A senator mr. President . The presiding officer the republican leader. Mr. Mcconnell are we in a quorum call . The presiding officer we are. Mr. Mcconnell i ask further proceedings under the quorum call be dispensed with. The presiding officer without objection. Mr. Mcconnell im not sure if you have a fax machine at home, not Many Americans do anymore. Neither do a lot of Small Businesses. So it seems a bit a odd to tell Small Businesses they need to fax in enrollment foamplet for be obamacare for obamacare. That is what the Obama Administration is now doing. I might paraphrase the president , the 1980s called and they want their Health Policy back. Now, to be fair, snail mail is also an option and it looks like the president s people will try to have the issue fixed soon despite passing the law more than three years ago. But then again this is the same president who told us that obamacare is working the way its supposed to, president obama said, and that those who already have Health Care Wont see many changes under this law. The same guy who promised us his Health Care Ideas would make american premiums lower and that theyd be able to keep the plans they liked. So forgive me for being a little bit skeptical given how these other rosy scenarios have played out. Now, im not the only skeptic out there. Just ask the folks who have already gotten laid off or seen their hours cut. Ask the graduate who cant find anything but parttime work. Ask the 20something who is going to lose her Employer Health plan and pay more over in the exchanges. The reality simply does not match up with the rhetoric. That includes the president s remarks yesterday over in maryland. He said theres no widespread evidence that obamacare is hurting jobs. Thats actually what he said. No widespread evidence. Now, we all know the president was hanging around with bill clinton the other day. What we didnt know is he was getting pointers on sin tax. It syntax. It makes you wonder what would constitute widespread evidence of job loss in this president s mind. I mean just yesterday his press secretary dismissed reports of a company dropping Health Insurance for 55,000 employees as just quote an anecdote end quote. Maybe thats how things look from the south lawn, it looks a lot difference if you just lost your Health Care Plan that you liked and you wanted to keep. And to senator moynihan used to tell us data is the plural of anecdote. Data is the plural of anecdote. Just too many stories about the impact of obamacare, far too many to be discussed with discussed with the wave of a hand. Ironically the same bayday the president was painting rosy scenarios in maryland the administration anunezzed yet another delay in this laws implementation. Thats about the time we found out about the fax machines and al follows the revelation of yet more exchange problems. This time with an exchange here in the district of columbia. You might be able to take any one of these many obamacare problems in isolation and explain it away, say it doesnt matter, just call it an anecdote, but were getting here is a constant drip, drip, paired with the effects of seeing what is whats happening to our jobs and our health care and the economy. It all adds up to just one thing a law in trouble. A law that needs to be repealed. Thats the goal of every member of the republican conference here in the senate, were united on the need to repeal obamacare, we want to replace it with sensible, bipartisan reforms that will actually work, and in a few minutes each and every one of us will vote against funding obamacare. The American People want this law repealed. Republicans want it repealed. I wouldnt be surprised if a number of our democratic colleagues secretly want it repealed as well. The problem here is that we cant get that done unless some of our friends on the other side are prepared to step up and work with us on the issue because there are 54 of them and 46 of us. This doesnt mean well give up the fight if they dont. We wont. There are a lot of other things we can do in the meantime. For instance, we can follow the administrations lead in offering an obamacare delay for the American People. After all, the administration seems to think businesses deserve a break from obamacare, doesnt the middle class deserve the same treatment, the very same treatment . Republicans think so. And i think we might be able to convince enough democrats to join us on that. To help us provide fairness, fairness to the middle class. Yesterday one democratic senator already signaled his willingness to delay some of the worst aspects of the law as well. He called a delay for the American People very reasonable and sensible. He posed a question, dont you think that would be fair . The answer is yeah, that would be fair. Thats a question for our democratic colleagues to respond to. Many of whom know how badly this law is hurting their constituents. Isnt that just the fair thing to do . Of course it is. So im calling on Democratic Senators to put the middle class ahead of the president s pride, calling for them to help us pass a delay for everyone. Weve already filed legislation that would do just that. A bipartisan majority of the house already supports it. Lets Work Together to actually do it. Then once we get that done, lets keep working to get rid of this law and replace it with real reforms. Not with ideas from the 1980s but with common sense, stepbystep reforms that will actually lower the cost for the American People and spare them from this terrible law. Mr. President , i yield the floor. The presiding officer under the previous order, the time until 12 30 is reserved for the two leaders with the final ten minutes reserved for the majority leader. The majority leader. Mr. Reid during my time in washington, ive had the opportunity to work with many reasonable, thoughtful republicans including those serving in this body today. Those Reasonable Republicans value this institution, the United States senate, and they respect the government of which its a part. But today, the Republican Party has been infected by a small did you destructive faction that would rather tear down the house our founders built than govern from it. These extremists are more interested in putting on a show as one republican colleague put it than in slating. Thats why they prevented the senate to take action, to put on a show today. Despite pleas from the house of representatives for Quick Senate Action, that same vocal minority was determined to waste the dwindling hours before a Government Shutdown. One day, basically they wasted. Although every minute that passes puts this country one minute closer to a shutdown, a shutdown that would shatter our economy, let they continue to obstruct and to lay. Budelay. But you see, mr. President , a bad day for government is a good day for the anarchists among us. Those who believe in no i repeat no government thats their belief the modern day an car consists anars the tea party, they believe in no government. And theyre backed by a very wealthy group of people who finance this effort to destroy our government. Its important to note these tea party obstructionists dont represent mainstream republicans either in this body or mainstream republicans in our country. But unfortunately, their grip on the rudder of the Republican Party is very firm. For the last few years, these radicals in the house and the senate have driven america from crisis to crisis. We lurch from crisis to crisis, leaving a trail of economic destruction behind. And now theyve taken the United States government hostage and demanded an impossible ransom the democrats repeal the law of this land known as obamacare. The Affordable Care act has been the law of the land for four years. The United StatesSupreme Court has declared it constitutional. And soon it will help 25 million to 35 Million People in america who are currently living without Health Insurance. It will allow them to get access to lifesaving care they need and deserve. Mr. President , i dont know if people really know what it means to not have Health Insurance. Not have the ability to go to the doctor or hospital when youre sick or hurt. Some of us do, mr. President. Some of us understand how tens of millions of people in America Today cant go to the hospital when theyre sick or when theyre hurt. Mr. President , i was a boy i dont know how old i was, 10 or 11 years old i was so, so sick. I can still remember how sick i was. Been sick for quite a long time. The little house we lived n. But yolived in. But you see, we didne doctors in searchlight. There wasnt a doctor for 50 miles. And we had no car. I was really sick. We didnt go to doctors but it was obvious that i was really ill. And so one of my older brothers came to visit and they were with a friend. That friend of my brother, don, agreed to take them to the hospital. So i went to the hospital and i still have the scar, mr. President i had a prove of groove on my large intest ien i had a groove on my large intest ien. I would have died had i not been to the hospital. I know what its like to not go to the hospital or doctor when youre sick. Mr. President , my wonderful mother who took in wash in searchlight we had a nothing much there but once i remember a tv wagon came through, which was a truck, that they would do xrays of somebodys chest to find out if they had tuberculosis because it was still around. People in searchlight, i remember conn hodgens had tuberculosis and others. So this my dad wouldnt go. My mother went and had her chest xrayed. Mr. President , the results came back in a little card in the mail. She had tuberculosis. She was positive for tuberculosis. What did we do . What did she do . Nothing. Nothing. As a boy caring about my mother, i worried so much about that. I cant imagine even to this day how she must have felt. Well, in hindsight, mr. President , it looks like it was a false positive. But that didnt take away the concern that i had for a long time. And i cant imagine i repeat how my mother must have felt. So i have had some view of what its like not to be able to go to the doctor or hospital when youre sick or hurt. Mr. President , again, i dont know how old i was, but my little brother, 22 months younger than i was, coming on his bicycle and he slides and he was hurt. And he was crying. I guess he was 10 years old or Something Like that. And no one was home and i helped him get up to the house and laid down. He was so [inaudible] my mother. My brother never, ever went to the doctor, had a broken leg. He still has a bent leg short today. He laid on that bed, he couldnt touch the bed, it hurt so much. He laid there until he could get up and walk, a week or 10 days later. So these people who just nonchalantly dont focus on the fact that millions of americans have no Health Insurance. We cant just walk away from this. The Health Care Law that we have, mr. President , is important. Republicans fought long and hard in opposition to obamacare. Mr. President , they lost. It was a fair fight. And they made their case against obama directly to the American People in november last and they lost again. Obama won, not by a small margin, he won by 5 million votes. What was the main issue in that campaign . It was health care. The American People overwhelmingly reelected the president. One reason they did is because of health care. Yesterday on this floor from over there a colleague of ours, the senior senator from arizona, john mccain, spoke with great eloquence about this law. Its a law he opposes. This is what he said. The people spoke. They spoke, much to my dismay, but they spoke and reelected the president of the United States. That doesnt mean that we give up our efforts to try to replace and repair obamacare, but elections have consequences. The majority of the American People supported the president of the United States and renewed his stewardship of this country. I dont like it, he said, but i think all of us should respect outcome of elections which reflect the will of the people. Who who said this, again . Who said this . Who is this john mccain . Hes a proven fighter in war and in public service. This is a man who held the mantle of the Republican Partys nomination to be president of the United States, not some gabfly. But an american patriot. And history books will talk about that in generations to come. The republicans heard his message for which the senate and the country should be grateful. So, mr. President , the challen challenge this fall, closing in on the end of the fiscal year, those of us who respect the fiscal government founded by americas founders, those of us who believe in the rule of law and the elections that reflect the will of the people will face a test. Can we prevent an economically disastrous Government Shutdown and can we protect the full faith and credit of the United States . Mr. President , one newspaper addition not lots of newspapers, one newspaper look at the headlines. Gop hardliners block strategy to avoid shutdown. Government shutdown would entail costs. Shutdown could carry pay risk even for employees kept on the job. One newspaper. Agencies prepare to furlough workers and face a partial Government Shutdown. Shutdown grows more likely as house digs in. Governor christie quote shutdown would be a failure, it would be irresponsible. A Government Shutdown looms. Americas brace for possible disruption, disappointment. Another headline, rounding jurisdictions develop shutdown game plans. Threat of shutdown delays some colorado flood relief. Is it any wonder the stock market is going down . Is it any wonder that people are concerned . Is it any wonder that on someone who works for the park service came to me yesterday and said, ive been through this before; im not going to get paid for my work . So the question is can we overcome modern day anarchists . So in just a few minutes, mr. President , the senate will take the first step toward wresting control from these extremists. Democrats will vote to avert a Government Shutdown. Im confident many of my republican colleagues will vote wi us, to allow the government to perform its basic duties. Together well send a message to radical republicans that we will not allow the law of the land to be used as a hostage, a law thats been in place for four years. Im pleased that so many of my Senate Republican colleagues seem to understand the stakes of this debate. The Economic Health of a still struggling nation and the economic wellbeing of still struggling families. I urge sensible republicans in the house of representatives to follow our lead, to follow the lead of republicans over here. Let the House Democrats vote. Dont just make it a majority of a majority. Let the 435 members who serve in the house of representatives, let them vote. Pass a clean bill to avert a shutdown. Defy the anarchists, respect the law and help the senate govern. Mr. President , i ask that the time thats left for senator mcconnell and me be given back and that we begin the vote. The presiding officer without objection. All time is yielded back. The clerk will report the motion to invoke cloture. The clerk cloture motion. We, the undersigned senators in accordance with the provisions of rule 22 of the standing rules of the senate, hereby move to bridge to a close the debate on h. J. Res. 59, a joint resolution making continuing appropriations for fiscal year 2014, and for other purposes. Signed by 17 senators. The presiding officer by unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum call has been waived. The question is is it the sense of the senate that debate on h. J. Res. 59, making continuing appropriations for fiscal year 2014, and for other purposes, shall be brought to a close . The yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule. The clerk will call the roll. Vote vote vote the presiding officer any other senator wishing to vote . A reminder that expressions of approval or disapproval are not permitted in the senate. On this vote the yeas are 79, the nays are 19. Threefifths of the senators duly chosen and sworn having voted in the affirmative, the motion is agreed to. Cloture having been invoked, all time is yielded back. Amendment number 1975 is withdrawn and the majority leader is recognized. Mr. Reid mr. President . The presiding officer the majority leader. Mr. Reid pursuant to section 904 of the congressional budget act of 1974 i move to waive all applicable sections of the act and any other applicable budget points of order for purposes of the pending joint resolution and the amendments and i ask for the yeas and nays. The presiding officer is there a sufficient second . Appears to be. There is. Mr. Reid i yield back all the time on the motion to waive. The presiding officer the question is on the motion to waive. The clerk will call the roll. Vote vote the presiding officer are there any senators wishing to vote or to change their vote . If not, on this vote the yeas are 68, the nays are 30, 3 5 of the senators duly chosen and sworn having voted in the affirmative, the motion is agreed to. For the information of the senate, upon t