we will now turn to senator merkley. senator merkley: thank you to our witnesses. i went to turn to michigan secretary of state jocelyn benson. with your automatic voting registration system, do you have a system to make sure people are aware of the requirements to be a legal voter, that instructs them to opt out of me signed up for they don't meet all the requirements? secretary benson: yes, we do. but we'll just have that, we actually have six checks in place for multiple places and positions to ensure that only valid citizens are registered to vote. it has been implemented over the past year and a half. we found it to be enormously successful through those checks, and again, leading to the registration of nearly 250 thousand new, eligible citizen registered voters in the state of michigan. senator merkley: have they turned up any numbers at all of the folks who are noncitizens registering to vote under the avr system? secretary benson: no. and again, there is a procedure in place to ensure if there is one error, that is quickly found by one of the other checks.

next senator merkley. sen. merkley: thank you, madam chair. and i'd like to enter for the record a letter from the governor of oregon, kate brown, and a letter also from democracy for all 2021, as well as an opinion piece that hr-1 isn't at all an unconstitutional bill. >> since the governor of oregon grew up in minnesota, is there any objection? they're entered into the record. thank you. sen merkley: there is a strong connection between oregon and minnesota in seeking to ensure that every citizen has access to the ballot that this fundamental american right is guaranteed for all. and i wanted to turn to you, mr. potter, in your considerable experience federal election commission. and understand in a modest length of time whether you believe that for congress to put in, essentially guidelines for states to follow on congressional elections is constitutional. mr. potter: i do, senator. i believe that is what the constitution says. [indiscernible] the constitution says the states primarily have the right to regulate elections except that congre

merkley: should a program to do -- copy the l.a. program for building a lot more rooftop solar across america, we think it would help expand renewable energy infrastructure? mayor garcetti: no question. these are jobs that produce a lot of work. they are relatively lower scale, but they are a great entrance into the jobs and they bring a lot of money. we would welcome the infrastructure bill. . we would put our community colleges to work training those folks. it is really not what people think. it is veterans, it is republicans, it is people who see the power of solar to be able to have our own destiny in our own hands. it is cheaper now than fossil fuel plants? sen. merkley: one way to address the demand-supply balance is the ability to pull energy from other regions and balance things out. you mentioned storage. what is the primary use of energy storage? mayor garcetti: one is our mountain plant, natural gas with a hydrogen mixed. we have 10 different equivalent to empire state buildings cavities inside the plant where we can stor

merkley: thank you. madam president, today i am proud to join a number of my colleagues to highlight the importance of senate bill 1, the for the people act. the ballot box is the pulsating heart of our government of, by, and for the people. president linden b. johnson said, the vote is the most powerful instrument ever devised by man for breaking down injustice. think about that. the most powerful instrument ever devised for breaking down injustice. it's robert kennedy who observed that each citizen's right to vote is fundamental to all the other rights of citizenship. you know, the opportunity to cast a ballot is not just an opportunity. it is not simply a responsibility, but it is a right, the right, the right that embodies all it means to a republic when which the power flows from the people. our nation however imperfect in the beginning has worked toward this vision of citizens through the ballot box, driving the vision of our nation for over 200 years, overcoming barrier after barrier. we overcame

i think we're going to succeed. >> look, senator merkley, thank you for being with us. happy anniversary? i hope senator johnson and senator manchin send a nice gift out west. appreciate you being with us. >> thank you. >>> perspective from two white house veterans. david axelrod and former senior advisor to president obama and david gurgen, analyst to nixon, regan, ford, clinton. we think we have a deal. we think there is a deal, and we think this will get things started up again, but there is a nine-hour delay all because of joe manchin. merkley was dancing around it saying we all have this veto pourk power and that's true to extent but only one senator appears to be wielding it and that's joe manchin. what did he get out of this? why is he doing this? >> look, he's in a unique position. he comes from the state that voted for donald trump by 40 points. he is a moderate and he's very clear about that. he's been consistent about his concerns on the unemployment issue and he's someone who wants to promote dialogue between republicans and democrats and so he's going to be

defending the ballot box. >> joining us now senator jeff merkley. of oregon, a member of the usually ignored senate rules committee. thank you very much for joining us tonight. >> you're welcome. >> and it is rare for rules committee to take center stage but it did today. on this very, very important legislation. but we all know, it is headed to senate floor where under current rules it is going to need 60 votes to be considered. >> well, that's absolutely right. under current rules as a policy, it takes 60-vote threshold to close debate and this is what some folks call the filibuster, which implies people are speaking on the floor, that's not the case. this is just a veto exercised by mitch mcconnell on policies he doesn't like, anything that will make the country better, but in this case we're talking about core constitutional principles of the ballot box and we fought through our entire history to make the ballot box accessible to everyone and now republicans trying to tear it down. >> the theory of the filibuster, and i am glad you made the dist

. >>> joining us is jeff merkley. thank you so much for being with us. do you have any information, any more information on the deal leader schumer is about to announce? >> it losounded like it had the two changes on a very quick glance is the time went from end of september to september 6th, so cutting three weeks off which essentially means there is time to come back right at labor day and decide whether the unemployment is such we need to continue it further. it gives us an ability after the senate house has been out for a couple weeks to get it done. that's an important lead for the amendment that would have said hey, we'll cut this off as legislature starts to break and we might be leaving people stranded. so the idea is we will not leave people stranded. it also appears that there was an additional income cap added for the tax deduction that would go to those on unemployment to help compensate from moving from $400 to $300. those appear to be the changes. >> and you'll vote for this? >> oh, absolutely. absolutely. this -- no, this is the right deal

i know you will have senaor merkley on and i could not agree more. it is time to end the filibuster. really prohibits and stops us making progress on these issues and we know ultimately will save american lives. >> he's going to join us later in this hour. >> congressman joe neguse, i am very sorry for what you and your people in boulder are enduring this week. >> thank you, lawrence. >> up next, andrea wiseman will join us of the prosecution of the two men who are charged in the assault on officer brian sicknick. that's next. sault on officer brn sicknick that's next. and winning. but now, the for the people act stands on the brink of becoming law. ensuring accurate elections. iron-clad ethics rules to crack down on political self-dealing. a ban on dark money. and finally reducing corporate money in our politics. to restore our faith in government. because it's time. for the people to win. did you know that dove bar washes away germs? here pepper represents germs. with dove the germs wash away. with 1/4 moisturizing cream. dove cleans effectively, c

senator merkley, he lived january 6th. what does it mean for the ability to save the votes rights of minorities, next. as carla wonders if she can retire sooner, she'll revisit her plan with fidelity. and with a scenario that makes it a possibility, she'll enjoy her dream right now. that's the planning effect, from fidelity. hi, i'm a new customer she'll enjoy her dream right now. and i want your best new smartphone deal. well i'm an existing customer and i'd like your best new smartphone deal. oh do ya? actually it's for both new and existing customers. i feel silly. but i do want the fastest 5g network. oh i want the fastest 5g network. are we actually doing this again? it's not complicated. only at&t gives everyone the same great deal. like the samsung galaxy s21 5g for free when you trade in. to support local restaurants, we've been to every city. including little rock and even worcester. and tonight... i'll be eating the chicken quesadilla from...tony's tex mex...in... katy. (doorbell) (giggle) do ya think they bought

it is on the websites of senator merkley and myself. sometimes there is delay in getting bills, officially long bills, on senate.gov, but we know this is very similar to h r1, which has been on the house website for a number of months. there were technical changes made on the senate side. you can compare them with our bill, but i don't think there is any question the witnesses knew what is in this bill. and most of the major components have been out there for years. i turn it to senator warner. sen. warner: thank you, chairwoman klobuchar. thank you for holding both of these panels. thank you for your leadership on this issue. i want to start my questions with mr. wertheimer and mr. potter. i want to start by thanking both of you for the help you gave to senator klobuchar and i as we were drafting the honest ads act, one of the reasons why i'm bumping lines, because i've got an intel hearing at 2:00. sen. klobuchar: senator warner, could you turn up your volume a little bit? sen. warner: usually i am told to tone down rather than up. se

senator merkley sat down with me for a wide-ranging conversation that you can catch on my "washington post" podcast "cape up" available this tuesday. we talked for like 40 minutes. >>> now, joining the discussion is sofia nelson, journalist and author of "the woman code." so good to see you. welcome back to the sunday show. you have some feelings about the filibuster. go. >> yeah, if you read my recent piece in the grio, jonathan, you know that i laid it out that i think we have to, at the very least, reform the filibuster. look, mitch mcconnell went on record as you know two weeks ago and said that the filibuster had no racial history. that's utterly preposterous. john c. calhoun, south carolina's owner senator, used it during the debates leading up to slavery and into lincoln's presidency and until we got through the civil war to stall any types of efforts around slavery and eradicating it, doing anything about it. and then we move all the way through woodrow wilson's presidency, jonathan, and you see that the jim crow which starts ulysses s. grant's presidency through woodrow wilso

senator merkley, he lived january 6th. what does it mean for the ability to save the 1rvotes rigs of minorities, next. tonight... i'll be eating roasted cauliflower tacos with spicy chipotle sauce. [doorbell chimes] thank you. [puck scores] oooow yeah!! i wasn't ready! you want cheese to go with that whine?? ♪ for every idea out there, that gets the love it should ♪ ♪ there are 5 more that don't succeed ♪ ♪ and so are lost for good ♪ ♪ and some of them are pretty flawed ♪ ♪ and some of them are slightly odd ♪ ♪ but many are small businesses that simply lack the tool ♪ ♪ to find excited people who will stop and say 'that's cool'♪ ♪ and these two, they like this idea ♪ ♪ and those three like that one.♪ ♪ and that's 'cause personalized ads ♪ ♪ find good ideas for everyone ♪ this is how you become the best! [music: “you're the best” by joe esposito] [music: “you're the best” by joe esposito] [triumphantly yells] [ding] don't get mad. get e*trade and take charge of your financ

so let's not indulge in that type of rhetoric. >> senator merkley, thank you very much. we always appreciate talking to you about this issue that we know you have been focused on and we will be, obviously, monitoring the situation at the border for the next days and weeks. we'll talk to you again. >> thank you, take care. >> john? >>> all right. masks now the focus of a legal battle in texas. the new response from one city mayor who's refusing to follow the governor's order, coming up. >>> also, moments ago, prince william making his first public comments about prince harry and meghan markle. what he says about claims of racism within the royal family. still your best friend. and now your co-pilot. still a father. but now a friend. still an electric car. just more electrifying. still a night out. but everything fits in. still hard work. just a little easier. still a legend. just more legendary. chevrolet. making life's journey, just better. chevrolet. here's another cleaning tip from mr. clean. cleaning tough bathroom and kitchen messes with sprays and wipes can be a str

joining me now is senator jeff merkley, democrat of oregon. senator, explain, quote, election armageddon. >> well, right now republicans are trying to establish new barriers to people voting and they're directed at black americans, college students, tribal americans, and the poor. and the goal is to say if we can keep these people from voting, we can win elections in these swing states. and we see this going on in new hampshire. we see it in georgia. we see it in arizona and some of the potential swing states like ohio and iowa. it is -- if we don't address this effort to block the ballot, then we fail in two dramatic ways, and one is we fail to protect what is really the central, pulsating heart of our republic, the right of every american to participate in the direction of their country. and second of all, we fail because we're just throwing up our hands and say we're going to let the powerful win over the people because we don't have the guts to get a bill passed. we know that mitch mcconnell has struck down the filibuster on his priorities

before i call on senator merkley, i just want to ask you one thing. these people that were assaulting the capitol in military gear and were pinning an officer between a door and were using bear spray on officers in the capitol, would you title them provocateurs? >> ma'am, it would all depend on the evidence behind the case. so as we're going through and we're figuring out what actually we know about each individual, it would just depend on what the facts and what we know of holistically about that to be able to be put a label on it. >> do you think there were some very serious violent people involved in this insurrection? >> 100%. a lot of officers were injured and a lot of damage was done. >> and would you describe the atmosphere as festive? >> absolutely not. >> thank you. senator merkley. >> thank you, madam chair. and thank you to all for your information. assistant secretary saleeses, if i understood your earlier comment, you thought the quick reaction team was only for reinforcing assistance to those of the national guard providing traffic contr

merkley? >> aye. >> in merkley, aye. >> mr. moran? >> no. >> miss murkowski? >> miss murkowski? no. >> miss murkowski, no. >> mr. murphy, aye. >> mrs. murray? >> aye. >> mrs. murray, aye. >> mr. ossoff? >> aye. >> mr. ossoff, aye. mr. padilla? >> aye. >> mr. paul? >> no. >> mr. paul, no. >> mr. peters? >> aye. >> mr. peters, aye. mr. portman? mr. portman? no. mr. reed? mr. reed, aye. mr. risch? no. >> mr. risch, no. mr. romney? >> no. >> mr. romney, no. miss rosen? >> aye. >> mr. rounds? >> mr. rounds, no. >> mr. rubio? >> no. >> mr. rubio, no. mr. sanders? >> aye. >> mr. and sanders, aye. >> mr. sauj? >> no. mr. shots? aye. >> mr. schumer? >> aye. >> mr. schumer, aye. mr. scott of florida? >> no. >> mr. scott of florida, no. mr. scott of south carolina? >> no. >> mr. scott of south carolina, no. mrs. shaheen? >> mrs. shaheen, aye. mr. shelby? >> no. >> miss sinema? >> yes. >> miss sinema, aye. miss smith? >> aye. >> miss smith, aye. >> miss stabenow? >> aye. >> mr. tester? mr. tester aye. >> mr. thune? mr. thune no. mr. tillis? >> no. >> mr. tillis, no. mr. toomey? >> no. >> mr

>> senator merkley, you're a minute and a half over your time. would it be all right if we had that question, it's a good question, answered for the record? so we can get tose ourn. m folk haven't had a chance to ask any questions. >> yes, those prices were real. thank you. >> thanks so much. h mr. boozman by webex, are you there? >> yes, sir, i'm here. >> welcome, you're recognized. >> thank you so much, senator carper, senator capito, for having this hearing.ties s as always, we've got a great panel and getting a lot of good information. low income communities spend a larger share of their budget on energy costs compared to middler incomeic families and upper income. we especially see this in rurali america, probably 50% of the ret counties o in arkansas will los population as a result of the census. so having problems there anywayu tell me -- well, again, in my y opinion, when you look at environmental regulations that increase energy costs significantly, you're talking about it, you know, a regressive tax. do you agree that increased poro ene

. >> senator merkley. >> thank you, mr. chairman. i just want to jump right into questions since we don't have a lot of time. we had a situation in previous administrations where part of the omb was a place rules go and disappear never to be seen again or to sit unattended for years, things like the mercury toxic rule, rearview cameras in cars, the issue of a rule related to coal ash. we have the vape being rule, which we had all these illegal products on the market and nothing happened and millions of american youth became addicted to raping, a situation hard to reverse and healthcare and quality of life for millions and generations to come. how do you feel about this section becoming just this place where regulations go to suffer and die with no transparency about what is happening? >> that is certainly not the statutory goal. it's something we shouldn't strive to have that opinion of. i do believe we can use the presidential memo calling for omb to lead the effort to improve and modernize to do something about that perception and

jeff merkley, the author of the bill is on the committee. we have two new senators on there, padilla and ossoff, and we're going get this bill through the committee. we're going have the first hearing ever in the senate. it has only been in the house. they passed it in the house of representatives and then we bring it to the floor. and my arguments, for passing it, and they will be strong ones, are one, there are multiple provisions in this bill, nine of them that are bipartisan. we have republican governors who have embraced vote by mail. republicans of state have embraced early registration to vote. this thing, americans are behind it. the biggest thing we have done, getting to the light at the end of the tunnel, getting through this pandemic. that bill as well. it seems like the only republican who's didn't like it worked in the congress. because their constituents liked it. and we were not going to be stopped. we used a strange way of doing it which was reconciliation. we had no other choice. joe biden wasn't going wait six months to get

jeff merkley, the author of the bill, we have two new senators, and we'll get this bill through the committee. we'll have the first hearing ever in the senate. it has only been in the house. they passed it in the house of representatives and then we bring it to the floor. and my arguments, for passing it, which they will be strong, one. there are nine of them, bipartisan. we have republican governor that's have embraced vote by mail, early registration to vote. this bill, the american people are behind it by wide, wide margins. just like the american rescue plan, remember that. the biggest thing we've done. all about getting to the end of the, the light at the end of the tunnel. getting through this pandemic. that bill as well. it seems like the only republican who's didn't like it worked in the congress. because their constituents liked it. we used a strange way of doing it which was reconciliation. we had no other choice. joe biden was not going to wait six months to get it done. i would make the same, a utility for this bill. we get it to the floor. we see what support we get. and then yes

what is the status of the merkley bill and what would you do to bring the it up-to-date with current forms of record-keeping. >> anthony may know the status more than i. i think he follow the legislation more but i think it's a really good start. it makes it, it says it makes it clear that presidential staff should not enbe using personal email accounts and other personal devices to conduct presidential business . one of the provisions in it that i think is the first time this has even been floated is the idea of time ask that once the president leaves office, tying access to their records and other artifacts and to the assistance of the government office to compliance with the presidential records act while in office. so it has some really good provisions and it was an effort to grapple with the changing technology and all of the challenges that it imposes on everyone, not just the white house. >> you know the status or do you want to comment further on that particular record ? >> and makes a good point about the tradition that ties cooperation with the national archives to the perf

we hear of jeff merkley and yourself and others working on that. another issue, you talk about this a lot. again, structurally, the challenge with everything previous to this bill, democrats felt they had to build in lots of tax cuts. you have to make some of these tax credits permanent. you've also gone further than that. there needs to be a wealth tax on top. you were tweeting about it this weekend. this is janet yellen, it's a graphic. we're going to put it up. she expressed a little bit of skepticism. she said the president is still open to it. but even without one, wealthy americans will still face a tax hike. do you think it's possible when joe manchin exists? >> oh, yes, i do. let's remind everybody what the wealth tax is. that is, this is for fortunes bigger than $50 million. your first $50 million is free and clear, but after that, you pay two cents on every dollar of wealth above that, until you hit a billion, then it would be a little more. that would be a way to raise about $3 trillion in revenue. keep in mind, joe biden ran on raising

and i've said it very clear, senator merkley and i talked last week, and i said to him, the john r. lewis voting rights act must not die at the altar of the filibuster. it must not. i made it very clear to him, if that were to happen, it would be catastrophic. and that's the word i've been using for several weeks now. it would be catastrophic consequences for the john r. lewis voting rights act to die at the altar of the filibuster. >> if you are serious about that, sir, and i have no reason to believe you're not, i would be interested to see whether the senate is willing to create a new set of rules as an end run around the filibuster to make that happen. i appreciate you making time for us tonight. congressman jim clyburn of south carolina, the house majority whip. thank you very much. >> thank you. >>> coming up, what happens in vegas stays in vegas. but what can happen if no one shows up? nevada's governor has plans to revive tourism and the state's economy. he'll join us next. >>> are the covid vaccines safe for expectant mothers? we'll focus on pregnancy in tonight's "dear doc

so i have been working closely with senators like jeff merkley, who has been a real champion for looking about how we can make the senate work better, and getting rid of the silent fill aburster would be a step in the right direction. >> i mean, you know, they say if it ain't broke, don't fix it, but the senate is broke and does need fixing and most americans would agree with that. i mentioned a recent poll that found passing this bill was personally important to 3 out of 4 americans. a huge number. when you heard from your constituents in minnesota, did they care whether the bill's passage was bipartisan or just care that they got the help they needed and how does that factor into joe biden and joe manchin's dewriter to make everything the senate does to be bipartisan. >> bipartisanship should be a means to the end, not the end. my constituents in minnesota are like, i need that check, i need help. i'm behind in my rent. i'm going to wait in a half-hour long line to get food for my family. they're saying when am i going to get that help? they're not saying, oh, was this legislation pass

and i've said very clear, senator merkley and i talked last week and i said to him, the john r. lewis voting rights act must not die at the altar of a filibuster. must not die at the altar of a filibuster. i made that very clear to him. if that were to happen, it would be catastrophic. and that's the word i've been using for several weeks now. it would be catastrophic consequences for the john r. lewis voting rights act to die at the altar of a filibuster. >> if you are serious about that, sir, and i have no reason to believe you're not, i'll be interested whether or not the senate is willing to create a new set of rules as an end run around the filibuster to make that happen. but i appreciate you making time for us tonight. congressman jim clyburn of south carolina, the house majority whip. thanks very much. >>> coming up -- what happens in vegas stays in vegas. but what can happen if no one shows up. nevada's governor steve sis lack has plans to diversify the state's economy. he'll join us next. >>> also, are the covid vaccines safe for expectant mothers? we'll focus on pregna

i was listening to my left ear to a panel with jeff merkley and amy klobuchar and i asked them this morning would they pant to pear back the bill to deal with just the immediate emergency of what we are seeing in voter suppression? they both said no, they want to go the whole hog and do the big comprehensive package, but i do wonder given the stakes, given the magnitude of what's happening in these red states whether democrats at some point are going to feel the need to focus on undoing some of the new suppression measures. >> lawyer ark, what's your take of what's going on here? >> well, i certainly agree with ron which is that republicans are trying to make moves across states -- across -- in states across the country to limit access to voting. that's clearly what is happening, and part of that is because of the demographic changes. i mean, young voters voted majority for biden and they turned out in strong numbers in states that flipped, like in arizona and georgia. one thing though is that democrats are -- it's very hard to see how they are going to pass this expansive bill because of t

then we go forward and this bill's led by senator merkley, doing a great job. we go to the floor. and there, of course, we -- there's nine bipartisan provisions in there, we try to build support, but barring that, we already have senator manchin talking about the fact that with some version of this bill or any bill, he's willing to move to a talking filibuster. you know what that means? that means we actually make -- make the other side speak. we make them stand and speak. and they have to come in day after day and night after night like in "mr. smith going to washington" and own their objections to common sense reforms, supported broadly by democrats and republicans out there. to me, it's a little like the american rescue plan. they were the -- objecting to that, but the people wanted it and we got it done with 51 votes. so, we start with getting it to the floor and from there, jump ball, a lot of things can happen. >> sign me up for a front row seat. senator amy klobuchar, chair of the rules committee. that's more than just determination, that sounds like a plan. thank you for h

. >> we have senator jeff merkley coming on later in the program, who has devoted so much time to this during the trump administration and since, so we will ask him if there are any solutions. priscilla, thank you so much. i really appreciate all of the reporting there. >> merrick garland finally gets his momentum, more importantly, the united states gets an attorney general. this morning, he will be sworn in as attorney general as the senate confirmed him on wednesday with bipartisan support. garland, of course, was nominated by president obama to serve on the u.s. supreme court in 2016, but republicans denied him any kind of confirmation hearing. two other historic nominees confirmed, martin fudge will lead the department of housing and urban development, becoming the first black woman to run the agency in more than four decades, and michael regan becomes the first black man to head up the epa. >>> the governor is texas is threatening to sue the mayor of austin if he doesn't lift the city's mask mandate. austin's mayor joins us next. we started with computers. we didn't stop at compu

senator merkley. >> thank you, madam, chair, and thank you all for your information. assistant secretary, if i understood your earlier comment you thought the quick reaction team was only for reinforcing assistance to those members of the national guard providing traffic control. did i hear your comment correctly? >> yes, senator, you did. >> thank you. major general walker, i believe that i heard your comments correctly that quick reaction team was there to respond as needed including protection of the capitol. is that correct? >> no, they were actually to provide support to the guardsmen out there. what i would have wanted to do is re-mission them and get them to the capitol immediately as a quick reaction force. >> i see. so they weren't necessarily planned to help protect the capitol, but you would re-assign them to that in that type of emergency. >> yes, sir. >> ok. thank you. four that clarification. i was really struck by the complexity of the chain of command for trying to get a decision for response. it starts with the capitol police board which goes to the c

. >> senator merkley. >> thank you, madam, chair, and thank you all for your information. assistant secretary, if i understood your earlier comment you thought the quick reaction team was only for reinforcing assistance to those members of the national guard providing traffic control. did i hear your comment correctly? >> yes, senator, you did. >> thank you. major general walker, i believe that i heard your comments correctly that quick reaction team was there to respond as needed including protection of the capitol. is that correct? >> no, they were actually to provide support to the guardsmen out there. what i would have wanted to do is re-mission them and get them to the capitol immediately as a quick reaction force. >> i see. so they weren't necessarily planned to help protect the capitol, but you would re-assign them to that in that type of emergency. >> yes, sir. >> okay. thank you. that clarification. i was really struck by the complexity of the chain of command for trying to get a decision for response. it starts with the capitol police board which goes to the chie

. >> reporter: oregon's jeff merkley number 100. >> it was great -- like winning a race. coming across the finish line. >> reporter: if a picture is worth a thousand wards, the photos tell a story of coming together just as so much is pulling us apart. >> feel like after this that there's hope for bipartisanship up here? >> yeah. i -- i do believe that. i believe there's hope for the whole country, not just here. >> reporter: returning home to his wife and two kids in utica, this citizen soldier can claim the rarest of victories in congress -- finding something everyone could agree on. for "cbs this morning saturday," kris van cleave, washington. >> nicely done. >> fantastic. >> great a piece and it does give me hope. >> absolutely. all right. >>> here's a look at the weather for your weekend. ♪ >>> he is celebrating a remarkable achievement. up next on "the dish," chef andrew wong just scored the first double michelin stars awarded to any chinese restaurant outside of asia. we'll show how he works his magic in the kitchen next. you're watching "cbs this morning saturda

accordingly, senators like marce rubio and jeff merkley and manyd others are l showing leadershipn this issue through their proposed uighur forced labor prevention act. their efforts should be matchede by the current administration. the u.s. secretary of state and national security adviser are ec meeting todayou in alaska with e their chinese counterparts. forced labor is among the rights issues they need to press with a them.me good c critically, this all reinforces that we need to broadly empower americans and other good citizens of the world to be able to more effectively respond to this challenge. this includes effectively reilizing technology to identify where goods made with forced labor can enter the supply chain. it means our laws and regulations must be transparent and provide informative and thoughtful guidance so americans know how to avoid importing such goods. it means we need to know the ongoing efforts of our businesses so that government can help leverage them in the fight against forced labor. many of them have developed best practices to stamp out forced labor from the

senator merkley of oregon is the lead sponsor. simply put, the bill is there to end discrimination against people because of their sexual orientation. i thought it was a very powerful hearing. most americans are surprised to learn that though we now recognize marriage by the people of same gender, that in many states there is no protection against discrimination for those same people. so they could have a marriage in the morning and then be fired from their jobs in the afternoon because of their sexual orientation. it's a gross disparity of justice in this country, and i thought our witnesses brought that point through very clearly. i hope that we can gather bipartisan support for that measure quickly and bring it to the floor. it's long overdue. tomorrow we're having a hearing which is, unfortunately, very timely. i announced last week at this hearing on commonsense steps to reduce gun violence in america would be held this week. on the same day i announced that hearing last week, a gunman ordered eight people in a string of shoo

three-minute statement is the author or the primary sponsor of the senate version of the equality act, senator merkley of oregon. sen. murphy: thank you for convening this historic hearing. i am proud to sponsor this historic piece of legislation and to have worked in partnership on the house side and so many leaders and civil rights communities to draft this legislation back in 2015. now, here we are six years later having this moment to finally start the important discussion in the committee to determine the path forward to and this historic discrimination against lgbtq members of the united states of america. i am determined that we go forward to outlaw discrimination against lgbtq americans as we have outlawed discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, and religion. what our founders meant in figure -- in philadelphia to break away to create a new nation, they had powerful revolutionary ideals and perhaps the most revolutionary ideal of all as thomas jefferson wrote in the declaration of independence was that all of us are created equal and deserving of the same rights to life, liberty, and t

talking filibuster was not new he was one of 26 democrats who waited in favor of a proposal from jeff merkley of oregon requiring senators to take the floor to make remarks to block legislation. no republicans voted for it then in the measure failed and if it had passed the senate would have been allowed to enter host: this is greg, mechanicsburg, pennsylvania. republican line. caller: yes, mr. mcconnell. i'm not opposed to the change of the filibuster rule. it was inappropriate vehicle used by the senate, which is entitled to set its own rules, back in a time. if circumstances have changed and it becomes necessary to change the rules, everything changes. nothing stays the same. i'm ok with that concept. the problem is when people try to use, for example, what mitch mcconnell did back during the first term of the obama administration and he repeated the mistake this morning when you had the clip on senator durbin. what mitch mcconnell did back then, please correct the viewers who called about this. that was mitch mcconnell, saying that after obamacare got through, ran through, and president o

three-minute statement is the author or the primary sponsor of the senate version of the equality act, senator merkley of oregon. sen. murphy: thank you for convening this historic hearing. i am honored to be here with you today. i am proud to sponsor this historic piece of legislation, and to have worked in partnership with colleagues on the house side and so many leaders and civil rights communities to draft this legislation back in 2015. now, here we are six years later, having this moment to finally start the important discussion in the committee to determine the path forward to end this historic discrimination against lgbtq members of the united states of america. i am determined that we go forward to outlaw discrimination against lgbtq americans as we have outlawed discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, and religion. when our founders met in philadelphia to break away to create a new nation, they had powerful revolutionary ideals and perhaps the most revolutionary ideal of all, as thomas jefferson wrote in the declaration of independence, was that all of us are created equal and deservi