[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 107 (Wednesday, September 13, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8492-S8494]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





                           Amendment No. 4120

  Mr. WELLSTONE. Mr. President, I have cited both the State Department 
Report on Human Rights and the International Labor Organization report 
this past year of courageous men and women who have done nothing more 
than protest deplorable working conditions and try to organize and 
bargain collectively and are now in prison.
  This amendment simply says that PNTR depends upon an accounting from 
the Chinese Government about these people who are in prison and helps 
Congress in releasing these people from prison. I say to my colleagues, 
I believe during this debate we have put human rights concerns aside; 
we have put the rights of people who practice religion aside. These 
questions dealing with human rights, whether people are free to 
practice their religion, or whether people are free to protest 
deplorable working conditions, are important concerns. Thank you for 
giving me the opportunity to speak out on these. I hope I will get a 
good vote.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's time has expired. The Senator 
from Delaware is recognized.
  Mr. ROTH. Mr. President, this amendment would unilaterally impose 
conditions on the normalization of our trade relations with China that 
would backfire by effectively barring access of U.S. companies to the 
Chinese markets on terms at least as good as other WTO members. The 
amendment would also eliminate the positive force that American 
companies can play in the Chinese market by potentially leading to the 
delay in PNTR and cutting off the benefit of China's market access 
commitment for U.S. firms.
  The amendment would have the perverse effect of narrowing the private 
sector in China in which some limited organizing is permitted. The 
point of this bill is to level the playing field between the United 
States and China, all of which would be forfeited if this amendment 
passes and becomes law.
  I yield the remainder of my time.
  Mr. WELLSTONE. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
  There is a sufficient second.
  The question is on agreeing to the amendment No. 4120.
  The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk called the roll.
  Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from Washington (Mr. Gorton) 
is necessarily absent.
  Mr. REID. I announce that the Senator from Hawaii (Mr. Akaka), the 
Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. Kennedy), and the Senator from 
Connecticut (Mr. Lieberman) are necessarily absent.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber 
desiring to vote?--
  The result was announced--yeas 22, nays 74, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 246 Leg.]

                                YEAS--22

     Ashcroft
     Bayh
     Boxer
     Byrd
     Collins
     Dorgan
     Feingold
     Gregg
     Harkin
     Helms
     Hollings
     Hutchinson
     Inhofe
     Leahy
     Mikulski
     Reed
     Sarbanes
     Smith (NH)
     Snowe
     Specter
     Torricelli
     Wellstone

                                NAYS--74

     Abraham
     Allard
     Baucus
     Bennett
     Biden
     Bingaman
     Bond
     Breaux
     Brownback
     Bryan
     Bunning
     Burns
     Campbell
     Chafee, L.
     Cleland
     Cochran
     Conrad
     Craig
     Crapo
     Daschle
     DeWine
     Dodd
     Domenici
     Durbin
     Edwards
     Enzi
     Feinstein
     Fitzgerald
     Frist
     Graham
     Gramm
     Grams
     Grassley
     Hagel
     Hatch
     Hutchison
     Inouye
     Jeffords
     Johnson
     Kerrey
     Kerry
     Kohl
     Kyl
     Landrieu
     Lautenberg
     Levin
     Lincoln
     Lott
     Lugar
     Mack
     McCain
     McConnell
     Miller
     Moynihan
     Murkowski
     Murray
     Nickles
     Reid
     Robb
     Roberts
     Rockefeller
     Roth
     Santorum
     Schumer
     Sessions
     Shelby
     Smith (OR)
     Stevens
     Thomas
     Thompson
     Thurmond
     Voinovich
     Warner
     Wyden

                             NOT VOTING--4

     Akaka
     Gorton
     Kennedy
     Lieberman
  The amendment (No. 4120) was rejected.
  Mr. ROTH. I move to reconsider the vote.
  Mr. MOYNIHAN. I move to lay that motion on the table.
  The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, with the consent of my friend from Delaware, 
the manager of this bill, I ask unanimous consent, upon disposition of 
H.R. 4444, the Senate proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 152, 
H.R. 1259, the Social Security lockbox bill, and that it be considered 
under the following time limitation: 2 hours for debate on the bill 
equally divided between the managers; that Senator Conrad have a Social 
Security-Medicare lockbox amendment; that Senator Graham of Florida 
have a Medicare prescription drug amendment; that other relevant first-
degree amendments be in order; and that relevant second-degree 
amendments be in order.
  Mr. CRAIG. I object.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. An objection is heard.
  The distinguished Senator from Delaware is recognized.
  Mr. ROTH. Mr. President, I ask consent that time on all remaining 
first-degree amendments be limited to no more than 1 hour, to be 
equally divided in the usual form, and that no second-degree amendments 
be in order prior to the vote, and limited to the ones described below. 
I further ask consent that following these amendments in the allotted 
time specified below, the bill be advanced to third reading and passage 
occur, all without any intervening action or debate. I also ask that

[[Page S8493]]

no motions to commit or recommit be in order.
  Those remaining first-degree amendments are as follows: Feingold, 
regarding a commission; Hollings No. 4134; Hollings No. 4135; Hollings 
No. 4136; Hollings No. 4137; B. Smith No. 4129, divisions I through V.
  I further ask consent that there be 6 hours equally divided between 
the two leaders for general debate on the bill, with the following 
Members recognized just prior to final vote on H.R. 4444, in the order 
stated: 60 minutes under the control of Senator Byrd, 30 minutes under 
the control of Senator Helms, 30 minutes under the control of Senator 
Moynihan, 30 minutes under the control of Senator Roth, 30 minutes 
under the control of Senator Daschle, 30 minutes under the control of 
Senator Lott.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. ROTH. Mr. President, as a result of this agreement, there will be 
no further votes today. However, votes can be expected throughout the 
day tomorrow.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I certainly applaud and congratulate the two 
managers of this bill to arrive at a point of a finite number of 
amendments with time limits.
  I say to the Senate in general, however, that just because these 
amendments were in order doesn't mean the Senators have to offer them, 
and just because all the time agreements have been listed doesn't mean 
people have to use that time. I hope the two leaders work toward 
finding a way we can finish this bill tomorrow evening. There is a 
tremendous amount of work still left to be done in the Senate. I hope 
to finally resolve this legislation sometime tomorrow.
  Mr. MOYNIHAN. Mr. President, I very much support that view, and I 
think our indefatigable chairman might also agree.
  Mr. ROTH. I assure the distinguished colleagues I want to move as 
expeditiously as possible toward completion of this critically 
important legislation.
  Mr. MOYNIHAN. If I might say, these amendments get 18 votes, 22 
votes; we now have a pattern.
  The Senate made its decision about this legislation midday. The 
sooner we are in the aftermath, the better relations will be, and the 
Senate can go on to other business.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I voted in favor of the Smith amendment 
to H.R. 4444, the bill to extend permanent normal trade relations to 
the People's Republic of China. The Smith amendment would have extended 
the mandate of the Congressional-Executive Commission on the People's 
Republic of China to include responsibility for monitoring and 
reporting on organ harvesting in China. For years, chilling reports 
have emerged out of China, detailing horrific scenarios in which organs 
are illicitly harvested for profit from executed prisoners. It is my 
understanding that the Chinese government has failed to take action to 
stop the criminal elements responsible for these abhorrent practices. 
Certainly careful monitoring and reporting on this issue is 
appropriate.
  Mr. GORTON. Mr. President, today the Senate voted on several 
amendments to the bill establishing permanent normal trade relations 
status for the People's Republic of China. Regrettably, I was unable to 
register my votes on these amendments. Following are my thoughts 
regarding a few.
  With respect to the amendment offered by Senator Byrd regarding 
potential import surges from China, I must state my opposition. While 
the Senator from West Virginia deserves credit in his effort to protect 
the American worker, the anti-dumping and surge protection mechanisms 
contained in the bilateral agreement brokered between the U.S. and 
China were crafted to address this very issue. Recognizing these two 
issues were considered ``deal breakers'' by U.S. trade interests, I 
have every reason to believe his concerns have been addressed.
  I must also state my opposition to Senator Bob Smith's amendment 
regarding the harvesting and transplanting of human organs. Without 
question, the issue of human rights and the treatment of Chinese 
citizens should be of upmost concern to every American. I believe the 
human rights provisions agreed to in H.R. 4444 were established to 
conquer and address such atrocities.
  In particular, I would have also supported the effort to table the 
amendment offered by Senator Thompson. I have for quite some time, to 
the knowledge of my constituency in Washington and my colleagues here 
in the Senate, criticized the Clinton-Gore administration's approach to 
non-proliferation issues with China. However, I do not believe that 
Congress, by creating an entirely new sanctions policy or by 
establishing an additional layer of export controls, can effectively 
address these concerns nor strengthen U.S. national security. We must 
approach these measures with caution, we will approach them with a new 
administration, and we must recognize that when we confront China about 
these terribly significant issues, we will be approaching them as a 
trading ``partner''. If in the coming years China does not 
appropriately address the issues of non-proliferation, I assure my 
colleagues that I will be the first to raise concern.
  Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, I rise today to share with my colleagues 
a letter from numerous agricultural producers and organizations 
opposing any and all amendments to the bill to grant permanent normal 
trade relations to the People's Republic of China. This letter 
specifies the dangers the pending amendment relative to Chinese non-
proliferation requirements would pose to agricultural producers.
  I ask unanimous consent that the letter be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the letter was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                               September 12, 2000.
     Hon. Trent Lott,
     Russell Senate Office Building, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Lott: It is critical to American agriculture 
     that H.R. 4444, the China Permanent Normal Trade Relations 
     (PNTR) legislation, moves forward without amendment. Any 
     amendments would require another vote in the House of 
     Representatives and send China and our competitors the 
     message that the United States is not serious about opening 
     the China market to U.S. products.
       The Thompson amendment would require the President to 
     implement sanctions under various circumstances. Unilateral 
     sanctions have the effect to giving U.S. markets to our 
     competitors. While there are efforts to exempt food, medicine 
     and agriculture from the existing language, American 
     agricultural producers, regardless of exemptions, would be 
     put at risk. If the United States sanctions or even threatens 
     sanctions for any products, agriculture is often first on the 
     other country's retaliation list.
       Additionally, further consideration of the China 
     Nonproliferation bill should not delay action on a vote for 
     PNTR. The U.S. agriculture industry continues to face 
     depressed prices. Agricultural producers and food 
     manufacturers should not have to face burdens erected by 
     their own government such as unilateral sanctions or failure 
     to pass PNTR.
       We urgently request your help in achieving a positive vote 
     on PNTR without amendment.
       Thank you for your help and we look forward to working with 
     you on these important issues.
           Sincerely,
         AgriBank,
         Agricultural Retailers Association,
         Alabama Farmers Federation,
         American Crop Protection Association,
         American Farm Bureau Federation,
         American Feed Industry Association,
         American Meat Institute,
         American Seed Trade Association,
         American Soybean Association,
         Animal Health Institute,
         Archer Daniels Midland Company,
         Biotechnology Industry Organization,
         Bunge Corporation,
         Cargill, Inc.,
         Cenex Harvest States,
         Central Soya Company; Inc.,
         Crestar USA,
         CF Industries, Inc.,
         Chocolate Manufacturers Association,
         CoBank,
         Distilled Spirits Council of the United States,
         DuPont,
         Farmland Industries, Inc.,
         Grocery Manufacturers of America,
         IMC Global Inc.,
         Independent Community Bankers of America,
         International Dairy Foods Association,
         Land O'Lakes,
         Louis Dreyfus Corporation,
         National Association of State Departments of Agriculture,
         National Association of Wheat Growers,
         National Barley Growers Association,
         National Cattlemen's Beef Association,
         National Chicken Council,
         National Confectioners Association,
         National Corn Growers Association,
         National Council of Farmer Cooperatives,
         National Food Processors Association,
         National Grain and Feed Association,

[[Page S8494]]

         National Grange,
         National Milk Producers Federation,
         National Oilseed Processors Association,
         National Pork Producers Council,
         National Potato Council,
         National Renderers Association,
         National Sunflower Association,
         North American Export Grain Association,
         North American Millers' Association,
         Pet Food Institute,
         Pioneer Hi-Bred International,
         Rice Millers' Association,
         Snack Food Association,
         Sunkist Growers,
         The Fertilizer Institute,
         United Egg Association,
         United Egg Producers,
         USA Poultry and Egg Export Council,
         U.S. Canola Association,
         U.S. Dairy Export Council,
         U.S. Meat Export Federation,
         U.S. Rice Producers Association,
         U.S. Rice Producers' Group,
         U.S. Wheat Associates,
         Wheat Export Trade Education Committee,
         Zeeland Farm Soya.

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