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Floor Speech

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Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, notwithstanding Rule 232, I ask unanimous consent that upon disposition of Calendar No. 121, H.R. 3944, as amended, if amended, the Senate vote on confirmation of the Rinaldi nomination, and following disposition of the nomination, the Senate execute the order in relation to the Woll and Kent nominations.

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Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I want to take this opportunity, also, to thank Leader Thune for his willingness to bring these appropriations bills before the full Senate. I also thank our Democratic counterparts for working with us to come up with this rather complex time agreement. But it is one that will allow different voices to be heard on both sides of the aisle.

I am very pleased that the Senate is proceeding to consideration of these appropriations bills. Congress has responsibility--a constitutional responsibility--under article I for the power of the purse. We are executing that responsibility by proceeding to these bills. These bills all mean a great deal to each of us.

I want to give my colleagues just some idea of the amount of input that these subcommittees on the Appropriations Committee have received from our colleagues. To give you an example, on the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs bill, we have had, literally, thousands of requests of support, of suggestions from our colleagues from more than 87 of our colleagues. That is very typical. In fact, this past week, when we reported the Defense appropriations committee bill, I think we reached a record high of 95 Senators weighing in with their suggestions, their requests for funding, their suggestions for programmatic changes or support. Those 95 Senators requested and submitted more than 14,000 different letters or inquiries or suggestions for us.

My point is that a great deal of input has gone into the drafting of these bills. That is the way the process should work.

We have had a thorough committee process, with hearings and input from noncommittee members. We have marked up these bills at the subcommittee and full committee levels, and that is what we like to see.

I am very proud of the fact that Maine, the State of Maine, which I am so proud to represent, has one of the highest percentages of veterans in the entire Nation. That is why the funding that is provided by this bill has a special meaning to me, because I know that my State has more than done its part, and I want to ensure that our veterans have access to the benefits and the healthcare they have earned.

My own father was a World War II veteran who was wounded twice in the Battle of the Bulge, earning two Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star. It was wonderful to go to the 80th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge and to actually talk to a veteran who had been in the same division as my father. It was deeply moving.

When you read about the bravery of those in that historic battle, which was a turning point in World War II, you can't help but be filled with a sense of awe and gratitude to those who have sacrificed so much for our Nation.

I know that the Presiding Officer has also done his part for our country, and I am grateful that he is presiding today as we take on the Military Construction and Veterans' Administration bill.

We also will be taking up the Agriculture appropriations bill--again, a very important bill for the State of Maine. I grew up in Northern Maine, where potatoes are the major crop, along with broccoli. Maine is also known for its great, wild blueberries. The University of Maine is known for its agricultural research program, and there is funding for that in this bill.

In short, those two bills, plus the bill for the legislative branch, are the ones we will consider today, and I hope at some point we can return to the Commerce-Justice-Science bill--another very important bill that passed easily from our committee.

I would note that the Agriculture appropriations bill was reported by our committee unanimously. Every one of the bills was passed with great bipartisan support.

So I just wanted to give that general background.

We will shortly begin processing the amendments, and there will be very little time for both sides to speak, but I am hopeful that we can make the kind of progress we want to see and use the August time--I am not going to call it a recess or a work period--to talk with our House counterparts, to do some conferencing and get these bills signed into law before the start of the fiscal year on October 1. That is the way the system should work.

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