Recapping yesterday's action:
The House was not in session yesterday. They return from recess next week.
The Senate was in session, but not so's you'd notice. Just a little unanimous consent housekeeping, though that did include a resolution congratulating the Girl Scouts (aka, the "tactical arm of Planned Parenthood") on its 100th anniversary. That, and the initiation of the Rule XIV process on the so-called "JOBS Act," and a DeMint measure prohibiting enforcement of certain provisions of the Americans With Disabilities Act with regard to public swimming pools. Don't know exactly what that's about, but it sounds pretty DeMinty.
Oh, yes, one more thing. Harry Reid filed for cloture on 17 judicial nominations yesterday. Most of the nominees have been waiting an average of about six months, though one, John J. Tharp, Jr., has technically been waiting since July of 2008, when he was first nominated by George W. Bush. With just a few months left in Bush's term, and even less time left in the Senate's working session, his nomination expire without action. His renomination by President Obama apparently stems from a tradition among Illinois Senators permitting a Senator from the party in opposition to a sitting president to make recommendations for one of every three federal judicial vacancies.
The great tyrant Obama has very Hitlerishly agreed to go ahead with this nomination.
Those cloture motions will ripen for votes on Wednesday. So that'll be exciting. Maybe.
Looking ahead to today:
The Senate makes up for the slow Monday with a long, long list of expected votes on the long-delayed transportation bill today. Twenty-three amendments, to be exact. And depending on the conditions of the agreement that brought us to this point, they just might actually be able to get through them all. It's not uncommon for them to tackle a list like this by allowing only two minutes of debate per amendment.
Today's floor and committee schedules appear below the fold.
The House is in recess this week.
In the Senate, courtesy of the Office of the Majority Leader:
Senate Floor Schedule for Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Convenes: 10:00am
Following any Leader remarks, the Senate will be in morning business for one hour with the Majority controlling the first half and the Republicans controlling the final half.
Following morning business, the Senate will resume consideration of S.1813, the Surface Transportation bill. At 12:00pm, there will be 2 roll call votes in relation to the following amendments to S.1813:
- DeMint #1756 (State discretionary authority);
- Bingaman #1759 (privatized highways)
Following the vote in relation to the Bingaman amendment, the Senate will recess until 2:15pm to allow for the weekly caucus meetings.
At 2:15pm, there will be up to 21 roll call votes in relation to the following:
- Roberts #1826, side-by-side to Stabenow #1812, as modified (Energy Tax Extenders) (60-vote threshold);
- Stabenow #1812, as modified (Energy Tax Extenders) (60-vote threshold);
- DeMint #1589 (repeal of energy tax subsidies) (60-vote threshold)
- Menendez-Burr #1782 (Natural Gas) (60-vote threshold);
- Coats #1517 (Apportionment formula);
- Brown(OH) #1819 (Buy America);
- Blunt #1540 (Off system bridges);
- Merkley #1814 (Farm vehicle exemptions);
- Portman #1736 (gas tax flexibility);
- Klobuchar #1617 (Ag transportation);
- Corker #1785 (discretionary spending cap adjustment)
- Shaheen #1678 (small bus systems);
- Portman #1742 (rest areas);
- Corker #1810 (limitation on expenditures);
- Carper #1670 (tolls);
- Hutchison #1568 (tolls);
- McCain #1669 (Grand Canyon – noise abatement), as modified with the changes at the desk;
- Alexander #1779 (over-flights of national parks).
- Boxer #1816 (SoS emergency exemptions);
- Paul #1556 (emergency exemptions);
- Passage of S.1813, as amended.
During Monday’s session of the Senate, cloture was filed on the following Executive Calendar items in the following order:
- Cal.#408, Gina Marie Groh, of West Virginia, to be US District Judge for the Northern District of WV;
- Cal.#441, David Nuffer, of Utah, to be US District Judge for the District of UT;
- Cal.#461, Michael Walter Fitzgerald, of California, to be US District Judge for the Central District of CA;
- Cal.#462, Ronnie Abrams, of New York, to be US District Judge for the Southern District of NY;
- Cal.#463, Rudolph Contreras, of Virginia, to be US District Judge for the District of Columbia;
- Cal.#464, Miranda Du, of Nevada, to be US District Judge for the District of NV;
- Cal.#497, Susie Morgan, of Louisiana, to be US District Judge for the Eastern District of LA;
- Cal.#509, Gregg Jeffrey Costa, of Texas, to be US District Judge for the Southern District of TX;
- Cal.#510, David Campos Guaderrama, of Texas, to be US District Judge for the Western District of TX;
- Cal.#528, Brian C. Wimes, of Missouri, to be US District Judge for the Eastern and Western Districts of MO;
- Cal.#568, Kristine Gerhard Baker, of Arkansas ,to be US District Judge for the Eastern District of AR;
- Cal.#569, John Z. Lee, of Illinois, to be US District Judge for the Northern District of IL;
- Cal.#570, George Levi Russell, III, of Maryland, to be US District Judge for the District of Maryland;
- Cal.#571, John J. Tharp, Jr., of Illinois, to be US District Judge for the Northern District of IL;
- Cal.#610, Jeffrey J. Helmick, of Ohio, to be US District Judge for the Northern District of OH;
- Cal.#612, Mary Geiger Lewis, of South Carolina, to be US District Judge for the District of SC; and
- Cal.#613, Timothy S. Hillman, of Massachusetts, to be US District Judge for the District of MA.
Under the rule, the first cloture vote would occur one hour after the Senate convenes on Wednesday, March 14, 2012.
3/12 wrap-up:
Senate Floor Wrap Up for Monday, March 12, 2012
No ROLL CALL VOTES
LEGISLATIVE ITEMS
Discharged the Judiciary committee from further consideration of and adopted S.Res.310, A resolution designating 2012 as the “Year of the Girl” and Congratulating Girl Scouts of the USA on its 100th anniversary.
Adopted S.Res.394, commemorating the 150th anniversary of Italian Unification and the beginning of warm and abiding relations between the people of the United States and Italy.
Began the Rule 14 process of H.R.3606, Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (Republican request)
Began the Rule 14 process of S.2186, to amend the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 to prohibit the Attorney General from administering or enforcing certain accessibility regulations relating to pools at public accommodations or provided by public entities. (DeMint)
No EXECUTIVE ITEMS
Today's Senate committee schedule:
9:30 am
Armed Services
Hearings to examine U.S. Southern Command and U.S. Northern Command in review of the Defense Authorization request for fiscal year 2013 and the Future Years Defense Program; with the possibility of a closed session in SVC-217 following the open session.
SD-G50
10:00 am
Energy and Natural Resources
Hearings to examine the report of the Independent Consultant's Review with Respect to the Department of Energy Loan and Loan Guarantee Portfolio.
SD-366
10:00 am
Foreign Relations
Hearings to examine the nominations of Frederick D. Barton, of Maine, to be an Assistant Secretary of State (Conflict and Stabilization Operations), and to be Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization, and William E. Todd, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the Kingdom of Cambodia, both of the Department of State, and Sara Margalit Aviel, of California, to be United States Alternate Executive Director of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
SD-419
10:30 am
Judiciary
Hearings to examine the Freedom of Information Act, focusing on safeguarding critical infrastructure information and the public's right to know.
SD-226
2:30 pm
Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Water and Wildlife
Hearings to examine S.810, to prohibit the conducting of invasive research on great apes, S.1249, to amend the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act to facilitate the establishment of additional or expanded public target ranges in certain States, S.2071, to grant the Secretary of the Interior permanent authority to authorize States to issue electronic duck stamps, S.357, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to identify and declare wildlife disease emergencies and to coordinate rapid response to those emergencies, S.1494, to reauthorize and amend the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act, S.1266, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to establish a program to build on and help coordinate funding for the restoration and protection efforts of the 4-State Delaware River Basin region, and S.2156, to amend the Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp Act to permit the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission, to set prices for Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamps and make limited waivers of stamp requirements for certain users.
SD-406
2:30 pm
Foreign Relations
Hearings to examine the nominations of Carlos Pascual, of the District of Columbia, to be Assistant Secretary for Energy Resources, John Christopher Stevens, of California, to be Ambassador to Libya, and Jacob Walles, of Delaware, to be Ambassador to the Tunisian Republic, all of the Department of State.
SD-419
2:30 pm
Intelligence
Closed hearings to examine certain intelligence matters.
SH-219
3:00 pm
Appropriations: Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies
Hearings to examine proposed military construction budget estimates for fiscal year 2013 for the Department of Defense and the Department of the Navy.
SD-124