[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 131 (Friday, September 20, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S11108]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           THE 104TH CONGRESS

  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, today, as is the case on most days when 
the Senate is in session, we have seen in morning business a block of 
time offered to those who come to the floor to describe what is wrong 
with the Senate, what is wrong with the President, and why the 
revolution that was offered at the start of the 104th Congress has 
failed to achieve its goals. In fact, today one of the speakers said, 
well, the reason the Senate is still in session is because the people 
on this side of the aisle --the Democrats--are keeping the Senate in 
session for political purposes, apparently, not letting those who want 
to go home to go home.
  I listened to that. I thought to myself, this is a very curious 
statement from someone who is a Member of the Senate. Anyone who is a 
Member of the Senate would probably know that we have not done our 
work. We are supposed to pass appropriations bills. That is what funds 
the functions of Government. The fact is, the largest appropriations 
bill that we passed in the year has not been completed. Four 
appropriations bills will likely now be rolled into a continuing 
resolution--I guess five appropriations bills rolled into a continuing 
resolution--and not adopted by this Congress at all. The requirement is 
that is supposed to be done by September 30. It will not be done. The 
Congress will not have done its work. The Congress will not have 
followed the requirements in law.
  So we will pass what is called a continuing resolution, which is 
defined as a legislative failure because the Congress didn't do the job 
it was supposed to do. We are still here because the Congress has not 
completed its work. That is not rocket science. If the Congress does 
not get its job done, it ought not go home.
  Well, this has been a remarkable Congress by any measurement. I 
understand why some want to go home. In fact, the very people who want 
to go home quickly now are the people who couldn't wait to get here at 
the start of the Congress to begin the revolution--a rather curious, 
unusual revolution that said we want to serve in Government because we 
do not like Government; what we would like to do is provide a very 
large tax cut. Much of that will go to upper-income Americans and pay 
for it by cutting the Medicare Program, most of which helps lower-
income Americans.
  And they said we have a new economic plan for America as well. Let me 
describe it to you--not in my words, but in the words of a former 
Republican, a columnist who described it this way. He said:

       Their economic plan proposed that you take the 20 percent 
     of the people with the lowest incomes, and say to those 
     people, ``You are now going to bear the burden of 80 percent 
     of the spending cuts that we propose in Government.''

The same economic plan would say to those who have 20 percent of the 
highest incomes in America, you should smile because you are going to 
receive 80 percent of the benefit of our tax cuts.
  A curious economic program, one that when the American people got 
onto it they did not like very much. And so the 104th Congress which 
started with almost a coronation is now kind of limping to a conclusion 
with the folks who were so anxious to get here now wanting to leave.
  I was reading last evening again a book that was written by a 
colleague of ours, Senator Byrd from West Virginia, a book that is 
compilations of some presentations he has made in this Chamber. And in 
part of the book he is discussing the old Roman Senate and a lot of 
historical references in the book that are quite interesting, one of 
them about Hannibal which I mentioned to our caucus the other day, 
Hannibal crossing the Alps. All of us studied in school about Hannibal. 
What a remarkable achievement. This man took, I believe, 36 elephants 
and crossed the Alps with these elephants, and, of course, that is what 
we read about in our history books--Hannibal crossed the Alps with his 
elephants. Quite remarkable.
  Hannibal, in fact, was quite a masterful tactician and strategist and 
had quite an interesting record as a commander, military strategist. 
But what you do not remember and what Senator Byrd described in his 
book is the end stage of Hannibal. Hannibal lost an eye. All but one of 
his elephants died, of course. There was one remaining emaciated 
elephant, and the last vision as I read last evening in the book is of 
this one-eyed Carthaginian soldier named Hannibal riding the last of 
his emaciated elephants across the plains of Italy. I thought to 
myself, you know, that reminds me a little bit of the way the 104th 
Congress is ending up--the last emaciated elephant being ridden across 
the plains of Italy.
  We have a responsibility in Congress to do what the people expect us 
to do on behalf of this country, and I think this Congress has done 
some things that are commendable but we have not nearly scratched the 
surface on the menu of things that most people would want us to deal 
with.
  Education. How do we move our country in a direction that assures us 
we are going to have the best education system in the world? That ought 
to be our country's goal. In every corner of America it ought to be our 
goal to build our education system that is the finest in the world.
  Jobs. Our goal ought to be to find a way to provide more economic 
growth, an expanded economy, a trade balance that is not in deep 
deficit but one that is in reasonable balance with jobs staying here, 
not moving overseas.
  Crime. Dealing with the epidemic of crime in America in a thoughtful 
way, a manner in which maybe both parties would agree dealing with the 
epidemic of violent crime is in the interest of all Americans.
  And the environment. In 20 years we have doubled the use of energy in 
America, and at the end of 20 years doubling the use of energy we have 
cleaner air and cleaner water. No one 20 years ago would have predicted 
that possible. Improving on that record as well.
  Mr. President, I see my colleague from Mississippi, the majority 
leader, Senator Lott, is here to make unanimous-consent requests. Let 
me not delay him and the Senate further. I would be happy to yield the 
floor for the unanimous-consent request.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader is recognized.

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