[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 146 (Monday, September 11, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Page S4340]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                  NATO

  Mr. President, I listened carefully to the statements made by my 
colleague from Kentucky, the Republican leader, Senator McConnell. I 
want to join in and make it clear that I agree with virtually every 
word he spoke concerning our relationship with Ukraine. I do want to 
add a footnote which he may not have added, and I want to give credit 
to this President currently serving, Joe Biden, who led the United 
States' return to NATO after the previous President's administration.
  There had been serious questions as to whether NATO, as an alliance, 
would even survive under the previous President. President Biden has 
told Members of the Senate and others that at the first meeting of NATO 
after he was elected, our allies basically sat down and said: President 
Biden, is America in for the long haul when it comes to NATO? And even 
before the Ukraine challenge, he said yes.
  What happened after Vladimir Putin, the war criminal, invaded Ukraine 
was that the members of the NATO alliance had to answer a basic 
question: Would we respond to the challenge?
  I think the record is clear. NATO, as an alliance, has never, ever 
been stronger than it is today. The countries that are part of it have 
made a commitment not only to their common defense but also to help 
Ukraine, in any way possible, put an end to this invasion. In fact, if 
you reflect on what has happened to Vladimir Putin since he invaded 
Ukraine a little over a year and a half ago, you realize that the world 
is a lot worse for him.
  The NATO alliance is not only strong, it is larger than ever. The 
accession of Finland and Sweden to join the NATO alliance was a bold, 
strong move that really gives notice to Vladimir Putin that his future 
is even more in doubt when it comes to his relationship with the West. 
I think, now that Sweden and Finland are now a part of NATO, to take a 
look at the map of Europe is to realize that the Baltic Sea is now a 
NATO sea with only two minor exceptions, and it means that we are 
stronger than ever.
  I agree with Senator McConnell. We need to stand behind Ukraine and 
the NATO alliance now more than ever, as people are making sacrifices 
and giving their lives to the cause of freedom and sovereignty. So I 
couldn't agree more with his statements.
  I do question, when he talks about violence in the streets of 
Chicago, as to why he never refers to cities in red States that are 
witnessing the same phenomenon going on today--in fact, even worse than 
in my city of Chicago that I represent.
  We have a crime problem in this country, and we have to deal with it. 
It is made more difficult and challenging because of the proliferation 
of guns in America. We are a nation of 320 million people, perhaps, 
with 400 million guns, and they are moving across State borders with 
abandon into the hands of people who have no business owning a gun. We 
could do a lot more about that right here in the Senate.
  I still remember that it was a little over a year ago in Highland 
Park, IL, when a deranged individual went on the roof of a local 
business, pulled out his weapon, and fired 83 rounds in 60 seconds into 
a crowd, killing seven innocent people and injuring dozens of others. 
Why in the world he should ever have had a military assault weapon is 
beyond me, and it is way beyond anything the Founding Fathers 
envisioned when they wrote the Second Amendment.
  We can do more and should do more to make the streets safer across 
America. I agree with that part of Senator McConnell's speech, but I 
wish he would have given us a more complete presentation of the 
challenge we face.