[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 10 (Monday, February 7, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: February 7, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
           SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT ON THE PATRIOT MISSILE

  (Mr. ZELIFF asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. ZELIFF. Mr. Speaker, 2 weeks ago, on NBC Nightly News a 
correspondent, in commenting on the possible deployment of Patriot 
missile batteries to South Korea, set a new standard for 
misinformation. Errors in the press are not new to any of us and 
normally I would not take the time to put corrections into the Record. 
However, since the subjects of these errors pertain to two studies, one 
conducted by a subcommittee of which I am a member and the second, a 
GAO study commissioned by that same subcommittee, I feel it necessary 
to set the record straight. On April 7, 1992, a congressional hearing 
was held on the performance of the Patriot missile during the gulf war, 
in response to criticisms raised by a few people in academia.
  The Army described how they achieved success rates of over 70 percent 
in Saudi Arabia and over 40 percent in Israel against a threat that was 
beyond the Patriot's expectations.
  The Congressional Research Service and many independent experts 
described the many errors in the critics analysis of the Patriot, and 
termed the case against the missile ``worthless.'' Maybe it is more 
important to ignore all the triumphs by American troops, American 
workers, and American technology so that we can pay false homage to a 
handful of selfserving critics.
  But, I do not think so. I think it is the critics who should be 
ignored.
  I would like to thank the soldiers who went into harm's way in Saudi 
Arabia and Israel to protect against the nightly terror, and those in 
American industry who created the Patriot technology and built the 
systems that our troops used so well. You did a great job and should be 
proud of your accomplishments.

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