Senate Proceeding on May 13th, 2009 :: 0:17:35 to 0:23:05
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0:17:31 to 0:17:51( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: medicare remain viable for them and for their child grandchildren. mr. president, i yield the floor. the presiding officer: under the previous order the leadership time is under the previous order the senate will proceed to the executive session to consider the following nomination w the clerk - will report.

0:17:35 to 0:23:05( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Robert Bennett

0:17:52 to 0:18:13( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: the clerk: department of the david hayes of virginia to be deputy secretary of t interior. the presiding officer: under the previous order there will now be one hour of debate equally divided and controlled between the two leaders or their designees. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: t senator from utah.

0:18:14 to 0:18:35( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: a senator: mr. president, i rise in opposition to the hayes nomination. mr. bennett: i'm here with the senator from alaska and i would like to be told consum 15 minutes. so that the senator from alaska and i can coordinate our presentation. the presiding officer: we'll do that.

0:18:36 to 0:18:56( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: mr. bennett: mr. president, i listened with interest to the statement of the majority leader with respect to david hayes, and i agree with much of what he had to say. file compelled to correctome of the things -- i feel compelled to correct some of the things that he had to say. because they are some of the same things that the department of interior has been saying that

0:18:57 to 0:19:18( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: i find, in fact, are not factual. i agree with him that the president appoint whomever it is he wants. and i agree with him that david hayes is position. i also believe, however, mr. president, that members of this body who have of

0:19:19 to 0:19:39( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: entitled to clear answers to their questions before the confirmation goes down. and it is have been asking for clear answers to those -- legitimate questions and that those answers have not been and, therefore, i am not willing to proceed with the confirmation

0:19:40 to 0:20:01( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: vote until we get those answers. this is not to say that i am opposed to david hayes and will do everything to see to it that he is not confirmed. indeed, i want to do everything i can to see that he is confirmed as rapidly as possible. but as rapidly as possible does not mean that i must give up my

0:20:02 to 0:20:23( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: rights to clear answers to legitimate questions. now, let me go to some of the items that the majority leader covered in his statement because they are items that the secretary of interior has used that others have used that have been in press releases that i believe need to be set straight.

0:20:24 to 0:20:44( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: th true. let's start out with the question of leases. numbers. how many lses were put up and granted by the b.l.m. in the last administration in the state of utah? the answer to that question is

0:20:45 to 0:21:08( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: 128. not 77. 128. all of those 128 leases were subject to exactly the same kind of all of them went through the same kind of review. all of them

0:21:09 to 0:21:30( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: same team of experts, career peopleithin the department, and all of them ultimately were granted. the majority leader said this happened in the midnight hours of the bush administration as if this whole thing were cobled together in the last minute. in fact,uch of the activity

0:21:31 to 0:21:54( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: dealing with the granting of these leases occurred over a seven-year period. why? because all of the parties involved wanted to make sure that they complied with all of the rules. if it had been handled in a rush-it-through, get-it-done during our political circumstance sort of

0:21:55 to 0:22:15( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: they could have been granted in 2004 or 2007. they didn't have to wt until the last months the reason they waited until the last months of 2008 was because that they were so meticulously reviewed to make sure that they complied with every rule, that

0:22:16 to 0:22:36( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: it took that long. so let's get rid of the idea that this was a political decision on the part of the bush administration. the record is very clear that it was not. all right. after the obama administration took over, out of that were granted, were withdrawn by the secretary

0:22:37 to 0:22:58( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: of interior. why? if there was a these leases were handled, the entire 128 should have been withdrawn because they were all handled in exactly the sam manner. the 77 were environmental group filed lawsuit.

0:22:59 to 0:23:06( Edit History Discussion )

Robert Bennett: the environmental group decided which challenged, not the department of interior.