National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD
SENATE
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2005
Mr. DURBIN. Will the Senator yield?
Mr. WARNER. Yes.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I am not sure who has the floor at this moment.
Mr. WARNER. At this point in time the Chair is perfectly in order to recognize the Senator from Illinois.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Illinois.
Mr. DURBIN. Thank you, Mr. President. I thank the chairman of the committee, Senator Warner, and his ranking member, Senator Levin, for their endurance and patience.
This is an extremely important bill with many important issues. I say to the Senators, you have served the Senate well, both of you, in the manner you have handled this bill. Many of us with amendments that we consider of importance have stepped back, some because of events, such as the departure and the demise of President Reagan, and others because of other issues.
It is my understanding that there will not be a unanimous consent request tonight in terms of the order of business. I am not going to make one. I thank Senator Reid for acknowledging that I do have several amendments pending. I am anxious to call up the amendments. I will agree to time limits on debate so this will not go on for a lengthy period. I would just like to bring the matters to the floor for resolution.
Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, does the Senator from Illinois have the number of the amendment he is likely to propose in the event the sequence of events as outlined by the three Senators here, momentarily, evolves?
Mr. DURBIN. I thank the Senator from Virginia. I spoke to him earlier about an amendment relative to the policy on torture. That is amendment No. 3386. But I would like to defer that until the Senator from Virginia has had a chance to review it, in the hopes he will be supportive.
Another amendment is No. 3196, reservist pay. This is an amendment which passed the Senate with a 96-to-3 vote last year, which I am hoping we can make a part of this bill. Finally, I have an amendment relative to the sale of dietary supplements on base exchanges, amendment No. 3225. Those are the three amendments I have pending.