 
Dolores Milazzo Hicks -The Senate Sting
Thursday, June 5, 2008 It is the early morning hours on the floor of the senate when Senator Harry Reid yields the floor to Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama. What you have to understand is that the Republican’s had insisted on the complete and lengthy reading of the Global Warming Bill. (chuckle) I was encouraged by the common sense approach of Senator Sessions to this very complex Global Warming bill brought before the senate by Senator Barbara Boxer of California. *(see text below)
Senator Mitch McConnell out of nowhere wrangled with the majority leader Harry Reid about the continued delay of appointments of District and Circuit Court judges. Mr. Reid haggard by the days long reading of the Global Warming bill was dismayed by Mr. McConnell’s request turned to Senator Leahy in disbelief and asks for some reassurance that this might be handled in an expedient manner. Mr. Reid assured Senators Sessions and McConnell of a vote on the judges.
Whereupon Mr. Reid accused Mr. Sessions of saying that the majority leader was clueless.
The exchanges continued and I have to tell you that this was one of those rare and humorous moments on the floor of the senate. I went to bed chuckling to myself about these scrappy ‘sting’ moments.
Here are Senator Sessions’s remarks:
Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, I will add my thoughts that it is an important issue for us to deal with, global warming, and energy security and elimination of pollution and a healthy economy not being damaged by excessive imports of oil or high prices of oil. We wish to deal with that. This bill is a tremendously large bill that dwarfs the prior Clean Air Act of 1990 in significance. I wish to say what happened tonight was the majority leader, utilizing the power of his recognition, has now filled the tree and not one amendment can be offered, as I understand the procedures, he does not agree to. When we did the Clean Air Act, some 200 or more amendments were offered, 5 weeks was spent on it, and 130 amendments, as I recall, were disposed of in some fashion. So we have this tremendous bill we want to talk about.
I would suggest it is as plain as day that as people learn more about it, they are going to be even more concerned than they are today and less supportive of it and hostile to it. That is why it looks to me like an effort is under way to put the Republican Members who would like to offer amendments and discuss the bill in a position where they have no realistic possibility to do so in a meaningful way. This will end with a whimper. The bill can be withdrawn because the majority does not want to stay on it because they can't defend the massive nature of it, the incredible intervention into the economy by Washington bureaucracies that will be created, the trillions of dollars that will have to be raised through this cap and trade, which is nothing more than a way to tax carbon. I wish to protest a moment. We know what is happening. Anybody who is sophisticated here knows this bill is not going to pass. It is losing what support it had. An effort is underway by the Democratic majority to figure a way to pull the bill and then blame the Republicans because we want to talk about it, and we want to entertain a discussion about it. We wish to offer amendments to make it better. That is the truth.
It disturbs me a little bit to hear the comments that have been made earlier. I know we have had a long day. But I wish to make clear this is not an itty-bitty issue. This is a tremendous issue of great importance, both to the world, our economy, and to the environment. We need to do better. We can do better. I hope maybe in the morning things will be in a better posture. I don't think, with regard to the cap-and-trade bill, that the majority is going to want to see it go forward. That indicates a lack of confidence in their own legislation.
I thank the Chair and yield the floor.
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