[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 148 (Wednesday, October 31, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11273-S11274]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       UNANIMOUS CONSENT--S. 739

  Mr. WELLSTONE. I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to Calendar 
No. 191, S. 739, the Homeless Veterans Program Improvement Act; that 
the committee-reported substitute amendment be agreed to; that the 
bill, as amended, be read three times, passed, and the motion to 
reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or 
debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Mr. SESSIONS. I object.
  Mr. WELLSTONE. Mr. President, this is the second or the third time I 
have come to the floor. My colleague from Alabama, though we do not 
agree on all issues, is a friend, so nothing I am about to say is 
directed to him. He has to object.
  I would like to know which brave Senator has put an anonymous hold on 
this bill. With all due respect, this piece of legislation, which is 
called the Heather French Henry Veterans Assistance Act, is named after 
Heather French Henry, a Miss America who made this her No. 1 priority. 
Her dad is a disabled Vietnam vet. It passed out of the Veterans' 
Affairs Committee with bipartisan unanimous support.
  It is the same piece of legislation introduced by Lane Evans. There 
is nobody better in the whole Congress, House and Senate; he is the 
best when it comes to being for veterans. He has introduced this, moved 
through the House, and the VA has supported it. We had the Secretary 
there. He approves of this legislation--Secretary Principi. The VA 
reported there were 345,000 homeless veterans in 1999, a 34-percent 
increase in homeless veterans from 1998 to 1999. I bet a third of the 
males who are homeless are veterans. That is a scandal. I know my 
colleague from Alabama agrees with that.
  What does this bill do? It increases the $50 million authorization 
for the Department of Labor Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program. 
They basically contract out; the nonprofits do the work at the local 
level. These are effective job training programs for homeless veterans 
so they can get back on their feet.
  The bill authorizes additional funding for community-based 
organizations which do the best work in providing different 
transitional services to veterans, whether it be programs that deal 
with addiction, whether it be programs to help veterans find more 
affordable housing.
  Finally, it talks about more comprehensive homeless centers that will 
be available in the country's major metropolitan areas; in other words, 
a place where there can be medical care, where there can be job 
counseling, and where there can be social services.
  My understanding is--and I don't know how many veterans organizations

[[Page S11274]]

have now sent in letters, but I can safely say there is not a veterans 
organization in the country that would oppose this legislation. I could 
travel to any State, any center, and I could go to a homeless shelter. 
I used to organize with homeless people, visit with homeless veterans, 
many Vietnam veterans. This legislation provides some support services 
for them--job training, counseling for veterans struggling with 
addiction, other social service programs.
  There is a Senator who has put a hold on it, and I cannot find out 
who he or she is. These anonymous holds drive me up the wall. I have 
never put an anonymous hold on a bill--never. I am putting a hold on 
just about every single piece of legislation that any Senator on the 
other side of the aisle wants to put through here until this piece of 
legislation goes through. I have come out here twice or three times. I 
can't find out who objects to it. I would love to debate a Senator 
about why he or she opposes this homeless veterans bill.
  So I am going to come to the Chamber every day, every single day, and 
I am going to ask unanimous consent to pass this bill. I hope that 
whoever opposes it will tell me why. In the meantime, I am putting a 
hold on just about every single piece of unanimous consent legislation 
that is proposed from the other side of the aisle, which I hardly ever 
do.
  This is a great way to proceed in a bipartisan manner, to have some 
Senator, who has apparently very little courage, put an anonymous hold 
on a bill which provides more homeless assistance to veterans, who will 
not come out here to debate it, and basically stops it dead in its 
tracks. I have been around here 11 years. The only thing I can figure 
out is I just put a hold on pretty much everything that comes from the 
other side of the aisle. I will review them one by one, but I will not 
do it anonymously.
  Let me say to my colleagues, many of whom I enjoy and like and rarely 
am angry with even if I disagree, I am sorry. I apologize. But I am 
putting a hold on just about every single piece of legislation that 
comes through here from the other side.
  I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. Cantwell). The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. THOMAS. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent the order for 
the quorum call be dispensed with.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. THOMAS. I ask that I may speak up to 10 minutes in morning 
business.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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