[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 149 (Thursday, November 10, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12645-S12648]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
VETERANS DAY 2005
Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I thank my friend and colleague, Senator
Kerry, for the time.
Tomorrow is Veterans Day. I pause this morning and join my fellow
Americans in paying homage to those who served in this Nation's Armed
Forces.
Observance of this day is a wonderful tradition that allows all
Americans to reflect upon the sacrifices made by our veterans in
protecting our freedoms and liberties. This Veterans Day is especially
poignant during this time of conflict.
Our current battles abroad are a constant reminder of the ordeals our
soldiers of this war and past wars endured on behalf of this great
Nation. I commend the many soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines on
Active Duty, and the National Guard and the Reserves, and their
families for their service to our country. Our support of our service
members must be steadfast and strong.
Veterans Day has a long and important history. In 1911--at the
eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month--an armistice
was signed between the Allied nations and Germany, effectively ending
World War I, then hoped to be ``the war to end all wars''. In November
of 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 the first
commemoration of Armistice Day.
This great day was initially celebrated in honor of those veterans
who fought in World War I.
It was not until 1954 that Congress, at the urging of veterans
service organizations, renamed Armistice Day as Veterans Day to extend
the commemoration to all those who have so honorably served this
Nation.
Although we pause today to commemorate the service of those who
served on behalf of this grateful Nation, we must make certain that
this day has meaning and is not merely set aside for fanfare and
speeches. Indeed, we must make certain that our veterans have our
commitment and support every day and not just Veterans Day.
Too often our veterans' priorities are not our own. As we saw earlier
this year, VA had a tremendous funding shortfall.
It took some too long to acknowledge what so many of us had known for
some time--that VA health care was not being funded at an adequate
level--a level commensurate with the sacrifice that our veterans made
on the beaches of Normandy, the harbors of Hawaii, the jungles of
Vietnam, and the deserts of the Middle East.
I am pleased that VA has announced that it is suspending its planned
review of 72,000 post traumatic stress disorder claims. This is surely
great news for all veterans because many times VA compensation is the
sole source of income for a veteran and his family.
We must put into practice daily the sentiment that Abraham Lincoln
expressed when he said during his second inaugural address that we
should--and I quote the President--
care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his
widow and for his orphan.
Our 25 million living veterans are the backbone of this Nation.
Today, I want to personally express my gratitude to all veterans of
our Armed Forces and thank them for their service.
Mr. President, I yield back the remainder of my time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Massachusetts.
Amendment No. 2507
Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I send an amendment to the desk and ask for
its immediate consideration.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
The Senator from Massachusetts [Mr. Kerry] proposes an
amendment numbered 2507.
Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that reading of the
amendment be dispensed with.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendment is as follows:
(Purpose: To require reports on clandestine facilities for the
detention of individuals captured in the global war on terrorism)
At the end of subtitle D of title X, add the following:
SEC. __. REPORTS ON CLANDESTINE DETENTION FACILITIES FOR
INDIVIDUALS CAPTURED IN THE GLOBAL WAR ON
TERRORISM.
(a) Secretary of Defense Report.--
(1) Report required.--Not later than sixty days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense
shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the
Senate and the House of Representatives a detailed report on
the knowledge of the Secretary, and of the personnel of the
Department of Defense, on whether or not there exists, or has
existed, any clandestine facility outside of United States
territory for the detention of individuals captured in the
global
[[Page S12646]]
war on terrorism, whether operated by the United States
Government or at the request of the United States Government.
(2) Elements.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall
include the following:
(A) Whether or not the Secretary or any personnel of the
Department of Defense have affirmative knowledge that a
facility described in paragraph (1) exists.
(B) If the Secretary or any such personnel have affirmative
knowledge that such a facility does exist--
(i) the existence of such facility;
(ii) any support provided by the Department of Defense to
any other department, agency, or element of the United States
Government, or any foreign government, for the establishment,
operation, or maintenance of such facility;
(iii) the amount of funds obligated or expended by the
Department in furtherance of the establishment, operation, or
maintenance of such facility;
(iv) whether the Department has transported individuals
captured in the global war on terrorism to or from such
facility, and if so--
(I) the number of such individuals;
(II) the date of transfer of each such individual to such
facility;
(III) the place from which each such individual was so
transferred; and
(IV) the identity of the agency or authority in whose
custody each such individual was held before such transfer.
(v) whether any detainee in such facility is expected to be
prosecuted by military commission or another system for
administering justice; and
(vi) the interrogation procedures used on each individual
detained in such facility.
(C) Whether or not the Department has ever held any
individual captured in the global war on terrorism at a
facility controlled by the Department at the request of, or
in cooperation with, another department, agency, or element
of the United States Government, and for any such individual
so held, a detailed description of the circumstances
surrounding the detention of such individual and the
disposition, if any of such individual.
(3) Form of report.--The report required by paragraph (1)
shall be submitted in classified form.
(b) Director of National Intelligence Reports.--
(1) Reports required.--Not later than 60 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of National
Intelligence shall provide to each member of the Select
Committee on Intelligence of the Senate and the Permanent
Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of
Representatives a detailed report setting forth the nature
and cost of, and otherwise providing a full accounting on,
any clandestine prison or detention facility currently or
formerly operated by the United States Government, regardless
of location, where detainees in the global war on terrorism
are or were being held.
(2) Elements.--The reports required by paragraph (1) shall
set forth, for each prison or facility covered by such
report, the following:
(A) The location and size of such prison or facility.
(B) If such prison or facility is no longer being operated
by the United States Government, the disposition of such
prison or facility.
(C) The number of detainees currently held or formerly
held, as the case may be, at such prison or facility.
(D) Any plans for the ultimate disposition of any detainees
currently held at such prison or facility.
(E) A description of the interrogation procedures used or
formerly used on detainees at such prison or facility.
(3) Form of reports.--The reports required by paragraph (1)
shall be submitted in classified form.
Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Senator Harry
Reid of Nevada and Senator Biden be added as cosponsors of the
amendment.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, in recent weeks the American people and
Members of the Senate have heard allegations about the existence of
secret prison facilities operated by the U.S. Government in various
countries around the world.
Now, I know many of my colleagues take this matter very seriously.
The Central Intelligence Agency has reportedly requested a Justice
Department investigation of how classified intelligence information
made its way into print. Clearly, the revelation of the potential of
these programs is a serious national security matter. It is one we can
all agree on, no matter where we sit.
No one in this Chamber underestimates the seriousness of the war on
radical Islamic terrorists. It is a war we have to win, we must win.
And no one underestimates the depravity and the viciousness of our
enemies. We do not need to look any further than the bombings last
night in Jordan to once again be reminded of the kind of enemy we
face--an enemy willing to always target the innocent. We know that
success in any war requires the informed consent of the American
people. And in an issue as sensitive as this, that informed consent can
only be derived from the Congress's full and appropriate understanding
and involvement in these issues. That in and of itself requires
information and cooperation from the administration so we in Congress
can provide effective and informed oversight. That begins by knowing
what the money we authorize and appropriate is being used to do. The
American people demand no less than that. The fact is, we are not
aware; we are not as a Congress performing that proper oversight. The
vast majority of us first heard about the possibility of clandestine
detention facilities in the Washington Post last Wednesday.
Since then, we have heard that this may have been discussed by Vice
President Cheney in a meeting with the Republican caucus. That
obviously comes from statements by people at the caucus made publicly.
If, as has been reported by Senator Lott, members of the Republican
caucus can hear about these facilities from the Vice President of the
United States, then the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Senate
Select Committee on Intelligence ought to be able to receive a full
accounting.
So the amendment I offer today seeks to simply assert, appropriately,
congressional oversight in this matter by requiring two classified
reports--one by the Secretary of Defense and one by the Director of
National Intelligence--to the appropriate committees, detailing the
involvement of the Department of Defense and the intelligence community
in these activities if, indeed, there is any.
Not later than 60 days after enactment, the Secretary of Defense will
provide a classified report to the House and Senate Armed Services
Committees of any knowledge or participation in the operation of
clandestine facilities by the Department of Defense, including support
provided by the Department of Defense to any other part of the U.S.
Government or foreign government. The Secretary of Defense must also
report on whether the Department has transported any individuals to or
from such a facility, and whether detainees in such facilities are to
be tried by military commission. Finally, this report will include
details about detainees held at DOD facilities for other Government
agencies.
The second classified report required by this amendment is from the
Director of National Intelligence to the Intelligence Committees of
both the House and the Senate. In it, the Director will provide a
detailed accounting of the nature, cost, and operation of any
clandestine prison or detention facility operated by the U.S.
Government, regardless of location, where detainees from the global war
on terror are being or have been held.
Now, let me be clear: We are not passing judgment on the merit or the
value of these facilities. What we are saying is we need to know and
understand what the policy of our country is, what is being done with
taxpayer money, and what are the appropriate accounting and oversight
mechanisms with respect to this.
In its reporting, the Washington Post said:
The CIA and the White House, citing national security
concerns and the value of the program, have dissuaded
Congress from demanding that the agency answer questions in
open testimony [about the facilities].
My colleagues will note that both of these reports would be
classified, both of them would be limited to the committees of
jurisdiction. This is not about open testimony. It is about Congress
doing its appropriate job through the appropriate committees.
I do not have any doubt that in the American public's mind we are all
united and determined to win the war against radical Islamic
terrorists. But I do know that any administration that tries to keep
Congress in the dark ultimately winds up damaging the very effort we
are engaged in. We have seen this all through history. This goes back
for years in the relationship of oversight by the Congress and efforts
by administrations to undertake clandestine initiatives on their own.
[[Page S12647]]
The executive branch cannot win this by itself. It needs Congress to
be invested. It needs Congress to be knowledgeable. It needs Congress
to act on behalf of the American people. And in this case, the simple
job of oversight is critical to our ability to maintain the consensus
necessary for our Nation. We have seen too often too many instances of
efforts that go awry that cost us leverage as a nation, cost us
leverage with other communities, and ultimately may even cost us lives
of Americans because they do go awry without the proper consent.
We also do better as a country in these kinds of efforts when Members
of both parties across the aisle have joined together in a foreign
policy that represents the broad consensus of the American people and
where all of us are accepting responsibility for our actions.
I would hope my colleagues, the distinguished chairman and ranking
member, would accept this amendment because I think it acts in the best
interests of this institution and of our Nation.
With that, Mr. President, I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Virginia.
Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, the Senator from Massachusetts provided us
a copy of his amendment just a minute before he began his remarks to
the Senate. Senator Roberts, on this side, is now in consultation with
the ranking member, Senator Rockefeller, and I anticipate that one or
both will shortly come to the floor on this issue. At this time I
suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the quorum
call not be charged to the time of either the proponent of the
amendment or those who will be giving a different perspective, perhaps,
in opposition.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. WARNER. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. BURR. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Warner). Without objection, it is so
ordered.
Mr. BURR. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to address the
Senate as in morning business.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
(The remarks of Mr. Burr pertaining to the introduction of S. 1990
and S. 1991 are printed in today's Record under ``Statements on
Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions.'')
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Minnesota.
Mr. DAYTON. I ask unanimous consent that I be permitted to speak as
in morning business for up to 15 minutes.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. DAYTON. Mr. President, I rise to thank the distinguished chairman
of the Senate Armed Services Committee and the ranking member, who are
two of the finest public servants I have ever had the privilege of
knowing, for their leadership of that committee on which I serve and
for their leadership on this important legislation before the Senate,
which I support. I also thank them for including two of my amendments
in the bill, the first of which is a sense-of-the-Senate resolution,
which I am proud to coauthor with Senator Murray of Washington and
Senator Collins of Maine, that says the Department of Defense must
honor its promise to pay reenlistment bonuses to members of the Army
National Guard. I was told yesterday that the Pentagon has reversed its
position and has now approved the National Guard's payment of those
promised reenlistment bonuses.
My second amendment authorizes an additional $50 million for
childcare for Active-Duty military families and an additional $10
million for family assistance centers. The committee bill already
provided for increased funding for these two vital programs, and I
thank the chairman and ranking member for agreeing to these further
authorizations which parallel the increased funding that I added to the
Senate's 2006 Defense appropriations bill.
Our military families are facing increased pressures as husbands and
wives are deployed in faraway war zones and thus separated from their
families for up to 18 months at a time. The Office of the Secretary of
Defense has reported that some 38,000 children of Active-Duty families
are being denied childcare in military facilities due to the lack of
funding for the centers and for the spaces needed. This imposes an
unfair additional hardship on these wonderful American families. The
extended absence of a parent is compounded by the lack of available,
reliable childcare. For the same reasons of extended absences,
emotional and financial stresses, and the understandable need for
support, the military family assistance centers are more important now
than ever. They are especially valuable for the families of Reserve and
Guard men and women whose wife or husband is called to active duty and
then deployed in adjusting to extended absences and then readjusting to
the spouses return or, in the worst case, to the spouse's not returning
home alive, or returning home seriously wounded or maimed for life.
When we talk about supporting our troops, which all of us truly want to
do, two very important ways are through childcare and family assistance
services.
I wanted to take this opportunity to address briefly a related area,
one vital to our national security. Last week the Washington Post
reported that the CIA is operating secret prisons in up to eight other
countries, including one in a former Soviet gulag in eastern Europe.
These are so-called ``black sites'' where reportedly the CIA's
``enhanced interrogation techniques,'' some of which are prohibited by
U.N. convention or U.S. military law--in other words, torture--are
being used against unidentified subjects for indefinite periods of
time. They are reportedly being denied lawyers or any opportunity to
defend themselves against whatever charges of wrongdoing have brought
them there.
At the same time, the Vice President has reportedly given ``one of
the most impassioned pitches he has ever delivered'' to Republican
Senators at last week's caucus lunch opposing the McCain amendment,
which passed the Senate by a vote of 90 to 9, that would prohibit the
use of torture against detainees. The President has reportedly
threatened to veto the entire 2006 Defense appropriations bill if it
contains the McCain amendment. The Vice President was reportedly urging
that the prohibition against torture be stricken, or at least an
exception be given to the CIA.
Now we know why the President and the Vice President are so adamantly
opposed to the Senate's ban on the use of torture or want an exemption
for the CIA. It is because the CIA is operating secret prisons in other
countries where torture is allegedly being used. Why else would they be
against prohibiting torture, if they weren't doing it or intending to
do it?
In response to the Post story, Republican congressional leaders sent
a letter to the chairmen of the Senate and House Intelligence
Committees requesting them to ``immediately initiate a joint
investigation into the possible release of classified information to
the media alleging that the United States Government may be detaining
and interrogating terrorists at undisclosed locations abroad. As you
know, if accurate, such an egregious disclosure could have long-term
and far-reaching damaging and dangerous consequences, and would imperil
our efforts to protect the American people and our homeland from
terrorist attacks.''
Well, with all due respect, I say that the Republican leaders have
the right idea but the wrong focus. There ought to be a congressional
investigation, but it ought to be on the existence of those secret
prisons, on who is being held there, why, for how long, and how are
they being treated, whether torture is being used, and why these
``black
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sites'' are being hidden from Congress. I know my colleague, the
distinguished Senator from Massachusetts, Mr. Kerry, has just proposed
an amendment to this legislation that would require disclosure of these
secret sites.
I ask unanimous consent to be added as a cosponsor of his amendment.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. DAYTON. The oversight responsibilities of Congress have
tragically been emasculated by this administration, and too many
Members of Congress have acquiesced. They have bowed to this
administration's wishes or demands that it be able to do whatever it
wants, wherever it wants, and to whomever it wants. And then, if they
are caught doing it, they say it is part of the war against terror, or
that it is essential to our national security.
You don't defeat terror with terror. You don't stop those inhuman
beings who would commit atrocities by committing atrocities against
them. And you don't make our citizens more secure by taking away other
people's brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers to secret gulags and
torturing them for months or years. Of those torture victims
themselves, if you release them, does anyone suppose that they will not
be filled with hatred and revenge towards the United States? After they
have been tortured, you keep them secretly locked up forever so they
can't torture Americans in return?
These are not only hideous, horrible, and inhuman practices, they are
stupid policies, shortsighted, misguided, and immoral policies which,
if not illegal, should be, and which, to use the CIA's term, will blow
back or boomerang against our own citizens in the years ahead.
Yes, there should be a congressional investigation into how unelected
people with no accountability to the American people or to the
civilized world can usurp the powers and responsibilities which are
this Congress's by law, and why this Congress has let them get away
with it and continues to look the other way while they blacken
America's great name, debase our good values, and endanger our national
security with their depravity.
I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. PRYOR. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded and that I be allowed to speak for 10
minutes as in morning business.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Martinez). Without objection, it is so
ordered.
veterans day
Mr. PRYOR. Mr. President, as Veterans Day approaches, we pay homage
to the soldiers who once stormed the beaches of Normandy, reclaimed the
mountains of Korea and crossed the sands of Kuwait. We pay homage to
our veterans' sacrifice and courage, and also to the brave men and
women who now follow their example in places like Iraq and Afghanistan.
In paying respect, we must also follow through on our Nation's
commitment's to ensure our veterans receive the benefits they earned
and deserve.
Arkansas has a long and distinguished record of service, one that my
State is proud of, and one that we will continue to build upon. In
addition to honorable service by our active duty soldiers, marines,
seamen and airmen, the Arkansas National Guard has mobilized more than
8,000 of its guardsmen since Sept. 11, 2001. In fact, this Veterans Day
is an especially poignant one for families in Rogers, AR where 180
guardsmen have just been deployed to serve in Iraq.
Arkansas is not alone in its commitment to military service. Since
the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, there are 393,000 new veterans to
care for, including 103,000 who are currently seeking health care from
VA hospitals.
We can never truly repay our veterans for their service to our
Nation, but we can care for them just as they cared for us. In honor of
these men and women, Senator Norm Coleman and I have introduced the
Veterans Benefits Outreach Act to help ensure that all veterans collect
the benefits they have earned but for whatever reason are not
receiving.
Nearly 600,000 veterans nationwide are not receiving the benefits
they are entitled to, often due to a simple lack of knowledge that they
are eligible.
Instead of veterans having to cut through bureaucracy to learn about
and receive the various benefits they earn, our bill seeks to bring
this information to them. It requires the VA to prepare a plan to
identify veterans who are not enrolled in programs they are eligible
for and an action plan to enroll them.
This measure represents an opportunity to help our current veterans
and meet the challenges we foresee instead of waiting until benefit
problems escalate for a new generation of veterans. I hope this
Veterans Day will add the necessary momentum for the full Senate to
consider and pass this measure.
We owe this to veterans like Chaplain--Colonel--David McLemore--a
soldier's soldier who has dedicated a career to providing outreach to
service men and women in the field.
Chaplain McLemore is a native Arkansan and has served as a chaplain
in the Arkansas Army National Guard for 21 years. During that time he
has served soldiers at the company, battery, battalion, and brigade
level. He has personally answered the call to duty in two wars,
Operation Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom II.
In both of these conflicts, Chaplain McLemore served on the front
lines with combat units, where he ministered to soldiers conducting the
day-to-day fight with the enemy. Chaplain McLemore always chose to be
up front providing a ``Ministry of Presence'' to those in the greatest
place of danger.
Those who served in combat with Chaplain McLemore knew that he would
always be there with a listening ear, an open heart, and a guiding
hand. His mere presence gave courage and inspiration to those who knew
that they could lose their lives at any minute.
As any chaplain, Chaplain McLemore did not carry a weapon as he faced
the perils of combat, but the soldiers he served with knew that he
carried more firepower than any of them, the grace and word of God, and
they always wanted Chaplain McLemore and that firepower with them.
They knew that he risked his life every day for one mission, to serve
them. In the simple but strong bond of combat, it was clear that
Chaplain McLemore loved his fellow soldiers and they loved him.
Two months after his return from Operation Iraqi Freedom II, Chaplain
McLemore was involved in a motorcycle accident where he sustained
severe injuries. Today, he fights to recover from those injuries in the
Veterans Administration Hospital in North Little Rock, AR.
As he does, he has the prayers, respect, and encouragement from us
and all of his fellow soldiers. We honor him today for his commitment
and selfless service to God, his country, and his fellow soldiers.
Thank you, Chaplain David McLemore. God Bless and Godspeed.
We owe all our veterans not only our gratitude, but also our freedoms
and American way of life. Our military has kept us safe for a long
time. We cannot thank them enough, but we can begin to repay their
sacrifices by providing them with the resources they need in the field
and the support they have earned when they return home.
Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be dispensed with.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
____________________