when it is the right thing for the united states of america to do thank you mr president and i you my remarks the distinguished senator from texas in missouri i'm very grateful for great americans like general david petraeus and optically grateful for the young men and women who volunteer day and night in this country to go and defend liberty peace and freedom around the world i come to the floor now to speak for a few minutes just pending the housing bill coming back of the stimulus bill coming back to the floor and a cloture vote is going to tell us they take place at two fifteen i come to well specifically today to talk for a few minutes about the tax credit housing tax credit memon which is now part of the base bill i come here today though to correct the misinformation that's been appearing in the media particularly over the past weekend and a couple of national publications in washington newspapers with regard to the housing stimulus and the tax credit being inappropriate or wrong the presumptions of those that have written are absolutely inappropriate and wrong and although they are tempting i'm sure to contribute to the debate they are in fact contributing to a tremendous misunderstanding about the reality of what the tax credits will do for the sake of discussion the tax credit is a seven thousand dollars thirty five hundred dollars a year tax credit that goes to any family that buys an occupied as their residence in a home that has been foreclosed upon and is owned by bank or lender new or resale and any resale owned by an owner occupant that is pending foreclosure now there's been two comments made about what's wrong with this proposal that are exactly the opposite of what's really right about this proposal number one in one editorial it's that it is rewarding people who did not pay their payments and punishing people who are making their pa it is not rewarding anybody if you are purchasing a foreclosed upon house the damage has already been done to the bar or the family to didn't reform is not rewarded they are in fact they've already suffered their punishment but everybody else in the neighborhood is  because that vacant house sits there deteriorating and the climbing house values secondly it does not punish the homeowner that's in their house making their payments because in fact the truth of the matter is that homeowners hurt more when a foreclosure since vacant and unsold than it is when that property is actually taken bought by a homeowner reestablished the lawns kept the values are stabilized the fact of the matter is we have an obligation at this critical time in our economy to do things that we can do that stimulate the market to solve our problems not have a plethora of government solutions to problems and stimulating the market to go back absorb these houses get them back in owner occupied hands get him out of o what we need to do now i don't come to this opinion as just someone who has an opinion i come to it based on experience thirty three years ago in one nine hundred seventy five i was in the business united states had just gone through a serious decline in housing and we had a problem we had three years supply of new houses standing on occupied on the market buyers were traded because they didn't know where the bottom was the economy went down everything was in a mess gerald ford a republican president a democratic congress came to this very floor introduced a two thousand dollars a year tax credit to any family that went and bought one of those standing vacant new houses only not any house just the standing vacant new houses that they are the problem houses past the two thousand dollars credit the market immediately responded within the one year window of opportunity to buy that credit two thirds of the standing inventory was absorbed home values stabilize and event go up began to go up and the economy returned to so i asked those that are rioting in criticism about a bill rewarding people who did bad things in punishing people who are doing it right there exactly the opposite the damage has already been done when the foreclosures taken place and the reward is to stabilize neighborhoods for those that are in their homes and bank i think the wisdom of the finance committee in the banking committee to incorporate this provision is an insurance policy that we in congress can do good things to drive the market to help solve problems you hear all these problems about us making payments for people and doing things to take money from one american to give it to another and it's am a trouble that only postpones the inevitable it doesn't solve the problem but stimulating buyers back to the marketplace to absorb those houses that have been foreclosed upon are pending foreclosure addresses specifically the housing crisis in this country of sources civically the houses that are causing us problems reestablishes values in our neighborhoods and stabilizes the values of those people who are in their homes making their payments doing what's right so with all respect to those that have opined over the weekend they are absolutely incorrect and wrong in terms of the applications of this credit and it will in fact be a boost to the economy a boost of the housing market and a stabilizing factor on home values and equities and the united states of america and i you know bags president mr president this gentleman your for a question absolutely yes ma'am thank you i have a question exactly about that not only those headlines but what people have asked me over the weekend and i want to gentleman you know first of all we value his extensive experience in the real estate field credit if you buy a foreclosed home in a neighborhood is that correct that thirty five hundred a year for the each of the first two yours you walk right as a right now here is the question there's two houses for sale one of the foreclosed property and one is a regular homeowner ready to sail the question that i get from like non profits and people is is the tax credit going to depress by seven thousand dollars the house that is not in foreclosure in other words that it actually has a dampening one price and if you're in good standing and you have a good mortgage but you're just ready to sell for whatever reasons and you're putting your house on the market and next to you is a four thousand dollar assures me a foreclosure sales and that's going to get a seven thousand tax break they're saying i'm going to have to eat seven thousand dollars to sell my house does this the senator could the senator answer that question for me i think i'm for all who i think are puzzled about the possible unintended consequences of this tax break the lady's question is right on target  and my answer to you is not an opinion it's a statement of what actually happened in one nine hundred seventy five in one thousand nine hundred seventy five there was no demand for housing because the plethora of houses that were on the market that had been foreclosed on that were built new were not being so nobody was in the market when the government of the two thousand dollar tax credit was established and those houses began to be absorbed the housing values stabilize so there was not a disadvantage to the person who was trying to sell who was in the house it was actually advantage the disadvantage you have right now is nobody knows where the bottom is because foreclosures are taken place the values are going down those values because of the cost of replacing back that overpraising which is used by all lenders the kleins the value of appraisals of houses are pending on the market it's a domino effect that affects everybody the tax credit bob storming those houses that have been foreclosed upon on and are vacant and are bringing down values undergirds the market and bra's it raises those values i'm trying to stick with me i'm here real world situation this house is foreclosed which means it already years going on the market at a depressed value ok and the consequences of a foreclosure is a melancholy event not only for the person who's losing their home but the community feels it could goose the neighborhood i believe that's the gentleman sed point and it's also of great concern to me but because the four congress house is already depressed then a seven thousand dollar tax credit comes in the question is for the non foreclosed are i don't understand how the price of the non foreclosed home is not dampened and we ourselves are helping create a new bottle well two or three points the first one i made is still valid point and that is as those foreclosures are absorbed by you stabilize and go back up and that supports the values that were there in the neighborhood for the people that are paying making their payments not in foreclosure that's number one number two you ride for meaning that you forget about the tax credit for a minute you ride through any neighborhood where somebody is in a house that's in trouble and look at the sign it'll say drastic reduction reduced foreclosed property bar sale thirty percent all you gotta do is open any newspaper in any more of an era in america you can read the classifieds see that day that's what's doing the terrible dad i know you've done us because those houses are growing so if the incentive is to absorb those that have been foreclosed on then you lessen that downward pressure you underwrite the values and the neighborhoods begin to restore and remember this the tax credit only is good for a year it's only a finite period of time to drive people to the market in hopes that they will absorb those houses because if they don't the only way they get absorbed is for deeper discounts because regulators are going to force these lenders dump them the deeper the discount the more depressed values are the more difficult it is for anybody to sell their house at a reasonable bad well first i thank the gentleman for explaining this you can understand the argin of these questions it's not only what i feel but for those working in our communities for those trying to sell  all feel pretty much along the same way but i thank the gentleman for answering that question and we thank him for the expertise he brings to this debate mr president senator from maryland  i ask unanimous consent that the morning business be extended for ten additional minutes without objection showered upon mr president got me just state that we're waiting for senator dodd to come from the foreign relations committee so that we can report the bill and continue moving go on the housing bill i know that there are colleagues who first of all i have an amendment that i wish to offer i know that the senator from vermont has a modification i know the senator from california also has compelling things she wants to do in this bill but while we are waiting because we understand senator dodd is that the betrayers crocker hearing i want to say a few things about housing and i want to say a few things about this bill i have an amendment that i wish to offer but i'm i got a lot on my mind about this alvin bill first of all i really have very serious question i have very serious questions about the bill itself the original bill that's been brought to the f takes care of the sharks and the whales but it doesn't take care of the little people when you look at that which will actually help ordinary people work their way out of the foreclosure mess the legislation is quite spartan we got the bankruptcy provision that would have allowed families to put the pieces back together their regional housing bill had two hundred million dollars going to the nonprofit agencies that are working every day with people in those communities to be able to work out their problems now this bill is being held hostage by the other party for more tax cuts that we don't need bigger bailouts for those that don't need them and they don't and it does not help the eight thousand people a day who face foreclosure when they need to improve this bill now i'm so disappointed that senator durbin's bill to amend the bankruptcy act to allow workout didn't occur and i know that senator murray has an amendment to add more money to the front line groups working with families i will  amendment to her amendment a second degree and adding legal help to the already overburdened nonprofit counselors i have seyn what this housing crisis means and not by reading the wall street journal but by getting out there and talking to my own constituents holding roundtables on the subject and what we say is the sub prime housing crisis is a code red emerg thousands in my state got caught up in schemes and scams they were wall street speculators that we give a bailout for main street americans who need a workout plan my state was  hard so when these roundtables we talked to the people who were most affected the people actually were facing bankruptcy to get their stories get a picture of what was going on talk to the nonprofits but we also talk to the brokers and of the realtors and others in air community i've listened to and i learned so why everybody here wants to talk about the big macro picture i want to talk about the macaroni and cheese issues i am on the side of the little people i talk to a police officer who works every day putting themselves in the line of fire and because he got into a home where equity scam and came he's about to lose his own i talked to a mother who a single mother who thought she was part of the american dream and now she's part of the american nightmare and if you listen to the nonprofit housing people like fanning bros housing in my own state they're trying every day to help people work this problem out and what is it that they need they need both a plan to be able to do a workout that's why the bankruptcy amendment was a big help it would have enabled people to responsibly work out their problem but at the same time they snuck in profits are being overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude  caseload when you look at in my own state there are thousands and thousands of bankruptcies in two thousand and six there were three thousand foreclosures in maryland but guess what mr president in two thousand and seven there were twenty three thousand twenty three thousand melbourne hers are on the foreclosure line well the sheer magnitude of these nonprofit organizations to come to grips with this and help these families with advice and counseling many are faith based we are in difficulty this is why i so support senator murray cement me to wedmore financial resources to these non profits to bring one the staff i salute senator murray because she brings expertise in housing but where she is a real expert is on paypal and the suffering that people have and we believe that in working with nonprofit organizations who were out there closest to the people to do this now and listening to them so many of my constituents were schemes scammed and so one they faced predatory predatory hunding brought procedures some people get mugged when they walk down a back alley here they got mugged when they sat down to sign up for their mortgage or their home outputting own they were mugged big time but you know if you're mog you get a lawyer but if you're in foreclosure you can't get one legal services barely can help anybody because the main says thing is for a family of four and you've got an income of over twenty six thousand you can't get over the goal weight goyer well if you have that kind of income you were unlikely to be in housing but never allowed works can offer help i will offer an amendment later on this morning that will add thirty seven point five million dollars as a second degree amendment thirty seven point five million dollars to the neighborhood neighborhood works effort this neighborhood works will do three three things first of all they're going to turn to hire more warriors and more paralegals to help the counseling groups help people work out these predatory schemes why paralegals they will maximize the lawyers that we already have hire more lawyers particularly those who are semi retired or those in line gun boyer's eager to build their skills taken care of their paralegals who are looking to not only work for a law firm but to also work for these non profits and then the lawyers that in foreclosure  this quit and now them to train counselors in some of the basic foreclosure gok my amendment that i will offer at a later time is very simple and it's very straightforward but wow is that needed w give help to those who are trying to practice self out to the people who are in foreclosure to the nonprofits that are trying to help them and to the lawyers who are trying to advise them and just remember you were mugged in a back alley you could have an access to a lawyer but if you were a bug if you were mobbed when you sit down for a settlement on buying a home you're going to be on your own you know what we can't have that i want to have people feel that they're on their side and again we don't see bailouts we think workouts and we want to be able to help those families be able to restore their financial credit to be able to work out and stay in their home and so one mr president when you for closing one a home it is a terrible tragedy for the family but it's also a terrible tragedy for the community so let's all work together  a housing bill that really helps those who are in need those who are abusing their home mr president you know before i know what the absence of a forty to the bankruptcy court to deal with variable interest rate mortgages where we find people have been surprised by the acceleration of obligation illustrated by a mortgage which was had which were the monthly interest payments were monthly payments were one thousand and seventy nine dollars then raised to fourteen hundred forty four dollars on an increase which was not expected by the bar or another illustration of a variable rate mortgage at fourteen hundred dollars on the payments range to nine hundred dollars and this would give the bankruptcy courts authority to deal with these changes under these circumstances the borrowers did not know how much the payment would be increased by frequently there's misrepresentation and on some occasions there is even fraud this amendment was distinguished from the amendment offered by the senator durban which would have provided for the bankruptcy courts to have authority to modify the principle and that was defeated largely because it would have created a problem for lending in the future when prospective lenders would not have confidence that their contracts would be it would be fulfilled i had intended to was looking for an opportunity to vote on this matter on thursday afternoon but was called away at my capacity as ranking member on judiciary because of the absence of any other republican to preside at that time have talked earlier today with the distinguished chairman of the committee with a request that i have an opportunity to vote on this before cloture is imposed before the cloture vote is taken i know that frequently on this side of the aisle the point is raised that we will not agree to have a cloture to count all further amendments when our members have not had an opportunity to present their amendments have voted upon would be a significant move in that direction so i hope we will have an opportunity to vote on my amendment and to give other senators opportunity to present amendments to give better balance asks how can one beam alone support a house the same can be asked about the housing market housing market include homeowners home buyers and home builders alike to support the tower housing market ones as best one does best to support each of its several parts that is why i worked with my colleague senator chuck grassley and other members of the finance committee to craft the housing tax provisions in the pending substitute amendment these provisions address the several parts of the housing market our legislation would help homeowners homebuyers and home builders and in so doing our legislation provide sounder support  market as a whole today's economy many homeowners are having difficulty paying the mortgage about four percent of first mortgage debt is delinquent another one percent in the fall last year nearly one in a half million homeowners defaulted on their first mortgages that's up from one hundred thousand in the year before and eight hundred thousand in the year before that the faults of foreclosures have contributed to the decline in housing prices destroyed more than two and a half trillion dollars in household net worth in the space of a year our legislation will help homeowners with the property tax deduction available for people who did not itemize their tax deductions it would be available to more than twenty eight million families who pay property taxes which is not itemize their deductions these are middle and low income households and these are some of the same families in the housing market who most nee upon which foreclosure has filed the tax credit rightfully excludes second home purchases and rental investments it focuses on the principal residences of struggling families by targeting foreclosed properties are provisioned with get homes and by targeting homes that are near foreclosure our credit may steer home buyers to those homes and that may be enough difference to help some families get out of foreclosure  proceedings are legislation also includes mortgage revenue bonds would provide an additional ten billion dollars of tax exempt private activity bond activity states could use these bonds to refinance up loans financial crisis tightened up plenty this cash can provide much needed financing and that financing will once again help lower to middle income households and the sub prime mortgage crisis and the climate housing sales of far as many home builders to lose money according to the most recent labor department report construction and manufacturing are the hardest hit sectors of the concrete construction shed fifty one thousand jobs so far this year and manufacturing shed forty eight thousand jobs so far this year construction employment alone is down one hundred eighty two thousand jobs since the vampyr down by three hundred fifty six thousand jobs over last year overall the private sector has lost two hundred ninety six thousand jobs over the last three months that's a loss of ninety seven thousand jobs a month for homebuilders our package would allow businesses to carry back losses to profit tax years that will help the homebuilders get hardest by the housing market crisis the pending amendment would allow troubled businesses to carry back net operating losses for four years for tax years two thousand and eight and two thousand  and that would allow them to receive quick tax refunds this tax relief which slow losses these businesses then have a quick cash infusion to beat payroll another current expense obligations we hope that this re and other distressed businesses to take the book benefit of a net operating loss before claiming the amount on their tax return this would help distressed businesses to obtain additional financing now these provisions alone will clearly not solve the housing market was solve none of our problems that's why it was act we should bring debate to a close which invoke cloture this afternoon we should pass this much needed tax relief let's not rely on one beam alone to support entire structure which president john f kennedy once said quote let us not seek the republican answer or the democratic answer but the right answer and president bush has said that he intends to submit the implementing legislation for the united states let me trade promotion agreement he did so against the will of congress they vested not seek the right answer  answer for the ministrations relationship with congress and the wrong answer for colombian workers the colombia trade promotion agreement is a good trade agreement will level the playing field for america's ex partners will open up a new export market for american products including montana beef and barley and it will bolster a close ally in the troubled region expanding trade and supporting colombia are important priorities that is why that is very should have handled this agreement the right way had the distractions sock the right answer it would have worked harder to support my top priority american workers had the ministration not rushed forward with the easy answer have had trade adjustment assistance in place before considering this agreement we need to expand it an effective created just an assistance for america's workers that is clear that means ensuring that america's service workers not as manufacturers and farmers receive the help that they need service workers make up eighty percent of our workforce they have helped to build support the knowledge based economy that is the engine of america's growth they work hard is serve our support and return expanded an effective created just in assistance but also cover workers whose jobs have been shipped offshore not as a result of trade agreements but others as well it must raise the health care tax credit to make it either in high school civics class they teach that the constitution grants congress the power to regulate foreign commerce congress interested this power temporarily and i might add importantly conditional something called trade promotion authority that is congress did not write a blank check by submitted the agreement now and against congress will the ministration abuses the power that congress granted it by forcing congress to consider this agreement now this ration offends the trust of congress and violates the compact that is the essence of fast track that is trade promotion authority when it congress extended trade most authority as people called completely bypass that process and now congress has no opportunity to effect the language of the proposed agreement this administration has said quote it's my way or the highway and administration shattered this cornerstone and by so doing they further diminish our trust and by setting up the implementing bill today that is before consultation in the right way the ministrations failed to deliver the right answer for columbia's workers colombia's workers must know that they can safely pursue equality and justice in the workplace free from the violence that has played colombia in the past the climate agreement has made great strides in this area and the congress to ensure that the colombian government is committed to prosecuting labor violence these areas are important to accomplish that objective it gives us real leverage to see commitments from the climate of government and administration to create a work environment in colombia can flourish short circuiting the process and forcing a premature vote on a trade agreement does nothing to help congress accomplish these goals the president the president's unprecedented handling of the to be able to speak as if on morning business without objection so i thank the chair last week i tried and failed to introduce an amendment which essentially would set minimum standard minimum federal standards for i see the chairman of the committee has just come in so if i might  wait and see for a moment and see what he wishes to do and if you've been watching and listening along you see that senators are waiting for senator dodd to come to speak the senate today is working on the home mortgage bill this is same to add lower home foreclosures and boosting housing sales  the they will recess at about twelve thirty for the weekly party lunches and then return to the home mortgage bill after the break the house today meets for legislative works afternoon a two eastern they're considering a number of bills  authorizing federal health care programs including brain injury treatment and infant health screening also a resolution offered by house speaker nancy pelosi calling on china to in the words of the resolution and its crackdown on tibet live coverage of the house on c span and right now on c span you can watch the senate armed services committee hearing with general david petraeus and ambassador ryan crocker senator from tennessee consent that i be able to speak as if in morning business until the managers of the billiard room need to reclaim the time we're in a quorum call as the koran call the vitiated without objection so ordered ask consent that i be able to speak it morning business until the managers of the legislation would like to proceed without objection thank you sword and i thank the senator from montana especially mr president there is sorrow in our bluff city on the mississippi river and across tennessee today because the noble university of memphis tigers lost last night to kansas in the finals of the n c double a national championship basketball tournament but there is also a reason for great pr a billion john callup pari and his team gave memphis a new source of pride and the support a season to remember winning more games than any college basketball team ever hands years from now fans will be talking about the magical douglas roberts the ubiquitous anderson the reliable dozer explosive roads and the super size tag they have given yesterday i made a few remarks about a piece of an amendment that senator kyl and i have offered to an instant can't will amendment and today i would like to place into the congressional record a couple of documents in may two thousand and seven i requested that the energy information administration conduct a study of federal subsidies of electricity including a comparison of subsidies for different fuel types last week i received a two hundred fifty page study in response to my request i ask unanimous consent to place in the congressional record the following a copy of my may seventeenth two thousand and seven letter to the e i a administrator guy caruso a copy of the april second two thousand and eight cover letter from mr caruso that arrived with the e a s two hundred fifty page study and finally a table titled federal subsidies of electric power that is based on information that was included in the executive summary of a study  proceed with my statement on morning business and then return to the bell i'd like to just call up the amendment today general petraeus comes to the united states senate i suggest that we listen to the general when he reported to the senate last september some senators were unwilling to listen one even said that she  to believe the reports from iraq required a willing to spend june of disbelief let us remember what has happened since then i can remember last august visiting with general petraeus in baghdad i handed him a paper that said it is time for a new strategy in iraq i had been urging president bush in the senate to adopt the iraq study group recommendations in my view what general petraeus is done since that time has been to adopt the iraq study group recommendations with for trace amendments we are acknowledging that it is time to shift the mission from combat to support province by province we're acknowledging that there is a long term presence for the united states in iraq but as general petraeus said steadily diminishing and where acknowledging that is important to step up diplomatic and political efforts as general petraeus and ambassador crocker speak today the questions i believe that we should ask are what progress are we making down this new path to bring this war to a successful conclusion and second now that there is widespread agreement there has been success since last summer with an american led military surge what are the prospects for an iraqi led political and diplomatic surge letting the iraqis invite their neighbors to embassies in baghdad reconciling their differences among themselves and paying for more of their own bills so instead of suspending our disbelief let us listen to the general and to ambassador crocker acknowledging the progress they are making and making the making it easier for them to make more progress on the diplomatic and political front mr president i think the managers the bill for their courtesy and i yield the floor morning business quota closed one of the previous sort of the senate resumed consideration of h r three two two one which a clerk will report calendar number three forty h r thirty two twenty one and act moving the new united states toward greater energy independence and so forth and for other purposes and the pending amendment as a pres amendment that would add money to neighborhood work to be able to help them add more giggle staff to help people as they do their work out this amendment is as thirty seven point five million dollars to the bill for the neighborhood works program to do three things help counseling groups hire more attorneys and paragraph goals to help with the foreclosure crisis it would also provide money to to train more account attorneys and paralegals in foreclosure law and also hire the people to train counselors in nonprofit groups in basic foreclosure laws to help people do their work outs many of my constituents and know also constituents nationwide were victims of predatory lending practices schemes in scams and as the complexity of dealing with these foreclosures increases the nonprofit catherine organizations need more griego help mr president that's why i'm offering this amendment it's to help those trying to have workouts to their foreclosure problem while we're doing considerable help giving those bailouts to people who caused the problem mr president this is the second degree amendment to the murray amendment and i know will be considered at an appropriate time  senator from vermont president i seek recognition to modify the standards durbin amendment number four four zero one and i sent a modification to the desk but the president the original amendment that i offered would cap all interest rates on consumer loans call for regular order with respect to that amendment the amendment is pending federal housing administration if this amendment were in watch today interest rates for mortgages insured by the f h a could know could be no higher than fourteen percent which is eight percentage points above what the i r s charges t income tax deadbeats the reason that i am modifying the subelement is because if cloture is invoked on this legislation capping interest rates on all consumer loans would not be germane but capping interest rates on mortgages insured by the f h a would be germane to the underlying bill in the future i will have more to say about this amendment and that's where we a while we wait for senators to speak you notice at the bottom of your screen senators dodd looks like all inspector just one way senator feinstein they are discussing the home mortgage bill aimed at lower home foreclosures and boosting housing sales that's what's on the senate schedule today they will break for party lunches at about twelve thirty about fifteen minutes from now and then return to the home mortgage bill after the break and meanwhile the house meets at two eastern for its legislative business members they will consider a number of bills authorizing federal health care programs including brain injury treatment and infant health screening also a resolution offered by house speaker nancy pelosi calling on china to and  this is a very important management choice to give relief to homeowners with variable rate mortgages where there is foreclosure auction where way suddenly fin the monthly payments increased unexpectedly from as much as fourteen hundred dollars to one thousand nine hundred dollars a payment which they cannot afford and then their house goes into foreclosure they borrow not understand that infrequently there is a misrepresentation fraud and it differs markedly from the durban amendment which was defeated which would have had a serious impact on the availability of lenders to put up money if there is under interference with contractual rights of this amendment protects the homeowners and does little harm to the  to have their amendments heard and voted on and i intend to press that issue and i was prepared to get a vote on this amendment last thursday when i was taken from the floor to go to a judiciary committee hearing  because of the expectation of another republican covering it was not fulfilled so i had to go over the hearing this ranking member because we had a number of nominees in the judicia and now i find that we're moving to cloture and there's no opportunity for a vote and in my judgment that's not the way this place oughta operate now i know the chairman of the  that there are not ten or twelve this here that strenuously objected to the bankruptcy reform bill so i had problems with that build across the board i won't go into all of that with you here there is we're trying to do this let me try and frame this again the respective leaders majority leader back about a week or so ago talked with the republican leader about the possibility of us breaking this logjam that have existed here where nothing could even be debate from that other ideas of the offered add on along the way and if there was consensus here that we try to add those on it's a complicated process but it was the only way we were going to move beyond the gridlock that was allowing no debate whatsoever so i'm in the position obviously of trying to accomplish what our leader want to ditch even he should i applaud him for it of trying to get us moving on this issue we're losing eight thousand people a day in foreclosure the country in the economy is suffering terribly and we are in gridlock on the issue there are some very meritorious ideas and those who bet in this position of managing a piece of legislation trying to get it through know that from time to time you're confronted with one subsidy agreeing with what a colleague is offering but finding yourself in the position where i want to move the product along you don't agree at that all of a sudden we found ourselves dealing with other issues now that's not to say this is not this is one you could clearly relate to the subject matter but there are others that are coming along dealing with the energy policy and the like one of the few vehicles that may move and so i understand the frustrations people feel about wanting to put something on this bill that may go somewhere but the fact of the matter is we could be horrendously in fails to get out of here if we can't with a housing bills albeit short of what i would certainly like or others may like to get us to a conference with the house to do something about this issue now we can say the rest of the week or next we can debate a variety of amendments all we can try and get moving on this to get something accomplished that i believe is the motivation behind the majority leader and i'll let senator shelby speak for the minority leader but i believe that the general  as not to suggest these other ideas don't have merit don't have value at all including the idea that is being promoted by the center in pennsylvania but there is a reason why the leadership is responsible for trying to move product through here that may not include every idea that everyone has that they'd like to see added to a piece of legislation so my hope is that cloture will be invoked we can go forward it will be amendments imposed cloture and if there jim maine and there with the issue at hand i will try to accommodate them and where we have consensus add them try to come to some closure and move forward this is not the end of this debate it's not the end of the ideas we've got hearings this week in the committee we've got proposals we're going to bring up in our committee in a markup in the next couple of weeks that will be back on this floor with other ideas duraid related directly to the memon was offered i told my colleague before and this is one area where i'm going to be supportive of that effort to deal with primary residence and so i agree with what my colleague wants to achieve here but there are other considerations like trying to accomplish with this piece of legislation representation which i know the chairman makes and very good faith as to having a bill come out of committee and come back to the floor in light of what has happened on the calendar it just the chances are so arcane as to be an understandable just an understandable here we have a housing bill what could be more material to a housing bill when foreclosures are being half were happening across the country as we speak the senator from connecticut comments about the high rate of foreclosures and this is an amendment which seeks to stop the foreclosures and it's safe to stop the foreclosures where the lender  s provided an instrument which is a variable rate mortgage that the borrower doesn't understand it hasn't been explained and they're probably misrepresentations in many cases and probably fraud in many cases and that's why this amendment opens up the court to make a determination of that and it doesn't impede upon the fluidity of the market and the availability of capital like the german amendment did which change the principle the principle say this is the legislation which is coming out of the congress and what's happening on the administration and is very very heavily tilted to wall street and not to balance you have a loss carryforwards which i think is a good provision but that doesn't help the little guy you have a tax credit for somebody who buys a house where the mortgage is in foreclosure but at least one member of a good seven ten event that they decide will object to any process going forward so they because there's a time in his conference luncheon to convince some of his colleagues there to be more supportive of these ideas and i think this is not a crumb let me just say to my colleague from pennsylvania the idea of a modernizing the f h a is critically important the fact that we've got money in here put this disclosure that we've got resources into counseling the fact that we're getting resources back to our states four billion dollars to the system as they try to deal with the problems that local communities and the fact that we're providing tax support for people to move into foreclosed properties they don't add to the supply is critically important as well these are some very solid ideas is some provisions in here i'll be the first to admit that frankly and i written this all by myself here without having to deal with other people here who care about some of these issues i wouldn't include this is bomb war than a crumb in terms of trying to deal with is a few more needs to be done but there's a guest in somehow that community bellowed block grants that counseling and disclosure and modernization of that they day and raising loan limits and the like are insignificant i think is do they understand what's in this bill now more can be done i don't disagree but that's a really quantify a crumb of supposed to a loaf of bread but no one would say this is a half a loaf or criticism of this bill has largely come from the chairman of the committee who has said that it doesn't go far enough when you have when you have foreclosures across the country on variable rate mortgages and no action is being taken to deal with them let me ask the senator from connecticut if you consider the action which has been taken by the fed on bear stearns and other waters and you consider what this legislation is isn't that significantly out of balance between chase and this is the conclusion by the way i think almost unanimously of our committee having had a hearing on it last week was probably the right decision given the alternative of a bankruptcy by data by bear stearns and what could have happened on that monday and that action not been taken by the fed and the treasury of the new york then that's one separate if it's a legitimate point to say having done that shouldn't we do something here if we can help our communities and individuals to get this economy moving the right direction i've made that case for a year now not just in the wake of  had our first meetings on this matter in march of last year trying to get something done and i'm going to back seat anyone has discovered this issue in the last couple of days and how much they care about it i've been at it for thirteen months trying to get something moving in this area and so we're doing some things here and my colleagues know very well what objections they're bent to doing anything in this area let the market take care of the problems then contains no further problems quite the contrary we're now down to the business of doing something about it and i regret  accommodating everyone here with every idea they have in the moment they want to considered but are doing our best honor shelby and i and members of the committee to come out with the least something here four weeks ago you couldn't even do what we're doing right now we could even debate the issue i say to my coll from pennsylvania i'm suggesting to here that this bill does a lot more than provide crumbs it goes and goes to the heart of very significant issues that need to be dealt with there are other matters that need to be dealt with as my colleague knows i agree with him about what bankruptcy courts can do with primary residence i also understand the history of it and one hundred seventy why that provision was included but i believe that times have changed and out of this that situation we don't allow a bankruptcy judge to be able to modify that that but the idea of trying to come to some closure here is also important so we can move on and get with the house result some of these matters and come back that's what this chairman is trying to do in complex as we did last week with the efforts that we were directed to do by the leaders of our respective parties