[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 67 (Thursday, May 13, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5383-S5384]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         PRISONER ABUSE SCANDAL

  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I want to comment briefly on two other 
issues.

[[Page S5384]]

One has to do with the event yesterday, which was very tough for many 
of us, and that was the opportunity to review the photos related to the 
prisoner abuse scandal.
  I thank the Department of Defense for their responsiveness so as to 
give everyone in this body the opportunity to view those pictures. As 
has been said by so many, the photos are appalling and offensive to 
America's sense of humanity. Many of the images we saw were consistent 
with those that have already appeared in the press. They are pictures 
and images of abusive behavior. There were a lot of photos. Others do 
not show prisoner abuse but do expose the character of those under 
investigation.
  The new material supports my belief that we must act swiftly and we 
must fully investigate the incidents of this prisoner abuse at Abu 
Ghraib prison to assure that justice is served. It is the mark of 
America, and that mark will be demonstrated by this swift justice. We 
must find out who is responsible for the abuses that occurred and hold 
them accountable. And indeed we will.
  At the same time, we must all remember to separate this incident from 
the outstanding, remarkable work so many thousands and thousands and 
thousands of our brothers and sisters and men and women and children 
are carrying out in uniform right now in Iraq and indeed in Afghanistan 
and around the world. It is tremendous work, fighting for the liberty 
and the democracy we all cherish. It is truly disheartening to see that 
the actions of a few--a few--have really tarnished the reputations and 
professionalism of our Nation's Armed Forces. So let's never ever 
forget the tremendous work the men and women in uniform are doing for 
us right now, each and every day, and today.

  I am pleased to learn Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld and General Myers 
have traveled to Baghdad to get a better sense of what is happening on 
the ground in Iraq and to ensure corrective actions are being taken to 
prevent such prisoner abuse from ever happening again. I think it is 
important that they are there to boost the morale of the thousands of 
American troops who are serving so nobly and courageously in Iraq. This 
is the right and proper thing for our Nation's senior defense civilian 
and senior military leader to be doing.
  I do again want to assure our colleagues that the American people 
expect, and the Senate will deliver by having its committees of 
jurisdiction continue their inquiries into this matter and work 
diligently with the executive branch to ensure that justice prevails 
and that such acts never ever occur again.

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