In Senate Floor Speech, Rubio Explains His Immigration Push

When the Senate votes this week on legislation that would revamp the nation’s immigration laws, perhaps the most watched vote will be the one cast by Senator Marco Rubio, Republican of Florida and a prominent Hispanic voice in his party.

On Wednesday, Mr. Rubio, an author of the bipartisan bill being debated, took to the Senate floor to explain â€" and at times defend â€" his involvement in the largest immigration overhaul in decades.

Mr. Rubio, who was elected to the Senate in 2010 on a Tea Party wave, began by acknowledging all of the phone calls and e-mail messages â€" not always happy ones, he noted â€" that he had received in recent weeks from conservatives and Tea Party activists from around the country. These constituents, he said, were “patriots” â€" not “anti-immigrant” or “close-minded” people, as some pro-immigration advocates have called them.

Then, Mr. Rubio turned to the current immigration system.

“We have a badly brokenlegal immigration system,” he said. “And we have 11 million people living in this country illegally in de facto amnesty.”

Mr. Rubio has been closely watched throughout the entire process, and he has explained (and re-explained) his legislation to conservative television and radio hosts, not to mention his colleagues in both the Senate and the House. On Wednesday he offered further explanation as to why he chose to get involved with a bill to overhaul the nation’s immigration laws.

“This isn’t about becoming a Washington dealmaker,” he said. “Truthfully, it would have been a lot easier to just sit back, vote against any proposal and give speeches about how I would have done it differently.”

“And finally,” he added, “this certainly isn’t about gaining support for future office. Many commentators and leaders, people who I deeply respect and with whom I agree on virtually every other issue, are disappointed about my involvment in this debate.”

Indeed, i! n addition to frustrating many conservatives and Tea Party activists, Mr. Rubio split with his mentor â€" former Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina, who is now leading the charge against Mr. Rubio’s bill from his perch at the Heritage Foundation â€" on the topic of immigration.

“I got involved in this issue for one simple reason,” Mr. Rubio said. “I ran for office to try and fix things that are hurting this special country, and in the end, that’s what this is about for me â€" trying to fix a serious problem that faces America.”

Q&A: Saving the Phone\'s Battery Power

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Q&A: Renaming a Windows 7 Computer

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Razer\'s Blade a Small, Powerful Gaming Laptop

The Blade uses the Windows 8 operating system.

1:01 p.m. | Updated This post was updated to correctly describe the Razer's screen resolution.

How is the performance of Razer's 14-inch Blade gaming laptop? Impressive enough that a dedicated console player shelved his Xbox in favor of the Blade. Considering that console players and computer gamers feud over format supremacy, that's a considerable endorsement.

Gaming devices need fast processors and good screens to make the most of the complex graphics that go into creations like Crysis 3, Metro Last Light and Bioshock Infinite. That usually means the machines are pretty big, run h ot and have noisy cooling fans.

The new Blade is small, not quite 14 inches wide, about 9 inches deep and only two-thirds of an inch thick, weighing four pounds. It runs nearly silently, and as for heat, well, two out of three ain't bad. You won't want it in your lap during extended play.

I lent the computer to my neighbor Mark, an Xbox devotee, who showed me the last 30 games he had played, then remembered he had another drawer full as well. He said he had been a console player for years.

He tested the Blade using Bioshock Infinity, the latest version, which puts the greatest demand on the system. Running the graphics at the highest quality, there were no freezes (after updating the drivers), no crashes and the motion was smooth. Looking straight on, he said, the graphics topped those of his Xbox playing on a 60-inch 1080p Sony Bravia.

The graphics are powered by a fourth-generation Intel Core “Haswell” chip with an i ntegrated HD6400 graphics processor that works with an Nvidia GeForce GTX graphics card to keep motion fluid. It comes configured with eight gigabytes of RAM and a solid-state hard drive of either 128 gigabytes ($1,800), 256 gigs ($2,000), or 512 gigs ($2,300).

That kind of power is good for graphic editing, too, so it might be a machine photographers and videographers would consider, although they will probably need to add an off-board or external hard drive to augment the Blade's scant memory.

With the Blade, you are seeing HD+ (900 lines of resolution horizontally, not 1080). That was a conscious decision by Razer, said a spokesman, because a Windows 8 desktop won't scale to 1080 â€" it would
make lettering tiny. That's a problem, assuming people will not dedicate the laptop solely to games.

Although the Blade has built-in speakers, they are weak. You'll want a headset or accessory set.

An earlier version of this post incorrectly described th e screen definition of the Razer. It is not 720p. It is HD+.

Q&A: Recycling Responsibly at Any Time

Q.

I try to recycle my old computers and electronics responsibly, but my town only has e-waste disposal days every so often. Where else I can take stuff?

A.

The Environmental Protection Agency's Web site has links to several national electronics-recycling programs, but if you live near a Best Buy or a Staples outlet, you can usually drop off old equipment for responsible recycling right at the store. Best Buy has information on what it accepts here and Staples outlines its free service here.

Some computer makers have take-back programs of their own where you can mail or drop off old gear for recycling. These include Dell (which works with 2,000 Goodwill Stores and has a mail-in service, as described on the company's site) and HP. Apple usually accepts old Macs, PCs and iOS devices and will sometimes convert the value of the item into an Apple Gift Card. Companies like Gazelle and Amazon have trade-in services f or old equipment that may still have resale potential.

A Small Bluetooth Speaker Named Boom

The cylindrical Boom, at about 3 inches around and 7 inches tall, is a bit larger than a can and a half of Red Bull.

Just in time to annoy the people on the neighboring beach blanket, Ultimate Ears has produced the aptly named Boom, a Bluetooth sound dock that is both compact and loud.

The cylindrical Boom, at about 3 inches around and 7 inches tall, is a bit larger than a can and a half of Red Bull. It weighs about 19 ounces â€" about the same as two Red Bulls.

The remarkable thing about the Boom is how much sound it can produce. Played in a roughly 10-by-10-foot room, it was almost o verwhelming. The quality of the sound, however, was not as remarkable. While it was loud and distortion free, it was also indistinct. There were no particularly notable highs or lows, just a general lack of clarity.

The reason for that could be - at least partly - that the left and right speakers are so close together. Although Ultimate Ears advertises “360-degree sound,” it doesn't say stereo sound. You can get true stereo by linking two Booms to one phone or tablet. It can be set so one Boom plays the left channel, the other the right. But at $200 each, it's an expensive solution. You can put a single Boom on the floor in a corner of a room so the reflections off the walls improve the stereo effect (and increase the bass), but you won't find too many corner walls at the beach or poolside.

The Bluetooth was easy to connect, and the Boom signals, with a whimsical bongo beat, when it is on or off and that it's connected to another device. It also has an oversize plus and minus on the side, so you know what to press when the neighbors are yelling at you to turn it down.

The Boom claims 15 hours of battery life, is available in black, blue, olive green, pink, red, and white, and is water resistant, but not submersible.

Tip of the Week: Make a Desktop Wallpaper Slideshow

Tired of your static desktop background? You can create wallpaper slideshow that cycles through your summer vacation photos to liven up the workday between spreadsheets.

In Windows 7, collect the photos you want to use in a folder and go to the Start menu to Control Panel. Under Appearance and Personalization, click “Change desktop background.” (You can also right-click on the desktop, select Personalize from the menu and click Desktop Background in the resulting box.) In the “Choose your desktop background” box, click the Browse button and select your folder of pictures; turn off the checkbox next to photos you would rather skip. With the drop-down menu at the bottom of the box, select how often you would like the wallpaper to change (and if you want to slideshow to still run when the computer is on battery power) and click Save Changes. Microsoft's site has more information.

In OS X for the Mac, go to the Apple menu to System Preferences and click the Desktop & Screensaver icon, or just right-click on the desktop and select Change Desktop Background. On the Desktop tab, select the folder of pictures you want to use from the list on the left side of the box. Turn on the checkbox next to “Change picture,” select an interval from the drop-down menu and close the box when finished. Apple's site has illustrated instructions.

The Science of Protecting Your Phone

The Impact Band cellphone case for the iPhone 5 from Tech 21.

The Tech21 Impact Mesh case for the Samsung Galaxy S4.

Tech21 has a lot of confidence in its smartphone cases, so much so that it trademarked Impactology, its term for “the science of protection.”

But Impactology is more smart innovation than marketing gimmi ck. The cases made by Tech21, a London-based company, contain a polymer material called D30 that protects devices by absorbing and redirecting the force of an impact. The latest offerings that come with Impactology assurance include two cases, the Impact Mesh and the Impact Band for the iPhone 5, both available at Apple stores in the United States.

The cases have a slim design that is easy to grip and protects the phone while still providing access to all buttons and ports. The Impact Band case, which costs $30, is basically just a bumper that fits around the rim of a smartphone. But a separate hard plastic back makes for an awkward fit.

Much more accommodating is the $35 Impact Mesh case, which has an integrated back made of flexible plastic. The one-piece design makes the case easier to use and provides better protection.

The D30 is visible as orange goo in the ring in both cases, offering a striking look in the smoky and clear designs. Colored cases are also available.

Both cases have a raised bezel that provides ample screen protection. For those who want an extra guard against scratches, Tech21 makes Impact Shield, a $35 multilayer screen protector that is easy to apply, but not so easy to smooth out, leaving bubbles on the screen.

Tech21 also makes cases for a wide variety of other mobile devices, including the Galaxy S4, the iPad and the MacBook, available directly from the company, although the cost is a little higher across the Atlantic.

A lot of case manufacturers assert that their products can protect the phone from a knock or drop, but I'm always reluctant to test those claims. With my iPhone encased in Impactology ware, I was gleefully showing off to my co-workers by rapping the phone on my desktop and tossing it to the floor.

The Science of Protecting Your Phone

The Impact Band cellphone case for the iPhone 5 from Tech 21.

The Tech21 Impact Mesh case for the Samsung Galaxy S4.

Tech21 has a lot of confidence in its smartphone cases, so much so that it trademarked Impactology, its term for “the science of protection.”

But Impactology is more smart innovation than marketing gimmick. The cases made by Tech21, a London-based company, contain a polymer material called D30 that protects devices by absorbing and redirecting the force of an impact. The latest offerings that come with Impactology assurance include two cases, the Impact Mesh and the Impact Band for the iPhone 5, both available at Apple stores in the United States.

The cases have a slim design that is easy to grip and protects the phone while still providing access to all buttons and ports. The Impact Band case, which costs $30, is basically just a bumper that fits around the rim of a smartphone. But a separate hard plastic back makes for an awkward fit.

Much more accommodating is the $35 Impact Mesh case, which has an integrated back made of flexible plastic. The one-piece design makes the case easier to use and provides better protection.

The D30 is visible as orange goo in the ring in both cases, offering a striking look in the smoky and clear designs. Colored cases are also av! ailable.

Both cases have a raised bezel that provides ample screen protection. For those who want an extra guard against scratches, Tech21 makes Impact Shield, a $35 multilayer screen protector that is easy to apply, but not so easy to smooth out, leaving bubbles on the screen.

Tech21 also makes cases for a wide variety of other mobile devices, including the Galaxy S4, the iPad and the MacBook, available directly from the company, although the cost is a little higher across the Atlantic.

A lot of case manufacturers assert that their products can protect the phone from a knock or drop, but I’m always reluctant to test those claims. With my iPhone encased in Impactology ware, I was gleefully showing off to my co-workers by rapping the phone on my desktop and tossing it to the floor.

The Science of Protecting Your Phone

The Impact Band cellphone case for the iPhone 5 from Tech 21.

The Tech21 Impact Mesh case for the Samsung Galaxy S4.

Tech21 has a lot of confidence in its smartphone cases, so much so that it trademarked Impactology, its term for “the science of protection.”

But Impactology is more smart innovation than marketing gimmick. The cases made by Tech21, a London-based company, contain a polymer material called D30 that protects devices by absorbing and redirecting the force of an impact. The latest offerings that come with Impactology assurance include two cases, the Impact Mesh and the Impact Band for the iPhone 5, both available at Apple stores in the United States.

The cases have a slim design that is easy to grip and protects the phone while still providing access to all buttons and ports. The Impact Band case, which costs $30, is basically just a bumper that fits around the rim of a smartphone. But a separate hard plastic back makes for an awkward fit.

Much more accommodating is the $35 Impact Mesh case, which has an integrated back made of flexible plastic. The one-piece design makes the case easier to use and provides better protection.

The D30 is visible as orange goo in the ring in both cases, offering a striking look in the smoky and clear designs. Colored cases are also av! ailable.

Both cases have a raised bezel that provides ample screen protection. For those who want an extra guard against scratches, Tech21 makes Impact Shield, a $35 multilayer screen protector that is easy to apply, but not so easy to smooth out, leaving bubbles on the screen.

Tech21 also makes cases for a wide variety of other mobile devices, including the Galaxy S4, the iPad and the MacBook, available directly from the company, although the cost is a little higher across the Atlantic.

A lot of case manufacturers assert that their products can protect the phone from a knock or drop, but I’m always reluctant to test those claims. With my iPhone encased in Impactology ware, I was gleefully showing off to my co-workers by rapping the phone on my desktop and tossing it to the floor.

Tip of the Week: Make a Desktop Wallpaper Slideshow

Tired of your static desktop background? You can create wallpaper slideshow that cycles through your summer vacation photos to liven up the workday between spreadsheets.

In Windows 7, collect the photos you want to use in a folder and go to the Start menu to Control Panel. Under Appearance and Personalization, click “Change desktop background.” (You can also right-click on the desktop, select Personalize from the menu and click Desktop Background in the resulting box.) In the “Choose your desktop background” box, click the Browse button and select your folder of pictures; turn off the checkbox next to photos you would rather skip. With the drop-down menu at the bottom of the box, select how often you would like the wallpaper to change (and if you want to slideshow to still run when the computer is on battery power) and click Save Changes. Microsoft’s site has more infrmation.

In OS X for the Mac, go to the Apple menu to System Preferences and click the Desktop & Screensaver icon, or just right-click on the desktop and select Change Desktop Background. On the Desktop tab, select the folder of pictures you want to use from the list on the left side of the box. Turn on the checkbox next to “Change picture,” select an interval from the drop-down menu and close the box when finished. Apple’s site has illustrated instructions.

Tip of the Week: Make a Desktop Wallpaper Slideshow

Tired of your static desktop background? You can create wallpaper slideshow that cycles through your summer vacation photos to liven up the workday between spreadsheets.

In Windows 7, collect the photos you want to use in a folder and go to the Start menu to Control Panel. Under Appearance and Personalization, click “Change desktop background.” (You can also right-click on the desktop, select Personalize from the menu and click Desktop Background in the resulting box.) In the “Choose your desktop background” box, click the Browse button and select your folder of pictures; turn off the checkbox next to photos you would rather skip. With the drop-down menu at the bottom of the box, select how often you would like the wallpaper to change (and if you want to slideshow to still run when the computer is on battery power) and click Save Changes. Microsoft’s site has more infrmation.

In OS X for the Mac, go to the Apple menu to System Preferences and click the Desktop & Screensaver icon, or just right-click on the desktop and select Change Desktop Background. On the Desktop tab, select the folder of pictures you want to use from the list on the left side of the box. Turn on the checkbox next to “Change picture,” select an interval from the drop-down menu and close the box when finished. Apple’s site has illustrated instructions.

A Guide to The Times’s Coverage of the Supreme Court Decisions on Gay Marriage

The Supreme Court is expected to rule on two cases involving same-sex marriage on Wednesday, shortly after 10 a.m., concluding one of the more consequential weeks in recent years at the court.

One of the two cases concerns the federal Defense of Marriage Act of 1996, which denies federal benefits to gay and lesbian couples married in states that allow such unions. The second case challenges Proposition 8, California’s ban on same-sex marriage.

We realize that people will be eager to know what the rulings mean as soon as they are released (and you can read the decisions yourself when they are posted on the court’s Web site). But we also want to point out that the immediate descriptions of any ruling may not be very meaningful.

For one thing, a ruling could be complicated, as were last year’s halth care ruling and the 2000 Bush v. Gore decision, and not amenable to instant summarizing.

To complicate matters, the court seems likely to release the decisions separately, with several minutes between them. Court watchers generally expect the Defense of Marriage Act case to appear first, although anything is possible, including the rulings being released together.

Dozens of journalists for The New York Times, in Washington, California, New York and around the country, will be covering the rulings and the reactions to them by the public and those directly affected. At the center of the coverage is Adam Liptak, the Supreme Court reporter for The Times (and a lawyer), who will be in court to hear the rulings. He offered a preview of the decisions this week, and what they will say about the justices’ vision of equality, in Sunday’s New York Times.

The moment that we feel! comfortable with a ruling’s basic meaning, which could be almost immediately, we plan to explain the decision. But we promise not to bombard you with guesswork or unintelligible legal technicalities. The Times will also run blog posts from the legal experts at SCOTUSblog on our own site, as well as ask other outside experts to help readers understand the decision. Once the initial meaning of the ruling seems clear, Times reporters and editors will be analyzing it in real time, on our live blog dedicated to the ruling and on stories appearing across our digital platforms. We will also post updates to Twitter on @thecaucus and @nytimes, and post selected reactions from readers.

We expect to have Mr. Liptak’s initial story about any ruling by late morning or shortly after noon, not long after the court’s session has ended.

For background on same-sex marriage, we recommend: Mr. Liptak’s article on the history of gay clerks at the Supreme Court; on the legal strategy, with roots in San Francisco, that helped push the cases to the court so quickly; on the shadow of Roe v. Wade; and on the two days of oral arguments earlier this year. We also recommend Ashley Parker’s article on ! younger o! pponents of same-sex marriage; Sheryl Gay Stolberg’s profile of Brian S. Brown, a leading opponent of same-sex marriage, as well as her article on Ken Mehlman, a former Bush adviser turned advocate for same-sex marriage; Michael D. Shear’s article on the decisions that may await President Obama; and a recent New York Times/CBS poll, as described by Ms. Stolberg and Dalia Sussman.

Democratic Donors to Attend Fund-Raising Meeting for Pro-Clinton Group

Two dozen of the Democratic Party’s leading donors will gather for breakfast with allies of Hillary Clinton in New York on Thursday to discuss raising money for a pro-Clinton “super PAC,” according to people with knowledge of the event.

The meeting is being hosted by Michael Kempner, a New Jersey public relations executive and one of President Obama’s top national fund-raisers in the 2012 campaign, and will feature Harold Ickes, a longtime Clinton confidant who has begun advising the group, Ready for Hillary. Rafi Jafri, who was Mrs. Clinton’s Illinois fund-raising director during her 2008 bid for president, is also helping to organize the breakfast, according to an invitation obtained by The New York Times.

The event underscores how rapidly members of Mrs. Clinton’s inner circle are moving to harness and shape the political energy already building around a potential presidential campaign by Mrs. Clinton, less than six months after Mr. Obama was sworn in for his second term. Mrs. Cinton’s grass-roots supporters and some senior Democrats are already publicly declaring their allegiance to Mrs. Clinton, an undeclared candidate who may be years away from formally entering the 2016 race, if she does at all.

With Mrs. Clinton busy setting up shop at her family’s foundation and seemingly determined to steer clear of partisan politics for the time being, pieces of her political network are coalescing around groups like Ready for Hillary, formed in January by two former campaign volunteers. At first viewed warily by the Clinton world, in recent months the upstart group has been endorsed or informally advised by a sle! w of Clinton loyalists, including James Carville and Craig Smith, both former political advisers to President Bill Clinton.

Other groups are also springing up around the country, as political operatives and donors maneuver for position and pre-eminence in a campaign that does not yet even exist â€" but which many of them hope will spring into being after the 2014 midterm elections. Other groups are focused on aiding Terry McAuliffe, a Clinton ally who is running for governor of Virginia this year but has played a central role in every major campaign or fund-raising effort of the Clintons since the mid-1990s.

Invited to Thursday’s breakfast are a mix of Clinton and Obama fund-raisers as well as some Republican donors who have expressed interest in a Clinton bid, according to one person involved with the event.

The Early Word: Dismantled

Today’s Times

• The Supreme Court on Tuesday effectively struck down the heart of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, freeing nine states, mostly in the South, to change their election laws without advance federal approval, Adam Liptak reports.

• But those who have studied the region closely say that a more unstoppable force is approaching that will alter the power structure throughout the South and upend the understanding of politics there: demographic change, Jonathan Martin writes.

• President Obama announced sweeping measures to reduce greenhouse gas pollution on Tuesday, starting the clock on his goal to draft and put into place a complicated set of climate change rules in just two years, Mark Landler and John M. Broder report. He aims to reduce emissions by 17 percent by 2020, wholeheartedly embracing an issue that could help define his legacy.

• Though immigration legislation has solid bipartisan support in the Senate, the fate of the bill remains in doubt, Jonathan Weisman reports. Republicans in the House are torn between pleasing their constituents and courting Hispanic voters.

Happenings in Washington

• Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. will administer the oath of office at the swearing-in ceremony for Penny Pritzker as secretary of commerce.

• The Smithsonian will host the F! olklife Festival on the National Mall on Wednesday, focusing on endangered languages and cultural programs.