[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 138 (Wednesday, September 28, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: September 28, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                           EXECUTIVE SESSION

                                 ______


                           EXECUTIVE CALENDAR

  Mr. BOREN. Madam President, I now ask unanimous consent that the 
Senate proceed to executive session to consider the following 
nominations: Calendar order 1192, 1193, 1194, 1195, 1196, 1197, 1199, 
1200, 1201, 1202, 1203, 1204, 1205, 1206, 1207, 1208, 1209, 1210, 1212, 
1214, 1215, 1216, 1217, 1218, 1219, 1220, 1221, 1222, 1223, 1224, 1277, 
1278, 1283, 1284, 1285, 1286, 1287, and all nominations placed on the 
Secretary's Desk in the Army, Coast Guard, and Navy. I further ask 
unanimous consent that the nominees be confirmed en bloc; that any 
statements appear in the Record as if read; that upon confirmation the 
motions to reconsider be laid on the table en bloc; that the President 
be immediately notified of the Senate's action; and that the Senate 
return to legislative session.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The nominations considered and confirmed en bloc are as follows:

                       Department of the Treasury

       Frank N. Newman, of California, to be Deputy Secretary of 
     the Treasury.
       Edward S. Knight, of Texas, to be General Counsel for the 
     Department of the Treasury.

                          Department of State

       Kenneth Spencer Yalowitz, of Virginia, a Career Member of 
     the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to 
     be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United 
     States of America to the Republic of Belarus.
       Alfred H. Moses, of Virginia, to be Ambassador 
     Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of 
     America to Romania.
       Charles E. Redman, of Florida, a Career Member of the 
     Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to be 
     Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United 
     States of America to the Federal Republic of Germany.
       Mare Grossman, of Virginia, a Career Member of the Senior 
     Foreign Service, Class of Counselor, to be Ambassador 
     Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of 
     America to the Republic of Turkey.
       Ivan Selin, of the district of Columbia, to be an Alternate 
     Representative of the United States of America to the Thirty-
     eighty Session of the General Conference of the International 
     Atomic Energy Agency.
       Nelson F. Sievering, Jr., of Maryland, to be an Alternate 
     Representative of the United States of America to the Thirty-
     eighth Session of the General Conference of the International 
     Atomic Energy Agency.
       John B. Ritch III, of the District of Columbia, to be an 
     Alternate Representative of the United States of America to 
     the Thirty-eighth Session of the General Conference of the 
     International Atomic Energy Agency.

                             The Judiciary

       William C. Bryson, of Maryland, to be U.S. Circuit Judge 
     for the Federal Circuit.
       Sarah S. Vance, of Louisiana, to be U.S. District Judge for 
     the Eastern District of Louisiana.
       Salvador E. Casellas, of Puerto Rico, to be U.S. District 
     Judge for the District of Puerto Rico.
       Daniel R. Dominguez, of Puerto Rico, to be U.S. District 
     Judge for the District of Puerto Rico.
       Stanwood R. Duval, Jr., of Louisiana, to be U.S. District 
     Judge for the Eastern District of Louisiana.
       Frederic Block, of New York, to be U.S. District Judge for 
     the Eastern District of New York.
       John Gleeson, of New York, to be U.S. District Judge for 
     the Eastern District of New York.
       Allyne R. Ross, of New York, to be U.S. District Judge for 
     the Eastern District of New York.
       Shira A. Scheindlin, of New York, to be U.S. District Judge 
     for the Southern District of New York.
       Robert N. Chatigny, of Connecticut, to be U.S. District 
     Judge for the District of Connecticut.

                         Department of Justice

       John Michael Bradford, of Texas, to be U.S. Attorney for 
     the Eastern District of Texas for the term of 4 years.
       Ronald Joseph Boudreaux, of Louisiana, to be U.S. Marshal 
     for the Middle District of Louisiana for the term of 4 years.
       Norris Batiste, Jr., of Texas to be U.S. Marshal for the 
     Eastern District of Texas for the term of 4 years.
       John David Crews, Jr., of Mississippi, to be U.S. Marshal 
     for the Northern District of Mississippi for the term of 4 
     years.
       Walter D. Sokolowski, of Pennsylvania, to be U.S. Marshal 
     for the Middle District of Pennsylvania for the term of 4 
     years.
       Edward Joseph Kelly, Jr., of New York, to be U.S. Marshal 
     for the Northern District of New York for the term of 4 
     years.
       Delissa A. Ridgway, of the District of Columbia, to be 
     Chairman of the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission of the 
     United States for a term expiring September 30, 1997. 
     (Reappointment.)
       John R. Lacey, of Connecticut, to be a Member of the 
     Foreign Claims Settlement Commission of the United States for 
     the term expiring September 30, 1995.

             Administrative Conference of the United States

       Thomasina V. Rogers, of Maryland, to be Chairman of the 
     Administrative Conference of the United States for the term 
     of 5 years.

                         Department of Justice

       Michael Johnston Gaines, of Arkansas, to be a Commissioner 
     of the U.S. Parole Commission for the remainder of the term 
     expiring November 1, 1997.
       Aileen Catherine Adams, of California, to be Director of 
     the Office for Victims of Crime. (New Position.)

                              Coast Guard

       The following Regular officers of the U.S. Coast Guard for 
     promotion to the grade of rear admiral:
       Gordon G. Piche.
       Paul M. Blayney.
       The following Regular officers of the U.S. Coast Guard for 
     promotion to the grade of rear admiral (lower half):
       Fred L. Ames.
       Richard M. Larrabee III.
       John T. Tozzi.
       Thomas H. Collins.
       Ernest R. Riutta.

                     Department of Veterans Affairs

       Kenneth W. Kizer, of California, to be Under Secretary for 
     Health of the Department of Veterans Affairs for a term of 4 
     years.

                               Air Force

       The following-named officer for appointment to the grade of 
     lieutenant general while assigned to a position of importance 
     and responsibility under title 10, United States Code, 
     section 601:

                        To be lieutenant general

       Maj. Gen. Richard M. Scofield, 000-00-0000.
       The following-named officers for appointment in the United 
     States Air Force to the grade of major general under the 
     provisions of title 10, United States Code, section 624:


                           regular air force

                          To be major general

       Brig. Gen. Jerrold P. Allen, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Allen D. Bunger, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Stewart E. Cranston, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Robert S. Dickman, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. William J. Donahue, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Robert W. Drewes, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Patrick K. Gamble, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Francis C. Gideon, Jr., 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Edward F. Grillo, Jr., 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. John W. Handy, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Charles R. Heflebower, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Henry M. Hobgood, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Hal M. Hornburg, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Normand G. Lezy, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Donald E. Loranger, Jr., 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. John M. McBroom, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. George K. Muellner, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Robert F. Raggio, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. John B. Sams, Jr., 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Michael C. Short, 000-00-0000.
       Brig. Gen. Rondal H. Smith, 000-00-0000.

                                  Army

       The U.S. Army National Guard officers named herein for 
     appointment in the Reserve of the Army of the United States 
     in the grades indicated below, under the provisions of title 
     10, United States Code, sections 593(a), 3371, and 3384:

                          To be major general

       Brig. Gen. William E. Murphy, 000-00-0000.

                        To be brigadier general

       Col. Darrel P. Baker, 000-00-0000.
       The following-named officers for appointment in the Reserve 
     of the Army of the United States in the grade indicated 
     below, under the provisions of title 10, United States Code, 
     sections 593, 3385, and 3392:

                        To be brigadier general

       Federico Lopez III, 000-00-0000.
       Wayne D. Marty, 000-00-0000.

                   In the Army, Coast Guard, and Navy

       Army nominations beginning George D. Baxter, and ending 
     Michael H. Taylor, which nominations were received by the 
     Senate and appeared in the Congressional Record of January 5, 
     1993.
       Army nominations beginning George R. Allen, and ending 
     Thomas E. Wolford, which nominations were received by the 
     Senate and appeared in the Congressional Record of June 8, 
     1994.
       Army nominations beginning Richard W. Attwood, and ending 
     Ruth A. Wilcox, which nominations were received by the Senate 
     and appeared in the Congressional Record of July 27, 1994.
       Coast Guard nominations beginning Robert W. Vail, and 
     ending Philip M. Sanders, which nominations were received by 
     the Senate and appeared in the Congressional Record of August 
     9, 1994.
       Coast Guard nominations beginning William C. Paradise, and 
     ending Ronald W. Branch, which nominations were received by 
     the Senate and appeared in the Congressional Record of 
     September 12, 1994.
       Coast Guard nominations beginning Thomas J. Haas, and 
     ending Robert C. Ayer, which nominations were received by the 
     Senate and appeared in the Congressional Record of September 
     12, 1994.
       Navy nominations beginning Thor Davis Aakre, and ending 
     Allan Kay Zweifel, which nominations were received by the 
     Senate and appeared in the Congressional Record of September 
     19, 1994.


            statement on the nomination of kenneth w. kizer

  Mr. ROCKEFELLER. Madam President, I am pleased to support the 
nomination of Kenneth W. Kizer, M.D., to be the Under Secretary for 
Health for the Department of Veterans Affairs. The VA Under Secretary 
for Health is one of the most important public servants. If confirmed, 
Dr. Kizer will guide the VA medical system--the Nation's largest health 
care system--into the next century.
  I recently had the chance to meet with Dr. Kizer and to discuss the 
job he will have of providing health care to the men and women who have 
served this Nation. I have also had the opportunity to read his answers 
to prehearing questions and to hear his testimony at a September 13, 
1994, committee hearing on his nomination. Dr. Kizer has expressed his 
belief that services provided to veterans at VA medical facilities 
across the country should be easily accessible, compassionate, and of 
superior quality. I wholeheartedly agree and feel that Dr. Kizer has 
the intelligence, the experience, and the drive to maintain this 
special obligation to our Nation's veterans.
  Dr. Kizer is professor and chairman of the department of community 
and international health at the University of California, Davis, School 
of Medicine. Before his position in academe, Dr. Kizer was director of 
the California Department of Health Services, serving as the chief 
health official for the Nation's largest State health agency. Prior to 
his appointment, Dr. Kizer served as chief deputy director and chief of 
public health for the California Department of Human Services, and 
before that as director of California's Emergency Medical Services 
Authority.
  Dr. Kizer is a fellow of the American College of Emergency 
Physicians, the American Academy of Toxicology, the American College of 
Occupational and Environmental Medicine, the American College of 
Preventive Medicine, the Royal Society of Health, and the Royal Society 
of Medicine. Dr. Kizer has medical specialty board certification in 
emergency medicine, medical toxicology, occupational medicine, and 
general preventive medicine and public health.
  Dr. Kizer received his bachelor of science degree in biological 
sciences from Stanford University in 1972, and his doctor of medicine 
and masters of public health degrees from UCLA in 1976. He undertook 
postgraduate medical training with the U.S. Navy and the University of 
California, San Francisco.
  Dr. Kizer has demonstrated that he understands the huge 
responsibility that would be his. He has responded openly to questions 
from Senator Murkowski and myself at the committee hearing, and in 
addition to the prehearing questions, he has completed the committee's 
questionnaire. On September 23, the committee voted unanimously to 
approve Dr. Kizer's nomination. I know of no opposition to his 
nomination.
  Madam President, in my view, Dr. Kizer is well qualified for this 
important position. He would bring to it a strong mix of private sector 
and public section health care management experience. Because the 
Veterans Health Administration has been without leadership for far too 
long, I urge my colleagues to approve the nomination.


                  the nomination of dr. kenneth kizer

  Mr. MURKOWSKI. Madam President, it has now been over a year and a 
half since the incoming administration removed VA's theoretically 
nonpartisan Under Secretary for Health. I did not object to that action 
because I know that America's veterans, and the Congress, will hold 
both Secretary Brown and the administration accountable for the state 
of veterans' health care on their watch and I can understand why the 
Secretary and the administration would want their own person as Under 
Secretary for Health.
  As the head of the Veterans Health Administration [VHA], the Under 
Secretary for Health holds one of the most important, and most 
challenging, offices in the Federal Government.
  As Under Secretary, Dr. Kenneth Kizer will be responsible for a 
budget of almost $17 billion, a staff of over 200,000, a physical plant 
of 171 medical centers and hundreds of outpatient clinics, and--most 
importantly--the health of the 2\1/2\ million veterans who will turn to 
VA for medical care in the year to come.
  The critical importance of the Under Secretary's mission, the awesome 
reach of his or her responsibilities, combined with the demonstrated 
talent and unquestioned qualifications that Dr. Kenneth Kizer will 
bring to VA, explain why I urge the Senate to confirm Dr. Kizer to be 
VA's Under Secretary for Health.
  That importance of that mission, and the scope of those 
responsibilities, also explain why I am frustrated that this vote takes 
place only during the waning days of the 103d Congress.
  Too much time has passed between the forced departure of the last 
Under Secretary and Dr. Kizer's nomination. The Senate did not receive 
Dr. Kizer's nomination until July 29, 1994. The Committee on Veterans' 
Affairs held a hearing on September 13 and voted unanimously to approve 
the nomination on September 23. The delay in filling this critical 
leadership position is not the responsibility of the Senate and I 
regret that the Veterans' Health Administration has gone so long 
without a confirmed leader because of the administration's failure to 
send a nomination to the Senate.
  I applaud Dr. Kizer for agreeing to serve as head of the Veterans 
Health Administration. The challenges he will face will be daunting. 
The constraints under which he will have to operate will be crushing. 
The responsibilities he will assume will literally include questions of 
life and death. His reward for faithful service is likely to include a 
generous measure of second guessing.
  He will assume responsibility for the Veterans Health Administration 
at a time when American health care is remaking itself. The practice of 
medicine is changing at a pace that can hardly be measured, much less 
explained. The transition away from hospital care to outpatient care 
may be only the most visible example.
  The organization of medicine is also undergoing profound changes as 
the Federal Government debates the funding and administration of care 
while at the same time the individual States enact their own health 
care reform legislation. VA must adapt to this changing environment if 
it is to continue to provide quality care to America's veterans.
  Dr. Kizer will assume responsibility for laying the foundation for a 
21st century health care system while at the same time operating a 
network of hospitals constructed to fulfill a vision of health care as 
it was understood at the end of World War II, a half century ago.
  His success will depend upon his willingness to make significant 
changes, to ask unpopular questions, and to propose bold changes in 
course. None of those actions will be easy. Many, perhaps most, will be 
controversial.
  But I believe that neither the Congress, nor the veterans we serve, 
are, or can be, satisfied by the status quo. And I do not believe that 
VA can make significant improvements by continuing to do only what has 
been done before.
  If Dr. Kizer proposes a course toward more ambulatory care, I hope he 
can count on the support of the Senate, even if that course comes at 
the expense of medically excessive, but locally popular, inpatient 
capacity.
  If Dr. Kizer proposes to integrate VA health care more closely with 
other community and Federal providers, I hope he can count on the 
support of the Senate if his proposals will improve health care for 
veterans.
  If he shifts VA's focus away from the bricks and mortar of its 
buildings and toward health care services for veterans, I will applaud 
his actions. If he transfers authority away from bureaucrats in 
Washington and empowers VA's leadership in the field, I will stand by 
his side.
  Dr. Kenneth Kizer has agreed to accept a very difficult mission and I 
commend him for his courage and for his commitment to America's 
veterans. He can not succeed in that mission without the support of the 
Congress and I urge my colleagues to join me in not only supporting his 
confirmation as Under Secretary for Health but to also join me in 
supporting him as he begins the difficult task of reinventing the VA 
health care system while at the same time continuing to provide quality 
health care to millions of America's veterans.

                          ____________________