Today -

• The Senate will convene at 10:00 a.m.
• Following leader remarks, the Senate will resume consideration of the conference report accompanying H.R. 6157, the DoD/Labor-HHS minibus appropriations bill.
• The Senate will recess from 12:30 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. to accommodate the weekly policy lunches.
• Note: on Monday, September 17, cloture was filed on conference report accompanying H.R. 6157, the DoD/Labor-HHS minibus appropriations bill.

Senator McConnell: (10:03 a.m.)

• Spoke on the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.
  • "They sat on this information for nearly seven weeks, seven weeks, until they leaked it to the press on the eve of the scheduled committee vote. But as my colleague, the senior senator from Texas, said yesterday, the blatant malpractice demonstrated by our colleagues across the aisle will not stop the Senate from moving forward in a responsible manner. As I said yesterday, I have full confidence in Chairman Grassley to lead the committee through the sensitive and highly irregular situation in which the Democrats' tactics have left all of us, all of us, Judge Kavanaugh, Dr. Ford, and the entire Senate."
• Spoke on opioid legislation.
  • "We sent a message to the families who have watched our nation's drug overdose fatalities double in the last decade alone. To those in recovery who struggle to access the housing and work opportunities they need to get back on their feet, to the governors, mayors, and local communities who have seen communities from rural towns and inner cities literally hollowed out and threatened by this epidemic. To the police, firefighters, paramedics, and other first responders whom our nation has asked to confront this crisis, often without all the specialized training and resources they need."
• Spoke on the appropriations process.
  • "It's the second minibus conference report we have taken up in what has already been an important year for regular appropriations. Thanks to the leadership of Chairman Shelby and Senator Leahy, all 12 spending bills were favorably reported from the appropriations committee by the end of June, the fastest pace in 30 years. And for the first time in 15 years, the Senate passed our Labor, H.H.S., Education bill before the beginning of the fiscal year. These milestones may sound like inside baseball, but what they signify is a Senate that is getting its appropriations process back on track, a Senate that is attending to vital priorities for our country."
• Unanimous Consent –
  • That notwithstanding Rule XXII, the Senate VOTE on cloture on the conference report accompanying H.R. 6157, the DoD/Labor-HHS minibus appropriations bill at 12:00 p.m. today.
  • Further, that if cloture is invoked all time be considered yielded back and the Senate VOTE on adoption of the conference report accompanying H.R. 6157, the DoD/Labor-HHS minibus appropriations bill.
  • (Without objection)