Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the 111th Congress, First Session Page: 3 of 106
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Congressional
United States
of Americath
cord
CONGRESS, FIRST SESSIONVol. 155 WASHINGTON, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2009 No. 129
Senate
The Senate met at 2 p.m. and was
called to order by the Honorable MARK
WARNER, a Senator from the Common-
wealth of Virginia.
PRAYER
The Chaplain, Dr. Barry C. Black, of-
fered the following prayer:
Let us pray.
Almighty God, who has given us this
good land for our heritage, empower
our Senators to have clean hands and
pure hearts worthy of a nation that de-
pends on You. Spare them from impure
thoughts, careless manners, and com-
promising conduct. Keep them humble
and eager to accept Your forgiveness
and renewing grace. Lord, infuse them
with such a spirit of civility that they
will be peacemakers who are called
Your children. Create in them pure
hearts that they may understand Your
will and follow where You lead.
We pray in Your merciful Name.
Amen.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
The Honorable MARK WARNER led the
Pledge of Allegiance, as follows:
I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the
United States of America, and to the Repub-
lic for which it stands, one nation under God,
indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
APPOINTMENT OF ACTING
PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The
clerk will please read a communication
to the Senate from the President pro
tempore (Mr. BYRD).
The legislative clerk read the fol-
lowing letter:
U.S. SENATE,
PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE,
Washington, DC, September 14, 2009.
To the Senate:
Under the provisions of rule I, paragraph 3,
of the Standing Rules of the Senate, I hereby
appoint the Honorable MARK WARNER, a Sen-ator from the Commonwealth of Virginia, to
perform the duties of the Chair.
ROBERT C. BYRD,
President pro tempore.
Mr. WARNER thereupon assumed the
chair as Acting President pro tempore.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I suggest
.the absence of a quorum.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem-
pore. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to
call the roll.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unan-
imous consent that the order for the
quorum call be rescinded.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem-
pore. Without objection, it is so or-
dered.
RECOGNITION OF THE MAJORITY
LEADER
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem-
pore. The majority leader is recog-
nized.
SCHEDULE
Mr. REID. Mr. President, we are
going to be in a period of morning busi-
ness until 3 o'clock-for 1 hour. After
that, we are going to move back to the
Transportation appropriations bill.
There will be a vote at 5:30 p.m. today
on a matter relating to the Transpor-
tation appropriations bill.
NOT LETTING HISTORY REPEAT
ITSELF
Mr. REID. Mr. President, just a year
ago today, our economy came precar-
iously close to its breaking point-as
close to the brink as it had in genera-
tions. One year ago today, Lehman
Brothers, part of the foundation of
Wall Street for more than a century
and a half, collapsed.
Much is being made of this anniver-
sary. The media is dedicating signifi-
cant amounts of air time, newsprint,
and bandwidth to analyzing what itmeans, to recording how far we have
come since that day, and to describing
the work we still have before us. Presi-
dent Obama went to Wall Street today
to reiterate the importance of
strengthening the system that keeps fi-
nancial firms in check.
But as significant as this occasion is,
it is critical to remember that the eco-
nomic crisis was not created in a day.
As dramatic as it may sound, the re-
ality is that our economy did not wake
up on the morning of September 14 and
suddenly find itself in the emergency
room. In fact, this was a long time
coming. The Lehman collapse was sim-
ply the final straw that broke a vulner-
able economy's back, the final spark
that ignited a highly flammable and
flawed system.
The conditions that created this cri-
sis had been brewing for years. A lethal
combination of government deregula-
tion and industrial irresponsibility
meant Wall Street could run wild. And
run wild it did. Greed, excess, and reck-
less risk ruled the day. Disdain for gov-
ernment oversight-even though the
singular purpose of oversight is to pro-
tect the people-was in vogue. Loop-
holes were exploited. When the rules
did not offer any loopholes, those rules
were broken.
More than a year and a half before
his company's collapse, a Lehman ex-
ecutive told his boss how risky the
mortgages that had artificially in-
flated their business were. He knew the
bubble was bound to burst, and he
knew that once the housing market
fell, it would fall onto the nearby
dominos in the banking markets and
credit markets. He saw it coming.
I repeat, he knew that once the hous-
ing market failed, it would fall onto
the nearby dominos in the banking
markets and credit markets. He saw it
coming.
Bear Stearns knew as early as 2005
that the complicated loans it packaged
were too good to be true. The Securi-
ties and Exchange Commission saw the" This "bullet" symbol identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by a Member of the Senate on the floor.
S9301
@ Printed on recycled paper.
PROCEEDINGS AND DEBATES OF THE 111
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United States. Congress. Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the 111th Congress, First Session, book, September 14, 2009; Washington D.C.. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth877468/m1/3/?q=american+indian: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting National WASP WWII Museum.