[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 112 (Tuesday, September 12, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9357-S9358]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: September 12, 2006 (Senate)]
[Page S9357-S9358]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:cr12se06-173]                         



 
                         DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS

  Mr. LIEBERMAN. Mr. President, I rise today to give my support to the 
2007 Defense appropriations bill which passed the Senate last week by a 
unanimous vote of 98 to 0. The bill provides $469.7 billion in 
discretionary spending authority for the Department of Defense and will 
supply critical funding to many Connecticut defense companies that 
provide our Nation's military with the cutting edge technology, 
weaponry, and equipment it needs.
  It includes $2.5 billion for the construction of another Virginia 
class submarine, which will be built at Connecticut's submarine base in 
New London. It also includes $54 million for submarine research. This 
funding will support the significant work of our submarine designers 
and engineers in New London and will enable important cost-cutting 
improvements to the Virginia class. Eight million dollars of that 
funding is targeted for advanced submarine research, which will allow 
our designers and engineers in New London to begin the early steps of 
designing a new class of nuclear attack submarines. In aircraft 
procurement, the bill contains funding for 12 additional Black Hawk 
helicopters for a total of 94 aircraft and 12 C-17 transport aircraft, 
also produced in Connecticut. Finally, I am particularly heartened by 
the inclusion of funding for several of our smaller defense companies 
and contractors in Connecticut, which provide our troops with 
sophisticated technological support. Fuel cell development, sonar 
technology, clotting agents for troops wounded in battle, mobile 
military health units, and laser machine tool systems are all products 
of the high-tech defense industry in Connecticut, and I am proud that I 
was able to secure funding for this burgeoning sector of my State's 
economy.
  There were several important amendments proposed to the Defense 
appropriations bill. Senator Kennedy offered an amendment that would 
have required the Pentagon to provide information about whether a civil 
war has developed in Iraq as part of the Defense Department's already 
mandated quarterly reports. Senator Menendez's proposed amendment 
prohibited the use of funds for a public relations program designed to 
monitor news media in the United States and the Middle East to create a 
database of news stories to promote positive coverage of the Iraq war. 
Both of these amendments were prevented from being considered 
explicitly by procedural votes on the Senate floor. If I had voted on 
those motions, I would have supported both amendments, which would have 
meant voting against both motions to table. Unfortunately, both 
amendments were set aside, and my vote would not have changed the 
procedural outcome in either instance, nor prevented their defeat in a 
party-line vote.
  As I have stated earlier, I will be spending much of my time before 
the

[[Page S9358]]

November election in Connecticut. I believe it is important for me to 
spend time with people in Connecticut, listening to their ideas and 
concerns. These next 2 months will provide me with a good opportunity 
to learn more about their views on how we can move forward to solving 
our Nation's most pressing problems. That being said, I plan to return 
to the Senate for votes when my presence is a deciding factor and 
important committee business in which my participation is crucial. The 
task of representation is truly a two-way street, and I value those 
times, such as during campaigns, when citizens and their elected 
representatives can engage in a democratic dialogue. I am looking 
forward to continuing to participate in that process and also 
continuing to represent the people of Connecticut in the U.S. Senate.

                          ____________________