[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 17984]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                  VICE PRESIDENT GORE'S GULF WAR VOTE

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                          HON. PHILIP M. CRANE

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 12, 2000

  Mr. CRANE. Mr. Speaker, former assistant Senate Republican Leader, 
Alan Simpson, has recalled for Americans the serious debate that went 
on in the Senate during the period leading up to the Gulf War. He tells 
us in a recent article, ``The seriousness of the situation called for 
open, honest debate. No deal-making. No cajoling. No politics. Just an 
honest discussion, followed by an honest vote of conscience by each 
senator.''
  Mr. Speaker, Senator Simpson reports in the Las Vegas Review-Journal 
that the night before the floor debate, he and Senator Dole were 
sitting in the Republican cloakroom somberly contemplating the vote 
which could mean sending our troops to war. He recalls that suddenly 
Tennessee Senator Al Gore came in and asked, ``How much time will you 
give me if I support the President?'' After hearing that the Democrats 
had offered Senator Gore only seven minutes of camera time on the 
floor, the two Republican senators promised him twenty minutes--prime 
time, if possible.
  Senator Simpson reports that later, after being told by GOP Senate 
Secretary Howard Greene that the time had not yet been finalized, 
Senator Gore exploded with the remark, ``Damn it, Howard, if I don't 
get 20 minutes tomorrow, I'm going to vote the other way.''
  Senator Simpson says that it brings him no joy to recount the events 
leading up to the Gulf War, but feels he has to set the record straight 
because the Gore campaign is now proclaiming that the Vice President 
``broke with his own party to support the Gulf War.'' The former 
Senator from Nevada ruefully concludes that ``it's much closer to the 
truth to say he broke for the cameras to support the Gulf War.''
  Mr. Speaker, I submit the article by Senator Simpson, entitled 
``Political Calculations and Gore's Gulf War Vote,'' which appeared in 
the Las Vegas Review-Journal for September 1, 2000 for the 
Congressional Record.

            Political Calculations and Gore's Gulf War Vote

       Al Gore's running a new campaign ad across the country now, 
     saying he is ``fighting for us.'' But the true story of his 
     Gulf War vote says he is usually fighting for Al. Here is the 
     inside story of what happened.
       The Gulf War vote was pretty serious business. I can't 
     think of anyone who didn't have a lump in his or her throat 
     as they weighed the situation--50,000 American troops were 
     deployed; Saddam Hussein promising the ``mother of all 
     battles;'' most ``experts'' predicting heavy American losses.
       The choice was not an easy one. Senators with combat 
     experience on both sides of the aisle were on both sides of 
     the issue. Some Democrats openly supported the measure; some 
     Republicans openly opposed it. And vice versa.
       The seriousness of the situation called for open, honest 
     debate. No deal-making. No cajoling. No politics. Just an 
     honest discussion, followed by an honest vote of conscience 
     by each senator. As Republican whip, I worked with the 
     Republican leader, Bob Dole, and the Democratic leaders, 
     George Mitchell and Sam Nunn, to schedule the debate. As 
     Republicans, Bob and I were responsible for scheduling time 
     to speak for senators who supported the war. As Democrats, 
     George and Sam were responsible for scheduling time to speak 
     for those who opposed the war.
       The night before this monumental debate, I sat in the 
     Republican cloakroom with Sen. Dole. The mood was somber. The 
     tension was palpable. We were on the verge of sending troops 
     to war. Our national credibility was on the line. Would 
     America stand up to tyranny and aggression in the Middle 
     East? This was not some issue to be taken lightly.
       As Bob and I discussed the debate schedule for the next 
     day, a senator walked into our cloakroom and asked to speak 
     to us. The senator's appearance and request surprised Bob and 
     me. It surprised us because the senator was a Democrat, 
     coming to ask for a favor. Who was that man?
       It was Tennessee Sen. Al Gore Jr.
       Sen. Gore got right to the point: ``How much time will you 
     give me if I support the president?'' In layman's terms, Gore 
     was asking how much debate time we would be willing to give 
     him to speak on the floor if he voted with us.
       ``How much time will the Democrats give you?'' Sen. Dole 
     asked in response.
       ``Seven minutes,'' came the droning response.
       ``I'll give you 15 minutes,'' Dole said.
       ``And I'll give you five of mine, so you can have 20 
     minutes,'' I offered.
       Gore seemed pleased, but made no final commitment, 
     promising only to think it over.
       Gore played hard to get. He had received his time. But now 
     he wanted prime time. And Dole and I knew it. After Gore 
     left, Dole asked Howard Greene, the Republican Senate 
     secretary, to call Gore's office and promise that he would 
     try to schedule Gore's 20 minutes during prime time, thus 
     ensuring plenty of coverage in the news cycle.
       Later that night, Sen. Gore called Greene and asked if Dole 
     had him a prime time speaking slot. When Greene said nothing 
     had been finalized yet, Gore erupted. ``Damn it, Howard! If I 
     don't get 20 minutes tomorrow, I'm going to vote the other 
     way.''
       The following day, Gore arrived on the Senate floor with, I 
     always thought, two speeches in hand. Gore was still waiting 
     to see which side--Republicans or Democrats--would offer him 
     the most and the best speaking time. Sen. Dole immediately 
     asked the Senate to increase the amount of speaking time for 
     both sides. I believe only then, after Gore realized we were 
     asking for more time to make room for him on our side, that 
     he finally decided to support the resolution authorizing the 
     use of force to drive Saddam Hussein out of Kuwait.
       It brings me no joy to recount the events leading up to the 
     Gulf War vote. It isn't something I wanted to do. But it is 
     something I have to do. I was there.
       I have to set the record straight because the Gore campaign 
     is now running an ad proclaiming that Al Gore, ``broke with 
     his own party to support the Gulf War.'' In reality, it's 
     much closer to the truth to say he broke for the cameras to 
     support the Gulf War.
       And I have to set the record straight because the Gulf War 
     vote was far too important an issue to fall victim to 
     politics and repulsive revising. It was a moment of 
     challenge. And sadly, Al Gore was not up to it.
       As a member of the U.S. Senate for 18 years, I saw many 
     senators show their stuff when times got tough. And, sadly, I 
     saw some who failed to rise to the occasion. In January of 
     1991, Al Gore put politics over principle.

     

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