September 19, 2006: Oman Free Trade Agreement Passes

The Oman Free Trade Agreement passed fairly easily with 62 votes (32 nay, 6 nv).  Quite a few democrats joined Republicans in approving the agreement.  These democrats included Clinton, Murray, Cantwell, Kerry, Landrieu, Lieberman, Salazar, and Obama.  A handful of Republicans voted to reject the agreement.  These included both senators from Maine (Snowe and Collins) and both senators from North Carolina (Burr and Dole).  Coburn also voted to oppose the agreement.

After a two-hour lunch break, the Senate returned to consider the nomination of Alice Fisher for Assistant Attorney General. Sen. Mitch McConnell (KY) recited Fisher's bio and included his endorsement. Fisher is a former Deputy Assistant Attorney General who has worked on counter-terrorism and corporate fraud cases. She had a hand in implementing the PATRIOT Act and co-wrote the Sarbanes Oxley corporate governance act. In 2003 she went into the private sector as a partner at Latham and Watkins, a big corporate law firm. Bush appointer her to Asst. Attorney General as a 2005 recess appointment. It's unclear (to me) why she needs the approval of the senate now.

[14:29]

Sen. Dianne Feinstein says she meant to vote "Nay" on Roll Call Vote number 250 (the Oman FTA). Now it has 62 votes. Back to a quorum call.

September 18, 2006: The Oman Free Trade Agreement

The Senate was in session for a little over four hours.  They are debating the Oman Free Trade Agreement.  No record votes were taken.  They will take up consideration of the Trade Agreement again tomorrow.

Senator Kent Conrad (ND) urged his fellow senators to reject the Oman Free Trade Agreement.  Conrad spoke about two things:  First, what he deemed failed trade policy; Second, on what he called a "sham" process of approving trade agreements negoiated by the Executive Branch.

President Bush's Administration instituted a policy of trade negotiation whereby Congress is no longer allowed to debate and/or amend trade agreements as negotiated by the Executive.  This means that Senators cannot add amendments to a trade agreement.  Rather, the Senate must accept or reject the agreement AS IS.  Conrad said that this progress of Accept or Reject is a sham, a snare, and a delusion.

He also argued that these free trade agreements and associated trade policy is failing our country by running up trade deficits to record levels.  Goods are made in countries like Oman, where wages are cheap, and working conditions are characteristic of sweatshops while industries in our own nation cannot compete in the marketplace.  Money is flowing out of our country as a result of these globalist trade policies, the argument goes.

Indeed, he cited a newspaper article highlighting sweatshop conditions at factories in Jordan.  Conrad believes the Congress has been stripped of its traditional rights when it comes to trade agreements because the Administration does not need to accept any amendments Congress adds to an agreement.

Conrad himself added an amendment to the agreement during a "mock" markup of the agreement in the Senate Finance Committee.  The amendment contained language prohibiting working conditions reminiscent of sweatshop labor—language that would have protected laborers in Oman from sweatshop conditions.  That amendment was unanimously agreed to.  However, it does not appear in the version of the agreement which the Senate must accept or reject.

So, he said that Congress should exercise the only right it has when it comes to trade agreements and reject the agreement outright.

Septemeber 13, 2006: More Port Security Act

Yesterday was a full day of offering up, debating, and voting on amendments to the Port Security Act.  Today, more amendments, with a sense that the Bill was beginning to get bogged down.  First, Republicans rejected a Reid (NV) amendment that would implement what the Democrat honchos are calling the "Real Security Act."  The amendment purports to, "Provide real national security, restore United States leadership, and implement tough and smart policies to win the war on terror."  Among other things, it assigned money to improve rail security and search more cargo containers than would the underlying bill.  Nonetheless, the Real Security Act went down along party lines.  The Republicans also nixed a Biden Amendment which would have, "Establish[ed] a Homeland Security and Neighborhood Safety trust Fund and refocus[ed] Federal priorities toward securing the Homeland, and for other purposes."  A Menendez Amendment also fell.  A Coleman Amendment succeeded.

The Senate will vote on passage of the final bill tomorrow.

[15:01]
Sen. Collins has objected to Sen. Menendez's offer of an amendment because the Democrats are offering too many amendments and the two sides were supposed to trade off amendments.  Sen. Patty Murray, managing the bill on the Democrat side, said that he just wanted to offer it up and that there weren't any Repubs on the floor anyway.  Collins has a look of consternation.  She says that until she knows what the amendment is about and what the Senator from New Jersey hopes will come of the amendment (full debate, a mere offering up, etc.) she must object.  Sen. Murray suggests the absence of a quorum and Sens. Murray and Collins talk on the floor.

[15:14]
After the quorum call, Sen. Menendez is allowed to bring up his Amendment, which appears to require closer inspection of the cargo containers entering our country.  The Democrats are not letting up on this issue.  The underlying bill would scan only 5% of containers entering our country at its ports.  Menendez says this is unacceptable.  He wants an international inspection system and wants 100% of containers entering the country to be inspected.  Technology can make this easier, he says, through types of scanning that do not require opening the containers themselves.  He is not calling for all containers to opened up and examined, he says, but all should be scanned using non-intrusive technology.  His concern is that we don't know what is entering our ports.  We divert airplanes because someone has a Blackberry on board, yet we don't know whether chemical or biological weapons might be coming in through our ports.

[15:21]
Sen. Collins listened carefully and wants to respond.  She asserts that the system in place right now is adequate.

[16:16]
Coleman (MN) amendment  is passing almost unanimously.  It would, "Require the Secretary of Homeland Security to ensure that all cargo containers are screened before arriving at a United States seaport, that all high-risk containers are scanned before leaving a United States seaport, and that integrated scanning systems are fully deployed to scan all cargo containers entering the United States before they arrive in the United States."  This sounds like what the Menendez  Amendment would do, although it seems that the Menendez Amendment would be more strict, and therefore more burdensome.  Kerry (MA) has voted against it.  Wait, no, Kerry's vote is now an "Aye."  Perhaps a miscommunication with the clerk.  Schumer votes against it, so does Biden.  It passes with 95 votes.

As for the Menendez Amendment, Collins says it is too burdensome, because it would scan all out-going containers and require sanctions against other countries not complying with its provisions, possibly leading to retaliation.  It falls, receiving only 43 votes, pretty much along party lines ALTHOUGH Jim Talent (MO) voted with the Democrats, which is highly unusual.  Sen. Ben Nelson (NE) voted with the Repubs.  Recall that this is Sen. Collins's bill.  Because Collins is a moderate Republican, it is not surprising that other moderates would be voting with her and the rest of the party.  As for Talent, that's two votes within a week against the party line.  I would bet that's the most votes against the party line during any MONTH he's been in office.  He is feeling the McCaskill heat.

[19:11]
Sen. Stevens (AK) is winding things down.  It looks like more votes on amendments tomorrow as well as the vote on the final bill.  He suggests the absence of a quorum.

The Port Security Bill

The Senate continues to hammer out the handouts in the Port Security Bill.  It's starting to get a little porked up with amendment after amendment.  This will lead to tough negotiations with the House.

There were numerous votes on these amendments, which floor manager Collins (ME) stacked so as to convenience the Senators.  A Lautenberg Amendment passed with 85 yeas.  It professed, "To provide that the limitation on the number of Transportation Security Administration employees shall not apply after the date of enactment of this Act, and for other purposes."  

Likewise, a Hutchison Amendment passed unanimously.  It purports, "To strengthen national security by adding an additional 275 Customs and Border Protection officers at United States ports."

September 8, 2006: The Port Security Act

Yesterday, the Senate passed the FY 2007 Defense Appopriations Act 98-0.  From there, they moved on to consider the SAFE Ports Act.  Collins manages the bill on the floor.  There weren’t any votes today.  It was just speeches about the bill.

[10:06]
Sen. Stevens (AK) supports the bill.  He is thanking the Senators and staff who have worked on it.

[10:41]
Sen. Susan Collins (ME).  Eleven million shipping containers coming into this country each year.  Any one could be the Trojan Horse.  This legislation implements a system of security focusing on the port of origin, effective evaluation of each container, and some sort of supply chain security analysis.  Sen. Patty Murray (WA) has authored some sort of “Green Lane” certification where the merchants would meet certain requirements and in return get speedier security checks on their goods.

The bill does not purport to require an X-Ray of each container.   It seems the delay imposed by such widescale X-Rays is not acceptable.  We need to strike the right balance, says Collins.

September 7, 2006: Defense FY 2007 Passes

After returning to action yesterday, the Senate today passed the FY 2007 Defense Appropriations Bill 98-0.  Amendments agreed to included the Reed Amendment securing funds for investment in manless aircraft, a Conrad Amendment swearing to step up efforts to find bin Laden, a Schumer Amendment offering funds to curb opium production in Afghanistan.

Once it had passed the Defense Appropriations bill, the Senate went on to consider the SAFE Ports Act, which it continued to consider on Friday the 8th....


The Democrats appear to have adopted a strategy of offering amendments where they perceive weaknesses in the Administration's Defense efforts.  For example, the increase in opium production in Afghanistan.  Here, a motion to table the amendment did not pass and the amendment itself was eventually agreed to.  Among Republicans supporting it were Warner, Snowe, Ensign, DeWine, Collins, Coleman, and Talent.  Stevens opposed it by saying that NATO was now in control of Afghanistan and that the problem should be addressed by NATO.

Another example is the Conrad bin Laden Amendment, its stated purpose being to, "To enhance intelligence community efforts to bring Osama bin Laden and other key leaders of al Qaeda to the justice they deserve."  Stevens opposed this bill on the floor, pointing out that the Administration had closed the CIA bin Laden unit because it believed that its efforts to get bin Laden were best addressed via other means.  However, the Amendment was eventually agreed to 96-0.

September 6, 2006: The Gang's All Here

The Senate came back into session yesterday. I didn't see any of it so I can't say what happened. I tuned in at 19:08 est...

[19:08]
They are hammering out the finer points of the Defense Appropriations Bill, which they were working on before the Summer Recess and decided to put on hiatus until after the break. On the floor are Sen. Ted Stevens (AK), who is in charge of the bill. Sen. Tom Carper (DE) is arguing for the Democrats. Sen. Barbara Boxer is on the floor leading the majority in floor management.

Carper says it's time to change course, which means changing leadership. He says to President Bush, "If Rumsfeld offers to resign again, accept it."

[19:28]
The Democrats want to vote on a Resolution of NO CONFIDENCE in Sec. of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. Minority Leader Harry Reid (NV) says it's partisan wrangling that is keeping the Senate from voting on it. Reid sends the letter to the desk and, in an unusual move, allows the amendment to be read. (Usually the reading is dispensed with.)

Stevens kills the Amendment by raising a point of order against it and it falls.

Now, Sen. Ted Kennedy (MA) has an Amendment. Reid co-sponsors it. It requires the administration to make a finding every three months as to whether Iraq is in a civil war. And if so, to make strategic decisions to provide there against. If not, to take steps to avert civil war.

He gives a speech on Iraq and the possibility of civil war. He says the administration needs to deal with reality and be honest about the facts in Iraq.