[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 54 (Tuesday, April 20, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3892-S3893]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             KOSOVO POLICY

  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I want to speak to a resolution that 
has been introduced this morning regarding Congress taking an action 
about our troops in Kosovo and the whole escalation of the operation in 
Kosovo. The text of the resolution is that we would give the President 
all of the authority to use whatever force, take whatever steps he sees 
as necessary.
  I certainly think we should have a debate on this whole issue of 
Kosovo. I think it is certainly something that Congress is going to 
need to weigh in on. But I think it would be vastly premature to take 
an action before the President has laid out a plan. The President has 
not asked us for ``all force.'' The President has not asked us, 
actually, for anything except funding on an emergency basis to make 
sure we have the ability to fund the operation that is going on in 
Yugoslavia without taking away from other national security interests. 
I am going to support the President in that request. The last thing I 
want to do is have our troops in harm's way, along with our allies', 
and run out of money or run out of equipment or have any of our 
national defense personnel anywhere else in the world be shortchanged. 
We are not going to let that happen.
  When the President gives us the specificity that is required for the 
appropriation, I think there will be a resounding vote in Congress to 
give our troops and our military the leeway they need to spend the 
money to have the equipment they need to do this job. But I cannot 
imagine having a carte blanche given to an operation that clearly is 
escalating a mission and we have not seen a plan. We have not seen a 
plan. We have not seen a timetable. We have not seen a cost estimate 
for the long term. So I hope we will take a step back here, and rather 
than voting on the resolution that was put forward today we would be 
talking among ourselves, that we will be debating at whatever point is 
the right one, and that we would be having op-eds in newspapers, which 
I think certainly have added to the body of opinion on this issue. But 
Congress should not micromanage this war. The President should come to 
us and say what he needs, what he is going to do with the money, what 
kind of plan we have, what kind of troop commitment are we talking 
about, what is it going to do to the rest of our national defense 
operation. We need to have a full plan.
  One of the things that has concerned so many of us is that perhaps we 
started an operation before we had a contingency plan. Perhaps we 
started the operation before we knew what we would need for the long 
term, before we knew the goal. I think the mission has actually changed 
several times.
  We obviously have had a different result from this operation than we 
had hoped. There is no question about that. Whether this is a success 
is yet to be determined, and I do not think we should be jumping in, 
saying it has not been a success. But I think it is time for us to let 
the President take the lead, to let him come to us with his requests. 
He is the one who is supposed to be executing this operation. I do 
think it would be a mistake for Congress to put the cart before the 
horse. I do not think we should micromanage. I do not think we should 
tell the President what to do. I do not think we should put our 
opinions on top of his. And most certainly, when I hear our NATO allies 
saying they would not consider ground troops, the last thing I think we 
should do is encourage ground troops. I think the case has not been 
made, the base has not been laid, and our allies are not in support.

  So I think we need to take a step back. We need to be getting the 
administration to give us briefings at every point, asking our 
opinions. Let's debate this, let's talk about what kind of commitment 
we want to make. But I will not vote for troops on the ground in this 
operation as a carte blanche, a blank check, before I know what we are 
going to do. What will our responsibility be? What will our allies' 
contribution be? What is the timetable? What is the mission? Is it 
achievable, and what is it going to cost? And what is it going to do to 
the rest of our national defense?
  These are questions that must be asked. We must get answers. We must 
have a full briefing. For Congress to have a vote before we have all of 
that would be irresponsible.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative assistant proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. GREGG. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Crapo). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

[[Page S3893]]

  Mr. GREGG. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak as in 
morning business for up to 10 minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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