[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 44 (Friday, April 7, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3381-S3382]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. WARNER (for himself and Mrs. Clinton):
  S. 2600. A bill to equalize authorities to provide allowances, 
benefits, and gratuities to civilian personnel of the United States 
Government in Iraq and Afghanistan, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on Armed Services.
  Mr. WARNER. I would like to take a few minutes of the Senate's time 
to introduce a bill together with Senator Clinton. The bill is to 
equalize authorities to provide allowances, benefits, and gratuities to 
civilian personnel of the United States Government for their services 
in Iraq and Afghanistan and for other purposes. Throughout the hearings 
of the Armed

[[Page S3382]]

Services Committee this year and the appearance of our distinguished 
group of witnesses, and based on two--and I say this most respectfully 
and humbly--personal conversations I have had with the President of the 
United States and, indeed, the Secretary of State, I very forcefully 
said to each that we need to get the entirety of our Federal Government 
into a greater degree--they have done much--of harness in our overall 
efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan to secure a measure of democracy for 
the peoples of those countries.
  For example, the QDR so aptly states that ``success requires unified 
statecraft: the ability of the U.S. Government to bring to bear all 
elements of national power at home and to work in close cooperation 
with allies and partners abroad.''
  General Abizaid, when he appeared before our committee this year, 
stated in his posture statement:

       We need significantly more non-military personnel . . . 
     with expertise in areas such as economic development, civil 
     affairs, agriculture, and law.

  Likewise General Pace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, 
iterated much the same message when he appeared before our committee.
  I commend the President and the Cabinet officers. I ask unanimous 
consent to print in the Record a letter that I sent every Cabinet 
officer and agency head, asking what they had done thus far and of 
their ability to contribute even more.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:
                                                      U.S. Senate,


                                  Committee on Armed Services,

                                   Washington, DC, March 15, 2006.
     Hon. Condoleezza Rice,
     Secretary of State,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Madam Secretary: Over the past few months, the 
     President has candidly and frankly explained what is at stake 
     in Iraq. I firmly believe that the success or failure of our 
     efforts in Iraq may ultimately lie at how well the next Iraqi 
     government is prepared to govern. For the past three years, 
     the United States and our coalition partners have helped the 
     Iraqi people prepare for this historic moment of self-
     governance.
       Our mission in Iraq and Afghanistan requires coordinated 
     and integrated action among all federal departments and 
     agencies of our government. This mission has revealed that 
     our government is not adequately organized to conduct 
     interagency operations. I am concerned about the slow pace of 
     organizational reform within our civilian departments and 
     agencies to strengthen our interagency process and build 
     operational readiness.
       In recent months, General Peter Pace, USMC, Chairman of the 
     Joint Chiefs of Staff, and General John P. Abizaid, USA, 
     Commander, United States Central Command, have emphasized the 
     importance of interagency coordination in Iraq and 
     Afghanistan. General Abizaid stated in his 2006 posture 
     statement to the Senate Armed Services Committee, ``We need 
     significantly more non-military personnel. . . with expertise 
     in areas such as economic development, civil affairs, 
     agriculture, and law.''
       Strengthening interagency operations has become the 
     foundation for the current Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR). 
     The QDR so aptly states that, ``success requires unified 
     statecraft: the ability of the U.S. Government to bring to 
     bear all elements of national power at home and to work in 
     close cooperation with allies and partners abroad.'' In the 
     years since the passage of the Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1986, 
     ``jointness'' has promoted more unified direction and action 
     of our Armed Forces. I now believe the time has come for 
     similar changes to take place elsewhere in our federal 
     government.
       I commend the President for his leadership in issuing a 
     directive to improve our interagency coordination by signing 
     the National Security Presidential Directive-44, titled 
     ``Management of Interagency Efforts Concerning Reconstruction 
     and Stabilization,'' dated December 7, 2005. I applaud each 
     of the heads of departments and agencies for working together 
     to develop this important and timely directive. Now that the 
     directive has been issued, I am writing to inquire about the 
     plan for its full implementation. In particular, what steps 
     have each federal department or agency taken to implement 
     this directive?
       I ask for your personal review of the level of support 
     being provided by your department or agency in support of our 
     Nation's objectives in Iraq and Afghanistan. Following this 
     review, I request that you submit a report to me no later 
     than April 10, 2006, on your current and projected activities 
     in both theaters of operations, as well as your efforts in 
     implementing the directive and what additional authorities or 
     resources might be necessary to carry out the 
     responsibilities contained in the directive.
       I believe it is imperative that we leverage the resident 
     expertise in all federal departments and agencies of our 
     government to address the complex problems facing the 
     emerging democracies in Iraq and Afghanistan. I am prepared 
     to work with the executive branch to sponsor legislation, if 
     necessary, to overcome challenges posed by our current 
     organizational structures and processes that prevent an 
     integrated national response.
       I look forward to continued consultation on this important 
     subject.
       With kind regards, I am
           Sincerely,
                                                      John Warner,
                                                         Chairman.

  Mr. WARNER. In my conversations with President Bush and the Cabinet 
officers and others, there seems to be total support. The 
administration, at their initiative, asked OMB to draw up the 
legislation, which I submit today in the form of a bill.
  I hope this will garner support across the aisle--Senator Clinton has 
certainly been active in this area, as have others--and that we can 
include this on the forthcoming supplemental appropriations bill. The 
urgency is now, absolutely now. Every day it becomes more and more 
critical in the balance of those people succeeding with their message 
of 11 million on December 15 in Iraq: We want a government, a unified 
government stood up and operating. To do that, this government, 
hopefully, will utilize such assets as we can provide them from across 
the entire spectrum of our Government. Our troops have done their job 
with the coalition forces. Their families have borne the brunt of these 
conflicts now for these several years. Now it is time for every 
individual to step forward and work to make the peace secure in those 
nations so they do not revert back the lands of Iraq and Afghanistan to 
havens for terrorism and destruction to the free world.
  I yield the floor.
                                 ______