[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 96 (Tuesday, July 16, 2002)]
[House]
[Pages H4679-H4680]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  JOHN WALKER LINDH NOT A ``GOOD BOY''

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the order of the House of 
January 23, 2002, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Foley) is recognized 
during morning hour debates for 5 minutes.
  Mr. FOLEY. Mr. Speaker, today, as most Americans awoke, they were 
greeted with headlines like the one I saw in my hometown Palm Beach 
Post: ``Lindh's Dad Says Son a Good Boy.'' John Walker Lindh being 
described by his father as a good boy.
  While I ran on the Mall this morning, I was listening to NPR, and I 
was listening to the defense attorney for that good boy, John Walker 
Lindh, describe his client as a slightly misguided youth who was 
actually in Afghanistan fighting the cocaine traffickers and the poppy 
growers and the drug lords. John Walker Lindh, a good boy.
  It was difficult yesterday, because I received calls from two of my 
constituents, Ed and Maureen Lunder, whose son Christopher, at the age 
of 33, perished in the World Trade Center; and Stanley and Carol Eckna, 
whose son Paul perished in the World Trade Center at the age of 28.
  John Walker Lindh, the good boy, will celebrate his birthdays in a 
Federal prison; and when he turns 41, he will celebrate his birthdays 
outside in the free world. Christopher and Paul do not get any 
birthdays any more. They do not get any anniversaries. They do not get 
to see their kids grow up. But John Walker Lindh is a good boy.
  Maybe it does not startle people that the ethics of this Nation are 
collapsing. I remember when our President and chief executive officer 
of this Nation lied to a grand jury and lied to the American people. 
And at that time I heard from my colleagues who said, hey, listen, the 
economy is good, do not worry about it; it is his personal business.
  Now we have companies like Endrun, formerly known as Enron, and 
WorldCon, formerly WorldCom, stealing money out of the till and 
enriching themselves at the cost of the consumer, taxpayer, and 
investor. And now we have John Walker Lindh described as a good boy.
  Where are the ethics of this Nation? What about those 3,000 lives 
that were lost in the World Trade Center in New York and Washington, 
D.C. at the Pentagon, and in that airplane in Pennsylvania? 
Collaborating with the enemy, to me, was always treasonous. No matter 
how you describe it, no matter how you tie a bow on that package, John 
Walker Lindh has committed treason against the common good and purpose 
of this country. He violated our constitutional premise. He violated 
the sacred oath we have as citizens to protect

[[Page H4680]]

one another. And he aided and abetted the enemy.
  Now, in trying to comfort my constituents who lost their children, I 
said, well, maybe we did not have enough evidence, maybe we did not 
have enough to really secure a solid victory, so we took what we could 
get. I hope in the coming days the administration and others talk to us 
with clarity about why this deal was struck, how 10-year sentences can 
ever be equal to the damage suffered by my constituents.
  We have to establish the right principles in this Nation if we are in 
fact to beat terrorism. We have to establish right from wrong, and we 
have to set a clear moral authority.
  In the last couple of days, of course, the Democrats have seized on a 
lot of issues and tried to portray the President as not having ethics. 
Well, I challenge them to at least focus on some of the issues that 
face Americans, that face citizens like my constituents, who lost 
children; to face the issues of fighting the common problems with our 
economy; and not to point fingers but to find solutions.
  Politics is beautiful. Politics is great. We have a chance to debate 
and to bring clarity to the issues. But oftentimes we muddle ourselves 
in the acrimony of fingerpointing, name calling, and attempting to 
malign other people. I am proud of our President, and I think he has 
spoken with clarity on so many issues. There is not a scandal out of 
the White House any longer. There is a proud leader of the American 
people trying to clear the way so we can beat and combat terrorism.
  We have a lot to do on the economy, and I join my colleagues in 
looking for tougher standards. I honestly believe those who stole from 
the shareholders should go to jail. We take the cars of prostitutes and 
Johns, we take the ill-gotten gains of drug dealers and others as we 
combat the war on drugs. We should combat the war against deceitful 
CEOs by doing the same things.
  Today, let us at least put John Lindh behind us, never to think of 
him as a good boy. Let him spend the 20 years in prison thinking about 
what he has done to his American colleagues. Maybe he will find justice 
somewhere. Maybe God will forgive him. But it is very, very difficult 
for me to forgive a traitor of this country.

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