[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

[[Page S12648]]

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.

                          ____________________