Speech #990224292

But I must tell you I have never offered a nongermane amendment when a committee of jurisdiction was in the process of marking up on the very subject about which my nongermane amendment would have been involved. Just about a year ago. Senator SIMPSON brought up his legislation on immigration reform. I think my colleagues will recollect that I offered a senseoftheSenate resolution to that immigration reform bill. The reason that I offered my nongermane amendment to take the Social Security trust funds out of the Federal budget. which at that point was somewhat controversial. was because people did not want to deal with that issue. They wanted that issue to go away. They did not want that issue to get mixed up in decisions involving immigration. At that point. we did not know that we were going to have a GrammRudman bill. But I pressed that issue even though there was an effort to preclude a vote and after 4 or 5 working days.