[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 59 (Thursday, March 30, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4843-S4844]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



  NOMINATION OF DANIEL ROBERT GLICKMAN, OF KANSAS, TO BE SECRETARY OF 
                              AGRICULTURE

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will now 
go into executive session to consider Executive Calendar No. 50, the 
nomination of Daniel Robert Glickman to be Secretary of Agriculture.
  The clerk will report the nomination.
  The legislative clerk read the nomination of Daniel Robert Glickman, 
of Kansas, to be Secretary of Agriculture.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, there will now be 10 
minutes of debate equally divided in the usual form.
  The Chair recognizes the Senator from Indiana.
  Mr. LUGAR. I thank the Chair.
  Mr. President, I support the nomination of Dan Glickman to be 
Secretary of Agriculture. Mr. Glickman is a former chairman of the 
House Intelligence Committee and was, for 18 years a highly respected 
member of the House Agriculture Committee. Senators involved in 
agricultural debates and conferences with the House know Dan Glickman 
as a conscientious, studious, and thoughtful legislator.
  Mr. Glickman will begin his tenure at an important moment in the 
Agriculture Department's history. USDA is among the largest Federal 
Departments. It comprises agencies that oversee national forests, 
administer the School Lunch Program, distribute food stamps, and 
provide agricultural supports.
  In essence, 43 branches of USDA will be consolidated into 29 under 
the reform legislation adopted by the Congress last year. Thus, USDA is 
in need of strong leadership and direction at this moment. It requires 
active management by a Secretary who is knowledgeable, engaged, and 
assertive. Only in this way can the Department effectively implement 
its much needed reorganization. Only through vigorous leadership can 
the Department guide the development of the 1995 farm bill. The omnibus 
legislation we are about to consider in Congress will reauthorize many 
of USDA's programs. So far, the administration has made no proposals to 
the Congress detailing its views on what should be in that farm bill.
  The nominee has stated that he will become involved immediately in 
developing administration positions on the farm bill. Senate hearings 
on the subject have already commenced. It is important that the new 
Secretary be confirmed promptly.
  Mr. Glickman appeared before the Agriculture Committee of the Senate 
on March 21 and his nomination was favorably reported on March 23 by a 
unanimous vote. He answered Senators' questions on a wide variety of 
topics and was presented to the committee by our distinguished majority 
leader, Senator Dole; the chairman of the Labor and Human Resources 
Committee, Senator Kassebaum; and the chairman of the House Agriculture 
Committee, Mr. Roberts. All of these distinguished Kansas legislators 
spoke highly of him.
  In his responses to Senators' questions, Mr. Glickman was forthright 
and thoughtful. He and I do not agree on every issue, but we expect to 
work together cordially and cooperatively even when we have 
differences. I anticipate that there will be many more areas of 
agreement than disagreement.
  Dan Glickman should be confirmed by the Senate as Secretary of 
Agriculture, and I urge my colleagues to vote for his nomination.
  Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. LUGAR. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I rise today in support of the 
nomination of Dan Glickman for the position of Secretary of 
Agriculture. Mr. Glickman is uniquely qualified to lead the Department 
of Agriculture through this vital time in its history.
  For the first time in my career serving in Congress, the very 
existence of the farm programs is being debated. In past farm bill 
debates, we have vigorously debated the content and substance of the 
farm program. But this year we are debating whether any type of farm 
program is justified.
  Some in the agricultural community view this debate as an assault on 
the traditional way of providing for a stable food supply and a strong 
agriculture sector. I view this debate as an opportunity to make our 
case for agriculture. Agriculture contributes 16 percent to this 
country's gross national product. The United States continues to export 
more agriculture products than it imports. So in a time when the United 
States suffers from a substantial trade deficit, agriculture continues 
to enjoy a trade surplus.
  Dan Glickman is well qualified to argue the case in favor of 
continuing the farm programs. Others have spoken of Mr. Glickman's 18 
years in Congress and his work on three prior farm bills. While 
representing the Fourth Congressional District in Kansas, Mr. Glickman 
was a champion for the wheat and feed grains programs. Mr. Glickman 
knows the details of the farm programs, and more importantly, he 
understands why the country needs to provide a safety net for the 
family farm system.
  I would like to address one issue that Dan has championed from his 
first days in Congress, an issue in which I also strongly believe. One 
of the first bills Dan introduced in Congress was a bill to promote the 
increased use of ethanol, a form of fuel manufactured with the use of 
corn. From his first days in Congress, Dan advocated the use of 
alternative fuels in order to promote new uses of agricultural products 
and promote national security interests by reducing the U.S. dependency 
on foreign oil. Later, Dan served on the National Alcohol Fuels 
Commission where he continued to support this vital cause. I urge him 
to continue to work hard for the interests of alternative uses of 
agricultural products, and specifically the increased use of ethanol.
  Another issue that I would like to urge Dan Glickman to focus on in 
his 
[[Page S4844]] term as Secretary is foreign trade. As I stated earlier, 
agriculture enjoys a trade surplus. Furthermore, the early evidence 
indicates that farmers have greatly benefited from recent free-trade 
agreements such as GATT and NAFTA. I understand that Mr. Glickman's 
record has been supportive of agricultural trade, although he felt it 
necessary to vote against the GATT for other reasons. I would just urge 
Mr. Glickman to do everything within his authority to open new markets 
for U.S. agricultural exports. As chairman of the Finance Subcommittee 
on International Trade, I would be happy to work with him on this 
endeavor.
  In closing, I would reiterate my support for the nomination of Daniel 
Glickman for Secretary of Agriculture and look forward to working with 
him in his new position.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I am pleased that the President has 
nominated and the Senate is about to confirm former Congressman Dan 
Glickman as the new Secretary of Agriculture. He has an encyclopedic 
knowledge of U.S. and international agriculture and the U.S. Department 
of Agriculture. He will make an excellent addition to the Cabinet. I 
strongly support his confirmation.
  Secretary Glickman and I had a chance to talk recently about 
Michigan's agricultural picture. I did not have to spend a lot of time 
impressing him with my knowledge of the vibrancy and diversity of the 
agriculture sector in Michigan. He was already familiar with it, as he 
had the good fortune to attend college in Michigan.
  Mr. President, I look forward to working with the new Secretary to 
promote and legislate wise agricultural policy and continuing his 
predecessor's efforts to improve efficiency at the Department in the 
coming years. I am particularly looking forward to working with him and 
the Department on promulgating a Federal marketing order for tart 
cherries, and getting some of Michigan's most abundant crops and 
agricultural products, like tart cherries, into the School Lunch 
Program.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question now occurs on the confirmation of 
the nomination of Daniel Robert Glickman, to be the Secretary of 
Agriculture.
  Mr. LUGAR. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays on the 
nomination.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There appears to 
be a sufficient second.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is, will the Senate advise and 
consent to the nomination of Daniel Robert Glickman, of Kansas, to be 
Secretary of Agriculture? The yeas and nays have been ordered. The 
clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk called the roll.
  Mr. LOTT. I announce that the Senator from Alabama [Mr. Shelby] is 
necessarily absent.
  I also announce that the Senator from Kansas [Mrs. Kassebaum] and the 
Senator from Minnesota [Mr. Grams] are absent due to a death in the 
family.
  Mr. FORD. I announce that the Senator from North Dakota [Mr. Conrad], 
the Senator from North Dakota [Mr. Dorgan], and the Senator from New 
Jersey [Mr. Bradley] are necessarily absent.
  I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from 
North Dakota [Mr. Dorgan] and the Senator from North Dakota [Mr. 
Conrad] would eacy vote ``aye.''
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber 
who desire to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 94, nays 0, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 120 Ex.]

                                YEAS--94

     Abraham
     Akaka
     Ashcroft
     Baucus
     Bennett
     Biden
     Bingaman
     Bond
     Boxer
     Breaux
     Brown
     Bryan
     Bumpers
     Burns
     Byrd
     Campbell
     Chafee
     Coats
     Cochran
     Cohen
     Coverdell
     Craig
     D'Amato
     Daschle
     DeWine
     Dodd
     Dole
     Domenici
     Exon
     Faircloth
     Feingold
     Feinstein
     Ford
     Frist
     Glenn
     Gorton
     Graham
     Gramm
     Grassley
     Gregg
     Harkin
     Hatch
     Hatfield
     Heflin
     Helms
     Hollings
     Hutchison
     Inhofe
     Inouye
     Jeffords
     Johnston
     Kempthorne
     Kennedy
     Kerrey
     Kerry
     Kohl
     Kyl
     Lautenberg
     Leahy
     Levin
     Lieberman
     Lott
     Lugar
     Mack
     McCain
     McConnell
     Mikulski
     Moseley-Braun
     Moynihan
     Murkowski
     Murray
     Nickles
     Nunn
     Packwood
     Pell
     Pressler
     Pryor
     Reid
     Robb
     Rockefeller
     Roth
     Santorum
     Sarbanes
     Simon
     Simpson
     Smith
     Snowe
     Specter
     Stevens
     Thomas
     Thompson
     Thurmond
     Warner
     Wellstone

                             NOT VOTING--6

     Bradley
     Conrad
     Dorgan
     Grams
     Kassebaum
     Shelby
  So the nomination was confirmed.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the President will 
be notified of this action.
  Mr. LUGAR. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.
  Mr. LEAHY. I move to lay that motion on the table.
  The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

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