[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 134 (Friday, November 19, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11648-S11651]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

                                 ______
                                 

  SENATE RESOLUTION 474--TO EXPRESS SUPPORT FOR THE GOALS OF NATIONAL 
ADOPTION MONTH BY PROMOTING NATIONAL AWARENESS OF ADOPTION, CELEBRATING 
 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES INVOLVED IN ADOPTION, AND ENCOURAGING AMERICANS 
     TO SECURE SAFETY, PERMANENCY, AND WELL BEING FOR ALL CHILDREN

  Ms. LANDRIEU (for herself, Mr. Craig, Mr. Bond, Mr. DeWine, Mr. 
Fitzgerald, Mr. Levin, Mr. Santorum, Ms. Stabenow, Ms. Murkowski, Mr. 
Johnson, Mr. Brownback, Mr. Nickles, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Jeffords, and Ms. 
Snowe) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and 
agreed to:

                              S. Res. 474

       Whereas there are approximately 532,000 children in the 
     foster care system in the United States, approximately 
     129,000 of whom are waiting to be adopted;
       Whereas the average length of time a child in foster care 
     remains in foster care is almost 3 years;
       Whereas for many foster children, the wait for a loving 
     family in which they are nurtured, comforted, and protected 
     is endless;
       Whereas every year 25,000 children ``age out'' of foster 
     care by reaching adulthood without being placed in a 
     permanent home;
       Whereas, since 1987, the number of annual adoptions has 
     ranged from 118,000 to 127,000;
       Whereas approximately 2,100,000 children in the United 
     States live with adoptive parents;

[[Page S11649]]

       Whereas approximately 6 of every 10 Americans have been 
     touched personally by adoption in that they, a family member, 
     or a close friend was adopted, has adopted a child, or has 
     placed a child for adoption;
       Whereas every day loving and nurturing families are formed 
     when committed and dedicated individuals make an important 
     difference in the life of a child through adoption;
       Whereas, on November 20, 2004, communities from all 50 
     States and the District of Columbia will celebrate National 
     Adoption Day by finalizing the adoption of thousands of 
     children by loving families; and
       Whereas on November 4, 2004, the President proclaimed 
     November 2004 as National Adoption Month: Now, therefore, be 
     it
       Resolved, That the Senate recognizes November 2004 as 
     National Adoption Month.
                                 ______
                                 

     SENATE RESOLUTION 475--TO CONDEMN HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN LAOS

  Mr. COLEMAN (for himself, Mr. Feingold, Mr. Kohl, and Mr. Dayton) 
submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 475

       Whereas the Lao People's Democratic Republic is an 
     authoritarian, Communist, one-party state;
       Whereas the Government of Laos has a poor human rights 
     record, particularly with regard to its treatment of 
     minorities.
       Whereas the United States Central Intelligence Agency 
     trained and armed tens of thousands of Hmong guerrillas to 
     disrupt Viet Cong supply lines and rescue downed pilots 
     during the Vietnam war;
       Whereas in 1975, the Kingdom of Laos was overthrown by the 
     Communist Pathet Lao regime, and tens of thousands of 
     Laotians, including the Hmong, were killed or died at the 
     hands of Communist forces while attempting to flee the Lao 
     Communist regime, and many others perished in reeducation and 
     labor camps;
       Whereas tens of thousands of Hmong became refugees, 
     eventually resettling in the United States, where they now 
     reside as American citizens and lead constructive lives as 
     members of our communities;
       Whereas remnants of former Hmong insurgent groups and their 
     families who once fought with the United States and the Royal 
     Lao Government still remain in remote areas of Laos, 
     including Xaisomboun Special Zone and the Luang Prabang 
     Province;
       Whereas in August 2003 the United Nations Committee to 
     Eliminate Racial Discrimination strongly criticized the Lao 
     People's Democratic Republic for failing to honor its 
     obligations, expressed its grave concerns regarding reports 
     of human rights violations, including brutalities inflicted 
     on the Hmong, and deplored the measures taken by the Lao 
     authorities to prevent any reporting of the situation of the 
     Hmong;
       Whereas in October 2003, Amnesty International issued a 
     statement detailing its concern about the use of starvation 
     by the Lao Government as a ``weapon of war against 
     civilians'' in Laos and the deteriorating situation facing 
     thousands of family members of ethnic minority groups;
       Whereas the Department of State reported in its most recent 
     Country Report on Human Rights Practices for Laos that the 
     ``Government's human rights record remained poor,'' and 
     highlighted press reports that one group of Hmong in 
     Xaisomboun Special Zone, mostly women and children, was being 
     systematically hunted down and attacked by government air and 
     ground forces and that it was at the point of starvation;
       Whereas international organizations, the Department of 
     State, and Members of Congress have received reports of 
     mistreatment over the past 6 months of Hmong in Laos emerging 
     from remote areas of Laos, including the Xaisomboun Special 
     Zone, the Luang Prabang-Xieng Khouang border area;
       Whereas the Lao Government has not allowed independent 
     organizations to monitor the treatment of the Hmong emerging 
     from remote areas of Laos;
       Whereas in September 2004, Amnesty International issued a 
     statement condemning recent reports that Lao soldiers 
     murdered 5 Hmong children, raping 4 girls, who were foraging 
     for food close to their camp, and called it a war crime; and
       Whereas the Lao People's Democratic Republic has failed to 
     substantially improve the status of human rights for its 
     citizens: Now therefore be it
       Resolved, that the Senate--
       (1) Condems the consistent pattern of serious human rights 
     abuses in the Lao People's Democratic Republic;
       (2) Urges the Government of Laos to increase international 
     access to vulnerable populations and to respect the basic 
     human rights of all Laotians, including ethnic and religious 
     minorities; and
       (3) Hopes that the Lao government intensifies its efforts 
     to make its economy and society move open and transparent in 
     light of the congressional grant of normal tragic relations 
     to the Lao People's Democratic Republic.
                                 ______
                                 

SENATE RESOLUTION 476--SUPPORTING THE GOALS, ACTIVITIES, AND IDEALS OF 
                  NATIONAL PREMATURITY AWARENESS MONTH

  Mr. ALEXANDER (for himself and Mr. Dodd) submitted the following 
resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 476

       Whereas preterm birth is a serious and growing problem;
       Whereas, between 1982 and 2002, the rate of preterm birth 
     increased 27 percent;
       Whereas, in 2002, more than 480,000 babies were born 
     prematurely in the United States;
       Whereas 25 percent of all babies that die in the first 
     month of life were born preterm;
       Whereas premature infants are 14 times more likely to die 
     in the first year of life;
       Whereas premature babies who survive may suffer lifelong 
     consequences, including cerebral palsy, mental retardation, 
     chronic lung disease, and vision and hearing loss;
       Whereas preterm birth and low birthweight are a significant 
     financial burden in health care;
       Whereas, in 2002, the estimated charges for hospital stays 
     for infants with a diagnosis of preterm birth or low 
     birthweight were $15,500,000,000, a 12 percent increase since 
     2001;
       Whereas the average lifetime medical costs of a premature 
     baby are conservatively estimated at $500,000;
       Whereas the cause of approximately half of all preterm 
     births is unknown;
       Whereas women who smoke during pregnancy are twice as 
     likely as women who do not smoke during pregnancy to give 
     birth to a low birthweight baby, and babies born to women who 
     smoke during pregnancy weigh, on average, 200 grams less than 
     babies born to women who do not smoke during pregnancy; and
       Whereas to reduce the rates of preterm labor and delivery 
     more research is needed on the underlying causes of preterm 
     delivery, prevention of preterm birth so that babies are born 
     full-term, and treatments improving outcomes for infants born 
     prematurely: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate recognizes during the month of 
     November, 2004, activities and programs that promote 
     awareness of and solutions to the dangers of preterm birth 
     across the United States.
                                 ______
                                 

SENATE RESOLUTION 477--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE IN SUPPORT OF 
 A REINVIGORATED UNITED STATES VISION OF FREEDOM, PEACE, AND DEMOCRACY 
                           IN THE MIDDLE EAST

  Mr. FRIST (for himself and Mr. Reid) submitted the following 
resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 477

       Whereas the President articulated to the world on November 
     12, 2004, a vision of freedom, peace, and democracy for the 
     broader Middle East;
       Whereas this vision was also shared and expressed by Prime 
     Minister Blair of the United Kingdom;
       Whereas that vision includes a just and peaceful resolution 
     of the Arab-Israeli conflict based on 2 democratic States, 
     Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and 
     security;
       Whereas the President again stated his commitment to the 
     security of Israel as a Jewish State;
       Whereas the road map, endorsed by the United States, the 
     United Kingdom, Israel, the Palestinian Authority, the 
     European Union, Russia, and the United Nations, remains a 
     realistic and widely recognized plan for making progress 
     toward peace;
       Whereas the international community should support 
     Palestinian efforts to build the necessary political, 
     economic, and security infrastructure essential to 
     establishing a viable, democratic state;
       Whereas there will be no lasting peace in the Middle East 
     without a Palestinian State that is democratic, free, and 
     based on the rule of law, including free press, free speech, 
     an open political process, and religious tolerance;
       Whereas the Palestinian leaders must meet their commitments 
     under the road map to fight terrorism and dismantle terrorist 
     organizations;
       Whereas the Palestinian Authority will need a credible and 
     unified security structure capable of providing security for 
     the Palestinian people and fighting terrorism;
       Whereas Palestinian leaders, with help from the 
     international community, must also develop effective and 
     transparent financial structures that provide for the 
     economic and social needs of the Palestinian people;
       Whereas the President stated that now is the time to seize 
     the opportunity of new circumstances in the region to 
     redouble our efforts to achieve this goal;
       Whereas achieving the goals of peace, security, and 
     stability will require the United States, its international 
     partners, and the parties involved to take the following 
     steps articulated in a Joint Statement by President Bush and 
     Prime Minister Blair on November 12, 2004:
       (1) recommit to the overarching 2-State vision set out by 
     President Bush in his statement of June 24, 2002 and repeated 
     in the road map;
       (2) support the Palestinians as they choose a new President 
     within the next 60 days, and as they embark upon an electoral 
     process that will lead to lasting democratic institutions;

[[Page S11650]]

       (3) mobilize international support behind a plan to ensure 
     that the Palestinians have the political, economic, and 
     security infrastructure they need to create a free, viable, 
     and democratic State, including free press, free speech, an 
     open political process, and religious tolerance;
       (4) support the disengagement plan of Prime Minister Sharon 
     from Gaza and stipulated parts of the West Bank as part of 
     this overall plan; and
       (5) recognize that these steps lay the basis for more rapid 
     progress on the road map as a reliable guide leading to final 
     status negotiations;
       Whereas the United States will join with others in the 
     international community to foster the development of 
     Palestinian democratic political institutions, support the 
     new leadership of the Palestinians that is committed to those 
     institutions, assist in the reconstruction of civic 
     institutions, promote the growth of a free and prosperous 
     economy, and endorse the building of capable security 
     institutions dedicated to maintaining law and order and 
     dismantling terrorist organizations; and
       Whereas in order to promote a lasting peace, all States in 
     the region must oppose violence and terrorism, foster the 
     development of democratic political and civic institutions, 
     support the emergence of a peaceful and democratic Palestine, 
     and state clearly that they will live in peace with Israel: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved that the Senate--
       (1) endorses the Joint Statement made by President Bush and 
     Prime Minister Blair on November 12, 2004, expressing a 
     shared vision of freedom, peace, and democracy in the broader 
     Middle East and supports a reinvigorated and concerted United 
     States-led international effort to achieve that vision;
       (2) supports explicitly the steps presented by President 
     Bush and Prime Minister Blair in that Joint Statement as the 
     basis for more rapid progress on the road map as a reliable 
     guide leading to final status negotiations;
       (3) reaffirms its commitment to a vision of 2 democratic 
     States, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace 
     and security as the key to peace; and
       (4) expresses its commitment to the road map, which was 
     endorsed by the United States, Israel, the Palestinian 
     Authority, the European Union, Russia, and the United 
     Nations, as a realistic and widely recognized plan for making 
     progress toward peace.
                                 ______
                                 

SENATE RESOLUTION 478--RELATING TO DISPLACED STAFF MEMBERS OF SENATORS 
                           AND SENATE LEADERS

  Mr. FRIST submitted the following resolution; which was considered 
and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 478

       Resolved, That (a) paragraphs (3) and (4) of section 6(a) 
     of Senate Resolution 458, 98th Congress, agreed to October 4, 
     1984 (as amended by Senate Resolution 9, 103d Congress, 
     agreed to January 7, 1993) are amended to read as follows:
       ``(3) The term `eligible staff member' means an 
     individual--
       ``(A) who was an employee--
       ``(i) of a committee or subcommittee thereof or a Senate 
     leadership office described in subsection (b) of the first 
     section of this resolution, or
       ``(ii) in an office of a Senator on the expiration of the 
     term of office of such Senator as a Senator, but only if the 
     Senator is not serving as a Senator for the next term of 
     office and was a candidate in the general election for such 
     next term,
       ``(B) whose employment described in subparagraph (A) was at 
     least 183 days (whether or not service was continuous) before 
     the date of termination of employment described in paragraph 
     (4), and
       ``(C) whose pay is disbursed by the Secretary of the 
     Senate.

     The term `eligible staff member' shall not include an 
     employee to whom the first section of this resolution 
     applies.
       ``(4) The term `displaced staff member' means an eligible 
     staff member--
       ``(A) whose service as an employee of the Senate is 
     terminated solely and directly as a result of--
       ``(i) in the case of employment described in paragraph 
     (3)(A)(i), a change in the individual occupying the position 
     of Chairman or Ranking Minority Member of a committee or in 
     the individual occupying the Senate leadership office, and
       ``(ii) in the case of employment described in paragraph 
     (3)(A)(ii), the expiration of the term of office of the 
     Senator, and
       ``(B) who is certified, not later than 60 days after the 
     date of the change or expiration of term of office, whichever 
     is applicable, as a displaced staff member by the Chairman or 
     Ranking Minority Member of the committee, the Senator 
     occupying the Senate leadership office, or the Senator whose 
     term is expiring, whichever is applicable, to the Secretary 
     of the Senate.''.
       (b) Subsection (b) of the first section of such Senate 
     Resolution 458 is amended--
       (1) by inserting ``President pro tempore emeritus,'' after 
     ``Deputy President pro tempore,'';
       (2) by striking ``or'' before ``Secretary''; and
       (3) by inserting ``the Chairman of the Conference of the 
     Majority, the Chairman of the Conference of the Minority, the 
     Chairman of the Majority Policy Committee, or the Chairman of 
     the Minority Policy Committee,'' before ``the employees of 
     such office''.
                                 ______
                                 

SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 150--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF CONGRESS WITH 
                  RESPECT TO THE MURDER OF EMMETT TILL

  Mr. SCHUMER (for himself and Mr. Talent) submitted the following 
concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the 
Judiciary:

                            S. Con. Res. 150

       Whereas Emmett Till was born in Chicago, Illinois, at Cook 
     County Hospital, on July 25, 1941, to Mamie and Louis Till;
       Whereas Emmett Till traveled to Money, Mississippi, to 
     spend the summer with his uncle, Moses Wright, and his 
     relatives;
       Whereas in August 1955, 14-year-old Emmett Till--with 
     adolescent flamboyance, but unfamiliarity of the racial 
     customs of the South--allegedly whistled at Carolyn Bryant, a 
     White woman;
       Whereas on August 28, at about 2:30 a.m., Roy Bryant, 
     Carolyn Bryant's husband, and his half brother, J.W. Milam, 
     kidnaped Emmett Till from his uncle Moses Wright's home;
       Whereas Bryant and Milam brutally beat Emmett Till, took 
     him to the edge of the Tallahatchie River, shot him in the 
     head, fastened a large metal fan used for ginning cotton to 
     his neck with barbed wire, and pushed the body into the 
     river;
       Whereas 3 days later, Emmett Till's decomposed corpse was 
     pulled from the Tallahatchie River;
       Whereas Emmett's mother, Mamie Till, made the extraordinary 
     decision to leave the casket open at her son's funeral in 
     Chicago, in order to allow the world to see the brutality of 
     the crime perpetrated against her son;
       Whereas tens of thousands of people viewed Emmett Till's 
     body in a Chicago church for 4 days; and press from around 
     the world published photographs of Emmett's maimed face; and 
     the sheer brutality of his murder became international news 
     that highlighted the violent racism of the Jim Crow South;
       Whereas Jet Magazine and the Chicago Defender published 
     photographs of Emmett Till's body outraging African-Americans 
     around the United States;
       Whereas the trial of J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant began in 
     September of that year with an all-male, all-White jury, 
     because African-Americans and women were banned from serving;
       Whereas the trial of Milam and Bryant was a microcosm of 
     the Jim Crow South: African-Americans were packed in a 
     specific section of the courtroom balcony; the defendants' 
     families were seen laughing and joking with the prosecution 
     and the jury; and food and snacks were passed out to White 
     observers;
       Whereas Moses Wright did the unthinkable as an African-
     American and openly accused the White defendants in public 
     court of murdering his nephew;
       Whereas Moses Wright was run out of town for his actions in 
     court;
       Whereas J.W. Milam and Roy Bryant were acquitted of the 
     murder of Emmett Till, and Bryant celebrated his acquittal 
     with his wife in front of the cameras;
       Whereas protected from further prosecution, Milam and 
     Bryant candidly confessed their torture and murder of Emmett 
     Till; Milam did so on the record to Look Magazine for $4,000;
       Whereas Mamie Till and thousands of others pleaded with the 
     Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation 
     to reopen and investigate the case;
       Whereas the Federal Government did absolutely nothing, and 
     President Eisenhower and FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover refused 
     to reopen the case and did not even answer Mamie Till's 
     urgent telegraph;
       Whereas 100 days later, Rosa Parks refused to give up her 
     bus seat to a White patron and the modern civil rights 
     revolution began;
       Whereas many historians regard the murder of Emmett Till as 
     the true spark of the civil rights movement;
       Whereas Mamie Till, who died on January 6, 2003, moved back 
     to Chicago, taught, and continued to talk about her son 
     Emmett's murder; and expressed her wishes for a full Federal 
     investigation;
       Whereas more than 48 years have passed since the murder of 
     Emmett Till;
       Whereas the remaining witnesses to this gruesome crime are 
     elderly;
       Whereas House Concurrent Resolution 360 entitled 
     ``Expressing the sense of Congress with respect to the murder 
     of Emmett Till'', was introduced on February 10, 2004, by 
     Representative Bobby Rush;
       Whereas the Department of Justice reopened the 
     investigation into the murder of Emmett Till on May 11, 2004; 
     and
       Whereas Congress supports the decision to reopen the 
     investigation of the murder of Emmett Till: Now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) calls on all authorities with jurisdiction, including 
     the Department of Justice and the State of Mississippi, to--
       (A) expeditiously bring those responsible for the murder of 
     Emmett Till to justice, due

[[Page S11651]]

     to the amount of time that has passed since the murder and 
     the age of the witnesses; and
       (B) provide all the resources necessary to ensure a timely 
     and thorough investigation; and
       (2) calls on the Department of Justice to fully report the 
     findings of their investigation to Congress.
                                 ______
                                 

 SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 151--RECOGNIZING THE ESSENTIAL ROLE THAT 
  THE ATOMIC ENERGY ACT OF 1954 HAS PLAYED IN DEVELOPMENT OF PEACEFUL 
                         USES OF ATOMIC ENERGY

  Mr. DOMENICI submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works:

                            S. Con Res. 151

       Whereas the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (42 U.S.C. 2011 et 
     seq.) followed and sought to implement the Atoms for Peace 
     speech of President Dwight David Eisenhower in December 1953, 
     which provided the United States and the world with a 
     blueprint for commercial development of atomic energy to the 
     benefit of humanity;
       Whereas the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 defined mechanisms 
     for the production, control, and use of nuclear materials;
       Whereas the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 provided the initial 
     framework for regulation of nuclear material and facilities 
     and provided recognition that such control is necessary in 
     the national interest to ensure the common defense and 
     security and to protect the health and safety of the public;
       Whereas the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 recognized the need 
     for development and use of atomic energy under conditions to 
     promote the general welfare;
       Whereas the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 recognized that it 
     was in the national interest to conduct a comprehensive 
     program of research and development to optimize the benefits 
     of nuclear technologies for humanity;
       Whereas the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 set forth the 
     necessity to control certain types of information, material, 
     and facilities for security purposes, while ensuring 
     unclassified dissemination of appropriate scientific and 
     technical information;
       Whereas the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 provided the initial 
     framework for international cooperation in nuclear 
     technologies, under suitable controls to ensure common 
     defense and security, to provide cooperating nations with the 
     benefits of peaceful uses of atomic energy; and
       Whereas the legacy of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, with 
     103 operating nuclear power plants in the United States 
     providing 20 percent of the electricity supply of the United 
     States, is invaluable in providing clean, emission-free, 
     reliable power to the United States: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) recognizes that the enactment of the Atomic Energy Act 
     of 1954 (42 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.) was an essential step in the 
     development and use of a range of civilian nuclear 
     technologies to the benefit of humanity;
       (2) commends and remembers the authors of the original 
     Atomic Energy Act of 1954 for their foresight and leadership; 
     and
       (3) commemorates the role played by President Dwight David 
     Eisenhower in his historic Atoms for Peace speech and the 
     leadership he demonstrated in recognizing 50 years ago that 
     the benefits of nuclear technologies would be realized only 
     through a careful national and international system of 
     control, regulation, and use.

                     AMENDMENTS SUBMITTED & PROPOSED

       SA 4068. Mr. CRAIG (for Mr. Campbell) proposed an amendment 
     to the bill S. 1438, to provide for equitable compensation to 
     the Spokane Tribe of Indians of the Spokane Reservation for 
     the use of tribal land for the production of hydropower by 
     the Grand Coulee Dam, and for other purposes.
       SA 4069. Mr. CRAIG (for Mr. Campbell) proposed an amendment 
     to the resolution S. Res. 248, expressing the sense of the 
     Senate concerning the individual Indian money account trust 
     fund lawsuit.
       SA 4070. Mr. CRAIG (for Mr. Campbell) proposed an amendment 
     to the resolution S. Res. 248, supra.
       SA 4071. Mr. SESSIONS (for Mr. Lugar) proposed an amendment 
     to the bill H.R. 2655, to amend and extend the Irish Peace 
     Process Cultural and Training Program Act of 1998.
       SA 4072. Mr. SESSIONS (for Mr. Leahy (for himself, Mr. 
     Schumer, Mr. Lott, Mr. Hatch, and Mr. Cornyn)) proposed an 
     amendment to the bill S. 2873, to extend the authority of the 
     United States District Court for the Southern District of 
     Iowa to hold court in Rock Island, Illinois.
       SA 4073. Mr. SESSIONS (for Mr. Dorgan) proposed an 
     amendment to the bill S. 2154, to establish a National sex 
     offender registration database, and for other purposes.

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