[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 8 (Tuesday, January 23, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S439-S441]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise today to voice my strong support for
the confirmation of Mel Martinez to be Secretary of the Department of
Housing and Urban Development. I am impressed by his background and his
commitment to providing safe, affordable housing to all Americans.
Based on my review of the Mr. Martinez's record as a public official in
Orlando and Orange County and his expressed dedication to the mission
of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, I believe he will
make a superb Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. I support his
nomination and urge my colleagues to do the same.
Mel Martinez has an extraordinary story. At the age of 15, he fled
Castro's Cuba to come to the United States without his family. He
stayed with a foster family for four years before the rest of his
family could join him in Orlando. After earning a law degree from
Florida State University, Mr. Martinez entered private practice, but
also served on numerous public boards and committees. He served on the
Board of Directors for the Orlando Public Housing Authority from 1982
to 1986. He was the Chair of the Orlando Affordable Housing Task Force
in 1984, and President of the Orlando Utilities Commission from 1994 to
1997.
Since 1998, Mr. Martinez has served as the Chief Elected Official of
Orange County, Florida. He has a reputation for championing ``Smart
Growth'' and for understanding the need to ensure affordable housing
for all citizens. He even established a commission to identify new ways
to provide affordable housing.
Assuming that Mr. Martinez will be confirmed, he comes to HUD at a
good time. Clearly, the nadir of HUD's existence was during the 1980s
when the Department was riven by mismanagement and even worse. Jack
Kemp deserves credit for his commitment to reform and improving housing
opportunities for the people served by HUD. He worked hard and achieved
significant progress.
The last eight years have seen a continuation of reform and a
realization of many of the goals of reform. The homeownership rate is
now the highest in history--67.7% of all American families, nearly
seven out of every ten families, own their own home. Nine million
households have been added to the ranks of homeowners since 1993. We've
also seen record high levels of homeownership for urban-center African-
American and Hispanic families. The volume of Federal Housing
Administration (FHA) loans has doubled in recent years. FHA now has
about 6.7 million mortgages in its portfolio. FHA has gone from a $2.7
billion deficit to a current value of more than $16 billion. HUD has
also recognized the changing needs of our aging population by producing
a Housing Security Plan for Older Americans.
HUD has made progress, but there is still much work to be done. There
is still a pressing need to meet the continuing challenge of helping
all Americans achieve the dream of homeownership and the promise first
made over half a century ago in the National Housing Act: a safe and
affordable place to live for all Americans.
One of the most troubling paradoxes of our recent prosperity is that
despite the fact that incomes have risen for people in every income
category, safe and affordable housing is more elusive than ever for
many low- and moderate-income families. That is because the cost of
housing has outpaced the increase in wages in many of our urban
centers, including areas of Connecticut that now rank among some of the
most expensive housing markets in the country.
We are losing public housing units in our country at an alarming
rate. In some parts of the country, like the Northeast, the age of
public housing units has necessitated the demolition of many units that
have become too deteriorated to be rehabilitated. Federal policy has
tried to provide public housing residents with housing vouchers, but
frankly, there just aren't enough of those vouchers to go around.
Further, in high-cost housing markets vouchers haven't always been
useful to low-income families because they can't always find landlords
who are willing to accept the vouchers. And even with vouchers, many
find rent to be all but out of reach.
We need more vouchers. We also need to invest in capital maintenance,
and rehabilitation funding to ensure that public housing units remain
habitable. And if we have dilapidated public housing, then we need to
put money into building replacement units. While vouchers work in some
places under some circumstances, they don't work everywhere under all
circumstances.
I also believe that the Federal government needs to think ahead to
address issues that will arise as our elderly population continues to
grow. We should consider creating tax and other incentives for
construction of privately-owned assisted living units. The time has
also come for HUD to consider developing new standards or approaches to
ensure that senior citizens who live in public housing can stay in
their homes and not be forced prematurely into expensive and less
independent institutional care facilities.
These are not trivial matters. They are tough problems. But from what
I have been able to discern, Mel Martinez is up to the task. He has the
knowledge, the energy, and the commitment to lead HUD as the agency
begins to address these matters.
I look forward to working with Mr. Martinez. I have already invited
Mr. Martinez up to Connecticut. Connecticut has some of the oldest
housing in the country, but we also have some of the country's most
successful affordable housing projects. I welcome the opportunity to
show him our state and, again, to work with him on behalf of
[[Page S440]]
all Americans seeking a good home for themselves and their families.
Mr. THURMOND. Mr. President, I rise today in support of the
nomination of Anthony J. Principi to be Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
I am pleased that President Bush has selected a person of experience
and ability for this important position.
Mr. Principi has a strong background and association with the
military community. He is a veteran of the United States Navy, a
graduate from the U.S. Naval Academy, and a highly decorated Vietnam
veteran. He also served in the Navy's Judge Advocate General Corps.
Mr. Principi is well qualified for this position, having previously
served as Acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs and Deputy Secretary of
the VA. I personally know him to be a capable and dedicated public
servant. In 1993, I called upon Mr. Principi to be my Staff Director
for the Senate Armed Services Committee. Later, as Chairman, I
appointed him to a Congressional Commission on Military Servicemembers
and Veterans Transition. He subsequently was elected by his colleagues
as Chairman of that Commission. In each of these instances, his
performance was exceptional.
There are a number of important issues facing the Department of
Veterans Affairs which affect veterans, their families, and employees
of the Department. I will mention a few of these issues to emphasize my
own concern and to stress to Mr. Principi that he must aggressively
address these matters.
The first issue I hope Secretary Principi strongly addresses is that
of Veterans Benefits. It takes too long now to get initial decisions
and the review process can take years. I hope Secretary Principi will
work with the Under Secretary for Benefits to improve the VA benefit
review process.
Second, I am concerned about the status of veterans health care. The
Congress and the VA have enacted and implemented a number of reforms.
The challenge now is to ensure that the availability, delivery and
quality of health care improves.
A third concern I have relates to the Veterans Equitable Resource
Allocation, VERA, process. A few years ago, Congress passed a bill that
requires the VA to allocate resources according to veteran population
and use of VA medical facilities. This legislation generally has
shifted some resources from the Northeast to the South and West. I
trust Secretary Principi will continue to support this important reform
despite political pressures to do otherwise.
I congratulate Mr. Principi on his nomination. As a member of the
Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, I look forward to working with
the Secretary as we address the needs and concerns of the men and women
who have given much for our Nation.
Mr. ROCKEFELLER. Mr. President, as the ranking member of the
Committee on Veterans' Affairs, I am pleased to support the nomination
of Anthony J. Principi to be Secretary of Veterans Affairs. If
confirmed, Mr. Principi will have the responsibility of steering the
Department of Veterans Affairs through a period of great
transformation.
I recently had the chance to meet with Mr. Principi and to discuss
the many challenges he will face in guiding the VA through this
critical period. I have also had the opportunity to read his answers to
prehearing questions and to hear his testimony at the January 18, 2001,
hearing of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs on his nomination.
Mr. Principi has expressed his belief that our veterans deserve access
to quality health care and swift and accurate decisions about
disability benefits. I wholeheartedly agree and believe feel that Mr.
Principi has the experience and the commitment to maintain this special
obligation to our Nation's veterans.
I know that with his years of service to veterans--at VA, here in the
Senate, and as chair of the Commission on Servicemembers and Veterans
Transition (the so-called Transition Commission)--Mr. Principi is
familiar with the importance of the leadership role he will soon assume
at the VA. Because of his long history and experience, we have great
expectations for his success, and we expect him to hit the ground
running to tackle the VA's many challenges.
We have all heard the President speak about the need to revamp the VA
health care system. But what exactly does that mean to veterans who
depend upon the VA? Yes, we have made many sweeping changes in the
delivery of VA health care. Veterans' health care is now very often
provided in different settings, which are frequently not the
traditional hospital site. Outpatient clinics cover the VA landscape
and provide new access points to many veterans. And veterans--unlike
many other groups--now have improved coverage of their long-term care
needs, although VA has been embarrassingly slow in implementing some of
these programs.
But while the past decade has brought tremendous transformation to
the VA health care system, we may be approaching the most challenging
period of all. The VA medical system offers programs of enormous value,
especially for veterans who are blind or have spinal cord injuries, who
need prosthetic devices or dependable mental health care. We must
retain these specialized services, offered nowhere else in the U.S.
healthcare landscape, which have made the VA great.
Mr. Principi understands that, if confirmed, he will be expected to
be a steward and protector of this very special health care system.
America's veterans will accept no less.
The Veterans Benefits Administration is in crisis. Last year,
Chairman Specter chaired a hearing on the benefits adjudication system,
and we were greatly disturbed by what we heard about the lack of
quality and timeliness in VBA decisionmaking. At that hearing, a
Vietnam combat veteran from my state of West Virginia, suffering with
post-traumatic stress disorder, testified that it took a full five
years for his VA disability claim to be approved. The documented
chronology of events over that five-year period paints a clear picture
of a benefits system that needs a great deal of work. This is just one
example of the many cases my staff hear about daily.
We continue to be dismayed by the delays in making eligibility
determinations. And despite efforts by hardworking, dedicated VBA
employees, which have yielded some gains in customer service, the
problems with VA claims' processing seem to be getting worse. In fact,
the backlog has increased by 50,000 claims just since we held that
hearing last July.
You know the old saying: ``Justice delayed is justice denied.'' Our
aging veterans population cannot afford to wait. We look to Mr.
Principi for innovative approaches so that VBA can absorb changes in
law and new business processes without always going into a tailspin. We
must do better than this.
Mr. President, in my view, Mr. Principi is well qualified for this
important position. He would bring to it his many experiences as an
advocate for veterans' needs, as well as his sincere commitment to
their well-being. I urge my colleagues to approve this nomination.
Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I rise today to give my strongest
recommendation for the confirmation of the nomination of Anthony
Principi to be Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
On January 5, 2001, then President-elect Bush announced his intention
to nominate former-Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs Tony Principi,
a man I have known for more than 20 years, to be his Secretary of
Veterans Affairs. I support this nomination, and I am pleased that the
President decided to recommend him for this important position.
Tony Principi served as Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs and as
Acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs for President Bush from 1989 to
1993. I am confident that he will, once again, be a competent,
trustworthy, effective Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
Tony Principi is a graduate of the United States Naval Academy and a
decorated Vietnam Veteran. He earned a law degree from Seton Hall
University in 1975. He was a professional staff member, Counsel and
later Staff Director for both the Senate Armed Services Committee and
the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.
In 1996, Tony was named as the Chairman of the Military
Servicemembers and Veterans Transition Assistance Commission. This
Congressional Commission reviewed the adequacy and effectiveness of the
services and benefits available to active
[[Page S441]]
duty service members and veterans. A number of the Commission's
recommendations fall under the cognizance of the Armed Services
Committee. I have carefully reviewed the recommendations and have
initiated action to implement many of the improvements and efficiencies
recommended by the Commission. As Chairman of this important
Congressional Commission, Tony did a superb job with a very difficult
task.
Tony's father is a veteran of World War II. His wife, Elizabeth is a
veteran of 30 years of service as a Naval officer and his two sons are
serving on active duty in the Air Force today.
Tony's personal experiences in a family of veterans as well as a
midshipman, Naval officer give him an excellent perspective on the
issues facing veterans. His experience as a staff member on the Armed
Services and Veterans Affairs Committees and as a Cabinet official in
the Department of Veterans Affairs makes Tony uniquely qualified to
address the many issues he will face as the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs.
Mr. President, I had the opportunity to meet with Tony in my office
the day prior to his confirmation hearing before the Veterans Affairs
Committee. During our discussions, he assured me that he would take
timely and positive action to ensure that employees of the Department
of Veterans Affairs will assist veterans in applying for benefits and
filing claims for reimbursement and payments. This was an important
issue on which the Armed Services Committee took a leading role during
consideration of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year
2001. I was pleased that Tony agreed that it is a duty of the
Department of Veterans Affairs personnel to assist veterans in
successfully navigating the difficult claims processes. We also
discussed opportunities for increased cooperation between the
Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs in the
health care arena. I look forward to working with Tony on these and
other important issues concerning active duty military personnel and
veterans.
I support this nomination. I urge my colleagues to support the
nomination as well. Secretary Principi will be a crucial part of the
great team that President Bush has assembled.
Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I rise today in strong support of M.
Anthony Principi as Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
Our Nation's veterans are important to all of us. From time and
memorial, the men and women of our country's Armed Services have
dedicated themselves to freedom and democracy. They have done far more
than representing freedom, they have given themselves to the cause,
fighting for those inalienable rights that many of us take for granted.
There are 24.8 million veterans in the United States, 165,000 of
which are in my own state of New Mexico. This means that all of us know
a veteran. In fact, one out of every four men in the United States is a
veteran, and there are 1.2 million female veterans. We must continue to
work for the continued well-being of our veterans, as they are our
mothers, fathers, grandmothers, and sons.
Health care is important to all of us, and veterans are no exception.
I have worked with other members of Congress to dramatically increase
funding for veterans' health care. I know that more needs to be done
for veterans and pledge myself to work for their interests.
The head of the Department of Veterans Affairs will be presented with
unique challenges. The Secretary must be pro-active and must have a
comprehensive understanding of veterans' issues.
In that vein, I am confident that Mr. Principi is the best person for
the job. As a decorated Vietnam War veteran, Mr. Principi can
intimately relate to veterans' special needs.
Furthermore, he can fully appreciate the Department of Veterans
Affairs after serving as Secretary and Deputy Secretary of the
Department under the previous Bush Administration. Mr. Principi applied
his pro-active attitude and experience when he ordered the creation of
a registry to track medical conditions of Gulf War veterans.
Furthermore, Mr. Principi chaired the bipartisan Congressional
Commission on Military Service Members and Veterans Assistance under
the previous Administration.
The Department of Veterans Affairs has put forth significant effort
in moving towards a ``One V-A'' in attempting to deliver seamless
service to veterans. Yet, coordinating VA's various missions as
technology advances remains just one challenge that Mr. Principi must
address.
Mr. Principi is a veteran. He has spent his life working for
veterans. Mr. President, Anthony Principi is the best person to head
the Department of Veterans Affairs.
As Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Mr. Principi will
surely be tested. I am confident that he will ace the test.
Mr. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I rise in strong support of Tony
Principi's confirmation as Secretary of Veterans Affairs. I have known
him for many years both as a staffer and a friend. He was my staff
director when I was chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee many
years ago. Since then I have come to value his advice and expertise
about our nation's veterans as much as I have come to value his
friendship. His experience both within the government and the private
sector, along with his desire to give veterans the kind of services
they deserve, makes Tony the best man for the job. I support his
confirmation and urge my colleagues to do the same.
Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.
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 nominations of Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr., to be Director
of the Office of Management and Budget; Anthony Joseph Principi, to be
Secretary of Veterans Affairs; and Melquiades Rafael Martinez, to be
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development?
The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk called the roll.
The result was announced--yeas 100, nays 0, as follows:
[Rollcall Vote Nos. 1, 2, 3 Ex.]
YEAS--100
Akaka
Allard
Allen
Baucus
Bayh
Bennett
Biden
Bingaman
Bond
Boxer
Breaux
Brownback
Bunning
Burns
Byrd
Campbell
Cantwell
Carnahan
Carper
Chafee
Cleland
Clinton
Cochran
Collins
Conrad
Corzine
Craig
Crapo
Daschle
Dayton
DeWine
Dodd
Domenici
Dorgan
Durbin
Edwards
Ensign
Enzi
Feingold
Feinstein
Fitzgerald
Frist
Graham
Gramm
Grassley
Gregg
Hagel
Harkin
Hatch
Helms
Hollings
Hutchinson
Hutchison
Inhofe
Inouye
Jeffords
Johnson
Kennedy
Kerry
Kohl
Kyl
Landrieu
Leahy
Levin
Lieberman
Lincoln
Lott
Lugar
McCain
McConnell
Mikulski
Miller
Murkowski
Murray
Nelson (FL)
Nelson (NE)
Nickles
Reed
Reid
Roberts
Rockefeller
Santorum
Sarbanes
Schumer
Sessions
Shelby
Smith (NH)
Smith (OR)
Snowe
Specter
Stabenow
Stevens
Thomas
Thompson
Thurmond
Torricelli
Voinovich
Warner
Wellstone
Wyden
The nominations were confirmed.
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