Capitol Words a project of the Sunlight Foundation

The clerk will please read a communication to the Senate from the President pro tempore (Mr. Leahy).

Without objection, it is so ordered.

Madam President, I note the absence of a quorum.

The majority leader is recognized.

Mrs. BOXER thereupon assumed the chair as Acting President pro tempore.

The Senate met at 2 p.m. and was called to order by the Honorable Barbara Boxer, a Senator from the State of California.

Objection having been heard, the bill will be placed on the calendar.

I ask to speak in morning business.

The legislative clerk read the following letter:

The Chaplain, Dr. Barry C. Black, offered the following prayer: Let us pray. Almighty God, source of strength for stressed-out emotions and strained minds, we don't pray to inform You ...

The Honorable Barbara Boxer led the Pledge of Allegiance, as follows: I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it ...

Vol. 158WASHINGTON, TUESDAY, JANUARY 1, 2013No. 172

The Senator from Wyoming.

Madam President, it was after 2 a.m. this morning when the Senate finally passed this historic measure which puts the fiscal cliff behind us, if--if--the House of Representatives follows through ...

Madam President, we are busy patting ourselves on the back for avoiding the fiscal cliff. I don't know how much congratulations we ought to have for that.

Mr. President, I have the greatest respect for the Senator from Wyoming and considerable affection. Indeed, he is my ranking member on the HELP Committee, and he has been kind ...

So when we talk about our vote this morning, it is not a wonky discussion. It is real people. Five million Californians are about to get trapped into the AMT ...

So on this small business health plan, when it came to the floor, I had the unfortunate experience of having Senator Frist setting a filibuster and filling the tree. ``Filling ...

The Senator from Wyoming is recognized.

The Senator from California.

Mr. President, I want to join the Senator from California in the hope that the House will pass the bill that was sent over from the Senate last night. It ...

Mr. President, I will speak off the topic of the day. Obviously, we are focused on the fiscal cliff. The measure is now over in the House, and the distinguished ...

Mr. President, I ask to speak for 15 minutes but probably not that long.

Without objection, it is so ordered.

The clerk will call the roll.

What I am here to talk about is not the topic of the day because the fiscal cliff is the topic of the day. What I am here to address ...

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Without objection, it is so ordered.

The clerk will call the roll.

Mr. President, I did watch the presentation of my friend and I appreciate his tenacity and his thoroughness.

The majority leader.

Mr. President, I want to first address the bill we passed in the early hours this morning.

Mr. President, Tony Hanagan and Keira Harris are two former pages who returned to the Senate, graciously volunteering to sacrifice some of their Christmas vacation to help here on the ...

The following bill was read the second time, and placed on the calendar: H.R. 459. To require a full audit of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System ...

Without objection, it is so ordered.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 645; that the Senate proceed to vote without intervening action or debate on the ...

The nomination was confirmed.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Foreign Relations Committee be discharged from further consideration of the following Foreign Service nominations and the Senate proceed to their consideration en ...

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the following committees be discharged from further consideration of the following nominations and the Senate proceed to their consideration en bloc: Commerce Committee, ...

Under the previous order, the Senate will resume legislative session.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or ...

There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.

I ask unanimous consent that the concurrent resolution be agreed to and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate.

Without objection, it is so ordered.

The clerk will report the concurrent resolution by title.

If there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate stand adjourned under the previous order.

There being no objection, the Senate, at 5:58 p.m., adjourned until Wednesday, January 2, 2013, at 12 noon.

The Senate Committee on Foreign Relations was discharged from further consideration of the following nominations by unanimous consent and the nominations were confirmed: FOREIGN SERVICE NOMINATION OF GARY T. GREENE. ...

Executive nominations confirmed by the Senate January 1, 2013: DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY RICHARD B. BERNER, OF MASSACHUSETTS, TO BE DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF FINANCIAL RESEARCH, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY, FOR ...

The House met at noon and was called to order by the Speaker pro tempore (Mr. Dold).

The Chair has examined the Journal of the last day's proceedings and announces to the House his approval thereof.

Mr. Speaker, the Ukraine, once a model for democratic transition in the Eurasia region and the world after the Orange Revolution, has been experiencing significant backsliding in democracy. The Organization ...

Will the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus) come forward and lead the House in the Pledge of Allegiance.

A message from the Senate by Ms. Curtis, one of its clerks, announced that the Senate has passed without amendment a bill of the House of the following title: H.R. ...

(Mr. KUCINICH asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)

The agreement we are expected to vote on, perhaps as early as this afternoon, has many commendable and important items. Unfortunately, too many are short term; much is left out; ...

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. In the early 19th century, 4 million slaves resided in the South, public ...

(Mr. BUTTERFIELD asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

(Mr. BROOKS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

Mr. Speaker, this is the last time I'll have the opportunity to address my colleagues as I wind up a 20-year career in the House of Representatives on January 3. ...

Mr. Speaker, the people in this Chamber who do all the complaining about spending, the record clearly shows, voted for all the spending that they complain about: two wars that ...

(Mr. GOHMERT asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

(Mr. RIGELL asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)

(Mr. FATTAH asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

Mr. Speaker, what do we know with certainty about the bill which passed the Senate? We know it has bipartisan support, and that's encouraging. I'm a Republican who has been ...

(Mr. ISSA asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, the deal that Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell was able to get his colleagues to pass last night is a bad deal for America and a worse deal ...

(Mr. MORAN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, last night the Senate did what great deliberative bodies are supposed to do--they worked together. They compromised. They accommodated other point of views, and they got the job ...

Mr. Speaker, we are about to have a hold-your-nose vote here in the House of Representatives. And many of us are going to wrestle with the problem of making perfect ...

(Mr. ALTMIRE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

There was no objection.

Is there objection to the request of the gentlewoman from Florida?

The Clerk read as follows:

Mr. Speaker, I send to the desk a privileged concurrent resolution and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 3662) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 6 Nichols Street in ...

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under ...

I also urge support and yield back the balance of my time.

There was no objection.

The text of the bill is as follows:

The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 3630) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 218 North Milwaukee Street ...

A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

The text of the bill is as follows:

There was no objection.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to vote for S. 3630, and I yield back the balance of my time.

I rise today to ask my colleagues for their support of S. 3677, a bill to make a technical correction to the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Financial Services be discharged from further consideration of the bill (S. 3677) to make a technical correction to the Flood ...

There was no objection.

Pursuant to clause 12(a) of rule I, the Chair declares the House in recess subject to the call of the Chair.

[Roll No. 656] YEAS--410 Ackerman Adams Aderholt Akin Alexander Altmire Amodei Andrews Austria Baca Bachmann Bachus Baldwin Barber Barletta Barrow Barton (TX) Bass (CA) Bass (NH) Becerra Benishek Berg Berkley ...

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

There is 1 minute remaining.

This is a 5-minute vote.

The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 410, nays 5, not voting 16, as follows:

Mr. Speaker, this evening I inadvertently missed voting on rollcall votes 655, 656, and 657.

There is 1 minute remaining.

The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 378, noes 37, not voting 16, as follows:

The question was taken.

[Roll No. 657] AYES--378 Ackerman Adams Aderholt Akin Alexander Altmire Amodei Andrews Austria Baca Bachus Baldwin Barber Barletta Barrow Barton (TX) Bass (CA) Bass (NH) Becerra Benishek Berg Berkley Berman ...

The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Terry) that the House suspend the rules and concur in the Senate amendment.

The SPEAKER pro tempore laid before the House the following communication from the Clerk of the House of Representatives: Office of the Clerk, House of Representatives, Washington, DC, January 1, ...

The unfinished business is the question on suspending the rules and passing the joint resolution (S.J. Res. 44) granting the consent of Congress to the State and Province Emergency Management ...

A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

The question is on the motion offered by the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) that the House suspend the rules and pass the joint resolution.

The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the Senate amendment was concurred in.

The question is on the motion offered by the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill.

A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.

A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the joint resolution was passed.

The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the Senate amendment was concurred in.

The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.

The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the Senate amendment was concurred in.

The question is on the motion offered by the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill.

The unfinished business is the question on suspending the rules and passing the bill (S. 2318) to authorize the Secretary of State to pay a reward to combat transnational organized ...

The unfinished business is the question on suspending the rules and agreeing to the resolution (H. Res. 134) condemning the Government of Iran for its state-sponsored persecution of its Baha'i ...

The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the concurrent resolution, as amended, was agreed to.

The question is on the motion offered by the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) that the House suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution, as amended.

A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

(Mrs. SCHMIDT asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)

The unfinished business is the question on suspending the rules and concurring in the Senate amendment to the bill (H.R. 2076) to amend title 28, United States Code, to clarify ...

A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

The unfinished business is the question on suspending the rules and agreeing to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 145) calling for universal condemnation of the North Korean missile launch ...

The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Gowdy) that the House suspend the rules and concur in the Senate amendment.

Mr. Speaker, I have just been informed that we will be having perhaps no further votes in this Congress. I am deeply disappointed at that information.

(Mr. KING of New York asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

I'm sitting here in shock this evening. This is supposed to be the people's House. We are the United States House of Representatives. There are Americans that are suffering because ...

(Mr. CROWLEY asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

(Mr. PALLONE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

Mr. Speaker, as a Republican, I stand up here today to join my colleagues on the other side of the aisle and associate my words with the gentleman from Maryland.

(Mr. NADLER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

(Mr. ENGEL asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)

(Mr. GRIMM asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

Mr. Speaker, I do join my colleagues in asking that the Speaker reconsider. I want to thank Majority Leader Eric Cantor who has worked tirelessly through these many days right ...

It is with an extremely heavy heart that I stand here almost in disbelief and somewhat ashamed that I need to take to this floor.

Mr. Speaker, I'm from New Orleans, and we weren't affected by Sandy. But we were great beneficiaries of this body coming together after Katrina and Rita to help us in ...

(Mr. ROTHMAN of New Jersey asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

Mr. Speaker, I want to add my voice to those who have spoken here tonight. We need to be there for all of those in need now after Hurricane Sandy.

(Mr. RANGEL asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

(Mr. PLATTS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

(Ms. PELOSI asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

Mr. Speaker, if you've ever had a natural disaster affect your area or if you have ever visited a natural disaster, be it in California, my home State, or on ...

(Mr. PAYNE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

My congressional district abuts the State of New Jersey. Hundreds of thousands of people in my congressional district were without power for some time. We were very much impacted, but ...

Karen L. Haas, Clerk of the House, reported that on December 31, 2012, she presented to the President of the United States, for his approval, the following bills: H.R. 6587. ...

(Mr. BILBRAY asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

E pluribus unum: one out of many.

Under clause 2 of rule XIV, executive communications were taken from the Speaker's table and referred as follows: 9000. A letter from the Attorney, Legal Division, Bureau of Consumer Financial ...

Under clause 2 of rule XII, public bills and resolutions of the following titles were introduced and severally referred, as follows: By Mr. FITZPATRICK (for himself, Mrs. Bachmann, Mr. Flores, ...

Under clause 7 of rule XII, sponsors were added to public bills and resolutions as follows: H.R. 6693: Mr. Farr. H.R. 6721: Mr. Lankford, Mr. LoBiondo, Mr. Thompson of Pennsylvania, ...

Mr. Speaker, I rise as a cosponsor of H.R. 1464, the North Korea Refugee Adoption Act, and to thank Mr. Royce and Ranking Member Berman for their efforts on this ...

Madam Speaker, I regret that this bill, like so many of its predecessors over the past several years, does nothing to address some the urgent need for real reform in ...

Mr. Speaker, I challenge the wisdom of House Resolution (H. Res. 834) which urges the governments of Europe and the European Union to designate Hezbollah a terrorist organization and imposes ...

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute a woman who will be forever known as ``the First Lady of South Carolina State College.'' I was fortunate to know Mrs. ...