Automobile Industry Crisis

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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, this has been a challenging exercise for everyone involved on both sides. We all remember a couple of months ago we were called upon to rescue the American financial system. At the end of the day, after a few fits and starts, 74 out of 99 Senators present thought it was a good idea to do that. It was a vote we all proudly cast from our individual seats and most of us supported it. It was a broad, bipartisan vote, supported by the two Presidential candidates as well.

Now we have moved into a very tricky and challenging area, and that is sort of industry-by-industry rescue. We have had before us the whole question of the viability of the American automobile manufacturers. None of us wants to see them go down, but very few of us had anything to do with the dilemma they have created for themselves. So the question was: Is there a way out? The administration negotiated in good faith with the Democratic majority a proposal that was simply unacceptable to the vast majority of our side because we thought it, frankly, wouldn't work.

Into this breach stepped the junior Senator from Tennessee who, I must say, has made an extraordinary impact in a very small amount of time. I am hard pressed to think of another Member who has been here such a short period of time who has made such an impression on colleagues on both sides of the aisle by mastering an extraordinarily complicated subject and being able to explain it in a way that is understandable. He has diligently pursued an agreement that could pass, that could enjoy broad support on both sides. He has made great progress in that direction.

The sticking point we are left with is the question of whether the UAW is willing to agree to a parity pay structure with other manufacturers in this country by a date certain. I understand their reluctance to do that, and so far, in the discussions Senator Corker and Senator Dodd and others have had, they have not been willing to give a date specific by which parity could be achieved. It is upon that issue that we have reached an impasse for the moment.

At this stage I share the view of the majority leader that we should go ahead and have the vote on cloture to the measure he outlined. We can have it at 1 o'clock this morning or we could move it up and do it now. I will be happy, I say to my friend, the majority leader, to try to get the vote we could have at 1 o'clock at 10:30 or 10:40, if he wishes me to. I think that would probably end the discussion, at least for today. We all know we will be involved in this discussion in the future, but that will probably end it for today.

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