OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Making Further Continuing Appropriations for the Fiscal Year 2007

Date: Feb. 8, 2007
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Government Budget and Spending


MAKING FURTHER CONTINUING APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE FISCAL YEAR 2007 -- (Senate - February 08, 2007)

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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I thank my good friend, the majority leader, for his observations about our discussions over the last few days about the possibility of consideration of some amendments on this side of the aisle. I have been presenting those amendments to the majority as we have collected them. There are a number of concerns Members on this side of the aisle have that they would prefer to see addressed through the amendment process, particularly given the magnitude of this bill. I appreciate the majority leader considering those requests and will continue to funnel those amendments over as we get them.

Let me just say, by way of comparison, we have been here before. Four years ago last month, the Senate had just changed hands from the Democrats to the Republicans. Our good friends on the other side of the aisle, at that point, had also not passed 11 of the 13 appropriations bills. What the new Senate majority did in January of 2003 was to take up a collection of bills, typically referred to around here as Omnibus appropriations. Over 100 amendments were offered during the process of consideration of that collection of appropriations bills, after which they were passed. I had hoped that would have been the way we would have proceeded this year. There was precedent for it 4 years ago.

Nevertheless, I understand the concern the majority leader has about completing this work before midnight a week from now, and I understand the other complications presented by trying to do a measure of this magnitude in such a short period of time. Nevertheless, we will be continuing our discussion, the majority leader and myself, about the possibility of offering amendments that Senators on our side of the aisle believe are important and would improve this massive bill, which would fund the Government from now until September 30 of this year.

Mr. President, I yield the floor.

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