Press Stakeout Availability With Senator Harry Reid And Other Senate Democrats

Statement

STAKEOUT MEDIA AVAILABILITY WITH SENATOR HARRY REID (D-NV), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER, AND OTHER DEMOCRATIC SENATORS FOLLOWING A VOTE ON THE LEVIN-REED AMENDMENT OTHER
PARTICIPANTS: SENATOR CARL LEVIN (D-MI); SENATOR JACK REED (D-RI); SENATOR RICHARD DURBIN (D-IL), MAJORITY WHIP; SENATOR PATTY MURRAY (D-WA); SENATOR CHARLES SCHUMER (D-NY)

THE OHIO CLOCK CORRIDOR, THE CAPITOL, WASHINGTON, D.C.
12:26 P.M. EDT, WEDNESDAY, JULY 18, 2007

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SEN. REID: It's the middle of the day here. It's nighttime in Iraq. And as I speak, we have 160,000 troops in harm's way.

We offered a number of amendments on this most important bill. First was Webb's amendment. Simple amendment: 15 months in country, 15 months out of country. We did not get a vote on that, but we did get seven Republicans to vote with us. That's certainly progress. That's momentum.

The next amendment was Levin-Reed. We all know what that's about. It set a deadline for there to be a change of direction in Iraq. Again, they wouldn't allow us to vote on that, although we picked up four Republicans. Progress is being made on these Iraq amendments.

And finally, with the National Intelligence Estimate which has just come out, isn't it a good idea to pass the appropriations bill that deals with Homeland Security? That too was blocked.

And I want to reassert what I said out there this morning. My friend Senator McConnell says: Well, everybody knows it's 60 votes on controversial issues around here.

Well, last November Iraq wasn't very controversial, because we had simple up-and-down votes. It's obvious to the American people that the war in Iraq has gone the wrong way, and all of a sudden now, seven months later, after the last Defense authorization bill, they're saying you need 60 votes. That's a new math that was developed by the Republicans to protect the president. That's what it's all about.

Senator Levin?

SEN. LEVIN: Last November the American public overwhelmingly voted to change direction in Iraq. That is the reason why a Democratic Congress was elected. They want us to vote. They want us to tell them back home, yea or nay, do we want to change course in Iraq. All but one Democrat today voted to change course, voted to have an opportunity to vote on that issue.

All but four Republicans today voted against changing course and thwarted the majority of the Senate in having an opportunity to vote, yea or nay, on whether to change course in Iraq.

The American public deserved an up-or-down vote. They didn't get it today because they were thwarted by the Republicans. But what they did see today is who is fighting, day AND night, to change the course in Iraq from a failing course that we're on, to give us a chance for success in Iraq by forcing the Iraqi leaders to resolve their political differences and to take responsibility for their own nation. That is what the Levin-Reed a amendment was all about. We are proud that we got 52 votes. We believe that shows some momentum.

SEN. : Fifty-three.

SEN. LEVIN: Fifty-three votes. We're very proud of the momentum that that shows. And we believe that with time, when we come back to this bill as soon as we possibly can, that we're going to pick up even more support when the American people see who has voted to change course and who did not.

SEN. REID: Senator Durbin.

SEN. DURBIN: At the end of this debate we're all a little bit weary, but we're one vote closer to ending this war. Was it worth it? I think it was. Now the Senate's on record. Many senators who've gone home and said they're opposed to the war voted to continue the war today. They'll have to answer to the voters.

And people across America understand what just took place. The Republicans changed the rules when it came to votes on Iraq; put a new standard, makes it very difficult to change the president's policy. They were loyal soldiers when it came to the president. We want to be loyal to the soldiers who are in battle, and that means starting to bring them home.

I want to thank Senator Levin and Senator Reed -- Jack Reed -- for their leadership on this issue. This much we can promise: This is far from the end of this debate. This will come back. It will return again and again. Our colleagues in the Senate are going to have a chance to go home, explain their votes and vote again. And eventually, I am confident, they'll join us in changing the direction in Iraq.

SEN. REID: Senator Reed.

SEN. REED: It's a kind of long march to get here today.

As Senator Durbin pointed out, we're one vote closer to changing the policy in Iraq. Last June, Senator Levin and I proposed a similar amendment, and it received just 39 votes. And today, we have 43 votes, 53 votes rather, including an additional vote from our Republican colleague.

We have focused, Senator Levin and I, on trying to adjust our policy to the realities on the ground in Iraq and here in America. No military policy can be supported without popular support. The president and his policy has lost that support dramatically. And no military policy on the ground can be supported without the necessary resources, not just troops but the complementary civilian agencies that must assist in this counterinsurgency. It is our hope that today, we move closer to changing our policies, beginning a reduction of forces and beginning a policy that can be sustained both in Baghdad and just as importantly by the people of this great country.

Thank you.

SEN. SCHUMER: Well, I think that we stayed up all night, but it was more than worth it. Not only did we increase the votes we've gotten, it goes vote by vote till we get to 60, and we're not going to stop till we get to 60. We got one more. But more importantly even, the spotlight was focused on the debate for the first time.

I mentioned to my colleagues yesterday morning, the lady at the checkout counter in the Longworth cafeteria and then my mother both said, unsolicited, so, you're staying up all night. The public was paying attention to this the way they haven't paid attention to a debate before. Additionally this separated those who want a change in course from those who don't for the first time.

For the last month, we've seen many of our Republican colleagues go to their home states and say, I want a change in course. But with the focus on the debate tonight, the fact that they don't vote here in the Senate the way they speak back at home was crystal clear. And with Senator Reid's leadership and wisdom, the amendment, that was so well-crafted by Carl Levin and Jack Reed, is going to be back before us. But in the interim, their public now aware, much more aware, of what they are doing is going to put pressure on them. And I believe that tonight's -- that -- I believe that last night's events not only brought us one more vote but brought us a lot closer to getting to the 60.

SEN. REID: Patty?

SEN. MURRAY: Last night was not about procedural motions or theatrics. It wasn't about cots being brought into the Senate or cold pizza. It was about 160,000 American troops who are on the ground in Iraq. It's about their families, their loved ones, who are waiting for them to come home. And it's about a country who has said: Enough is enough. It's time to bring our troops home.

What last night was about was to continue to put the pressure on every single senator here until we get 60 votes to send a bill to the president to change the course of this war and to finally bring our troops home.

SEN. REID: Questions?

Q Senator Reid, when do you think is the next realistic point that we'll have another vote on Iraq? Do yo think that there's any chance it might happen before General Petraeus delivers his report in September, or do you think it's likely to happen after?

SEN. REID: There are two things that I want to accomplish. One is to pass a Defense authorization bill, but with a deadline dealing with Iraq. Once we put that together, we'll move forward on it. If that's tomorrow, we'll do it tomorrow. If it's later, we'll do it later.

Q But in terms of changing course on Iraq, in terms of the kind of amendment that you were just voting on today, when do you think it's most realistic that you'll have a vote to change course in Iraq?

SEN. REID: That's up to the Republicans.

Q Senator Reid, you've repeatedly criticized the president for not changing strategy in the face of dealing with Iraq. Isn't it incumbent on Democrats to change their strategy legislatively, given the inability to get close to 60 votes?

SEN. REID: Well, I think we've done a tremendously good job of changing our strategy. Each time we change our strategy, it's directed toward having the president change course.

What about the Webb amendment? That was new. It was unique and very vital and -- vitally important to our troops. Fifteen months in country, 15 months out of country. That's about as new as you can get.

We also have a number of other amendments that were out there that they wouldn't let us vote on. The -- if you look at the Collins- Nelson amendment, it's worth looking at. It had some merit to it. Warner-Lugar.

So there's a lot of things being done that weren't being done before, and that doesn't take into consideration many of the other amendments, including the one that Senator Landrieu feels so strongly about, dealing with al Qaeda.

So I think we have changed our course a lot. Our course has been changed toward ending the war.

The president and all of his people here in the Senate have been talking about maintaining the course. They are more interested in protecting the president than protecting our troops.

Q Senator, is it right to say that the DOD authorization won't come up until, at the earliest, September again?

SEN. REID: No. As you -- I will say this. I've asked Chairman Levin, Senator Durbin, to work with their counterparts to see if something can be done. Remember we have 300 pending amendments, and there were -- one or two Republican senators are stopping a significant number of those amendments from being passed. The way things were going, this bill -- we needed a way to end this bill, and we need to end the bill with the ability to vote on some of these Iraq amendments, up or down votes, and also to get some of the very important modifications that are in the manager's amendment.

(Donna ?).

Q I just want to have a quick follow-up. Would you consider just going to a CR on Defense if Levin-Reed doesn't pass -- (off mike)?

SEN. REID: No, I really don't -- I think that's the wrong way to go. The president has said he wants appropriation bills. Senator McConnell has said publicly here on the Senate floor he wants appropriation bills. He's told me that he wants appropriation bills. We kind of put them to the test today, and of course, they objected. They objected to Homeland Security appropriations. Can we think of a better place to start than that? I think there are other bills that we're going to look at. I think we have to do the veterans bill, we have to do military construction and Defense appropriations, and then we have, of course, eight or nine other bills we need to do.

But no, I don't want to do a CR. I'm opposed to a CR. I hope we don't have to do that. I hope the president will be sensible. I've had a conversation with Nussle, hoping he can bring a little bit of wisdom this body as to how we handle these bills.

Q (Off mike) -- pay raise?

SEN. REID: No, we -- of course, understand we didn't put off a pay raise.

Q (Off mike.)

SEN. REID: We didn't put off the pay raise. As I said on the floor, if the bill passed a week ago, if it passed today, they wouldn't -- anything in that bill does not become effective until next October, the end of the fiscal year. So we didn't put off anything.

Q Will you hold up Defense approps if the authorization doesn't pass? Senator, will you hold up Defense approps if you don't get authorization?

SEN. REID: No, we're going to move to the appropriation bills as soon as we can.

Q Would you add Iraq to that, to the Defense approps?

SEN. REID: It's there automatically. We couldn't keep it out if we wanted to.

Q Mr. Leader, what other arrows do you have in your quiver here to try to -- (off mike) -- whether it be parliamentary or -- (off mike)?

SEN. REID: I participated in a case that went to the Nevada Supreme Court. It's a famous case, where -- we're into the weeds here a little too much, but the purpose of it was the judge said that on a personal injury case the plaintiff would have to tell the court what his theory was in the case. If he didn't he was going to grant summary judgment; that is, to get rid of the case immediately. Went to the supreme court, the lawyer argued, "I'm not going to tip my mitt." The supreme court said, "Yes, you are. We're dismissing the case."

So what I'm telling you, I'm not tipping my mitt, okay? We have a lot of other arrows in our quiver, and our quiver's filled with the wishes of the American people.

SEN. : Thanks everybody.

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