[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 5]
[Senate]
[Pages 7038-7071]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 COMMENDING THE PRESIDENT AND THE ARMED FORCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF 
                                AMERICA

  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, with that, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Senate now proceed to the consideration of the resolution which is at 
the desk.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Alexander). Is there objection?
  Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 95) commending the President and the 
     Armed Forces of the United States of America.

  The Senate proceeded to consider the resolution.
  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I will keep my opening remarks short, as 
well, to restate the support that the resolution addresses very 
directly, which is, support for the President of the United States as 
Commander in Chief, for our troops, for the military families, for the 
civilian families, in support of our military.
  The President has ordered the first salvos in Operation Iraqi 
Freedom. It was a moment that all of us had hoped to be able to avoid. 
We prayed for peace. We worked for peace. But the Iraqi regime chose a 
different destiny.
  Now our mission is clear: to use the full might of the American 
military to disarm Saddam Hussein and liberate the Iraqi people from 
his oppressive rule.
  American warships and planes have been employed to attack enemy 
targets throughout Iraq, and hundreds of thousands of American troops 
are fighting their way across the Iraqi border. Our men and women in 
uniform are in harm's way. They are engaged in battle as we speak. We 
all pray for their safety and for their success.
  I am confident of their victory, and I am confident it will come at 
the earliest possible moment. Ours is the best equipped, the best 
trained military in the world. They know they have a job to do. They 
know how to do it, and they know how to do it with extraordinary skill. 
And as they do, they have the full support of this body and the 
American people behind them.
  I also applaud the President of the United States, who has shown bold 
leadership and strong leadership and visionary leadership over the last 
several months. Our prayers are with him. Through tremendous diplomacy, 
he has assembled more than 30 countries to join us in this cause. We 
are grateful for his leadership and the support of our allies.
  And to the families of our men and women in uniform, I know they are 
concerned about the safety of their loved ones. The President and 
Congress are concerned, too. We are doing all we can to ensure your 
loved ones return home as quickly and as safely as possible. America is 
grateful for your sacrifice.
  This war is justified by our own laws, by international laws, and by 
the laws of nature, which state all people are created equal and with a 
right to live in liberty.
  Let there be no mistake, we are defending our own liberty. We have 
already seen what terrorists can do with the combined power of only 
three jet aircraft. We are now at war so we will not ever see what 
terrorists will do if supplied with weapons of mass destruction by 
Saddam Hussein.
  We also fight to liberate the Iraqi people. For those in Iraq who 
have suffered daily terror from this oppressive tyrant, for those who 
have survived torture and imprisonment, for those who have watched 
family members die in agony from chemical weapons, their moment of 
freedom is near.
  For those who will defend this dying regime, the moment of reckoning 
has come.
  Mr. President, I welcome the strong bipartisan support that this 
resolution has and will receive. It is an honor to stand here side by 
side with my colleague, the Democratic leader, to send a clear message 
to those brave Americans who are risking their lives for us on the 
battlefield: Our prayers are with you. Godspeed toward victory.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Democratic leader.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I commend the distinguished majority 
leader

[[Page 7039]]

for his remarks and for the leadership he has shown as we have come to 
the floor on this historic occasion.
  Last night, the President announced to the Nation that the 
disarmament campaign against Iraq had begun.
  It is the duty of the Senate to address our most solemn decisions now 
as a nation. As a veteran, I know there is no more important or grave 
decision than whether we send our sons and daughters into armed 
conflict.
  Once our President makes the decision to commit to the use of force, 
the Congress has always come together to speak with one voice, for one 
purpose: to support the efforts of our troops, and to pray for their 
courage, their success, and their safe and quick return home.
  With pride and resolve, we do so again today.
  We may have had differences of opinion about what brought us to this 
point, but the President of the United States is the Commander in 
Chief, and today we unite behind him as well.
  Saddam Hussein is a menace to his own people, and a threat to the 
peace and stability of the entire region.
  As our soldiers risk their own lives to secure the lives and liberty 
of others, we pledge to repay their courage by guaranteeing that we 
will spare no resource and no effort to ensure that nothing stands 
between them and victory.
  Recently, within the last couple of weeks, I visited Sturgis, SD, the 
home of the members of the 109th Engineering Battalion. Its members had 
just been mobilized and sent to the Persian Gulf.
  As American families have done since the birth of our Nation when our 
country has been called to war, fathers and mothers said goodbye to 
their children in uniform, and sons and daughters watched as their 
parents left home for battlefields.
  Once again, the families of our troops are left with prayers, and 
hopes, and the pride that the men and women they love are serving their 
country and serving the cause of peace and liberty.
  One thousand members of the 28th Bomb Wing from Ellsworth Air Force 
Base in my home State are engaged in the Persian Gulf today. Several 
thousand more South Dakotans have been activated in what is now the 
most robust callup in our State's history. We are proud to have one of 
the highest proportions of deployed troops in the country. It makes 
sense that so many South Dakotans have volunteered to serve. We are a 
State of small towns and old neighbors. And when you grow up in a small 
town, you learn early that your future is bound to those around you. 
You learn early that if you do not do your part, someone else has to 
pick up the slack. And you learn early that all we value about our 
homes and our lives cannot be created or maintained by leaving the work 
to someone else.
  Soldiers and sailors, airmen and marines, go into battle today driven 
by that wisdom. As they begin the dangerous work of disarming Saddam 
Hussein and liberating the people of Iraq, their courage rides on the 
values of small towns and old neighbors. Our country--generation after 
generation--has been defended by the same willingness to sacrifice.
  Today, our bravest men and women are called upon to carry forward the 
proud tradition of the American Armed Forces. They are making a more 
peaceful world for all children--for their own and for the children of 
Iraq.
  History will long remember their service. They have our support, our 
devotion, and our gratitude.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.
  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the time on 
our side be managed by Senator Warner.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The Democratic leader.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I announce that the ranking member of the 
Armed Services Committee, Senator Levin, will be our manager. I ask 
unanimous consent that the time between now and the time the votes are 
cast on the amendments pending be divided equally.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The Senator from Virginia.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, before our distinguished leaders depart 
the floor, I wish to say as one Senator, I am very proud that the 
differences have been reconciled and that this resolution bears both of 
your distinguished names and that we will strive to have unity in this 
Chamber and to have a very constructive and clear debate as a message 
to the men and women of the armed forces, their families and, indeed, 
the whole world.
  Mr. LEVIN. If the Senator from Virginia will yield, I want to add a 
similar thought. I wish all of our troops could see the two of you 
standing together here. I had no doubt we would unite in support of our 
troops when the time came, and that is exactly what is happening. This 
picture is a very eloquent statement about the unity of the Congress 
once we are committed to combat.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to proceed under 
the time allocated to the distinguished majority leader, which I am 
privileged to manager.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator is recognized.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I recognize that I have the opportunity to 
work on this debate with my distinguished colleague, Senator Levin. We 
have served together, now, this is our 25th year on the Senate Armed 
Services Committee. I say to my colleague, I know of no debate of 
greater significance than the one we are about to undertake at a 
critical hour not only in the history of the United States but the 
history of the world.
  It would be helpful if I were to undertake to read the resolution 
that is at the desk that hopefully will be voted on by the Senate in a 
very short period of time after all Senators have had the opportunity 
to express themselves.
  The resolution is entitled ``Commending the President and the Armed 
Forces of the United States of America,'' submitted by Senators Frist, 
Daschle, Warner and Levin.

       Whereas Saddam Hussein has failed to comply with United 
     Nations Security Council resolutions 678, 686, 687, 688, 707, 
     715, 949, 1051, 1060, 1115, 1134, 1137, 1154, 1194, 1205, 
     1284, and 1441;

  The most historic of all, in my judgment, resolution 1441, which 
received the unanimous vote of all Security Council members, 15--

       Whereas the military action now underway against Iraq is 
     lawful and fully authorized by the Congress in Sec. 3(a) of 
     Public Law 107-243, which passed the Senate on October 10, 
     2002, by a vote of 77-23, and which passed the House of 
     Representatives on that same date by a vote of 296-133;
       Whereas more than 225,000 men and women of the United 
     States Armed Forces are now involved in conflict against 
     Iraq;
       Whereas over 200,000 members of the Reserves and National 
     Guard have been called to active duty for the conflict 
     against Iraq and other purposes; and
       Whereas the Congress and the American people have the 
     greatest pride in the men and women of the United States 
     Armed Forces, and the civilian personnel supporting them, and 
     strongly support them in their efforts;
       Now therefore be it Resolved by the Senate and House of 
     Representatives of the United States of America in Congress 
     assembled, that Congress--
       (1) commends and supports the efforts and leadership of the 
     President, as Commander in Chief, in the conflict against 
     Iraq;
       (2) commends, and expenses the gratitude of the Nation to 
     all members of the United States Armed Forces (whether on 
     active duty, in the National Guard, or in the Reserves) and 
     the civilian employees who support their efforts, as well as 
     the men and women of civilian national security agencies who 
     are participating in the military operations in the Persian 
     Gulf region, for their professional excellence, dedicated 
     patriotism and exemplary bravery;
       (3) commends and expresses the gratitude of the Nation to 
     the family members of soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and 
     civilians serving in operations against Iraq who have borne 
     the burden of sacrifice and separation from their loved ones;
       (4) expresses its deep condolences to the families of brave 
     Americans who have lost their lives in this noble 
     undertaking, over many years, against Iraq;
       (5) joins all Americans in remembering those who lost their 
     lives during Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert 
     Storm in 1991, those still missing from that conflict, 
     including Captain Scott Speicher, USN, and the thousands of 
     Americans who have lost

[[Page 7040]]

     their lives in terrorist attacks over the years, and in the 
     Global War in Terrorism; and
       (6) expresses sincere gratitude to British Prime Minister 
     Tony Blair and his government for their courageous and 
     steadfast support, as well as gratitude to other allied 
     nations for their military support, logistical support, and 
     other assistance in the campaign against Saddam Hussein's 
     regime.

  Mr. President, today in Iraq, in Afghanistan, on the high seas, at 
the far corners of the world, and here at home, our forces, active duty 
and reserve components alike, are confronting the oppression, tyranny, 
and terrorism that plagues and threatens the world and our Nation. I am 
so enormously proud of our military and their leaders who fashioned a 
force unlike any the world has ever known, a force capable of 
delivering overwhelming might anytime, anywhere, if necessary.
  Just weeks ago my distinguished colleague, Senator Levin, and I, 
together with Senator Roberts and Senator Rockefeller, were privileged 
to visit many of these troops in that region, Qatar, Kuwait, and other 
areas. A disciplined force this is, able to employ measured steps in an 
honorable and decent manner to ensure that everything possible is done 
to provide for the humanitarian and security needs of an innocent 
people, the people of Iraq. Truly the force has never seen an 
opportunity such as this, and it is under the command not only of our 
President but of officers of the United States, Great Britain, 
Australia, and indeed more.
  A decision to commit our sons and daughters to combat is never an 
easy one. Clearly, our President anguished over this decision. I was 
privileged to meet with him, with the leadership here just days ago. 
Clearly, he showed his steadfastness, his courage, his wisdom, his very 
balanced thinking, as he conducted himself with the advice of others, 
to reach this decision, which he did last night.
  We in the Congress debated this solemn responsibility to authorize 
the use of force last October. We took our constitutional 
responsibility seriously. We thoroughly examined the circumstances and 
voted overwhelmingly, 77 to 23, to authorize the Commander in Chief to 
use military force if, and only if, he determined that all diplomatic 
efforts to peacefully disarm Saddam Hussein's Iraqi regime had been 
fulfilled. I personally think he did that and did it brilliantly.
  Those efforts, unfortunately, did not result in a Security Council 
resolution of unity, as it did with 15 votes in October.
  The Security Council became deadlocked for reasons we all know. It is 
important to note, however, that our President expended extraordinary 
efforts to bring this clear and growing threat to the attention of the 
United Nations and to try to build that consensus for a unified way to 
proceed.
  The United Nations was unable to step up to its responsibilities of 
enforcing its own mandates largely because of the intransigence of a 
very few nations to block any form of meaningful enforcement of these 
U.N. Security Council resolutions. The failure of the United Nations to 
step up to its responsibilities is most unfortunate, for the United 
Nations at this time in its long history of over 50 years is facing a 
challenge unlike any before, with the proliferation of weapons of mass 
destruction, particularly those of nuclear weapons on the Korean 
peninsula, Iran, and other areas of the world. This could have been 
their finest hour.
  Our President has stepped up to his responsibilities to protect the 
American people from a grave and growing threat to our national 
security. Ultimately, the President's constitutional responsibility is 
to the American people. He made the determination that Saddam Hussein, 
armed with weapons of mass destruction, is an imminent threat to the 
security of the people of this Nation and, indeed, other nations.
  His most sacred responsibility is to protect the American people. The 
Congress, as a coequal branch of Government, has fulfilled, in my 
judgment, its constitutional responsibilities by giving the President 
the authority he needs to do so.
  Now the effort has begun to liberate Iraq, restore a secure 
environment, and ultimately bring a lasting peace with justice and 
representative democratic principles to a land that has known little 
peace throughout its history. Our forces are capable of helping Iraqis 
realize this dream. I have no doubt our forces will conduct themselves 
in a very responsible way. Our forces, supported by countless civilian 
employees and by families and loved ones back home, and joined by 
forces and support from many other nations--over 30, Mr. President--as 
a coalition to liberate Iraq, will prevail.
  We are all hopeful that this operation can be conducted with minimum 
loss of life, with minimum casualties, with minimum destruction and 
hardship. We must await that outcome. We must be prepared, however, for 
a broad and concerted effort that may take longer and involve more 
sacrifice than some have predicted. We cannot and will not waiver from 
our resolve to bring freedom and hope to this troubled Nation and to 
rid the world of this threat to regional and global security.
  I, again, salute our men and women in uniform, their families, and 
those who support them in this noble effort. I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time?
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I yield as much time as Senator Reid needs.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Nevada.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, today in the Senate--it does not happen very 
often--we speak with one voice. Now that the military effort to disarm 
Saddam Hussein and remove his brutal regime from power has started, it 
is important that we, the Senate, Democrats and Republicans, express 
our unified support for our troops.
  I personally am very proud of the Nevada sons and daughters who have 
been deployed to the Middle East as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. 
Nevada has, I believe, the finest military aviation training facilities 
in the world. That is not something that is just provincial in nature. 
We have the great Nellis Air Force Base and the Fallon Naval Air 
Station, plus we have the Indian Springs Air Force Base where the 
drones are kept, where people train with those unmanned vehicles.
  Nellis Air Force Base has a special place in my heart because Bill 
Nellis was from my hometown of Searchlight, NV, a very small town in 
size and the number of people who live there. Bill Nellis served in 
World War II and became a hero. His body now lies in a military 
cemetery in Belgium, but all of us in Nevada know where Nellis Air 
Force Base got its name. His family is still there and very proud of 
the fact that this great training facility for the Air Force is named 
after Bill Nellis of Searchlight.
  The Fallon Naval Air Station is also where we train aviators. These 
two bases--to show the size of the State of Nevada--are 400 miles 
apart. One is the premier training facility for our Air Force, and the 
other, Fallon naval air training facility, is a premier training 
facility for our naval pilots--Top Gun. It is a rural community 65 
miles out of Reno, NV.
  These pilots--hundreds from Nellis and other personnel critical to 
our mission in Iraq--are right now serving on the front lines. Hundreds 
who trained at Fallon are there also.
  When I see those Navy fighters taking off on carriers in the gulf, as 
I did this morning before I came to work, there is no question in my 
mind that they were trained at Fallon.
  Nevada's Guard and Reserve troops are also playing a significant 
role, more than 1,000 from Nevada's Guard and Reserve. Nevada's 
percentage of Guard and Reserve callups and deployments is one of the 
highest in the Nation. This is, of course, a hardship to the 
communities, the cities, and the towns from where they come. It is a 
hardship on the employers and families they leave behind.
  I also recognize the honor that is associated with this hardship and 
this sacrifice. Our Guard units, for example, have a specially trained 
unit to handle prisoners of war. They have been called up. They also 
have one of the only Blackhawk-equipped medical evacuation teams. It is 
understandable why they have been called up. There are many other 
specialities that are needed

[[Page 7041]]

in the gulf, and Secretary Rumsfeld has called them up. They are 
heroes. They are talented.
  There are other heroes in Nevada, and they are the families who 
remain behind. Children who are going to school in Nevada have mothers, 
fathers, brothers, and sisters half a world away and hoping and praying 
they come home but not really knowing if that, in fact, will happen.
  The sacrifice that many of these families are making so our forces 
will prevail cannot be overstated. In many cases, the lead income 
earner or main caretaker is in the desert right now either pursuing 
Saddam Hussein or maybe even trying to track down al-Qaida operatives.
  I try but I am not sure I fully understand the hardship the families 
are enduring. This Congress and communities all over America stand with 
the families and will help in any way we can until their loved ones 
return. We pray for the safe and speedy return of our soldiers, 
sailors, airmen, and marines.
  We understand as a Congress that war entails risk; that the American 
military is the best fighting force ever assembled.
  I have to take a pause here and commend and applaud the chairman and 
ranking member of the Armed Services Committee who have worked together 
as partners for many years now developing the military that is now 
serving in the Middle East. They are two fine Senators. There are no 
two men in the Senate for whom I have more respect than the 
distinguished Senator from Virginia and my longtime friend, the Senator 
from Michigan. I had the pleasure and honor of coming to Congress with 
his brother. I have said this to Senator Levin on a number of 
occasions. The first time I ever met Carl Levin, I said: I came to 
Washington with your brother, Sandy.
  He said: Yes, Sandy is my brother, but he is also my best friend.
  This is the kind of man we have working with us in the minority. I 
again commend and applaud the two of them.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, will the Senator yield a moment? I 
remember so well when we had last year's authorization bill on the 
floor. The distinguished Senator from Michigan and I time and again 
sought Senator Reid's assistance to keep that bill going, to reconcile 
issues such as health care, current receipts, the BRAC process, and 
other very strong issues. So the Senator has been a full honorary 
member of the Armed Services Committee.
  Mr. REID. I thank my friend from Virginia. As I said, we in Congress 
understand the risks that war entails. The American military, as I have 
said before--parting a little off the subject by complimenting my two 
friends--is the best fighting force ever assembled. We owe a lot of 
that to these two men. I am confident that the men and women of our 
armed services, with the help of British and Australian soldiers, will 
bring about a decisive victory. Let us hope this can be achieved 
swiftly and with minimal casualties.
  Mr. President, I will do everything in my power to ensure that 
Congress fully funds and supports the needs of our troops as this 
conflict proceeds.
  As American troops are engaged in war in Iraq, as well as elsewhere 
around the world, in our ongoing war against terrorists, and defending 
our interests and allies, we think also of previous generations who 
served our Nation faithfully and proudly to protect American lives, 
liberties and values. To all of our veterans, in Nevada and around the 
country, I say, ``Thank you for your service.'' And I reassure you that 
I will continue to make sure our Nation honors our commitment to you.
  We are so fortunate to live in a Nation that promises fundamental 
freedom like the freedom of speech and freedom of belief. Those who 
have served in the United States Armed Forces in past years and those 
who serve today have fought to guarantee the rights we hold dear. 
Thanks to their service and sacrifice, Americans can express opinions 
even if they disagree with the Government without fear of being 
harassed, arrested, tortured or murdered. This is a fundamental 
difference that separates our American democracy from regimes like the 
Taliban which we ousted from Afghanistan or dictators like Saddam 
Hussein whom we will remove from Iraq.
  So we all appreciate, value and will fight to defend the right of all 
of us--American citizens and those of us in public service--to speak 
freely. Regardless of whether Americans agree or disagree with the 
decision to go to war or how the administration has conducted its 
foreign policy, we share patriotic feelings. That is what patriotism is 
about. And I want our troops to know that we all support them 
completely.
  Americans also stand united with our Commander-in-Chief, President 
George Bush, as he leads the Nation through this difficult period. I 
will continue to support his efforts to build and strengthen our 
coalition to assist with post-war reconstruction in Iraq.
  But today let me re-emphasize that we stand united, and we speak with 
one voice, in supporting our troops and working for the swift and 
decisive defeat of Saddam Hussein. I am confident more peaceful times 
lie ahead. Certainly, peace and freedom lie on the horizon for the 
Iraqi people.
  Mr. LEVIN. Before the Senator from Nevada leaves, I add my thanks to 
him not just for his very kind words but, as Senator Warner said, for 
his absolutely invaluable leadership on this floor year after year. We 
were able to get a bill passed last year, in good measure, because of 
his ability to get us to the point where we could resolve differences 
among Members to get to votes. One particular instance that I hope the 
Senator will always be remembered for--at least he will in our minds, I 
know--is his leadership to make sure that the veterans who are disabled 
are able to get a disability pension, particularly if they are severely 
disabled, at the same time they get a retirement benefit.
  The absurd result that we had veterans who were severely disabled who 
lost their disability benefit at the same time their pension became 
available to them was wrong. It was corrected by this Senate, in large 
measure because of the leadership of Senator Reid. That is one of the 
many monuments to his leadership that hopefully will be remembered.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Virginia.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
Senator from Pennsylvania.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Pennsylvania.
  Mr. SPECTER. I rise to join my colleagues in support of this 
resolution. I commend the President and our troops, including civilians 
and national security personnel. I believe it is important, once the 
conflict has begun, that there be full support for our troops in the 
field.
  Resolutions were passed by both this body and the House of 
Representatives by overwhelming majorities. I respect those who have 
disagreed with the action of the Congress and with the action of the 
President, however, once the Nation moves forward under our 
constitutional process, where in a representative democracy the 
Congress votes and authorizes the President as Commander in Chief of 
the Armed Forces to move ahead, we should support this action.
  It is regrettable there was not a united UN because had that been 
done, I think it might have been possible to back Saddam Hussein down. 
I had an opportunity to meet with Saddam Hussein for more than an hour 
back in 1990, and while he is venal and brutal, I do not think he is 
insane or suicidal. However, the international dance and delay was such 
that he thought he could wear us down.
  Once the United States had more than 200,000 troops in the field, we 
were constrained by weather factors and our personnel were threatened 
by chemical and biological attacks, and so we simply had to move. Every 
action on Saddam's part was a delay. So whether there was agreement or 
disagreement up to this point, now is the time for unified American 
action.
  This resolution commends Prime Minister Tony Blair and his 
government, and I believe the coalition of the

[[Page 7042]]

willing will be doing the work really of the entire free world. It is 
our hope and expectation that the efforts will be swift and the 
casualties will be held to a minimum. With success I hope that those 
who have dissented in the United Nations will come forward because 
victory will be ours on the battlefield. However, that is not 
sufficient. Iraq must be rebuilt and our international alliances must 
be reinstated.
  This is the first step today, by having a strong vote, hopefully a 
unanimous vote, in supporting our troops and supporting the action of 
the United States of America.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Michigan.
  Mr. LEVIN. I yield myself 4 minutes.
  Mr. President, last month a number of us were fortunate enough to 
visit our troops in Kuwait, Qatar, and other places in the area. As 
Senator Warner said, he, Senator Roberts, Senator Rockefeller, and I 
had that opportunity. What an extraordinarily dedicated, and motivated 
professional group of men and women they are; what representatives of 
America and the values that we stand for they are; how well trained and 
equipped they are; how extraordinarily high their morale was and is; 
and how determined this Congress is, I know now, to give them our total 
support.
  In the course of that visit, I met with a group of about 20 Marines 
from Michigan at Camp Commando. One young Marine asked me what was 
going on back home with the antiwar demonstrations. I could tell by the 
demeanor of the other Marines, both men and women, that this was a 
matter on the minds of a number of them.
  I told them that those demonstrating back home were carrying out and 
exercising a right which is something we all cherish. As a matter of 
fact, they were exercising the very freedoms that our Armed Forces have 
protected throughout our history. I told them we had a vigorous debate 
in the Senate last fall about the wisdom of initiating an attack 
against Saddam Hussein if we were unable to persuade the world 
community, acting through the United Nations, to authorize and support 
such an attack. I told them that, in the end, a majority of both Houses 
of the Congress voted to authorize the President to use military force 
with or without that explicit authority of the United Nations.
  I told them that our democracy functions through debate and decision, 
and that the decision to give the President this authority was 
democratically arrived at. Finally and most importantly, I told these 
Marines I was confident that, after the debate in Congress about the 
wisdom of instituting an attack without the support of the world 
community through the United Nations, if hostilities should start, 
those who have such different views will come together and will rally 
behind them and give them the full support they deserve.
  My prediction that we would come together if hostilities ever began, 
despite differences over the wisdom of the policy of proceeding without 
U.N. authority, has now come true.
  We stand here together, shoulder to shoulder, whichever side of that 
particular issue we voted on, to support the men and women who are now 
in harm's way. We saw just a very visual and visible example of that a 
few minutes ago when the majority and Democratic leaders literally 
stood shoulder to shoulder here in the well of the Senate as they both 
presented a resolution of support of our troops and then indicated they 
were going to work hard for its passage.
  The visit we had was quite an extraordinary visit. The men and women 
we visited understood fully what we were telling them about the 
nobility of this system of government of ours and how they represented 
that nobility by putting their lives on the line. I am pleased to have 
helped draft this resolution. I am pleased to add my voice and my vote 
to it.
  The hostilities have begun. The democratic debate has occurred. The 
men and women of our Armed Forces have the unified support of the 
Nation they love and for which they willingly serve and for which they 
risk their all. To them I can only say they are in the prayers of every 
American and that we all hope for a speedy conclusion to this war with 
the minimal number of casualties and that they return home to their 
loved ones as soon as possible.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I yield such time as our distinguished 
colleague from Oklahoma may require.
  I might also say Senators Ensign, Burns, the Presiding Officer 
Senator Alexander, Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, and Senator Allard, we 
are looking forward to their coming to the floor, in that sequence, on 
our side. We will alternate with my colleague. I alert my colleagues, 
this debate is moving right along and we are anxious to keep it going.
  Mr. LEVIN. I similarly indicate Senator Bingaman and then Senator 
Bill Nelson would be recognized on this side.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oklahoma.
  Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, for a moment let me build on something the 
distinguished Senator from Michigan said talking about our troops. 
Having been on the Senate Armed Services Committee and having been 
chairman of the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness for a 
number of years, I have had a chance to talk to troops all over the 
world in all kinds of circumstances. Never have I seen such a 
commitment as is out there right now by these young troops.
  I remember not long ago I was at a hospital where they were sending 
injured from Afghanistan. Without exception, each one of the injured 
troops--some sailors, some marines, some airmen, some Army--all said 
they were anxious to get back to their units. One young lady, whose 
name was Stennis--I remember her name because she was on the USS 
Stennis--a young sailor who got tangled up in a refueling line. It 
pulled her off to a free fall all the way down into the ocean, crushing 
both of her lungs. She was a very small person. She made it. She lived. 
She was in the hospital. Her words were these: I want to get well to 
get back to my units, and I want to make a career out of the U.S. Navy.
  When I look at our distinguished chairman of the committee, Senator 
Warner, who was Secretary of the Navy, I can assure you we have never 
had sailors more committed than we have today. That is what is 
happening right now.
  I am pleased we are beyond the point of talking about objections. 
There are three major objections that various individuals are trying to 
voice. One was: We cannot do anything without allies. We are glad to 
realize we have allies. We have some 45 nations supporting us in this 
effort to get rid of this terrorist, Saddam Hussein. But even if we 
weren't, we remember Grenada, Panama, we remember 1986 when Ronald 
Reagan was President and when Qadhafi had blown up a building, killing 
some of our soldiers. We did not have overflight permission, and 
President Reagan sent in F-111s and pounded Libya, and we have not 
heard from Qadhafi since.
  The smoking gun argument, we all understand that what we are faced 
with, with Saddam Hussein--not Iraq, but Saddam Hussein--is an ability 
to do things that would not maybe kill 100 or 200 people but maybe a 
million people. Rich Butler, probably the most revered of the former 
weapons inspectors, said one warhead like they have in Iraq filled with 
140 liters of VX gas could kill a million people. We have to reprogram 
ourselves and think in those terms.
  If you did need a smoking gun--which we did not have to have--if you 
did, last night we learned there are smoking guns. He had denied he had 
the very missiles he sent over and used last night.
  The last argument was there had to be a link with Osama bin Laden. We 
have to again reprogram ourselves because what we are dealing with now 
is a terrorist. This is not a war on Iraq, it is a liberation of the 
Iraqi people who have been oppressed and tortured for decades. There is 
a war involved. It is not a war on Iraq, it is a war against terrorism. 
This war was declared by

[[Page 7043]]

our President at 8:30 in the evening on the fateful September 11. He 
said this is a war on terrorism. You go after the biggest terrorists.
  A lot of people do not think of Saddam Hussein as a terrorist, but if 
you measure the severity of terrorism by the number of people someone 
has tortured or murdered, certainly no one can hold a candle to Saddam 
Hussein. In 1983, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International 
documented that he executed 8,000 of his own Kurdish citizens aged 13 
and older. In 1985, it is reported they executed 315 children between 
the ages of 8 and 17. In 1988--we all remember this very well because 
that is when he set a record. We believe it is an all-time record that 
holds to this day. He murdered, in one day, 5,000 of his own citizens 
using a chemical that produces the most torturous kind of death, where 
your eyeballs are fried and your lungs are actually fried. There was 
mustard gas and other chemicals. That was in 1988. Then they talked 
about the 60 villages--Human Rights Watch--attacked with mustard gas. 
Women, children, it did not make any difference.
  In 1990, Amnesty International listed 38 new methods of torture used 
by Saddam Hussein including mock execution, piercing of the hands with 
electric drills, electric shocks, sexual abuse, lowering the victims 
into baths of acid.
  Then in 1999, at a peaceful demonstration, security forces fired into 
a crowd of protesters, killing hundreds of civilians, including women 
and children. In the year 2000, they were looking for a new way to 
punish those who might be suspected of saying something about Saddam 
Hussein. They had been sending them into prison, but the prisons were 
full, so the new method was to pull the tongue out and tear the tongue 
off.
  In 1991, with a person I think very highly of, we made the first trip 
into Kuwait. It was so close after the war was over that they did not 
know the war was over and the fires were still going in the oil fields. 
The guns were still being fired. Alexander Haig, I, and a guy named 
Sauda Saba who was the Ambassador from Kuwait to the United States of 
America, we went in there to see what it was like. Sauda Saba had his 
7-year-old daughter with him. He was of royalty. We went to their house 
where we found out that Saddam Hussein had used his house as one of the 
headquarters. We went through the house and found that the young 7-
year-old girl's bedroom had been used as a torture chamber. We found 
body parts and hair stuck to the walls.
  I don't believe there is a terrorist anywhere who could be more 
dangerous than Saddam Hussein. That is what this is all about. This is 
not a war on Iraq, it is the liberation of the people of Iraq. I 
honestly believe the dancing in the streets after Afghanistan will not 
hold a candle to the dancing in the streets we will see not just in 
Baghdad, but in all the oppressed surrounding nations.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time?
  Mr. LEVIN. I yield 3 minutes to Senator Bingaman.
  Mr. BINGAMAN. Mr. President, I appreciate my colleague from Michigan 
yielding me 3 minutes to speak briefly on this issue.
  War in Iraq is underway. It is appropriate that we in the Senate 
suspend our other work to observe the start of this very serious 
undertaking. I am very glad to support the resolution the majority 
leader and the Democratic leader have come together on in stating our 
solidarity with our servicemen and servicewomen.
  We want the brave men and women who wear the American uniform and who 
have been sent to this region on behalf of our country to know they 
have the complete, unwavering support of the Senate.
  I also state my sincere hope, and the sincere hope, I am sure, of all 
of us, that this conflict will be short lived and that our mission will 
be accomplished with the fewest possible casualties to our countrymen 
and to the noncombatants in Iraq.
  Prior to the announcement by President Bush on Monday that he had 
determined to begin a military action this week, many of us expressed 
our disagreement with the policy and action of the President. In my 
case, and I am sure in all cases, those opinions were honestly arrived 
at and were strongly felt. But at this point, now with the war having 
begun, our focus needs to be on prevailing in this conflict. None of us 
doubts that we will in fact prevail. I join with all other Senators in 
the fervent hope that the war will be short, the lives lost on both 
sides will be few. I further hope that out of this we will arrive at a 
just and peaceful and prosperous future for the Iraqi people and for 
the region and for the entire world.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Crapo). The Senator from Virginia.
  Mr. WARNER. At this time I yield as much time to Senator Ensign as he 
may require.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Nevada.
  Mr. ENSIGN. Mr. President, I thank the distinguished chairman of the 
Armed Services Committee for yielding time. I appreciate his great 
service to this country leading that important committee.
  I rise today to talk about the situation in Iraq. There are some 
people to pay tribute to. It is important that we as Senators show our 
troops what they mean to us. It is important that all Americans show 
the people in uniform how much we appreciate what they are doing, and 
also to show their families how much we appreciate what they are doing.
  I want to start by sharing a thought about a great leader who has 
shown what it means, in the face of adversity, to lead our country 
through a difficult time. That leader is our President, George W. Bush. 
I am very proud that he is, indeed, our Commander-in-Chief at this 
time. I have heard from so many service men and women how proud they 
are right now, not only to be Americans, but proud that he is our 
Commander-in-Chief during this difficult time--not only for the war on 
Iraq, but for the global war on terrorism, which we are still engaged 
in and probably will be for some time.
  I also want to say thank you as an American to a great friend; 
somebody who is defining what it means to be a statesman. That is Tony 
Blair from Great Britain. Tony Blair obviously leads the equivalent of 
what would be a different party than mine. But Tony Blair has shown, in 
the face of incredible public opposition, and especially opposition 
within his own party, what it means to stand up and be a leader. 
Leaders are expected to lead, and Tony Blair and George W. Bush are 
doing exactly that right now.
  I also thank and take pride in Nellis Air Force Base and the people 
stationed there, and the people stationed at Fallon Naval Air Station, 
and also the Nevada National Guard, all of whom have sent people to the 
Middle East to engage in this conflict. We as Nevadans say thank you 
for their service, and take great pride in that they are over there, 
serving our country and protecting our people.
  I also think it is appropriate for us, whenever possible, as 
Americans, to adopt the families of our service men and women. Back in 
1991 my brother-in-law was sent over to the Persian Gulf. He was 
stationed in Bahrain during the Persian Gulf War. I remember it was a 
very stressful time for my sister because she could not have any 
contact with him. She had no idea where he was, what he was doing. It 
was incredibly difficult for her, as it was for many other families. 
That is what a lot of families of our service men and women are going 
through right now, the uncertainty of whether their loved ones are 
going to be coming home or not. We all in this country need to wrap our 
arms around them and also lift them up in prayer, when we rise in the 
morning or go to bed at night, when we get on our knees and look to the 
Almighty.
  There is no question that America has the finest military in the 
entire world. Nobody's military might is anywhere close to what we have 
today. But I remind all Americans that no matter how strong our 
military is, without divine providence--as the entire history

[[Page 7044]]

of our country has recognized--without divine providence, it doesn't 
matter how superior your military is. That is not enough to prevail in 
a war. As Abraham Lincoln said during the Civil War, when asked which 
side of the conflict God was on, he replied: I don't know. I just want 
to try to be on God's side.
  I think it would be easy for us as Americans to be arrogant and proud 
and boastful about how great we are and how right we think we are. I 
think the appropriate approach is for us to go and pray we are right, 
and look to what the morals are that we stand for and the principles on 
which this country was founded. If we apply those principles, those 
principles that I believe were handed down by the Almighty, then we 
will be on His side.
  I believe we are in a just cause. It is time we stand up and support 
the men and women in uniform and do everything we can as individuals to 
let them know, while they are there, that they are in our thoughts and 
our prayers. And then, when they come home, we should never, ever again 
allow what happened in this country when our troops came home from 
Vietnam. Whenever our troops come home from now on, they should be 
celebrated, held high as heroes, because we owe our very freedoms to 
the sacrifices they are willing to make.
  I stand with other Senators today to say to our troops: Thank you. 
Godspeed. And God bless.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Nevada for his 
remarks, most particularly the concluding remarks about that period 
during Vietnam. It was my privilege to serve along with the men and 
women in that period as Secretary of the Navy. I remember so well how 
they were received back home, in sharp contrast to the generation in 
which I had a modest association in World War II. With open arms were 
they welcomed home. I share your sentiments.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. LEVIN. I yield 5 minutes to Senator Bill Nelson.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Florida is recognized.
  Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I have gone around to the 
National Guard units that have been activated in my State of Florida, 
and I have gone to the Reserve units, merely representing our grateful 
Nation. These people have gone off to war, seeing tearful spouses, with 
the uncertainty of their economic future. And that economic uncertainty 
is not only from their standpoint as a guard or reservist, but it is 
also from their employer's standpoint. And yet we see a unity and a 
coming together that is part of the strength of the character of us as 
a people.
  It is with profound gratitude and humility that I express my support 
for this resolution for a fighting force of men and women who are not 
only in the military all over the world but who are civilian as well.
  In fact, some of our civilian agencies today were in Iraq, prior to 
the military units arriving there, along with other clandestine 
military units performing enormous intelligence functions for us. It is 
a profound gratefulness that this Nation expresses to our military and 
civilians.
  I particularly wish to call to the attention of the Senate paragraph 
(5). Paragraph (5) of the resolution states that Congress:

       Joins all Americans in remembering those who lost their 
     lives during Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert 
     Storm in 1991, still those missing from that conflict, 
     including Captain Scott Speicher, United States Navy, and the 
     thousands of Americans who have lost their lives in terrorist 
     attacks over the years, and in the Global War on terrorism. . 
     . .

  I take the time to call paragraph (5) to the attention of the Senate 
because of CPT Scott Speicher, the first American pilot shot down on 
the first night of the gulf war. Through a series of mistakes, we said 
he was dead. He was listed as ``killed in action.''
  Years later, the Department of Defense changed his status to 
``missing in action.'' And years later, the Department of Defense 
changed his status to ``missing, captured,'' which is ``POW.''
  I have seen the early evidence, which has been made public, that a 
defector, who was corroborated--indeed, he passed a lie detector test, 
as well as being corroborated on other evidence--actually drove 
Speicher from near the crash site to a place near a hospital, and 
picked him out of a lineup of photographs.
  I have seen more recent information from a variety of sources that 
leads me to believe that Scott Speicher is alive. That opinion, by the 
way, is shared by my colleague, Senator Pat Roberts of Kansas, now the 
chairman of the Intelligence Committee, who has been, along with former 
Senator Bob Smith, unrelenting--all of us--in the pursuit of a 
clarification on the status of Scott Speicher.
  It is my opinion he is alive. So we have gone to our commanders, and 
they have assured us, we have gone to the civilian agencies, and they 
have assured us: Scott Speicher is at the top of their list of 
priorities as we are now going into Iraq, to go and find him.
  And, oh, what a day that would be, if he is alive, and if America can 
correct the mistake that our DOD made and bring that American pilot 
home.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's time has expired.
  Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Virginia.
  Mr. WARNER. On my time, Mr. President, I commend my colleague, a 
strong member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Senator Pat 
Roberts, likewise, who is on our committee, and Senator Smith, a former 
member of the committee.
  These three Senators have involved our committee in this as well. 
And, I think, heretofore, the Intelligence Committee has taken a very 
active role.
  Senator Levin and I are both appreciative of their efforts on this 
issue on behalf of the committee. We thank them.
  I yield such time to the Senator from Montana as he may require.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I wonder if the Senator will yield, just 
for a unanimous consent request.
  I ask unanimous consent that after the Senator has concluded, Senator 
Kennedy then be recognized for 6 minutes.
  Let me add my thanks also to Senator Nelson of Florida for the 
incredible tenacity he has shown supporting Captain Speicher.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The 
Senator from Massachusetts will be recognized for 6 minutes following 
the Senator from Montana.
  The Senator from Montana.
  Mr. BURNS. Mr. President, I thank my good friend from Virginia. Yes, 
we have been conversing and friends ever since the day I got here, he 
being an old forest firefighter in Montana when he was younger, and his 
hair was dark. He was a dashing young man on an adventure West.
  We have also discussed this subject a lot of times in private 
conversations. Whether it has been on the Big Horn River or on a golf 
course, I have always enjoyed those discussions.
  I gave much thought on what I was going to say today. The Senator and 
I also shared the same uniform, the U.S. Marine Corps, at different 
times however. He was a good deal ahead of me.
  We know what goes through the minds of the young men and women who 
are confronted with war. Of all the options we have in the world, war 
is the absolute last one. For our young men and women over there, they 
have to carry the responsibility.
  But the real weight may be on the shoulders of our Commander in Chief 
and on the Prime Minister of England, Mr. Blair, for they have stood 
strong for what is right.
  We can also call this the commitment of America. It is a commitment 
to our history. Looking in our history books, we see man can be ruled 
by many things, by weapons, by sheer military power, by biological 
weapons, and chemical weapons.
  But 9/11 taught us something else, that we can be ruled by fear. Fear 
is still the greatest motivator of man. Americans have always accepted 
a certain level of risk for freedom. Sometimes we have accepted a high 
level of

[[Page 7045]]

risk for freedom. And we are called upon to do that again. It is not a 
great option, but it is one that America has assumed the responsibility 
of since the birth of this country over 200 years ago.
  Mr. President, 9/11 proved that we can be ruled by fear. Even a 
sniper in the Washington area was a reminder that, again, we are 
curtailed and ruled by fear. It was by only one person, that person not 
known. But this one is known.
  We commend the President. We pray for our troops as they carry out a 
great tradition. Diplomatically, the timing is never right. It is never 
right. But I would say this: We could kick this can down the road. 
Maybe we could have kicked the can down the road in 1940. Would we have 
forgotten Pearl Harbor as fast as we think some people have forgotten 
the Twin Towers? No matter what we do, some generation of America is 
going to have to deal with this cruel man.
  We stand in support. We stand in prayer for those who lead, those who 
commit, and those who do.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, the hour of 4 o'clock, at which time the 
votes begin on the budget resolution, is fast approaching. I have 
several Senators indicating a desire to speak on my side. I ask them to 
limit their remarks now to about 3\1/2\ minutes, thereabouts. I think 
the Senator from Massachusetts should be recognized.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senator from 
Massachusetts is recognized for 6 minutes.
  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, the best of America--our men and women in 
uniform--are now in harm's way in a distant land. Our prayers go with 
them in the skies and mountains and deserts and cities of Iraq. Fathers 
and sons--mothers and daughters--brothers and sisters--friends and 
neighbors and fellow Americans--they are all our heroes. So many are 
still in the dawn of life as they risk their lives for our country and 
our ideals. We pray for the success of their mission and their quick 
and safe return to their families and to a proud and to a grateful 
nation.
  Many Americans, including many of us in Congress, opposed this war. 
But today and throughout this conflict, we are united in support of the 
men and women of our Armed Forces. We pledge to do all we can to 
support them.
  We honor them for their patriotism, their courage, their willingness 
to endure hardship and sacrifice and to give the last full measure of 
devotion to the country they love and the country that loves them. In 
the eloquent words of the Navy Hymn:

     O Trinity of love and power!
     Our brethren shield in danger's hour;
     From rock to tempest, fire and foe,
     Protect them wheresoe'er they go.

  Our thoughts and our heartfelt prayers are also with our President, 
as he makes the difficult decisions that will determine the course and 
success of the war that now begins. May God's wisdom guide our 
President and protect him in the days that lie ahead.
  In Massachusetts, we especially honor and remember the thousands of 
men and women on active duty from communities throughout our state who 
are now at war, and the thousands as well who have been activated from 
the Reserve and the National Guard--from the Barnes and The Otis Air 
National Guard Bases, from the Westover Air Reserve Base, from Camp 
Edwards, from the Devens Reserve Forces Training Area, from so many 
other places in our State. We pray for them all, and we admire them for 
their dedication to our country and their brave service.
  President Bush spoke for all Americans last night in expressing 
support for our forces. He is right to prepare our country for what may 
be a long and difficult struggle, and he is right to do his best to 
safeguard the innocent people of Iraq. We join our President in 
pledging our commitment to victory--to disarm Saddam and to bring 
freedom and opportunity to all the people of Iraq.
  In Congress, we will do all we can to give our servicemen and women 
the complete and full support they must have in order to prevail in 
this war and come safely home. We will do all we can to care for their 
families while they are apart. We will do all we can to protect the 
American people on the home front. We will do all we can to help the 
people of Iraq, and enable them to rebuild and renew their ancient land 
and rejoin the family of nations. And we will continue in the years to 
come to do all we can here at home to uphold the same great fundamental 
values for which our troops are now risking their lives--for 
opportunity and hope--for liberty and justice for all.
  In his great poem, ``Abraham Lincoln Walks at Midnight,'' Vachel 
Lindsay wrote:

     It is portentous, and a thing of state,
     That here at midnight, in our little town
     A mourning figure walks, and will not rest,
     Near the old court-house pacing up and down,
     Or by his homestead, or in shadowed yards
     He lingers where his children used to play,
     Or through the market, on the well-worn stones
     He stalks until the dawn-stars burn away.

     A bronzed, lank man! His suit of ancient black,
     A famous high top-hat and plain worn shawl
     Make him the quaint great figure that men love,
     The prairie-lawyer, master of us all.

     He cannot sleep upon his hillside now.
     He is among us--as in times before!
     And we who toss and lie awake for long
     Breathe deep, and start, to see him pass the door.

     His head is bowed. He thinks on men and kings.
     Yea, when the sick world cries, how can he sleep?
     Too many peasants fight, they know not why,
     Too many homesteads in black terror weep.

     The sins of all the war-lords burn his heart.
     He sees the dreadnaughts scouring every main.
     He carries on his shawl-wrapped shoulders now
     The bitterness, the folly and the pain.

     He cannot rest until a spirit-dawn
     Shall come--the shining hope of Europe free:
     The league of sober folk, the Workers' Earth,
     Bringing long peace to Cornland, Alp and Sea.

     It breaks his heart that kings must murder still.
     That all his hours of travail here for men
     Seem yet in vain. And who will bring white peace
     That he may sleep upon his hill again?

  I withhold the remainder of my time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Virginia.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I yield to the Senator from Tennessee.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Tennessee is recognized.
  Mr. ALEXANDER. I thank the Senator from Virginia.
  Mr. WARNER. I ask the Senator if he could limit his remarks to about 
3\1/2\ minutes.
  Mr. ALEXANDER. I thank the Senator. Last night, most Americans stayed 
up late watching for news of the war. Most Senators did, too. This 
morning, many Americans got up and said a little prayer for the men and 
women who will be fighting overseas for our country. I suspect most 
Senators did as well.
  Today, most Americans went about their jobs and the Senate did, too, 
but our discussions about the budget and our everyday jobs seem a 
little less important today compared to what our men and women overseas 
and our Commander in Chief are doing. We pause today to try to show in 
a united voice the same respect for our President and our men and women 
who are fighting overseas and our civilians who are involved, to show 
the same respect for them that they show for our country. The President 
has shown real courage. He has told us news we really don't want to 
hear, and he has been calm. He has used restraint, and he has been 
determined. But today, we think especially of our Armed Forces.
  Tennesseans have a rich history of serving in the armed services. We 
are the Volunteer State. We earned that name in the War of 1812, in the 
Mexican War and ever since, and the tradition continues today. Twenty 
thousand men and women from Fort Campbell have been deployed in the 
vicinity of Iraq, and another thousand active duty military personnel 
from across the State as well. More than 4,000 Tennesseans from more 
than 80 Reserve and National Guard units have been called up. They come 
from units like the 134th Air Refueling Wing from McGhee Tyson; K

[[Page 7046]]

company, 3rd Battalion, 23rd Marines in Memphis; and the 3397th U.S. 
Army Garrison of Chattanooga. They are protecting us from a great 
threat, and we are grateful to them.
  I hope and trust that we speak with a united voice, not just for this 
one day. I think of Larry Joyce, who sought me out in Chicago in 1995. 
He was a Vietnam veteran. His son Casey was killed in Somalia while 
serving in our armed services. He wanted to make sure that I or anyone 
else who might serve in public life remembered the lessons of Vietnam 
and Somalia. They were these: First, have a clear objective. Second, 
have more than enough force to win. And third, have the stomach to see 
any military action we undertake all the way through to the end.
  Mr. President, we have a clear objective. By 77 to 23, we voted to 
give the President the authority he exercises today. We would disarm 
Saddam Hussein, liberate Iraq, and help rebuild a strong democratic 
Iraq.
  No. 2, we have more than sufficient force to win, maybe more force 
than has ever been assembled in a military action.
  The question that remains is whether we, not our armed services, but 
whether we in the Congress and the American people have what we did not 
have in Vietnam and what we did not have in Somalia, which is the 
stomach to see our mission all the way through to the end.
  I rise today to join in expressing bipartisan support to our 
President and our Armed Forces and to hope and trust that we will have 
the stomach to see this mission all the way through to the end.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that my name be added as an 
original cosponsor of the resolution.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. ALEXANDER. I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Michigan.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I yield 5 minutes to the Senator from New 
York.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New York is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I thank my colleague for yielding time. I 
was on the floor as we began the session this morning. We had the 
prayer and the pledge, and of course this morning the prayer, by the 
pastor of St. Joseph's in our neighborhood here in Washington, and the 
pledge had renewed and deep meaning.
  In terms of the prayer, I pray, too, Mr. President. I pray that our 
military action in Iraq is swift, is decisive, is successful, and I 
pray that the number of casualties, both military and civilian, is 
small.
  I am deeply grateful--we all are deeply grateful--to the soldiers who 
are overseas. I spoke to departing guardsmen and enlisted men 
throughout my State of New York, in Canandaigua, Fort Drum, and on Long 
Island. When I addressed them, I had a lump in my throat because of 
their sacrifice, their bravery, their humanity, and because so many of 
them were there with their families before they were getting on planes 
to go to the Middle East.
  They are part of a grand tradition, a tradition of young men and 
young women who are willing to sacrifice for the rest of us, and we 
pray for them. I think all Americans join in that prayer.
  We have so many different views on the issues of the day and on the 
action in Iraq, but what always happens in this country in time of war 
is unity and prayer for our fighting men and women occur, and I believe 
that is what is happening now in this country.
  One last point. I have been asked by so many of my fellow New Yorkers 
what should they do, being that we have been in the epicenter of 
terrorism. I say to my fellow New Yorkers, first, you cannot be too 
careful. If there is anything untoward, report it to authorities. 
Second, our intelligence, our ability to deal with al-Qaida and other 
terrorist groups, has vastly improved since September 10, 2001, and I 
believe New Yorkers should continue to go about their duties, their 
jobs, their businesses, their daily lives. I gave the advice to my wife 
and daughters who live in New York City to continue going about their 
life, and I give that advice to all New Yorkers as well.
  Again, we hope and pray for a quick, decisive, successful military 
action in Iraq and for minimal casualties, military and civilian.
  I yield whatever time I have remaining to my colleague from Michigan.
  Ms. MIKULSKI. I am proud to rise in support of the resolution 
supporting our troops.
  America is now at war. My thoughts are with our troops. Our men and 
women in uniform have my steadfast support. They have my respect, my 
admiration, and my gratitude.
  Americans have differences over the path that led us to war. Yet 
Americans are united in support of our men and women in uniform. Each 
and every member of our military is part of the American family. Their 
service is a tremendous sacrifice and great risk. These are ordinary 
men and women called on to act in an extraordinary way. Whatever their 
nation asks them to do, they will do with bravery, fortitude, and 
gallantry. All Americans owe them a debt of gratitude.
  The military doesn't just need our thanks; they need our help. We 
must support them not only with words, but with deeds. That means 
ensuring that our troops have the best training and equipment. That 
means standing up for military families. They are facing long 
separations and terrible worries about the safety of their loved ones. 
They shouldn't also be facing financial worries. So while we are 
talking about tax cuts for Joe Billionaire, let's not forget GI Joe and 
Jane.
  I believe the war started the right way: targeting Saddam Hussein and 
members of his regime in their bunkers. Saddam Hussein is our enemy, 
not the people of Iraq.
  Let's not forget why we are at this point: The fault lies squarely 
with Saddam Hussein. Saddam is dangerous and duplicitous. As part of 
the gulf war cease-fire agreement, he committed to destroy his weapons 
of mass destruction. For the past twelve years, Saddam Husssein has 
ignored UN resolutions by rebuilding his illegal weapons programs. 
Resolution 1441 gave Saddam Hussein a final opportunity to destroy any 
prohibited weapons of mass destruction or missiles; to fully report on 
Iraq's weapons of mass destruction programs; and to cooperate with 
inspectors to verify compliance.
  I have consistently called for robust multinational action to disarm 
Iraq. Saddam Hussein is a danger to the world, so the world should 
share the burden of confronting the Iraqi threat. I appreciate the help 
and support of other nations, including Great Britain, Australia, and 
Poland. Other countries are allowing access to territory and airspace, 
providing logistical and intelligence support, or playing other 
noncombat roles.
  America must continue diplomacy, even as we continue the war, to 
expand the coalition of the willing to share the burden of war and to 
share the responsibility and the economic cost of rebuilding Iraq.
  Now that America is at war, our troops must know: I am on their side. 
The American people are on their side. The thoughts and prayers of the 
American people are with the men and women of our military, and with 
their families.
  God bless our troops, and God bless America.
  Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, with the commencement of engagement by 
U.S. military forces in Iraq, we stand united in support of the men and 
women of our Armed Forces. These young men and women representing the 
best of America are entering into harm's way in a distant land. 
Whatever our differences on policy, we speak with one voice in 
supporting our troops. I have no doubt that our military forces will be 
successful, although we do not now know how quickly or at what cost.
  As do all Marylanders, indeed all Americans, I pray for the safety of 
our troops and join my colleagues in pledging to them our commitment 
for the necessary resources and support.
  These brave men and women and their families are in our thoughts and

[[Page 7047]]

in our prayers. We wish them Godspeed, and their prompt and safe return 
to our shores.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, my thoughts and prayers are with Iowa 
families who have loved ones serving their country in the Middle East. 
When faced with the difficult and sometimes terrible duty of war, the 
men and women of our armed services have never let us down. We have the 
best trained soldiers, the best technology, and the best military 
commanders in the world. I have full confidence in their performance. 
My hope is for a swift conclusion and a lasting peace in the entire 
region. It is also my deep hope that innocent civilians in Iraq and the 
rest of the Middle East suffer a minimum of harm.
  I know the views in the country have been divided as to the need for 
and the wisdom of this war. Right now, we need to support the men and 
women who are serving this country. This war and the reconstruction 
work that follows will not be easy and many of our troops may bravely 
face risks. They are doing their duty and sacrificing for our security. 
We need to keep them all in our thoughts and prayers and be fully 
behind them. That is something on which we can all agree.
  Right now, over 3,200 Iowans are serving: 2,200 in the National 
Guard, 1,760 are overseas, and over 1,000 in our Reserves here and 
abroad. We are proud of our Iowa, that Iowans are protecting our 
homeland.
  In my home State of Iowa, I know there have been some concerns about 
our vulnerable areas in this time of Washington. I want Iowans to know 
I will be working with my fellow Senators to ensure our homeland is 
protected. As our Governor, Tom Vilsack, said today, it will take the 
resources of our Federal Government to keep our communities safe. I 
intend to work to make sure Iowans and all Americans have the 
protections we need here at home.
  Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise to express my support for the tens of 
thousands of brave Americans who are risking their lives at this very 
hour in a distant land to try to bring some peace and stability to a 
nation that has been ravaged by a dictator.
  Late last night the President of the United States ordered United 
States forces to begin attacks on Iraqi installations. There are 
currently almost 300,000 American service men and women in the Persian 
Gulf region. Several thousand are from my State of Connecticut, and 
they are doing their part. There are 1,500 members of the Connecticut 
National Guard, of which I was a member. It seems like hundreds of 
years ago, but I was a member of that National Guard in my home State. 
There are 750 deployed to the Middle East, and another 750 activated to 
participate in homeland security and related responsibilities. The 
results are 530 sons and daughters serving in the Army who are active 
members and reservists, 310 in the Air Force, and dozens of police 
officers and firefighters called to active duty, putting additional 
pressures on the homeland security issues.
  I thank each and every one of them for their service to our State, to 
our country, and for freedom. I say to them I am proud and honored to 
represent them in the Senate.
  As is always the case, these young men and women stand ready to obey 
the orders of the Commander in Chief to take up arms and risk their 
lives in the defense of all Americans and the values of freedom, 
liberty, and democracy. I greatly admire the courage and 
professionalism of our service men and women who are now engaged in 
this dangerous conflict far away from their homes and their loved ones.
  Americans stand as one in support of these brave individuals. I 
express my gratitude to the family members of our soldiers, sailors, 
marines, and members of the Coast Guard. They, more than anyone, 
understand the sacrifices involved in the service of our Nation.
  War is a treacherous endeavor and we all pray for their safe return. 
I am confident in the days and weeks ahead America and the U.S. 
Congress will continue to provide our service men and women the support 
they deserve and they may need.
  Last fall, I supported President Bush's decision to go to the United 
Nations and seek the support of the U.N. members to resolve the threat 
posed by Iraqi weapons of mass destruction and supported the deployment 
of U.S. weapons inspectors to Iraq to verify peaceful disarmament. I 
wanted the diplomatic efforts to succeed. I believe President Bush did, 
as well. Unfortunately, Saddam Hussein obviously did not.
  While there may have been differing opinions on some aspects of our 
policy toward Iraq, there has been no disagreement that Saddam Hussein 
is anything but a cruel and murderous tyrant. At a very critical 
juncture Saddam Hussein chose to impede the work of the inspectors and 
at every fork of the road he squandered opportunities for peaceful 
disarmament presented by the international community. Time has run out 
and we thus find ourselves in this situation.
  My hope is as we begin the reconstruction process, it will be a sense 
of cooperation internationally on reconstruction. We cannot do this 
alone. We have to reach out even to those we have had disagreements 
with to help rebuild Iraq and build the peace and stability of the 
region. That is critically important for America's security for the 
21st century.
  I regret we did not have more time to discuss this and express our 
views and thoughts. I do not minimize the importance of the budget 
debate, but this discussion would trump any discussion of a budget 
issue. Unfortunately, that time is not allocated.
  Saddam Hussein must bear full responsibility for what is about to 
befall him. He brought it upon himself. I have no sympathy for his 
plight. The real tragedy is that others may have to suffer for his sins 
although I am confident that American soldiers will make every effort, 
use every means of intelligence, and employ all available technology to 
minimize civilian casualties.
  Would that Saddam Hussein had shown the same regard for his people 
that our forces will. His record has been the opposite. This murderous 
tyrant has routinely had his own people tortured, raped, beaten, and 
executed. In 1988, he ordered the use of chemical weapons against the 
Iraqi people, killing 5,000 men, women, and children in a single day. 
Now, he may be ordering his elite troops to use the city of Baghdad as 
a fortress a human fortress endangering the lives of countless Iraqi 
civilians.
  It is my hope that United States military action will not only free 
the world of the dangers posed by Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass 
destruction, but provide an opportunity for the Iraqi people to free 
themselves from 30 years of tyranny and oppression, to begin a new 
chapter in the history of their country.
  The current military action may only last a few days or a few weeks. 
But in the end, I have no doubt that our American service men and women 
will prevail in this conflict. However, after we emerge successfully 
from our military conflict with Saddam Hussein, another challenge will 
face us: The task of establishing a free and stable Iraq. In many ways 
this is an even more important battle than the one currently ongoing in 
the deserts of Iraq. And it is a battle that we should not ``wage'' 
alone. An international coalition of friends, allies, and U.N. 
humanitarian organizations must be mobilized to share the costs and 
responsibility for providing humanitarian relief to the Iraqi people, 
and the larger and more complex reconstruction of Iraqi society.
  The United States is not the only nation that has a stake in 
rebuilding Iraq. The entire world has a huge stake in getting this 
right. For only an Iraq that is strong, free, and democratic--only an 
Iraq that respects the rights of all its citizens, only an Iraq that 
respects the territorial integrity of its neighbors can be counted on 
to contribute to building a Middle East that is stable and prosperous. 
That is why I am confident that whatever our past differences may have 
been, our friends and allies at the United Nations will join with us in 
this effort.
  Once again let me express my thanks to the American men and women who

[[Page 7048]]

have put themselves at risk for each one of us. Let me also thank the 
service members from other nations who have joined with our forces in 
this endeavor. And let me offer one more prayer for their swift and 
safe return home once their mission is complete.
  Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, I rise today to join my colleagues and all 
of America in expressing pride in and gratitude to our men and women in 
uniform. With one voice this Congress honors our troops, and with one 
mind we pray for their safe return.
  Last night, as we all watched from the safety of our living rooms, 
our military went to war. Our soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen 
have left their home country and their home fires to face unknown 
danger and even death. We cannot be proud enough of these courageous 
men and women who fight for freedom in Iraq. We cannot be grateful 
enough to these Americans who are willing to risk their lives for our 
security.
  We have so many people to thank today: Our Active Duty forces who 
have made it their life work to protect and defend us; our citizen 
soldiers, the Reserves, and the National Guard who have left jobs in 
offices and on factory floors, kissed children and spouses goodbye, and 
donned the uniform of our armed services; our troops' families who 
daily endure the hardships of military life and today worry and wait 
for their loved ones to come home.
  In my State of Wisconsin we have had over 2,200 men and women called 
up for service in the National Guard and an additional 1,357 mobilized 
from the Reserves, more people than at any time since the Berlin 
crisis.
  I make special mention of them because they trained in relative 
anonymity during times of peace. It is only in times of conflict that 
communities discover how many of their friends and neighbors serve 
their country quietly, year in and year out. In times of crises they 
are notable at their absence at scout meetings, church pews, and 
parent-teacher conferences.
  Last Monday I was fortunate enough to observe the 1158 transportation 
company at Beloit, WI, as they bravely headed off, leaving behind 
spouses, children, families, and friends. These soldiers had little 
time to put their affairs in order before being ordered into harm's 
way. But there were no complaints and no grumbling.
  The families I met were concerned about the future, were ready to 
deal with the personal and financial difficulties.
  I was struck to see young children bravely saying goodbye to their 
parents, without knowing what the future might bring. These youngsters 
did not ask for this war and did not understand it, but they, too, are 
making sacrifices for our security. Our soldiers are ready and willing 
to do their duty. They understand better than anyone else that freedom 
is not free. They are ready to pay that price today and every day.
  Our soldiers represent the best of the American people and American 
ideals. While many of us will talk about patriotism and service today, 
no words can do justice to the burden they have chosen to bear.
  So our hearts, our prayers, and our deepest gratitude go out to them 
today.
  Mr. ROCKEFELLER. The President has announced that military operations 
to disarm and liberate Iraq have begun. For those of us who have taken 
an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution, entering into war is one 
of the most somber moments we face.
  When the President sends our troops to battle, the stakes are 
unmistakably clear: our courageous troops are preparing to risk 
everything so that our society can continue to live in freedom. At a 
time like this, our Nation should come together as one to support our 
troops in battle, and to support the Commander in Chief.
  This military action responds to the growing threat to America and 
our allies posed by Saddam Hussein and his weapons of mass destruction. 
Here at home and around the world, we have debated how best to disarm 
Saddam. After 12 years of diplomacy, and 17 different U.N. resolutions, 
Saddam remains a serious threat to the peace and stability of the 
region, and to the safety of Americans and our allies.
  I, like most of my colleagues, believed we could not live with this 
threat to America's security. And so I voted last October to give the 
President authority to make one final attempt to disarm Saddam through 
the U.N.--to give diplomacy one last chance to work--and to resort to 
forcible disarmament if that failed.
  Five months after we passed our congressional resolution, and 4 
months after the U.N. Security Council unanimously passed resolution 
1441, Saddam has still refused to disarm.
  Now the President has decided, drawing on the authority granted him 
by the Constitution, by the Congress, and by a series of U.N. 
resolutions, to send our troops into battle--to forcibly disarm Iraq, 
end Saddam's rule of terror, and allow the oppressed Iraqi people to 
have a better life.
  And it is our responsibility, here in America, to come together to 
show our troops, who are fighting to protect our freedoms, that they 
have all our support, and that we are praying for a quick and 
successful campaign.
  I had the opportunity to visit our troops last month in Kuwait, 
Qatar, and Afghanistan, and had the privilege to meet our fine young 
West Virginians serving there. I am always impressed by the commitment 
and professionalism of our Armed Forces--the brave enlisted men and 
women who have dedicated their skills and energy to safeguarding 
America's vital national interests, the officer crops who have honed 
the most awesome fighting machine the world has ever seen, and the 
reservists and national guardsmen who willingly disrupt their civilian 
lives when their country needs them.
  To witness their dedication and skill, and their willingness to risk 
everything to defend the greater good of our Nation, is to be reminded, 
just as we learned on that fateful September 11, that heroes still walk 
among us. The Americans who have volunteered to serve in our Nation's 
Armed Forces are some of the finest individuals our society produces, 
and we are all in their debt.
  We West Virginians have always been particularly proud that while we 
are a small State, we contribute a significant share of America's Armed 
Forces. I have here a list of the West Virginia Reserve and National 
Guard units that have been called up for service overseas in the past 2 
years. I realize I can't read the entire list, but I would like to note 
that it encompasses 28 units based in West Virginia and nearly 2500 
servicemembers, as well as thousands of Active Duty servicemembers who 
hail from West Virginia. I ask unanimous consent to have this list 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

West Virginia National Guard & Reserve Units Mobilized Since September 
                                11, 2001

       1. 157th Military Police Company, Martinsburg, WV, 124 
     personnel.
       2. 152nd Military Police Detachment, Moorefield, WV, 45 
     personnel.
       3. 1257th Transportation Company, Huntington, WV, 167 
     personnel.
       4. 463rd Engineer Battalion Detachment 2, Wheeling, WV, 50 
     personnel.
       5. 554th Adjutant General Company, Ripley, WV, 18 
     personnel.
       6. 111th Engineer Group Headquarters, Headquarters Company, 
     St. Albans, 88 personnel.
       7. 119th Engineer Company, Clarksburg, WV, 159 personnel.
       8. Detachment 1 1st Battalion 80th Regiment 3rd Brigade, 
     Kingwood, WV, 32 personnel.
       9. Army National Guard Special Operations Detachment E, 
     Moorefield, WV, 27 personnel.
       10. Army National Guard Special Operation Detachment 3, 
     Charleston, WV, 1 personnel.
       11. Special Operations Detachment, Europe Forward 2, 
     Kingwood, WV, 1 personnel.
       12. State Area Command West Virginia Detachment 6, Charles 
     Town, WV, 1 personnel.
       13. State Area Command West Virginia Army National Guard 
     Headquarters, Charleston, WV, 1 personnel.
       14. 1092nd Engineer Battalion, Parkersburg, WV, 522 
     personnel.
       15. 1863rd Transportation Company, Oak Hill, WV, 68 
     personnel.
       16. 156th Military Police Department, Monaville, WV, 45 
     personnel.
       17. 261st Ordnance Company 1st Platoon Medical Lift, 
     Charleston, WV, 44 personnel.
       18. 261st Ordinance Company Detachment 1 Ammunition 
     Modular, Kenova, WV, 12 personnel.

[[Page 7049]]


       19. 261st Ordnance Company Detachment 2, Kenova, WV, 12 
     personnel.
       20. 321st Ordnance Battalion Headquarters Headquarters 
     Company, Charleston, WV, 52 personnel.
       21. 363rd Military Police Company Combat Support Group, 
     Grafton, WV, 180 personnel.
       22. 459th Engineer Company Heavy Boat Detachment 1, 
     Bridgeport, WV, 10 personnel.
       23. 459th Engineer Company Detachment 3, Bridgeport, WV, 
     173 personnel.
       24. 304th Military Police Company, Bluefield, WV 180 
     personnel.
       25. 351st Ordnance Company, Romney, WV, 153 personnel.
       26. 811th Ordnance Company, Rainelle, WV, 118 personnel.
       27. 2nd Division Special Forces Battalion 19th Special 
     Forces Group 1st Special Forces, Camp Dawson, WV, 9 
     personnel.
       28. 300th Chemical Company, Morgantown, WV, 113 personnel.

  Mr. ROCKEFELLER. A war will always involve risk and uncertainty. That 
is especially the case when we are dealing with a dangerous dictator 
like Saddam Hussein, who has used illegal; weapons before, and who 
knows that in this instance, war will not end until he is removed.
  We should never be over-confident, and must go into this knowing that 
our troops will face real risks. But we can take heart that never, in 
the history of mankind, have there been Armed Forces better prepared to 
meet the challenges that come their way.
  In skill, in technological sophistication, and in fighting spirit, 
our troops continue to set new benchmarks the world has never seen. 
Never in modern history has there been a fighting force so clearly 
superior to all its competitors.
  We now stand at an important threshold in our Nation's history, and 
our national security. The proliferation of weapons of mass destruction 
has altered America's security forever. Before 2001, we believed that 
we could only be threatened by another superpower--and the demise of 
the Soviet Union made us think that threats to America's homeland had 
more or less vanished. On September 11, we learned how wrong we were.
  In the coming years, the spread of weapons of mass destruction--to 
rogue governments, and to terrorist groups in the developing world--
will be America's most important national security challenge. And 
increasingly, the focus of our diplomacy and defense alliances will 
shift away from our traditional focus on Europe to respond to these 
emerging threats from developing countries in Asia, in Africa, and even 
in Latin America.
  Indeed, that is already the case today: besides Iraq, the biggest 
security threats currently facing America aren't major power rivalries 
but illegal proliferation of weapons of mass destruction by states such 
as North Korea and Iran. This threat isn't unique to the United 
States--but our global leadership role makes us a particularly tempting 
target for the disaffected and resentful.
  We cannot allow foreign terrorist or rogue states to threaten our 
society with weapons of mass destruction. Terrorism and proliferation 
can be stopped, but to do so will require a concerted, sustained 
strategy, rather than ad hoc, relative efforts.
  And it will require broad international support--the kind that helped 
us win the cold war--rather than working alone, or begin dismissive of 
our allies because they haven't yet recognized the magnitude of the 
shared threat.
  War is always a tragedy. To put human lives at risk--both military 
and civilian--can only be considered when all other reasonable options 
have failed.
  And in that regard, the significance of this conflict is not just in 
disarming Iraq. While that is the primary goal, this mission also 
demonstrates to the world that the spread of weapons of mass 
destruction is such a grave threat to our security that we Americans 
are prepared to use the full force of our military--our fine and brave 
men and women in uniform--to stop it.
  And we are joined in that understanding by the British, and the 
Australians, and the poles, and many, many allies around the world.
  Perhaps some other countries haven't reached that understanding yet. 
Or they continue to believe the diplomatic processes developed for a 
cold war environment must be maintained at all costs. But this new 
threat must be addressed.
  If our troops find chemicals or biological weapons in Iraq--and I am 
confident they will--it will demonstrate to the skeptics around the 
world that we were right about the threat, and that we had to take 
action before these illegal weapons were used. And I hold out great 
hope that a swift victory in Iraq will pave the way for the U.S. and 
our allies to come together around a strategy to deal with the spread 
of weapons of mass destruction elsewhere.
  I hope, too, that a swift victory in Iraq will provide an opportunity 
for the U.S. and our allies to come together to support the 
reconstruction and rehabilitation of Iraq. As the President has said, 
we bear no ill-will to the Iraqi people, only to the brutal and corrupt 
regime that governs them. The reconstruction of Iraq will be a long, 
costly complicated task, but a vital one--for it will ensure that 
Iraqis, now and in the future, will understand that America and its 
allies have come as liberators, not conquerors.
  Those are longer-term concerns, and we will have to attend to them. 
For now, though, we must focus on the task at hand, which is the 
prompt, safe and humane execution of the military operation the 
President has commenced.
  I join my fellow West Virginians in telling our troops they have our 
support, our gratitude, and our prayers. They represent the best of our 
society, and we know they will perform in a manner that makes us all 
proud.
  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I rise today with America at war 
against the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein, to vote in favor of the 
concurrent resolution introduced by my colleagues, commending the 
President and America's Armed Forces.
  This is a moment of utmost seriousness and solemnity, without doubt 
the most critical time of my decade in the Senate.
  During this difficult time, America and the world must know that this 
Chamber stands firmly united behind our men and women in harm's way, 
men and women willing to make the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our 
liberties and our lives. Our hopes and our prayers are with them and 
their families.
  I would also like to recognize those now engaged in combat from my 
home State of California.
  More than 102,000 Californians have been sent to the gulf from every 
branch of the military--Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard, and 
Marines, along with 13,000 reservists. This is the largest number of 
Americans from any State fighting in this war.
  And while many people in California are opposed to this war, I would 
urge all of them to unite behind these courageous men and women and 
their families here at home.
  I have had questions about how we got to this point. I would have 
done it a different way, and I will have more to say about that at the 
appropriate time.
  But now, as we unite behind our military and our Commander in Chief, 
the United States must be prepared for the long term. Winning the war 
will mark but the first step.
  Once the shooting stops and the dust clears, we must be equally 
committed to winning the peace in Iraq, and to see that longstanding 
ethnic rivalries not be allowed to surface. Failure to do so would, at 
the very least, negate any military success.
  This means, of course, that the United States must take the lead in 
rebuilding the Iraqi nation, in stabilizing its new government, in 
providing interim security to prevent the emergence of tribal 
hostilities, and to see that Iraq is no longer a producer of weapons of 
mass destruction.
  Winning the peace in Iraq is absolutely critical. Indeed, winning the 
peace means: reducing the likelihood of a possible clash of 
civilizations, pitting the United States and our allies against the 
Muslim world; reducing the incidence of renewed terrorist attacks, both 
here and abroad; increasing the chances of achieving lasting peace in 
the Middle East--of resolving the Israeli-Palestinian crisis; allowing 
us to recommit ourselves to the still uncertain future of Afghanistan 
and the

[[Page 7050]]

government of Hamid Karzai; and ensuring that the United States will 
persevere, sooner rather than later, in the overall war on terror.
  So, as the courageous men and women of the American military set out 
to remove Saddam Hussein from power, risking their very lives for us 
and the liberties we must never take for granted, the focus of our 
thoughts and our prayers are with them.
  We wish them every success and a speedy return home to their 
families. For those that may fall in battle and pay the highest price, 
however, their sacrifice must never be forgotten.
  And the best way to honor them is by winning the peace in Iraq--by 
helping the Iraqi people rebuild their lives, and by demonstrating to 
Muslims everywhere that the United States, while a powerful nation, is 
also motivated by a sincere desire to one day see the entire world 
safe, prosperous, and free.
  This, after all, is what this conflict is all about, and why we must 
prevail.
  Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, as this conflict begins, all of us pray 
for a swift and decisive victory, and the safety of our brave men and 
women in battle.
  North Dakota has sent thousands of sons and daughters to wage this 
fight at home and abroad, including more National Guard members per 
capita than any other State.
  Along with the men and women from the airbases in Minot and Grand 
Forks, North Dakotans will bear a heavy burden in this conflict.
  I know they will be strong. I pray they will be safe.
  I have great confidence that the fourteen B-52s deployed from Minot 
Air Force Base and their crews will turn in a brilliant performance, 
once again demonstrating the awesome power and effectiveness of these 
reliable planes and their expert crews. B-52s made a huge contribution 
to our success in Afghanistan, helping to turn the tide quickly against 
the terrorists. They were decisive in the last gulf war, and I know 
they will again play a key role.
  The Grand Forks base is operating at a greater tempo than at any time 
in its history, flying its massive tankers and providing the air bridge 
that allows our forces to operate against an enemy halfway around the 
world.
  Our National Guard members have been called up to bases inside the 
United States, ready to support operations on the ground, and we hope, 
the operations that will be necessary after a victory. The Guard units 
have been drawn from Fargo, Bismarck, Grand Forks, Edgeley, Grafton, 
Rugby, Wishek, Cando, Carrington, Mayville, Oakes, and Wahpeton. There 
is hardly a town in my State that has not seen at least one of its 
citizens called up to serve. They have left their jobs and their 
families to do their duty in defense of the Nation.
  I could not be more proud of the tremendous contribution the men and 
women of my State are making, their dedication and their patriotism.
  I had hoped for a peaceful solution, but today we are at war. Like 
all Americans, my thoughts and prayers will be with our troops and our 
allies in the difficult hours to come. My greatest hope is that the 
conflict will be settled quickly, with minimal loss of life, and that 
stability will be restored to the region.
  As the conflict continues, I stand with my colleagues united behind 
our troops here at home and overseas. With my family and my colleagues 
I pray for the men and women who now stand in harm's way. May they be 
granted a swift victory, and may the sacrifices of this war lead to a 
safer and more peaceful world.
  Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, On Monday, March 17, the attention of the 
world was focused on Washington, DC and the White House. The President 
was about to speak to the Nation about Saddam Hussein and the refusal 
of the Government of Iraq to live up to its signed agreements and the 
resolutions of the United Nations to eliminate their stock of weapons 
of mass destruction. In the 15 or so minutes that followed, our 
President made clear his determination to take action and resolve the 
situation in Iraq. He said he was going to end forever the evil 
presence of a dictator in Iraq who had done nothing during his reign 
but abuse his power as he pursued his dreams of glory and increased 
power and prestige while showing little regard for the health and 
welfare of his own people.
  As the President spoke with passion and conviction on the need to rid 
the world of Hussein's dictatorship, he cut through the rhetoric and 
the misleading positions and promises that had been so often heard 
during the past few years. He made it clear that this was an ultimatum 
of more than words--action was sure to follow if his words were left 
unheeded. He did everything he could to make it abundantly clear to 
Saddam Hussein and the people of the world that such evil would not be 
allowed to stand. He stated a final deadline.
  Soon after he spoke, the movement of our troops intensified as an 
international coalition took up their positions surrounding Iraq as we 
all waited for Saddam Hussein's response. There could be only one 
acceptable response to the President's message. Saddam had to leave 
Iraq, relinquish his power, and take his sons and family with him. 
Anything less would be unacceptable.
  Now we have our answer. A deadline has been set which has come and 
gone. In response our troops are now advancing into Iraq and heading 
for its capital of Baghdad. A series of events that began years ago 
with our defense of Kuwait will now end where it must--with the removal 
of Saddam Hussein and an end to his brutal dictatorship.
  As our troops head further into Iraq, they will be heading into 
unknown dangers and trouble that cannot be accurately predicted, though 
they have been trained and will be prepared for it.
  Will Saddam Hussein try to use chemical weapons to prolong his hold 
on power? What has he hidden from the team of inspectors that he may 
now want to unleash? These and so many other questions will be in the 
minds of our troops as they come closer and closer to Iraq's capital 
city. The rewards that will come with our success will be great. But, 
as we know from our past experiences, the sacrifices that may lie ahead 
may be equally as great.
  War is a very dangerous business and Wyoming is no stranger to the 
kind of sacrifice it sometimes requires from those who serve in our 
military. Down through the years, the people of Wyoming have always 
answered the call to protect and preserve the peace and answer the 
threat of any enemy of our Nation, wherever it has led them. Many paid 
the ultimate price.
  In 1991, when Saddam Hussein decided to attack Kuwait and drain that 
country of its supplies and resources, our Armed Forces were there to 
respond to the cry for help that came from Kuwait.
  Joining in as part of that effort was one of Wyoming's own, Manuel 
Davila. Manuel was a brave young man, a father, and a nice guy who had 
a kind word for everyone he met. He was the kind of person you would 
want on your side if there were tough times ahead. There were tough 
times on the horizon as this battle began and we were fortunate to have 
brave men and women like Manuel on our side.
  I watched Manuel grow up because he came from my home town. He loved 
his life and he loved Wyoming. But he loved freedom more. When he was 
called on to bring the freedoms he loved to people he had never met, he 
did not hesitate. He traded his beloved blue skies and mountaintops of 
Wyoming for the flat dessert and skies darkened by Saddam Hussein's 
desperate attempts to delay the end of his occupation by setting every 
oil well he could on fire. He traded the sweet smell of Wyoming's clean 
mountain air for the use of a gas mask and the threat of exposure to 
the Iraqi war machine's stock of gas and chemical weapons.
  Sadly, he was one who didn't come home from that war. But he did 
leave behind a legacy of standing up for what you believe in, keeping 
your word, and never allowing evil to win by failing to act or by doing 
so little in response it was as if you did nothing at all.
  Then came September 11, and another round of attacks by a madman 
fueled by hatred and a mad desire for power. Once again we looked to 
our sons and daughters to respond and to

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end the threat of terrorism once and for all. The bravest and best of 
Wyoming and many other States were soon on the front lines, ready to 
put their training into action. As they did, one of the first lost was 
Jonn J. Edmunds, a young man from Cheyenne, who was killed as our 
Nation took action against those who supported and planned the 
terrorist attacks of that terrible day.
  Now, as we stand here together in prayerful support of our Armed 
Forces, I have no doubt that Manuel and Jonn and all the others who 
have served so bravely in our military over the years would be proud of 
their comrades and their liberation of Iraq which is finally at hand.
  Soon Iraq will be welcomed back into the family of nations and the 
rights so cherished by our Nation and our people will be part of the 
daily routine in Iraq, too. By our actions we are showing the world 
that the rights with which we are endowed by our Creator, the rights to 
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, which are a part of our 
own Declaration of Independence, were intended to be claimed not just 
by the people of our own Nation. They are to be rightfully claimed by 
people all over the world as well.
  As we wait for today's news from Iraq, we are fully aware of the 
seriousness of the challenge that lies before us--its difficulty and 
its magnitude. For the first time since I was a young boy we are facing 
an enemy who is faceless and nameless and may have operatives who 
sympathize with him who may strike us on our own soil. With the 
exception of Pearl Harbor, we have never faced that kind of a threat in 
our lives. September 11 changed that and we must now all be more 
vigilant for in a very real sense we are all part of the war effort--
just as we were in the days of World War II.
  As the effort to remove the tyranny of Saddam Hussein continues, the 
fate of both our nations hangs in the balance. The degree of our 
success in what we set out to do and the aftermath as we work to bring 
a lasting peace to Iraq will speak volumes to the world about our 
ability to walk our talk.
  When this war is over and Iraq is free, we will have sent a message 
to all those who would deny their people the basic rights of human 
existence. The world will no longer tolerate their abuse of power and 
their refusal to acknowledge or respond to the needs of their people. 
We will also have ended the regime of a dictator and eliminated his 
stock of weapons of mass destruction. We will have taken a strong, 
decisive action which will help to increase the security of our Nation 
and the world.
  Ronald Reagan once said that ``Some people live an entire lifetime 
and wonder if they have ever made a difference in the world. The 
marines don't have that problem.''
  Neither does the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the Coast Guard or 
the Merchant Marine. Through their brave and courageous actions on 
behalf of the people of Iraq, they will do for that country what they 
did for the people of Kuwait. They will give them their country and 
their lives back. They will give them the chance to dream again about a 
better future for their children. They will give those who live under 
oppression around the world a real reason to hope that someday things 
will be better for them in their own country.
  We all know what brave, remarkable people our soldiers are. They 
don't see any limits to what they can do because they will never quit 
until the job is done and the war is won. We owe them each a debt we 
will never be able to repay. We can never forget that it is because of 
them--and not us--that the rights enumerated in our Constitution are 
guaranteed. Whether it is freedom of religion, the press, or freedom of 
speech, it has always been the efforts of our soldiers that have 
provided us with a platform from which to speak, and the ability to 
exercise these and all our rights. Even those who have spoken out 
against their efforts have our soldiers to thank for their right to do.
  Tonight, when we spend those last few minutes tucking our children 
into bed, I hope we all take a moment to comfort our children and our 
grandchildren, and to assure them that things will be all right someday 
soon. Make sure they know they can sleep peacefully tonight and in the 
nights to come, because the brave men and women of this Nation, our 
sons and daughters--and perhaps their own sisters and brothers--are 
ever vigilant, on guard and have taken a stand on our behalf. We can 
take a great deal of pride in them all.
  As a member of the Senate, I have always been very proud of the way 
we come together whenever we are faced by a threat, or forced to use 
our nation's military to answer an attack or address a wrong. As our 
young men and women head into battle, I know I won't be the only one 
who will bow his head to pray.
  May God bless and protect the men and women of our Armed Forces. May 
He watch over the Iraqi people and keep them safe from harm as we fight 
to liberate their country and bring them freedom and peace--a just 
peace that will recognize their rights and ensure that they have food, 
medicine, and the essentials of life that have been denied them for too 
long. May our victory be swift so their wait for relief will not be 
long. And may all our loved ones return home safely, and in peace.
  Mr. CORZINE. Mr. President, I rise to join my colleagues and the 
Nation in a strong and unequivocal expression of support for the 
courageous men and women of the United States military, who now defend 
America's values in the Persian Gulf.
  This expression is far more than a personal expression. It is an 
expression of the feelings of the people of New Jersey--many who are 
mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, and spouses of those in harm's 
way. For all of us, these brave individuals are in our hearts and 
prayers.
  Mr. President, today our Nation is united. United in support for our 
Nation's military. United in appreciation for the bravery and sacrifice 
of our service men and women, and their loved ones. United in our 
unshakable commitment to victory, a victory, with the grace of God, 
that will be achieved with maximum speed and minimum casualties.
  Mr. President, we Americans obviously had our differences as we moved 
on the path that got us to this point. There are many reservations I 
could express and people more thoughtful than myself have done so. But 
in our democracy, there is a time for differences and a time for 
debate. That said, there comes a time to end debate and unite. That 
time is now. That unity is without regard to party, ideology, or 
philosophy. We all stand together as members of the great American 
family.
  Mr. President, the United States military is unrivaled in its power 
and its competence. In that strength, I am confident that we will 
succeed in our mission. A mission to free the Iraqi people. A mission 
to help ensure that our Nation can live in peace, without the threat of 
weapons of mass destruction falling into the hands of madmen and 
terrorists.
  So, Mr. President, on behalf of all New Jerseyans and in company with 
all Americans, let me again express my deep appreciation to the 
courageous Americans who are putting their lives on the line, and for 
their loved ones. They are America's heroes. Their Nation will support 
them every step of the way until the day comes, as we pray it will, 
when these hostilities are complete.
  Mr. VOINOVICH. Mr. President, today, our hearts and prayers go out to 
those people in the Armed Forces who are fighting the war in Iraq. This 
morning, I put on this orange ribbon I wore when I was Governor of the 
State of Ohio during Desert Storm. I am going to continue to wear it 
during the war in Iraq to remind me and others that our men and women 
are in harm's way, and I will continue to wear it until they return.
  Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, as we stand here today on the Senate floor, 
America's finest citizens and the world's greatest military men and 
women have been called upon in the cause of disarming Saddam Hussein.
  These are Americans who willingly serve this country, who knowingly 
place themselves in harm's way to defend our Nation, and who are ready 
to

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do the jobs for which they have trained. These men and women in the 
Armed Services and intelligence community are unmatched in their 
professionalism and skill, and I have no doubt that they will prevail.
  As I said on the House floor in 1991, on behalf of the authorization 
of what would become Operation Desert Storm, ``the magnitude of the 
vote I now face is greater than any other I have or likely will cast.'' 
I was proven wrong on October 9, when I cast a vote of equal gravity 
and solemnity, authorizing the President to use force in the 
disarmament of Saddam Hussein.
  In the days since that vote, while President Bush pursued a course of 
diplomacy, Saddam Hussein instead pursued a course of deceit. Under the 
terms of UN Resolution 1441, approved unanimously by the Security 
Council, Hussein determined the course upon which we have now embarked 
by refusing to fully and immediately disarm. Armed conflict was not the 
hope of anyone among us. Now that it regrettably has become a necessary 
reality, we stand united in support of our troops who once again will 
be on the vanguard in service to freedom and the protection of all 
those nations that embrace this noble ideal.
  I have had the great privilege to meet countless soldiers, sailors, 
airmen and women, and veterans during my quarter-century tenure in 
Congress. We are grateful because we know that they are the bulwark 
behind which we stand, and against which our enemies strain. And we are 
in awe because we cannot fully comprehend their ability to so 
completely substitute the concept of ``self'' with the virtue of 
selflessness.
  Today, the realities of war weigh heavily on our hearts, and the 
focus of all our prayers is now with our men and women in uniform. In 
the protection of freedom, the disarming of Saddam Hussein, and the 
liberation of the people of Iraq, American sons and daughters may well 
make the ultimate sacrifice. That they would undertake that risk for 
our Nation and the world overwhelms the words available to honor their 
extraordinary spirit and courage.
  The best we can hope to do is to come together, behind our Commander 
in Chief and all of our troops, with nothing but the greatest pride in 
their courage and the strongest support for their mission. A freed 
Iraq, a world free of the tyranny of Saddam Hussein and his weapons of 
mass destruction, and a menacing cloud lifted from the heartland of a 
troubled region--none of these would be possible without those men and 
women who put their lives at risk for the greater good.
  It is for them that we pass this resolution and pray for safe return. 
May God bless all those who wear the uniform of our armed forces, and 
my God bless the United States of America.
  Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. President, as a citizen, Senator, and former marine, 
my hopes and prayers are with the troops and their families. I returned 
just a few weeks ago from the Persian Gulf and will be going back as 
soon as possible. I went to the region to assess whether the war 
fighters in the field were armed with the best intelligence possible to 
fight and win a battle against Saddam Hussein. Take my word for it, our 
soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines are ready. They will take care 
of business consistent with American values. They will take care of 
each other. When they return, they will receive the accolades of a 
greateful nation.
  The operation in Iraq is a component of the war against terrorism. We 
depend on our men and women in uniform to keep the terror plotters and 
operators far off our shores, away from our families, communities, and 
our Nation. That is quite a responsibility. I can not imagine a more 
important mission.
  I support the resolution under consideration, and I am pleased it 
mentions those who have yet to return home from the original conflict 
in 1991, most notably Navy Captain Scott Speicher. I am also pleased 
that colleagues have come to the chamber not to argue about Iraq, 
rather to proclaim support for our service personnel.
  The debate ended last October with a 77-to-23 vote to permit a 
military option, should one be needed, in the case of the Baghdad 
regime. In passing H.J. Res. 114, Congress specifically authorized the 
President to ``use the Armed Forces of the United States in order to--
(1) defend the national security of the United States against the 
continuing threat posed by Iraq; and (2) enforce all relevant United 
Nations Council resolutions regarding Iraq.'' This action was, of 
course, in addition to the Iraq Liberation Act, which Congress passed 
and President Clinton signed into law October 31, 1988. That act 
clearly states the United States should foster regime change in Iraq. 
The House passed that bill by a vote of 360 to 38, with 157 Democrats 
joining 202 Republicans. Lastly, on November 8, 2002, the U.N. Security 
Council passed Resolution 1441 which gave Iraq one last opportunity to 
comply with its disarmament obligations.
  A few months later, the Director of Central Intelligence declared 
``Iraq has in place an active effort to deceive the U.N. inspectors and 
deny them access. This effort is directed by the highest levels of the 
Iraqi regime. Baghdad has given clear directions to its operational 
forces to hide banned materials in their possession.'' Let's be candid 
on the issue of compliance. The truth is that no amount of U-2 
surveillance flights nor increase in the number of inspectors would 
have solved the problem of Saddam Hussein and weapons of mass 
destruction. Now I don't want war. Nobody wants war. The fact is, 
however, we are already at war. Over the last two decades, 5,700 
Americans have lost their lives as a result of the kind of terrorist 
activity Saddam Hussein supports. I recall that the Marine Barracks in 
Lebanon, Pan Am 103, Khobar Towers, the embassy bombings in Kenya and 
Tanzania, the USS Cole, and of course, September 11, 2001. Only after 
the latter tragedy, did we begin to fight back.
  So I say to our troops and their families, thank you and I support 
you. You are freedom's best hope.
  Ms. CANTWELL. Mr. President, I come to the floor this afternoon to 
express, on behalf of Washington State, our prayers and thoughts for 
the men and women of the United States armed forces that have now been 
called to duty in service of their country.
  I am proud to join my colleagues in the Senate and Americans 
throughout the country to come together to support our troops and pray 
that their mission is completed quickly, effectively, and with minimal 
casualties.
  America's deepest hope is for a swift conclusion to this war to 
liberate Iraq and protect the world from its weapons of mass 
destruction.
  In Washington State, we are proud to be the home to thousands of 
troops from our State that are currently serving our country in this 
conflict.
  The men and women of the USS Abraham Lincoln, homeported in Everett, 
WA, have been deployed in the region since last summer and are a 
critical element of our efforts as a launching stage for air 
operations, including 50 missions over Southern Iraq just yesterday.
  Air operations will depend heavily on tanker aircraft, many of which 
are based in Spokane, WA's Fairchild Air Force Base. And almost all air 
missions will be dependent upon the critical support of EA-6 radar 
jammers and P-3 aircraft, many of which are based in Naval Air Station 
Whidbey Island in Oak Harbor, WA.
  In the ground operations, troops from Fort Lewis, near Tacoma, WA, 
will be providing critical infantry support. And cargo planes from 
McChord Air Force Base, also near Tacoma, have and will continue to be 
crucial in providing transportation support.
  We also recognize the important sacrifices being made by the National 
Guard and reserve units in our State that have been activated, leaving 
jobs and livelihoods behind to serve the call to duty.
  And let us not forget the parents, wives, husbands, friends and 
children of the men and women of our armed forces, whose support--in 
the face of fear and anxiety--is admirable and inspirational.
  We are enormously proud of our fellow Washingtonians that are serving 
the Nation. Along with men and

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women from all 50 States serving in the military, these brave and 
courageous Americans have volunteered to put their lives on the line to 
defend the security of our country and the stability of our world.
  Our prayers are with them, and we look forward to their speedy 
success and return home.
  I have tremendous confidence in the men and women of our armed 
services to bring this conflict to a successful conclusion.
  Yet, this support for the effort is accompanied by a deep sense of 
anxiety and concern.
  Nobody wants war.
  The death, destruction and misery of war are things that we should 
never ignore and we cannot forget. When our troops are called to defend 
our Nation and international peace, we do so with a heavy heart but 
strong confidence that we will prevail.
  In reaching our objective of disarmament, we must not forget the 
plight of the Iraqi people.
  Iraqi civilians have been victims of a brutal, harsh and inhumane 
dictator that has not only stripped away political liberty and free 
expression, but has combined the tactics of torture, deprivation and 
murder to maintain his terrible regime.
  We must soberly recognize that the Iraqi people will be innocent 
victims of this conflict, and we must remain dedicated to doing 
everything in our power to ensure their safety and, ultimately, 
liberation.
  Importantly, this dedication must extend beyond military success. We, 
in this Chamber, must recognize that the prospect of creating a stable, 
post-Saddam Iraq will be a huge, expensive and politically volatile 
endeavor.
  This will not be easy, especially given the historic rivalries among 
Iraq's Kurdish, Shiite and Sunni population.
  However, whatever the costs and whatever the commitment, we owe it to 
ourselves and the world to ensure that the liberation of Iraq our 
troops are fighting for is not wasted away by a failed post-war 
strategy.
  Our troops are answering the call of duty.
  As our hearts go out to their families and loved ones, we are a 
Nation that is profoundly grateful for their courage, dedication and 
sense of mission.
  We know that our troops will meet the challenge that they have been 
given.
  Mr. LAUTENBERG. I rise in support of S. Res. 95, which commends our 
Armed Forces.
  The war with Iraq is underway. I regret that diplomatic efforts to 
disarm Saddam Hussein have failed. I regret that diplomatic efforts to 
build a broader coalition of nations willing to join us in military 
action have also fallen short.
  But the task force before us now is to pledge our unqualified support 
for our courageous young men and women on the battlefield; to do 
whatever is needed to ensure they have every advantage now that the 
fighting has commended.
  I was in the Army during World War II and served in Europe. As a 
veteran, I know how important it is for our Air Force personnel; and 
our soldiers and sailors to know that we feel close to them and they 
are constantly in our thoughts.
  Winston Churchill said: ``We shall not escape our dangers by 
recoiling from them.'' So we send our young men and women in uniform--
each one a volunteer--to Iraq and to other distant places such as 
Afghanistan.
  They fight to protect us, and they fight to free other people they 
don't know from cruelty and savage oppression.
  Our troops are the best trained and best equipped in history. We have 
no doubt that they will prevail in their mission to oust Iraq's brutal 
dictator, eliminate Iraq's dangerous arsenal, and make the world a 
safer place.
  War may be necessary, and war may be right. But it is never good. So 
we hope that this campaign to rid the world of Saddam Hussein and his 
murderous cohorts will be quick and decisive. We hope that there will 
be little collateral damage and as few casualties as possible, both 
among our troops and among innocent Iraqi noncombatants. We hope that 
our brave young men and women in uniform will return home to their 
families safely, and as soon as possible.
  Once we win the war in Iraq, we will have to secure the peace. That 
will be the best way we can honor our troops.
  Even as we engage in the fighting today, we have to start planning 
for what comes tomorrow. That will require a steadfastness of purpose 
equal to what our troops are displaying as we speak. The task will not 
be easy. All people, all nations have the same tendency: we judge 
ourselves by our intentions; we judge others by their actions. We know 
that our intentions are noble; many others, however--including some of 
our long-standing allies--only see our actions and they condemn them. 
It is imperative that once the shooting stops, we do whatever is 
necessary to build a free, open, and democratic Iraq at peace with 
itself, its neighbors, and the world.
  So, no matter the length of the battle, no matter how demanding the 
war, we face some years of concerted effort after the guns have fallen 
silent. We have to be prepared to lead the world in peace with the same 
vigor and purpose as our troops are currently demonstrating. I'm 
certain America is up to the task and we will prove to the world that 
our intentions are honorable.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, last night, President Bush ordered 
America's military to disarm Saddam Hussein, eliminate his weapons of 
mass destruction, and liberate the oppressed people of Iraq. The 
American people stand united behind the Commander-in-Chief and the men 
and women who defend our Nation.
  For 12 years, the United States and a broad coalition of nations 
exhausted diplomatic means to contain and undermine Saddam Hussein's 
dangerous and tyrannical regime in order to end the threat posed by his 
pursuit of weapons of mass destruction. For 12 years, patient diplomacy 
yielded only persistent Iraqi intransigence and disobedience of 
international law. For 12 years, Saddam Hussein flagrantly violated 
United Nations Security Council Resolutions, making a mockery of that 
body by feverishly continuing his pursuit of chemical, biological, and 
nuclear weapons.
  We have made every effort to avoid war, but diplomacy has finally run 
its course. Those who suggest that the United States is to blame for 
the failure of diplomatic efforts to disarm Hussein could not be 
further from the truth. The responsibility for this war rests squarely 
on the shoulders of Saddam Hussein, a ruthless tyrant whose disregard 
for the edicts of the United Nations is matched only by his disregard 
for the lives and interests of his own people.
  It is clear that Saddam Hussein does not understand the language of 
diplomacy, but only the language of military force. What the United 
Nations failed to accomplish with 12 years of toothless diplomacy, the 
United States and a broad coalition of allied nations must now 
accomplish with just application of military force. On Monday, 
President Bush noted succinctly: ``The United Nations Security Council 
has not lived up to its responsibilities, so we will rise to ours.''
  Truly, we must not let the world's most dangerous dictators acquire 
the world's most dangerous weapons. Unless tyrants like Hussein are 
disarmed, deterred, or destroyed, the use of weapons of mass murder 
against the United States and our allies is not a question of if, but 
of when. As President Bush said to the Nation last night, ``We will 
meet that threat now with our Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard and 
Marines, so that we do not have to meet it later with armies of 
firefighters and police and doctors on the streets of our cities.''
  From Afghanistan and Albania to the United Kingdom and Uzbekistan, 
governments throughout the world have publicly committed to providing 
substantive support, military and otherwise, to our efforts to disarm 
Hussein by force. Many other nations have quietly offered material 
support for our efforts to liberate the oppressed people of Iraq. 
Indeed, this multilateral coalition is larger than that formed in 
support of Operation Desert Storm during

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the 1991 Persian Gulf War. The members of this broad coalition, many of 
which have suffered under oppressive authorization rule in the past, 
understand the danger of living at the mercy of tyrannical regimes that 
threaten peace and stability with weapons of mass murder.
  Like all Americans, I hope and pray for the safety of our troops who 
fight so that we may remain free. I am proud to represent tens of 
thousands of Kentuckians who will participate in military operations 
overseas, as well as the thousands of Kentuckians in the National Guard 
and Reserves who have been activated to play critical roles in 
defending our homeland. My thoughts and prayers are with them and their 
families. These Kentuckians, led by the 101st Airborne, Air Assault, 
division based at Fort Campbell, KY, will defend our freedom and 
security with honor and dignity.
  Just as our ongoing operations in the war against terrorism will 
require patience and perseverance, so too will this effort to liberate 
the Iraqi people. But we are resolved as a nation to carry out our 
mission in support of peace, stability, and freedom. We are certain 
that our cause is just, and necessary. As our military fights to 
protect America, to disarm Hussein, and to provide security in an 
unstable region, the liberation of the people of Iraq draws near. 
Unique in its place in the world, the United States does not fight wars 
of empire and expansionism. Rather, we fight for the protection of our 
liberty, and for the liberty of others. And just as in France in 1944, 
or Afghanistan in 2001, long-oppressed civilians--who have suffered 
under the brutal reign of Saddam Hussein--will soon experience the 
benevolence of the American people and their own inalienable right to 
live in freedom.
  I am grateful for President Bush's steady leadership as Commander-in-
Chief, and I have no doubt that our military men and women are the 
finest in the world and will defend our Nation with skill, precision, 
courage, and honor. May God bless America. And may He bless our 
soldiers in harm's way.
  Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, as our Nation is engaged in 
confrontation with Saddam Hussein and his Iraqi-regime, I join with my 
colleagues in offering my gratitude and support for our troops, both 
here and overseas.
  None of us desire the use of force. Yet, as history has repeatedly 
taught us, the failure to confront a menacing tyranny today can lead to 
far greater devastation tomorrow. Had British Prime Minister Neville 
Chamberlain stood fast against Nazi Germany's 1938 demand to dismember 
Czechoslovakia in exchange for ``peace in our time,'' the lives of 50 
million people could have been saved.
  I salute the brave men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces who are 
willing to place their lives on the line to protect our freedoms. My 
thoughts and prayers are with the friends and families who remain 
behind, praying their loved ones not be harmed.
  The dangers facing our troops are many. Will the Iraqi army quickly 
surrender? Will chemical and biological weapons be used? How long will 
this military campaign take? In addition, our service members must 
contend with the scorching heat of the desert; the blinding conditions 
of sand storms; and the logistical nightmares of crossing the Tigris 
and Euphrates Rivers.
  We can feel better knowing our troops are prepared for all 
contingencies and have been trained to meet whatever challenges Saddam 
and his regime may throw their way.
  Our troops hail from all fifty States; our territories and insular 
possessions. Every Member of Congress is impacted.
  During the first Gulf War in 1991, one Alaskan was killed: Sergeant 
David Douthit, a 24-year-old from Soldotna. Alaskans are currently 
participating in Northern and Southern Watch, enforcing the no-fly 
zones in Iraq. They are in Afghanistan for Operation Enduring Freedom. 
They are in South Korea participating in the annual Foal Eagle military 
exercises.
  Unit 210 of the Kulis Air National Guard in Alaska has been activated 
and is awaiting deployment to the Middle East as part of an elite 
rescue squad. This is a group of everyday Americans--bankers, 
economists, and teachers--who are serving their Nation at a time of 
war. May no harm come to them.
  There is no question that Saddam Hussein is a brutal dictator. He has 
killed thousands of his own people. He has used chemical weapons 
against the Kurdish population. He imprisons and tortures political 
opponents and subjects Iraqi citizens to beatings, starvation, 
mutilation and rape.
  As the President put it when declaring the 4-hour deadline, the day 
of liberation for the Iraqi people is near.
  American troops are in Iraq to secure our Nation from the threat 
posed by Saddam Hussein. He repeatedly failed to disarm and chose to 
ignore his obligations to the international community. The time has 
come for him to leave.
  An enormous burden is now placed on the shoulders of our Armed 
Forces. Together, with allies from over 40 member nations who are 
supporting this effort, we seek to eliminate the weapons and facilities 
that Saddam should have destroyed 12 years ago. Now, we will finally 
ensure that the United States and our allies do not face the threat of 
chemical, biological or nuclear attack from those who would seek to 
harm us.
  Like so many who came before them, these brave men and women are 
placing their lives on the line to secure our freedom and protect our 
ideals and liberties. They have my undying thanks and support.
  Mr. BUNNING. Mr. President, I rise in support of S. Res. 95. As the 
United States and her allies begin the campaign to defend the world 
against the tyrannical rule of Iraq's dictator Saddam Hussein, we must 
all rally behind our Commander in Chief and Old Glory.
  The military action underway in Iraq is both just and lawful. We must 
rise and stand for humanity and help liberate the Iraqi people. After 
months of deception and noncompliance from the Iraqi regime about their 
weapons of mass destruction, the United States and over 30 allies 
decided to take military action to enforce United Nations resolution 
1441 and disarm Saddam. Along with an overwhelming bipartisan majority 
of my colleagues in the Senate, I voted in favor of authorizing this 
use of force last fall.
  The brave men and women of our Armed Forces come from all across our 
great Nation, but I wish to specifically recognize the vital role that 
Kentucky is playing in this noble effort to disarm Saddam. I am 
confident that the 101st Airborne Screaming Eagles, 5th Special Forces 
Group, and 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment will continue to 
make Fort Campbell, KY, and our great Nation proud.
  Thousands of our soldiers now in the Middle East completed vital and 
comprehensive training at Fort Knox. Fort Knox is the Home of Mounted 
Warfare where tank training is performed and perfected. These soldiers 
who trained at Fort Knox in mostly Abrams tanks are now on the front 
lines against the Iraqi Republican Guard. I guarantee our tank soldiers 
will prevail.
  Also, our men and women at the Bluegrass Army Depot in Richmond, KY, 
continue to make sure that our troops have the munitions they need to 
defeat the enemy. Thousands of enlisted and reserve troops from 
Kentucky have answered their Nation's call to duty. From the Bluegrass 
Army Depot, they load munitions onto trains which end up in guns and 
the weapons systems of our ground forces and air power. They are 
helping freedom ring throughout the world.
  It is also important to thank our civilian workforce on our military 
bases and those who indirectly support the military and war effort. 
They play a key role in ensuring our installations are maintained and 
our soldiers are housed and fed and given the support they need to 
secure our freedoms. Their work and contribution must not be 
overlooked.
  This resolution reinforces that now is the time for America to be 
united and show our unconditional support for our troops and their 
mission. Freedom and democracy do not come easy and our soldiers are 
willing to sacrifice even their own lives to ensure that future 
generations will have the opportunity

[[Page 7055]]

to embrace such concepts as liberty and human rights and lead the world 
to more peaceful and secure days.
  We all hope and pray our troops come back safely and quickly after 
successfully disarming Saddam's brutal regime and liberating the Iraqi 
people. The cause of our military and allies is noble and just. Our 
thoughts and prayers are also with the family and loved ones of our 
soldiers. God bless them all.
  Mr. PRYOR. Mr. President, yesterday our mission to disarm the Iraqi 
regime began. It is my hope that our actions will deliver the people of 
Iraq from a brutal dictator and help bring peace and stability to a 
volatile region.
  Our commanders in the field have developed an operations plan that 
will maximize the power of our forces, and I have no doubts about their 
capabilities to successfully achieve their military objectives.
  I commend the President for promptly addressing the Nation last 
night. It is important that he continues to keep Congress and the 
public informed of our military actions and the status of our mission. 
And I agree with his assessment that we should not view this war in 
terms of timetables. To speculate at this point would be 
counterproductive. Rather, we should view this conflict in terms of 
meeting our strategic and tactical goals.
  As a Senator and member of the Armed Services Committee, I stand 
ready to work with my colleagues and the President to provide any and 
all support possible to ensure the success of our military forces 
conducting these operations.
  Our Nation is a nation of diverse views, ideologies, and opinions. We 
might not all agree on how or why we arrived at this point; 
nonetheless, we must come together as a country and support those 
service men and women who are currently risking life and limb.
  As we stand here today, over 300,000 United States military 
personnel, including a number of Arkansans, are forward deployed in 
Iraq, Kuwait, Afghanistan, Turkey, and the waters and skies all around 
the world and at bases around the country. They put themselves in 
harm's way not for personal aggrandizement or advancement, but for 
immense love of country, liberty, and family. If they can hear me 
today, I say be assured, for the American people are behind you.
  When appearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee a few weeks 
ago, GEN John Keane, Vice Chief of Staff for the U.S. Army, testified 
to the courage of our military personnel. He said when asked what their 
greatest challenge was, his division commanders replied ``keeping our 
soldiers from being too brave.'' We owe these men and women overseas 
and at home not only our gratitude, but also our very existence as the 
only country on Earth committed to promoting and spreading the ideals 
of democracy. Our military has kept us safe for over 200 years. We 
cannot thank them enough.
  Just as we should thank our military overseas and at home, we should 
thank our first responders that protect our hometowns. Firefighters, 
police, and health care personnel risk their lives and sacrifice 
precious time with their families every day to keep us safe from those 
who would try to do us harm. Their commitment and contributions to 
national security and homeland security should not be forgotten.
  Mr. President, I urge all Americans to pray for our troops, their 
families, and our President as we defend our Nation and the world from 
those that seek to do us harm.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, last October, I voted against the 
resolution authorizing the use of force in Iraq and believe it was 
right that, in recent months, the country debated the wisdom of using 
military action against Iraq at this time. But the commencement of 
military action unites us as we focus on our ongoing support for our 
troops. I am confident in their abilities and I hope for their safe and 
quick return to their families. Even more so now that this action has 
begun, my thoughts, and the thoughts of all Americans, are with our 
service men and women, and with their families.
  I am pleased that the Senate is taking this opportunity to formally 
go on record in support of our brave men and women in uniform with this 
resolution.
  The dedicated men and women of our military spend time away from 
their homes and families in different parts of the country and the 
world, and, too often, are placed into harm's way in order to protect 
the American people and our way of life. We owe them a huge debt of 
gratitude for their selfless service.
  The war in Iraq and the fight against terrorism are turning upside 
down the lives of tens of thousands of Active Duty, National Guard, and 
Reserve personnel and their families. These men and women seek to do 
their duty to our country and honor commitments to their families, and, 
in the case of the National Guard and Reserves, to their employers. As 
of March 19, more than 212,000 National Guard and Reserve personnel 
were on Active Duty.
  Some Wisconsinites are facing the latest in a series of multiple 
activations and deployments for family members. Others are seeing their 
loved ones off on their first deployment. All of these families share 
in the worry and concern about what awaits their relatives and hope, as 
we do, for their swift and safe return.
  We owe it to our military personnel and their families to do 
everything that we can to support them in this difficult time. I will 
continue to work to ensure that our troops and their families have the 
resources that they need, both to combat our adversaries and to provide 
for their families, during this tumultuous time and when they return 
home.
  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise today to express my strong and 
unconditional support for our troops currently engaged in disarming 
Iraq. As the war continues to progress, I have every confidence in 
their capabilities, their courage, and their patriotism. I am pleased 
to support the resolution before us, and believe it will send a message 
to all the world that the Congress is united in support of our young 
men and women in the Gulf.
  On many occasions in recent months, this institution has debated the 
threat posed by Saddam Hussein and Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. 
Individual Senators have made honest arguments expressing widely 
differing points of view on this issue. Now that our troops are engaged 
against the forces of Saddam Hussein, however, we must speak with one 
voice.
  It is my hope and expectation that this war will be short, and that 
our victory will be decisive. Our military is the best-equipped and 
best-trained force that the world has ever seen. As Maine's 
representative on the Senate Armed Services Committee, it has been my 
privilege to work side-by-side with military leaders to ensure that 
this is the case. If there is any message we could send to members of 
the Iraqi military, it would be to express the futility of resistance. 
The President has been clear, that we come not as conquerors, but as 
liberators. Our military superiority is overwhelming, and our forces 
will not stop until Iraq is disarmed.
  Of course, there is very little certainty in combat. In the fog of 
war, there are innumerable factors that might affect the course of 
battle. Our leadership has worked to anticipate and prepare for 
whatever eventualities might develop. I suspect in the coming days we 
will be receiving conflicting reports, confusing media accounts, and 
distorted descriptions of the battlefield. However, one thing should be 
unmistakable . . . our troops will receive whatever support they need 
to bring this conflict to a rapid and successful end.
  We also need to send a message to other forces in this world that 
seek to do us harm. They might believe that, because so many of our 
forces are engaged in the Middle East, we have left ourselves 
vulnerable. The administration has moved the Homeland Security Advisory 
to Orange, indicating that we are at high risk of terrorist attack. 
Gordon England, the Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, has assured 
me that our Nation is taking almost unprecedented steps to protect our 
critical infrastructure, to identify potential terrorist threats, and 
to secure potential targets. Certainly, we do have some difficult days 
ahead.

[[Page 7056]]

  However, we are working to deter, detect, and, if necessary, respond 
decisively to any terrorist attack.
  I also want to say a word to the families of those men and women 
currently in harm's way in the Middle East. They truly carry a heavy 
burden, and I want to express my personal and heartfelt appreciation 
for the sacrifices that they make. No war comes without cost. While our 
military leaders will do everything they can to minimize the danger our 
troops will face, there is still much risk and danger. To the wives, 
husbands, children, and parents of troops, I thank you for your bravery 
and your strength. You and your loved ones deserve our admiration, our 
respect, and our appreciation.
  When I came to the Senate over 6 years ago, I could not have imagined 
this moment. We lived in a different world then. In the coming months, 
we will debate how we came to this conflict, and how we need to 
proceed. Historians will study this period in our history very closely. 
There will be time to place this war in its proper context. Today, 
however, as our troops stand in harm's way, I only want to show my 
unwavering support for our troops, thank them for their service, and 
express my hope for their safe return.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Virginia.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, first, may I inquire of the Presiding 
Officer the amount of time in control of the Senator from Virginia and 
the amount of time in control of the Senator from Michigan?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Virginia has 9 minutes 13 
seconds. The Senator from Michigan has 18 minutes 1 second.
  Mr. WARNER. Senator Levin and I have now sought to advise our 
leadership on the ever-growing number of Senators anxious to speak. 
They, I presume, will consider how we will add more time to this debate 
now or during another period. I wish to put Senators on notice that we 
have the Senator from Texas, Mrs. Hutchison, awaiting recognition, 
followed by the Senator from Colorado, Mr. Allard, and then the Senator 
from Arizona, Mr. McCain.
  I am going to do the very best I can to get the time to accommodate 
these Senators, and I see other Senators present on my side.
  Mrs. BOXER. Will the Senator yield for a question?
  I thank my friend for working to accommodate as many Senators who 
would like to speak. I do not think it is necessary for us to make long 
speeches--3, 4, 5 minutes--but I do believe it is very important and we 
have a responsibility to do so. To the extent the Senator from Virginia 
and the Senator from Michigan can work together to add some time, it 
would be most appreciated.
  Mr. LEVIN. Will the Senator from Virginia--has the Senator been 
yielded to already?
  Mr. WARNER. The Senator from Texas is to be recognized next.
  Mr. LEVIN. Will the Senator from Texas yield for an inquiry?
  Mr. WARNER. I have to ask it be on your time.
  Mr. LEVIN. On my time. I have the following Senators on our side who 
are here and indicated they wish to speak: Senator Dorgan, Senator 
Dayton, Senator Reed who is in the cloakroom, Senator Boxer, Senator 
Baucus, Senator Byrd. So there is no way we are going to be able to 
complete even the people who are here, much less additional people who 
wish to speak and who come to the floor, and still have a vote on this 
resolution immediately after the three votes that are currently 
scheduled.
  So I join my good friend from Virginia in asking the leadership as to 
how they wish us to address this problem at this time.
  I have 19 minutes left before 4 o'clock--how many minutes?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Seventeen minutes.
  Mr. LEVIN. Seventeen minutes. If I talk longer, it will be 16 
minutes. I have 17 minutes before the first vote begins, but there is 
no time set on the resolution itself we are debating; am I correct?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator is correct.
  Mr. LEVIN. If the leadership can give us guidance in how they want to 
handle this.
  Mr. WARNER. I join in that request. I also have Senator Coleman, 
Senator Hatch, the Senator from Alaska, the Senator from North 
Carolina, and the number is growing.
  Mr. BYRD. Will the distinguished Senator yield for a question?
  Mr. WARNER. Yes.
  Mr. BYRD. Would it be possible to move the 4 o'clock vote, say, to 
4:30 in order to get these speeches ahead of the vote? It could be 
included in the series of votes.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I say to our distinguished colleague from 
West Virginia, both Senator Levin and I have put that to our respective 
leadership.
  Mr. BYRD. I thank the Senator.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Texas is recognized.
  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, this resolution we are talking about 
today is for those brave men and women who are in harms way as we 
speak, close to midnight their time, far across the oceans. America's 
thoughts and prayers are with each and every one of them--Active Duty, 
Reserve, Guard, Americans, and our loyal allies.
  September 11, 2001, was a brutal wake-up call for our Nation, one 
that our President refuses to ignore. By disarming and liberating Iraq, 
these troops are working to prevent a 9/11 with a weapon of mass 
destruction. Today we are entering a new phase in the campaign to root 
out terrorism wherever it is bred.
  How did we get to this point? In 1993, terrorists bombed the World 
Trade Center, killing 6 people, wounding more than 1,000.
  In 1996, terrorists bombed the U.S. military living quarters at 
Khobar Towers, Saudi Arabia, killing 19 brave Americans and wounding 
scores more.
  In 1998, followers of Osama bin Laden attacked U.S. embassies in 
Kenya and Tanzania, killing and wounding hundreds.
  In 2000, bin Laden followers attacked the USS Cole in a harbor in 
Yemen, killing 17 sailors and wounding 39 more.
  But sadly, it took 4 hijacked airplanes being turned into weapons of 
mass destruction and the loss of nearly 3,000 lives for us to respond, 
and this time the terrorists and those who harbor them will know the 
United States of America is resolved to preserve our freedom.
  Our President will not waiver. Congress will not waiver in our 
support of our President and our troops.
  There are those in this world who hate America and what it stands 
for. They despise our love for freedom, our passion for democracy, and 
our tolerance of other religions and beliefs. Their hatred led them to 
recklessly kill thousands of innocent civilians in our country and 
abroad.
  September 11 brought a sea change in our national security strategy. 
We now know that deterrence alone is not enough. Our new strategy in 
this new kind of war articulates a policy of preemption. It is when we 
fail to act or fail to lead that our enemies strike.
  The President has said we will not give Saddam Hussein the 
opportunity to attack. The Iraqi dictator seeks to make weapons of mass 
destruction, and those weapons would find their way into the hands of 
terrorists. So coalition forces from our allied nations are on the 
ground with us in Iraq, and we commend them for their bravery and their 
unwavering loyalty to our Nation and their pursuit of freedom.
  For 12 long years, Saddam Hussein has treated the world with lies and 
contempt. Diplomacy, sanctions, and 17 U.N. resolutions failed to do 
the job. His brutal campaign for decades against his neighbors, his own 
people, and the world is coming to an end as we speak because brave men 
and women are doing the job for us.
  The men and women on the front lines in Iraq, the anxious families 
waiting back home, and the thousands of National Guard and Reserve 
forces who have been called to duty must count on the American public 
to stand by their side until the very end. We will not fail them.
  In Congress, we must ensure our Armed Forces have every resource 
necessary for a swift and successful campaign. We will not fail to 
provide. It is

[[Page 7057]]

our duty, as the beacon of freedom for the world, to ensure that Saddam 
Hussein's brutal reign comes to an end. This is our tribute to those in 
the past who fought for the liberty we enjoy, and it is our commitment 
to pass the torch of freedom to future generations.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Virginia.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I anticipate that we will soon have a 
unanimous consent request about timing, but until that is finished 
might I suggest that the Senator from Michigan recognize another of his 
speakers.
  Mr. DASCHLE. If I could just interject.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Democratic leader.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Perhaps I can at least describe what we are anticipating 
as the unanimous consent request. I think we are about ready to 
propound it. There have been a number of Senators who have indicated to 
the two managers that they wish to address the resolution. We are 
prepared to accommodate all of those requests. We would then ask for 
unanimous consent that the votes that are currently scheduled for 4 be 
moved back to 5 to accommodate the additional time allocated for 
discussion of the resolution. At that point, we would then vote on the 
amendments, in addition to the resolution.
  Following those votes, we would still allow Senators to speak, either 
to the resolution in support of the troops or to the resolution 
relating to the budget in both amendment as well as in general comment, 
so that throughout the evening Senators could still be accommodated to 
speak to the resolutions, either one.
  I hope that we could entertain a unanimous consent request that all 
those speeches which are made on the resolution in support of the 
troops appear in the Record prior to the vote so that the Record will 
read appropriately. That would be our intent, and I would hope that all 
Senators would be prepared to accommodate that request.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I have before me a proposed unanimous 
consent request. I will now make that request.
  I ask unanimous consent that the vote on the adoption of this 
resolution occur at the hour of 5 today; provided further that debate 
between 4 and 5 be equally divided as provided earlier. Further, I ask 
that the previously scheduled stacked votes occur beginning immediately 
following the vote on the adoption of this resolution, S. Con. Res. 26, 
with no amendments in order to the resolution or preamble.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that following 
the votes Senators be recognized for purposes of making additional 
statements; that the time throughout the evening be equally divided and 
that their speeches appear in the Record prior to the vote cast on the 
resolution.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Mr. WARNER. Reserving the right to object, I will recommend that the 
distinguished Democratic leader's unanimous consent be accepted, but I 
would like to speak with my leader before agreeing to it.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The objection is heard.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I wish to announce that on my side, the 
following Senators have indicated the desire to speak. I will be in the 
Chamber to accommodate them as best I can within the 30 minutes that I 
have remaining: Senators Allard, McCain, Coleman, Hatch, Stevens, Dole, 
Domenici. 
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Michigan.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I will read the list of Senators on this 
side so that everyone will know who will be speaking before the vote on 
the resolution under the unanimous consent that was just adopted, and 
then who would come afterwards with their statements on the resolution 
being put in the Record before that: Senator Dorgan would be recognized 
for 5 minutes, Senator Dayton for 5 minutes, Senator Jack Reed for 5 
minutes, Senator Boxer for 6 minutes, Senator Baucus for 7 minutes, 
Senator Byrd for 15 minutes. If my math is correct, all of those could 
be accommodated prior to the vote at 5.
  I notice the Parliamentarian has been adding up those numbers, and I 
am wondering if my math is correct.
  After the vote, if my math is correct, Senator Landrieu and Senator 
Biden would then be recognized on this side, and any other Democrats 
who wish to speak can come after the resolution, after those two 
Senators.
  Is the Senator correct that all of those I named up to Senator Byrd 
could be accommodated with the times indicated prior to the vote at 5?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator allocated 43 minutes, which 
appears to fit within the timeframe now allowed.
  Who yields time?
  Mr. LEVIN. I yield 5 minutes to the Senator from North Dakota.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Dakota is recognized 
for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, America makes no more difficult decision 
than that which asks its sons and daughters to go to war, and those who 
are in harm's way as we speak need to know that our country is united 
in support of them. Our thoughts and prayers go to those soldiers who 
have answered the call for our country. Our thoughts and prayers go to 
their families.
  In my State, we have two Air Force bases, international guard. We 
have the highest rate of deployment. Almost 30 percent of all Guard and 
Reserves are now deployed in North Dakota under a callup. I am 
enormously proud of what they are contributing to this country and to 
its national defense. They and their families need to understand our 
united support for them.
  To the people of Iraq, we need to say that we have no quarrel with 
the people of Iraq, and we pray also for the safety of those innocent 
noncombatants inside the country of Iraq.
  I wish with all my heart that the people of free nations, working 
through the United Nations, would have been able to find a diplomatic 
solution to require the disarmament of Saddam Hussein, but that was not 
possible. So our Nation now will take action to disarm this dictator.
  In the sometimes lonely and dark hours when America is challenged, I 
think of the words of Thomas Wolfe in his great novel. He talked about 
the peculiar quality of the American soul. He said Americans have an 
indestructible belief, a quenchless hope, a boundless optimism, that 
something good is sure to happen.
  Let us hope and pray through this conflict something good will 
happen. As we do, let us express our profound gratitude for those who 
nurture, protect, and risk their lives for freedom. It will be and 
should be left to another day to talk about what should have been done 
a decade or two ago, what could have been done long ago to avoid this 
intersection of war and strife.
  The question is, How do we, in the free world, prevent the emergence 
of more dictators, tyrants, and terrorists who threaten America's 
liberty? That is a long and difficult discussion for other days.
  For today, all of us from every philosophy in every corner of our 
country say to those in harm's way and who serve our country: We are 
proud of you; America is united in support of what you are doing.
  I yield the floor and I retain the remainder of my time.
  Mr. WARNER. I yield 3 minutes to the Senator from Colorado.
  Mr. ALLARD. Mr. President, last night at 10:15 p.m. eastern standard 
time, President Bush announced to the Nation that the war to rid Iraq 
of weapons of mass destruction had begun. It was a solemn moment that 
reminded us that diplomacy was no longer an option.
  I recall the President's comments that you cannot have peace when you 
have to deal with a leader who is not peaceful.
  It also meant the men and women of our Armed Forces were now going to 
be committed to battle. The resolution before the Senate commands and 
supports the efforts and leadership of the

[[Page 7058]]

President as Commander in Chief in the conflict against Iraq. The 
resolution recognizes the contribution of our defense forces and 
expresses support for the thousands of soldiers, sailors, airmen, 
marines, and coast guardsmen who have been mobilized, deployed, and are 
now fighting to defend the security of our Nation. I strongly support 
the resolution and believe it deserves the Senate's unanimous support.
  Today our Nation demands much of our military. Our forces continue to 
fight in Afghanistan, assist forces in Yemen, Djibouti, and Georgia, 
and defend our homeland. Now they have taken on a new mission, the 
liberation of Iraq.
  Despite many hardships, our military members have extended forward 
and embraced our country's call to arms. Over the last month, 5,000 
soldiers from Fort Carson, CO, have been sent to confront Iraqi 
oppression and terrorism. The soldiers have embraced their duty and are 
now serving their country with pride and determination. We cannot 
forget the valuable contribution of reservists and National Guardsmen. 
Many of these service men and women have left their careers and their 
families to answer our Nation's call to arms. Over 3,000 Coloradans in 
the Reserves and National Guard have extended forward and they have 
responded with determination. They are committed to defending our 
Nation and deserve our support. We ought to recognize their employers 
who have recognized at the workplace that they are dedicated to 
protecting freedom in America and are making sacrifices while their 
workforce serves this country overseas.
  We should not forget the families of our men and women in uniform. 
They have watched as their loved ones were sent overseas to defend our 
country. They made sacrifices and deserve our support as they fight and 
make sacrifices for freedom.
  Today our men and women in uniform are in harm's way. They are 
fighting for the safety and security of all Americans. I believe it is 
imperative we express our support for their efforts. I ask for God's 
blessing for America.
  Mr. LEVIN. I yield 5 minutes to Senator Dayton.
  Mr. DAYTON. Winston Churchill once advised:

       In War: Resolution. In Defeat: Defiance. In Victory: 
     Magnanimity. In Peace: Good Will.

  I add to that, before war, honest debate.
  That fundamental right of the first amendment to debate, to agree and 
disagree is the difference between our democracy and Saddam Hussein's 
dictatorship. The measure of our free country is not how well our 
country tolerates agreement but, rather, how well they accept 
disagreement.
  Now, however, the time for this debate is passed. Our country is at 
war and our Armed Forces are fighting life-and-death battles against 
Iraqi troops. The President has made that momentous decision, and I 
will support him, his military command, and the brave American troops 
who are carrying out his orders.
  In war: Resolution. Let us in the Senate resolve to provide whatever 
is needed to win the war as quickly and decisively as possible and then 
replenish our military arsenals so we quickly regain our great strength 
to protect and defend our country again.
  In victory: Magnanimity. There is no question that our Armed Forces 
will win this war for our country, for the Iraqi people and for, I 
pray, the ultimate benefit of the world. I pray the courageous 
Americans who will win that victory, many of them young men and women 
less than half our age, may return safely home.
  Let us who are at home now begin the practice of magnanimity, 
magnanimity toward the people of Iraq who did not take up arms against 
us, magnanimity toward their past suffering and future needs.
  Occupation is not magnanimous; the Marshall Plan was magnanimous. We 
have the obligation and the opportunity to be magnanimous and generous 
toward the people of Iraq and Afghanistan. In doing so, we can showcase 
our way of life, our economic and technical know-how, and our humanity. 
We should match each year the increase in our military spending with 
that same increase in an international recovery fund. Both are key to 
our national security.
  In peace: Good will. Our leaders must become again the lead 
practitioners and worldwide promoters of good will. They can allow 
themselves no more derisive and destructive reactions to whoever does 
not see our way, not to the leaders and people of other nations, not to 
the leaders and representatives of the international organizations, not 
to our fellow American citizens.
  We must resume our leadership of the world on the path toward 
international security, prosperity, peace, and good will. That is our 
greatest challenge. That must be our ultimate victory.
  I reserve the remainder of my time and yield to the Senator from 
Michigan.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I yield 3\1/2\ minutes to the Senator from 
Minnesota.
  Mr. COLEMAN. Mr. President, this is a profound moment in all our 
lives. Words are inadequate, so I will be brief. It is an honor to 
speak right after my friend and colleague, the distinguished senior 
Senator from Minnesota, and to join with him in support of our men and 
women on the front lines, in support of the President's decision to 
commence military action to disarm Iraq.
  In this Chamber it is often said the foreign policy debate ends at 
the water's edge. This resolution makes clear that debate on the use of 
force in Iraq ends with the firing of the first weapon. I support our 
troops and military families to the utmost, praying for their safety, 
and working with them to achieve the mission our Commander in Chief has 
given them.
  This situation represents a balance of risks. War is always costly in 
human terms on all sides. But the threats of terrorism, mass 
destruction, are also real. The dangerous nature of the world we now 
live in was brought home to us by the events of September 11. That 
reality requires us to act decisively when we are threatened, rather 
than simply to wait and hope for the best. I agree with the President 
that it is better to send soldiers into battle than to send police, 
ambulance drivers, and firefighters to the site of future terrorist 
attacks.
  My firm belief is that our Nation is blessed with responsible, 
principled leadership. Our military is as courageous as it is capable. 
Our goals in this conflict are both clear and just. Now we are 
committed and we must carry on our duty to the end.
  It has been said that courage is fear that has said its prayers. May 
we all offer our support and praise to our troops, military leaders, 
and our President until the dangerous days are over. Our hearts and 
prayers are with all the women and men in harm's way in the Middle East 
today, and with their families.
  I ran across this quotation from Thomas Paine from his pamphlet 
Common Sense, written in 1776:

       These are the times that try men's souls. The summer 
     soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink 
     from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, 
     deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like 
     hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation 
     with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the 
     triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly; it 
     is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven 
     knows how to put a proper price on its goods; and it would be 
     strange indeed if so celestial an article as Freedom should 
     not be highly rated.

  No one wanted this to come to war. But it is here. I am proud to join 
with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in support of our men and 
women, in support of our Commander in Chief, in support of our 
families. Our prayers are with all of them.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I yield 5 minutes to Senator Reed.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Rhode Island is recognized 
for 5 minutes.
  Mr. REED. Mr. President, once again, America has placed its fate and 
its future in the hands of young American fighting men and fighting 
women. Both our future and our faith could not be in stronger, more 
decent, and more qualified hands. We are here today, united

[[Page 7059]]

in our support for these extraordinary soldiers, sailors, airmen, 
marines, and Coastguardsmen, all of them superbly trained, faithful to 
their uniforms, and also faithful to those who served before them--an 
unbroken legacy of courage and commitment to this Nation.
  I take a moment to recognize particularly those many individuals from 
my State of Rhode Island. First, the thousands who are serving on 
active duty in units in all of our services, and then, also, our 
National Guard and Reserve forces, because in this conflict the 
National Guard and Reserve are playing a critical role. Rhode Island 
has 648 Guard men and women and Reserve members who are stationed 
throughout the globe.
  Many members of the National Guard 143rd Airlift Wing Security Forces 
and Communications have been deployed to Southwest Asia. They have been 
joined by the Air National Guard's 281st Combat Communications Group, 
the Air National Guard's 282nd Combat Communications Squadron and the 
Air National Guard's 102nd Information Warfare Squadron. The Guard 
143rd Airlift Wing Aerial Port Squadron is in Turkey and members of the 
Rhode Island Air National Guard headquarters are in Kyrgzstan and 
Turkey.
  Rhode Islanders are also protecting the homefront while war is waged 
in the Middle East. The Army National Guard's 1207th Transportation 
Company is at Fort Dix, New Jersey. The Army National Guard's 118th 
Military Police Battalion, 119th Military Police Company, and 115th 
Military Police Company are at Fort Drum, New York. And the Marine 
Reserves, General Support Motor Transport Company and the Army National 
Guard's 1st Battalion, 103rd Field Artillery Brigade are providing 
security in Rhode Island.
  All of these men and women have been called to the colors, have 
responded, and will serve magnificently.
  The battle has begun. The battle will be pursued vigorously to a 
complete victory. I have every confidence in that. Part of my 
confidence stems from the privilege of having served with the leaders 
of our Army who, today, are commanding the forces that are sent against 
Iraq. Both as classmates and contemporaries at West Point, I had the 
privilege of knowing GEN Chuck Swannack who commands the 82nd; Dave 
Petraeus, the 101st Commander; and also General Hagenbeck, who 
commanded the 10th so well in Afghanistan.
  I know because these men are superb professionals, because they are 
committed to getting the job done and making sure their soldiers come 
home. We will be successful.
  Today, we are united in our support and our admiration for the forces 
who serve this country so well.
  I yield the remainder of my time.
  Mr. WARNER. I yield 4\1/2\ minutes to the Senator from Arizona.
  Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, the war to disarm Saddam Hussein and 
liberate the Iraqi people has begun. Many Americans feel we have waited 
a long time for this just war to come; many feel we haven't waited long 
enough. But the Iraqi people have waited for far too long, suffered for 
far too long and the world has for too long failed to come to grips 
with the consequences of Saddam Hussein's acquisition of an arsenal of 
terror. The wait is over; the liberation of the Iraqi people is 
underway; and the world is witnessing the end of one of the most 
horrible regimes in modern history, and with it the end of the threat 
Iraq has for too long posed to its people, its neighbors, and the 
world.
  There has been no rush to war. That the United States exhausted 
diplomacy is evident in both the 12-year history of our dealings with 
Iraq since the first Gulf War and the 6 month effort at the Security 
Council to build consensus on the need to disarm Iraq. There will be 
plenty of time to discuss the American diplomatic campaign that 
preceded the war once military action is over. There is no cause to do 
so today. We stand united in our support for our armed forces and 
confident in the swift victory that we pray will be theirs.
  One of America's finest traditions is our ability to draw together in 
support of our men and women in uniform when they are actively engaged 
in the defense of our freedom. American forces in the Iraq theater 
fight not for narrow interests or for reasons of national pride. 
American soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines are engaged in combat 
today so that our people do not live in a world in which tyrants armed 
with weapons of horror hold free nations hostage, and in doing so 
threaten freedom itself.
  Our armed forces fight to disarm and destroy a regime that has proven 
not only that it will continue to stockpile weapons of mass 
destruction, but that it will use them. Our military fights to uphold 
the demands of the United Nations Security Council for Iraq's 
disarmament, even though some in that body shirk their own obligations 
to hold Iraq to account for its defiance. Our men and women fight so 
that the Iraqi people no longer live in terror but have cause to 
believe, as Americans believe, that liberty's blessings are not the 
prerogative of a lucky few, but the inalienable right of all mankind.
  The liberty we cherish, and in which we want all people to share, has 
a price. Young Americans are paying it tonight in Iraq--not out of any 
grand design for empire, not for oil, not out of dislike for the Iraqi 
people, but for love--love of America, love for her founding 
principles, love for her way of life, and love for the greatness that 
history has judged to be hers not because of riches or power, but 
because of her abiding commitment to the cause of human freedom.
  America is great not because of what she has done for herself, but 
because of what she has done for others. In another age, we helped 
liberate Europe from Hitler's tyranny, and ended Japanese imperialism 
in Asia. In extraordinary acts of generosity, we helped rebuild Europe 
and Japan and transform former enemies into the closest of allies. I 
believe the liberation of Iraq will be judged by history to be of 
similar nobility.
  Many of us remember parents and grandparents who served in the Second 
World War as our ``greatest generation.'' Another generation of heroes 
is being forged from the ruins of the attacks of September 11th. Just 
as Pearl Harbor opened the eyes of America to the grave peril beyond 
her shores, so have the terrorists who attacked us roused in America 
the conviction that we will never again suffer such infamy.
  Nearly a century ago, President Woodrow Wilson issued a rousing call 
to make the world safe for democracy. Americans, and the world, did not 
rise to the challenge, and the bloodiest century in the history of 
humanity ensued. The President has ordered American forces into action 
in Iraq to help make America, and the world, safe from another such 
century, when tyrants are empowered by technology to inflict the sort 
of devastation from which free nations might not recover--a capability 
that puts freedom itself in peril. America, the greatest of free 
nations, will not take that risk.
  I wish American forces in Iraq every hope for rapid victory. They 
fight for love of freedom--a love which is invincible. The world is 
better for their courage and dedication. Victory will be ours--and all 
honor will be theirs. God bless them and may humanity honor their 
sacrifice.
  Mr. WARNER. We go to the other side.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Fitzgerald). Who yields time?
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I yield 6 minutes to the Senator from 
California.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, may I address the Senate with regard to 
the remaining speakers on my side of the aisle to alert them? We have 
next the Senator from Alaska, Mr. Stevens, followed by the Senator from 
Utah, Mr. Hatch, the Senator from New Mexico, Mr. Domenici, the Senator 
from Arizona, Mr. Kyl, the Senator from North Carolina, Mrs. Dole, and 
the Senator from Texas, Mr. Cornyn.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from California.
  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, as military action begins in Iraq, I send 
my strong support, as a Senator, as a mother, as a grandmother, to our 
sons and daughters who are carrying out the mission asked of them.
  Military personnel from my State of California are a lead contributor 
in

[[Page 7060]]

this effort. They include marines from Camp Pendleton and Twentynine 
Palms, carrier groups from San Diego, and Air Force personnel from 
Travis Air Force Base.
  There are many more soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines from 
throughout California serving us today, including 6,100 Guard and 
reservists who have recently been activated. Thousands of California 
families are impacted.
  From my seat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, I have 
followed the issue of Iraq very closely. And for the past several 
months, my view was that we should build a worldwide coalition to 
disarm Iraq, a worldwide coalition that would truly be partners in 
name, in action, and in cost-sharing. That is why I was so proud to 
support Senator Levin's resolution to authorize force with the backing 
of the United Nations. While this amendment was defeated in the Senate, 
I believe it called attention to the importance of working with a large 
coalition of allies.
  As one who has recently voted twice to give a President--a Republican 
President and a Democratic President--the right to use force, I believe 
war should always be the last resort. I voted to give President Bush 
the authority to go to war against al-Qaida, and for President Clinton 
to use military force against Slobodan Milosevic.
  In this case, in Iraq, I supported intrusive inspections backed by a 
united coalition as the best way to achieve Iraqi disarmament. While 
the U.N. inspectors asked to continue their work, that was not to be. 
So that debate is behind us. I do want to say, the need to work with 
our allies in postwar Iraq is very important because we want to lift--
we want to lift--the physical burden off the shoulders of our men and 
women and share that burden. And we want to, of course, try to share 
the cost burden as well.
  Like all Americans, I hope and I pray that hostilities end soon and 
that casualties are minimal. And like all Americans, I very much hope 
that democracy in Iraq will take root. Last night, I saw an interview 
with a young man who is a soldier in the Army, and he was as eloquent 
on this same point as any statement I had ever heard, eloquent in his 
simplicity, in expressing his hope for this mission.
  Congress is supporting our troops from the minute they went in. I 
believe one way we can demonstrate that is to ensure that the lives of 
both parents of dual-military families with small children are not 
unnecessarily put at risk. I raised this issue with the Secretary of 
Defense in February, and I am awaiting a response from him. Senator Ben 
Nelson is also working on this issue as well as other quality-of-life 
issues for our military. We must be mindful of the impact on a child 
when both parents are put in harm's way. I believe we can make sure 
they are not both placed in harm's way. I will work to make sure of 
that.
  I also intend to work to provide additional funding for four 
important programs.
  First, we need to increase funding for impact aid programs to help 
school districts with military families. Our children of military 
families need attention now. They must have attention now. And we are 
not fulfilling our responsibility to our military families if those 
children do not get help.
  Gandhi once said: If there is to be peace in the world, it must begin 
with the children. So we must never, ever forget the children. We have 
heard from many military families struggling to pay for daycare and 
other expenses who have one family member deployed from home. We have 
heard from them that they are having a very hard time.
  Next, I think we need to help with homeland defense. Clearly, 
everyone has told us--from the CIA to the FBI to Secretary Ridge--that 
the probability has now greatly increased that we will be facing more 
problems here at home. That is why I am supporting the Schumer 
amendment, when we get back to the budget, to reimburse our States for 
this burden.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record 
a letter from the Governor of California, pointing out these incredible 
expenses the States are having because of firefighters and police and 
emergency workers working overtime.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                          Governor Gray Davis,

                                                   March 20, 2003.
     Hon. Barbara Boxer,
     U.S. Senate, Hart Office Building,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Boxer: I understand that the United States 
     Senate may take up an amendment tomorrow to the Fiscal Year 
     2004 Budget Resolution to substantially increase funding for 
     state and local first responders. As you are aware, an 
     increase in funding is critical to our efforts to protect 
     Californians and I appreciate your support for these efforts.
       As Governor, my first job is to provide for the safety of 
     all Californians. Thanks to our first responders, 
     Californians are safer than at any time since September 10, 
     2001. For 18 months, California has been hard at work 
     preparing for all emergency contingencies.
       As you know, since September 11th, the state has spent 
     hundreds of millions of additional dollars to prepare for and 
     prevent a terrorist attack. Even in the best of times, this 
     is a burden that would require a strong federal partnership; 
     in the face of the fiscal problems that states across the 
     nation now face, that partnership is critical to state and 
     local first responder preparedness.
       Governors across the nation are extremely disappointed that 
     the dollars for first responder activities we expected this 
     year are not forthcoming. With passage of this homeland 
     security amendment to the Budget Resolution, Congress can 
     ensure that funding for equipment and training for those in 
     the front lines of this battle is robust in the next fiscal 
     year.
       Governors, Democrats and Republicans alike, have worked 
     hard to protect and safeguard their residents against 
     terrorist attacks--but we need a strong federal partnership 
     to fully realize this goal.
       Thank you for all your work toward ensuring the safety of 
     all Americans.
           Sincerely,
                                                       Gray Davis.

  Mrs. BOXER. And last, Mr. President, I hope we will be able to work 
on the development of a missile defense system for our airplanes, our 
commercial airplanes, which are facing the danger of shoulder-fired 
missiles.
  Many people throughout California have asked me, what can they do to 
support our troops? The Department of Defense has provided some 
excellent ideas that can be accessed on the official DOD Web site, 
DefenseLINK. I think it would be good for those who want to do 
something now to get on that Web site. We have a link on our Web site 
as well. The ideas are there on how to send a virtual thank-you card to 
our troops, how to provide them with telephone calling cards. These are 
things that will make their lives much better.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator has used 6 minutes.
  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I ask for 15 seconds, if I might.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I yield the Senator 15 additional seconds.
  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, let's do everything we can for our troops 
and everything we can to protect our homeland. And let us all pray for 
our men and women in uniform, and for their families, and for wisdom 
for all those who send them forward into battle.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time?
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I yield 2 to 3 minutes to our 
distinguished colleague from Alaska.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alaska.
  Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I will be brief.
  I am proud to stand here with this former marine, my great friend 
from Virginia, Senator Warner, as I recall the phrase, ``From the halls 
of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli.''
  I believe the President has the authority. We all pledged, ourselves, 
when we were sworn into Federal office, to defend this country against 
enemies foreign and domestic.
  He has taken action--firm action--to protect us against enemies. The 
freedom of Iraq, the freedom of the people of Iraq, is the goal of this 
effort we are undertaking. But it is being done by free men and women--
young women, young men of this generation. They have talked about our 
generation being the Greatest Generation. These young men and women are 
all volunteers. They have gone out there in harm's way to protect us 
and to carry out

[[Page 7061]]

their pledge to the people of the United States. I support them for 
that.
  I only add one comment. I keep hearing people talk about overtime, 
and getting money to pay people here who are working so long and 
working overtime in cities and various functions. Those men and women 
over there are not getting paid overtime.
  I think it is time we started thinking about some voluntarism in the 
United States right here at home, volunteers to help this country get 
through this period. When our men and women are over there, they are 
volunteers, they are not getting any extra pay for what they are doing.
  I think we should recognize the concept that every one of us should 
volunteer more of our time to help our country in this period.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time?
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I yield 7 minutes to Senator Baucus.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, will the Senator yield for a minute for 
purposes of recognition of the Senator from Mississippi, who wishes to 
put a statement in the Record?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Mississippi.
  Mr. COCHRAN. I thank the Senator for yielding.
  Mr. President, I call the attention of the Senate to the fact that 
back in my State of Mississippi, our legislature is in session, and our 
State senate has adopted Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 605, under 
the leadership of our Lieutenant Governor, as presiding officer of that 
body, Amy Tuck. And the president pro tempore is Travis Little.
  The operative clauses are:

       That we do hereby declare our complete support for and our 
     great pride in the Armed Forces of the United States, 
     particularly the men and women from the State of Mississippi, 
     both in the Middle East and elsewhere, who are participating 
     in and supporting military operations. . . .

  And it goes on to say:

       That we do hereby express our support of President George 
     W. Bush and the President's cabinet for their courage and 
     decision to remove Saddam Hussein from power.

  There are whereas clauses in another part of that resolution.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the entire concurrent 
resolution be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                  Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 605

       Whereas, events in Iraq have reached the final days of 
     decision, and at the direction of the President of the United 
     States, the Armed Forces of the United States are poised to 
     launch military operations with our allies against Saddam 
     Hussein and his forces in Iraq; and
       Whereas, among the forces participating in this 
     mobilization under Operation Enduring Freedom are many 
     members of the regular United States Army, Navy, Marines, Air 
     Force, Coast Guard, Reserves and National Guard who are 
     residents or natives of the State of Mississippi who are 
     being deployed, including 182 female and 2,056 male soldiers 
     in the Mississippi Army and Air National Guard already 
     deployed, with a total number of 3,662 dependents recorded 
     for those deployed; and
       Whereas, the dictatorship of Iraq has continued to develop 
     weapons of mass destruction in violation of United Nations 
     Security Council Resolution 1441; the dictator, Saddam 
     Hussein, has demonstrated a willingness to use weapons of 
     mass destruction against neighboring nations and the citizens 
     of Iraq. Saddam Hussein threatens the Middle East and the 
     global economy with the threat to use weapons of mass 
     destruction; and
       Whereas, the United States of America has the sovereign 
     authority to use force in assuring its own national security. 
     Recognizing the threat to our country, the United States 
     Congress voted overwhelmingly last year to support the use of 
     force against Iraq, and that duty falls to President George 
     W. Bush as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces; and
       Whereas, Mississippians understand the costs of conflict 
     because we have paid them in the past, and we again accept 
     that responsibility. The men and women of the Armed Forces of 
     the United States will be the guardians of civilization as we 
     know it. War has no certainty except the certainty of 
     sacrifice, yet the only way to reduce the harm and duration 
     of war is to apply the full force and might of our military; 
     and
       Whereas, it is our earnest prayer that the job be done well 
     and swiftly and that the return home to family and friends be 
     safe and soon: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate of the State of Mississippi, (the 
     House of Representatives concurring therein), That we do 
     hereby declare our complete support for and our great pride 
     in the Armed Forces of the United States, particularly the 
     men and women from the State of Mississippi, both in the 
     Middle East and elsewhere, who are participating in and 
     supporting military operations against Saddam Hussein and his 
     forces in Iraq, and we pray for the quick and successful 
     conclusion of their important mission and for their safe and 
     sound return home; be it further
       Resolved, That we do hereby express our support of 
     President George W. Bush and the President's cabinet for 
     their courage and decision to remove Saddam Hussein from 
     power; and be it further
       Resolved, That this resolution be sent to the President of 
     the United States, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of 
     Homeland Security, Major General James H. Lipscomb III-
     Mississippi National Guard, the Commanding General-American 
     Military Forces-Operation Enduring Freedom and to members of 
     Mississippi's congressional delegation, and be made available 
     to the Capitol Press Corps.

  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Mississippi and 
the Senator from Montana.
  I ask unanimous consent that the Senator from Alaska, Mr. Stevens, be 
added as a cosponsor of the pending resolution.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The Senator from Montana.
  Mr. BAUCUS. This is a solemn day for our Nation. I rise today to add 
my voice to the chorus of support and prayers that are being sent from 
this Chamber to our brave and heroic troops in the deserts of Iraq. The 
men and women who are serving the country on the front lines are sons 
and daughters, brothers and sisters, and mothers and fathers. Their 
heroic military service is helping bring an end to a brutal regime and 
reducing terrorist threats by stopping those who provide assistance to 
terrorist operations. I know they will be successful in their mission.
  While many differences of opinion were expressed about the way this 
war came to be, the time for debate has ended. We now remain steadfast 
in support of our troops. And we must look to tomorrow and the massive 
rebuilding that will be needed following military actions. It is 
important that we continue to work with our allies to build a stronger 
coalition of support. We will need our friends in the coming days and 
weeks.
  And we must also focus on providing our troops with all the 
assistance and resources they need. With that in mind, I would like to 
take a moment to urge support of the ``Armed Forces Tax Fairness Act of 
2003.'' The House passed this important bill today. And it passed 
smoothly out of the Finance Committee weeks ago. It very much ties in 
with the remarks of the Senator from Alaska, that our valiant men and 
women overseas don't get overtime pay. And the very least we can do is 
voluntary work and other ways to help our troops this bill fits into 
that suggestion.
  In this time of war, I can think of nothing more appropriate than 
passing a bill that is dedicated to providing assistance to those who 
serve in our armed forces. In addition, our bill encourages more women 
and men across the country to join our armed forces.
  There are many, many brave men and women from my state of Montana who 
are playing a pivotal role in Iraq. Following the events of September 
11, members of the 120th Fighter Wing of the Montana Air National Guard 
were called to secure the skies of the no-fly zone over Iraq. Their 
bravery will once again be seen in the current operation.
  I want to help members of 120th Fighter Wing, and every other member 
of our armed forces. We can do this by passing the Armed Forces Tax 
Fairness Act.
  Let me describe some of the key provisions.
  Under our current tax code, if a member of the armed forces dies 
while on active duty, the federal government pays the surviving spouse 
a small death benefit of $6,000. The entire amount should be excluded 
from taxable income. However, because of a glitch in the law, only half 
is excluded. Our legislation corrects this by excluding the entire 
$6,000 payment.

[[Page 7062]]

  Just last week, one of our soldiers from Montana, Private First Class 
Stryder Stoutenburg, was tragically killed during a Blackhawk 
helicopter crash. A native of Missoula, Private First Class Stoutenburg 
was only 18 years old. His mother will receive the death benefit 
payment, but will be taxed on half of it. She has already lost so much. 
It is unfair to also take away part of the small compensation she is 
receiving.
  Another provision of this bill would ensure that military members who 
are frequently required to move from town to town and country to 
country, are not punished with capital gains taxes when they sell their 
homes. Under current law, an individual must live in their house for 2 
of 5 years in order to qualify for capital gains taxes exclusion. This 
isn't feasible for many in the armed forces and our bill would 
eliminate the 2-year requirement.
  A third provision seeks to take a financial burden off of our men and 
women who serve in the National Guard and the Reserves. Many reservists 
must travel away from home for weekend drills and wind up spending a 
substantial amount of money for overnight travel and lodging.
  In fact, for many of our younger, more junior reservists, the 
expenses exceed their take home pay for the weekend. Our bill would 
allow them to deduct these expenses from their taxes, even if the 
expenses do not exceed the 2 percent floor.
  In addition to providing financial assistance, this bill will not add 
to the deficit since it's completely offset in two ways. First, we 
improve the collection of unpaid taxes from people who have renounced 
their American citizenship in order to avoid future U.S. taxes. Second, 
we extend certain IRS user fees. These are modest, sensible changes. In 
fact, in the case of expatriates, the offset seems especially timely.
  There is no better time than today to pass legislation that will 
allow our military personnel to fight for our country, not have to 
fight the tax code. I know that the thoughts of every single Member of 
Congress go out to the troops who are risking their lives. We pray for 
their fast and safe return home. I'm hopeful for quick passage of this 
bill that will provide needed tax relief for our troops.
  I thank Members who contributed to the development of the bill: 
Senators Levin and Warner of the Armed Services Committee, Senator 
Landrieu, Senator Johnson, Senator Harkin. And especially I thank 
Chairman Grassley of the Fiance Committee who I have enjoyed working 
with and who, once again, in this case has helped us to develop an 
important piece of bipartisan tax legislation.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the pending 
resolution be considered as a Senate resolution.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I recognize the distinguished Senator from 
New Mexico for a period of 3 minutes.
  Mr. LEVIN. If the Senator from New Mexico would yield for a request, 
I ask unanimous consent that after the Senator from New Mexico has 
completed, Senator Byrd then be recognized for 15 minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The Senator from New Mexico.
  Mr. DOMENICI. I ask the Senator from Montana if he would place the 
Senator from New Mexico's name on the various military and veterans 
bills.
  Mr. BAUCUS. I make that request.
  Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, today is a day, as I see it, to be 
thankful, to have hope, and to pray. I stand before the Senate thankful 
for our freedom and for the thousands of American young men and women, 
husbands and wives, sons and daughters, who are volunteers in the U.S. 
military, especially for those who are serving in combat in Iraq. I 
thank each of them for their service and for volunteering to protect us 
and to protect freedom in faraway lands.
  I think it is also important to thank their parents, their 
grandparents, and their spouses for their sacrifice as they wait for 
their loved ones who are overseas giving of themselves to save the 
world from a tyrant in possession of weapons of mass destruction. These 
brave men and women are there to protect us and protect the neighbors 
of Iraq from the scourge of a tyrant who has violated international 
rules and failed to disarm. Our men and women, joined by others from 
around the world, will see to it that he is disarmed. In doing that, 
they will be doing a very important duty, and they will be giving us 
the most important gift we can have, to be contributors to freedom in 
that part of the world and in our own country for the future.
  Last night, airplanes from Holloman Air Force Base, NM, were the 
planes that did the initial strikes on Baghdad. They were far away from 
their home in Holloman Air Force Base, NM. They are the F-117 stealth 
fighters. They have been joined in that theater of war by men and women 
from our two other military bases, the air bases at Cannon and 
Kirtland. They are also joined by units of the New Mexico National 
Guard and Reserve.
  On behalf of all of those military personnel, their relatives and 
friends, as one of their Senators from New Mexico, I thank them. I 
congratulate them for their willingness to fight for freedom and for 
the generosity of being volunteers to keep America safe and free.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator has used his 10 minutes.
  Mr. DOMENICI. I yield the floor.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, Senator Byrd graciously agreed to yield 2 
of his 15 minutes to the Senator from South Dakota. It will be very 
clear to the body as to why that was such an important and gracious act 
on the part of Senator Byrd.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from South Dakota.
  Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, I thank Senator Levin and my colleague, 
Senator Byrd.
  Mr. President, I rise today to express my strong support for the men 
and women serving in our Armed Forces in the war on Iraq. I join with 
my colleagues in the Senate and with the American people in conveying 
our gratitude to each of them for their willingness to courageously 
serve our Nation.
  Now that the war has begun, it is time for all Americans to come 
together to support our military. While we had hoped a diplomatic 
solution could be found so that we could avoid the use of force, it now 
appears that military action is imminent. I will do all that I can to 
assure that our troops have the resources they need to complete their 
mission quickly, efficiently, and with as little loss of life as 
possible.
  Be they active duty or members of the National Guard or Reserves, our 
Armed Forces are the best equipped, best trained fighting force in the 
history of the world. Despite our preparedness, this may not be a quick 
and easy war. The Iraqi Army, if it chooses to fight, remains a 
formidable force. But let there be no doubt that our military will 
achieve its mission. We will disarm Saddam Hussein. We will end his 
brutal dictatorship, and we will liberate the Iraqi people.
  We should not forget that we are fighting this war not only to ensure 
that Saddam Hussein never again is able to use weapons of mass 
destruction, but also to give the 22 million Iraqi people the chance to 
build a democracy and to live in freedom. Our goals are noble, and the 
actions of our military are just.
  Finally, to the families whose sons and daughters, fathers and 
mothers have been deployed to the Middle East, I want to say that you 
and your loved ones are in our prayers. As a father with a son serving 
as a sergeant in the 101st Airborne, now in the Iraqi theater, I 
understand the mix of pride and fear that family members are feeling at 
this time. I wear my blue star with pride. They should find comfort in 
the fact that they are not alone; our entire Nation is with them during 
these difficult moments.
  Mr. President, I thank my colleagues for the opportunity to address 
the Senate on this timely and important matter and to offer my thanks, 
prayers, and gratitude to our Armed Forces.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time?

[[Page 7063]]


  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I can think of no one in this body who is 
more appropriate to bring this debate to a close, or near to a close, 
than Senator Johnson of South Dakota whose son is serving with such 
honor and distinction and who brings such pride to his family. I thank 
the Senator for sharing with us the emotions I know he feels at this 
very moment as a father.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, may I also join my colleague and express 
how grateful we are he came to the floor with a great sense of emotion 
and humility and, the final sentence with which he concluded, his pride 
in his son. I commend the Senator.
  I should note that the son of a member of the senior staff of the 
Senate Armed Services Committee, COL Chuck Alsup, who is with me in the 
Chamber, leaves today as a military man to join the forces in the gulf.
  We will have the Senator from North Carolina address us for 2\1/2\ 
minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Carolina.
  Mrs. DOLE. I thank the Chair. To date, nearly 40,000 men and women 
from North Carolina's military bases have been deployed for duty in 
Operation Iraqi Freedom.
  Last month, as a new member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, I 
visited three of our military installations in North Carolina. I have 
always had the greatest respect and admiration for the brave men and 
women who dedicate their lives to defending our freedoms. It was 
particularly important to me to visit our armed forces personnel at 
this critical moment in our history and to tell them how much I 
appreciate what they do for us, for our country, each and every day.
  At Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, at Cherry Point Marine Corps Air 
Station, and at Fort Bragg, I was moved by the dedication, the 
commitment, the patriotism of the members of our armed forces and their 
families. They make me proud and thankful to be an American.
  In a recent interview, my husband, Bob, was asked about his service 
in World War II--about being part of ``the Greatest Generation.'' He 
responded that it is the men and women of our military today who are 
the greatest generation. I agree with him completely. We have the best 
equipped, most capable, most courageous military force in the world.
  I remember my first day, 12 years ago, as president of the American 
Red Cross, walking into my new office to find a letter from Colin 
Powell, then-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. One of the oldest 
Red Cross assistance programs, the Armed Forces Emergency Services, was 
in jeopardy due to a lack of donor interest. I promised Colin Powell 
right then and there that we would do whatever it took to preserve that 
program for our men and women in uniform--and we did.
  Many people do not realize that wherever our military goes, the Red 
Cross goes with them to provide support and services, delivering 4,000 
emergency messages a day to our military men and women. On that first 
day on my job, during the Persian Gulf war, our thoughts and prayers 
were with the Red Cross and our armed forces.
  Shortly after the war ended, I traveled to the Persian Gulf to thank 
the Red Crossers for their work and to deliver humanitarian aid to 
Kuwait. Even now, I can clearly recall the horror of Saddam Hussein's 
occupation of that country--oil fields burning, a hospital where scores 
of children had died because doctors and nurses fled the country to 
escape the horrors of Saddam Hussein and his forces. I put a call out, 
right then and there, for doctors and nurses to come to Kuwait through 
Red Cross sponsorship--and about 50 American medical personnel 
responded immediately.
  Saddam Hussein is a dangerous man who continues to pose a threat to 
the region's stability, to his own people, and to the American people 
through his sponsorship of terror. Right now, he's passing weapons of 
mass destruction to Iraqi troops--weapons he claimed not to have. He 
would gladly pass these weapons to terrorists to use against America.
  President Bush exhausted every option before resorting to military 
force.
  It is time to free the people of Iraq from Saddam Hussein's terror, 
to remove his weapons of mass destruction, to help Iraq establish 
democracy.
  I have the highest confidence in our Armed Forces, and I know they 
will complete the mission they are called to accomplish. As we go 
forward, my thoughts and prayers will constantly be with our Commander 
in Chief, with these men and women and their families, with the Iraqi 
people, and with all those on the front lines of this war.
  May God bless them all, and may God bless this great land of the free 
and home of the brave--America.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time?
  Mr. WARNER. I grant the Senator from Utah 2 minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Utah.
  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I am pleased to stand here and support our 
young men and women in the Middle East and the efforts they are making 
to defend our Nation and, of course, defend against terrorism and to 
end the intolerant behavior and leadership of Saddam Hussein.
  Last night we began a war that will end Saddam Hussein's threat to 
his own people, to the Middle East, and to this country. It was a time 
we chose, and a historic moment for the United States, the Middle East, 
and the world.
  Today, as we vote in support of S. Res. 95, our prayers go with our 
brave soldiers, marines, airmen, and sailors. I am proud to say that 
this includes over 3,000 of my fellow Utahns.
  Every attempt was made to find a diplomatic way to disarm Iraq, to 
make Iraq comply with commitments it began to violate shortly after the 
first gulf war in 1991. And so, in many ways, the war with Iraq never 
ended in 1991. A condition of ending the conflict was full and 
transparent disarmament, and Saddam Hussein has never--never--complied 
with that condition. Iraq never complied, over a decade of insistence 
by the international community, over a decade of frustrated inspections 
regimes, over a decade of resolutions by the United Nations, all of 
which have been ignored by Iraq. All of them. Throughout this time, the 
United States has worked with the United Nations. We supported all 17 
resolutions. We supported not just what was written, but was intended. 
We supported not just the words, but the actions they demanded. We 
wanted resolutions with resolve.
  As I said, I believe this administration made every attempt to find a 
solution without resorting to force. Every attempt, that is, except a 
commitment to perpetuating the dangerous belief that force would never 
be an option. Another nation, France, declared that it would veto any 
resolution requiring the use of force now. That nation did so, arguing 
it rejected the ``logic of war.'' I have read the history of Saddam 
Hussein and his dictatorship in Iraq. I have concluded that Saddam 
Hussein has never--never--changed his behavior unless confronted with 
the threat of force. For France to reject the ``logic of war'' in 
trying to compel Saddam Hussein's disarmament, it was willfully 
ignoring this fundamental fact of Saddam Hussein. France is ignoring 
history; it is ignoring logic.
  President Bush said on Monday night that ``we are now acting because 
the risks of inaction would be far greater.'' I support the President, 
and I support this rationale.
  In Saddam Hussein's Iraq, there remain unaccounted vast amounts of 
chemical and biological weapons. This is a fact documented, not by some 
hawks in or out of the U.S. Government but by the international 
community. In Saddam Hussein, there is a long and established history 
of association with, and support for, terrorists. All those within 
reach of a television or newspaper saw, within the past weeks, 
Palestinian terrorist groups doling out Saddam's largesse. Saddam has 
trained terrorists, funded suicide operations, and allowed members of 
al-Qaida to live in his tightly controlled Iraq.
  Some opponents of the President's policy have suggested that he 
failed to make the case that Saddam Hussein caused the attacks on 
September 11. These critics are disingenuous: The administration has 
never made this

[[Page 7064]]

claim. It has asserted, and I believe them, that elements of al-Qaida 
have been in Iraq since September 11. As we learn more, I also believe 
that the history of al-Qaida will reveal a long association with Saddam 
Hussein's Iraq, going back years, and being developed in Iraq, Sudan 
and Pakistan.
  I have said this before. Association is not causation, I know. But 
when it comes to regimes hiding weapons of mass destruction and 
harboring terrorist organizations dedicated to our doom, I say this: 
Association is reason enough for alarm, reason enough for action. The 
President said it clearly last on Monday night:

       Responding to such enemies only after they have struck 
     first is not self-defense, it is suicide.

  I commend his administration for searching for every possible 
solution short of war. That this was not possible does not mean they 
did not work earnestly and assiduously to avoid conflict. The effort 
does not guarantee the result. It does not guarantee support of the 
U.N. Security Council.
  On that Security Council, China would rather see a nuclear Korean 
peninsula than a passive U.S. presence in South Korea. I have seen how 
Russia would rather see genocide in the Balkans--and Chechnya--than 
NATO success there. France would rather reject the ``logic of war'' in 
responding to a dictator who has never been motivated by anything other 
than the threat of force. These countries have their own self-interest, 
whether we like it or not. They stand down when outlaw regimes stand 
defiant with their illicit weapons of mass murder.
  I thank God for the patience, wisdom and courage of this 
administration. I believe I join all my colleagues as we offer our 
thoughts and prayers for the members of the American military, their 
families, our allies, and the people of Iraq, who will soon be free of 
a despicable, murderous regime that has kept the world fearful for far 
too long. And last night, I prayed to God that our mission in Iraq is 
blessed with providence and His protection. To our brave military I 
say: Godspeed and safe home.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Virginia.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, following the distinguished Senator from 
West Virginia, the Senator from Virginia will recognize Senator Kyl for 
2 minutes and then in rotation the Senator from Georgia, Mr. Chambliss, 
for 2 minutes. That results in all the time under my control being 
expired.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I yield 13 minutes to the Senator from West 
Virginia.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from West Virginia.
  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, I thank the very distinguished Senator from 
Michigan, Mr. Levin, for his courtesy, his characteristic accommodative 
spirit. I also thank the distinguished Senator from Virginia for his 
characteristic courtesy always. I thank those who have written this 
resolution.
  Months of uncertainty over the fate of Iraq ended with the first U.S. 
air strikes on Baghdad. Today, regardless of where any of us stand on 
the decision to go to war, we are all Americans, and our thoughts and 
prayers go out to the men and women of the U.S. military who have been 
called to battle in a foreign land.
  Few doubt the outcome of this war. The fate of Iraq is sealed. The 
United States, with its awesome military might, is virtually certain to 
prevail decisively. But the fate of the individual soldiers, sailors, 
airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen who will carry the battle to Iraq 
is far less certain. We pray that every man and woman engaged in the 
war will return home safely and soon.
  Our troops will face intense dangers as the mission to unseat Saddam 
Hussein proceeds. When our airplanes penetrate the sky above Iraq to 
deliver computer-guided bombs to their targets, and our ground troops 
begin their armored charge through the deserts of Iraq, our men and 
women in uniform surely know that one unlucky shot could send their 
families into mourning for a fallen patriot.
  There are unknown perils as well. We do not know if Iraqi civilians 
will unite to repel a foreign enemy from their homes. We do not know if 
Iraq's military will lure us into bloody, house-to-house fighting. We 
do not know if Saddam Hussein will use chemical or biological weapons 
against our forces. I pray that the sons and daughters of the United 
States will never face these grave risks to their safety.
  More than 225,000 U.S. troops are now involved. True to its 
traditions of service to our country, West Virginia continues to have 
the highest per capita rates of participation in our armed forces. 
Thousands of West Virginians are now carrying out missions to defeat 
Saddam Hussein, protect our homeland, and root out terrorists in 
Afghanistan.
  Thirty-three different units of the National Guard and military 
reserves based in the Mountain State are now activated. The 459th 
Engineer Company, based in Bridgeport, must now be readying to bridge 
the ancient Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. The 1092nd Engineer Battalion, 
based in Parkersburg, has been called to duty and might soon join in 
that effort. The 130th and 167th Airlift Wings are using their cargo 
aircraft to move men and materiel to where they are needed. West 
Virginians attached to the 363rd, 157th, and 304th Military Police 
Companies, out of Grafton, Martinsburg, and Bluefield, stand ready to 
maintain law and order in places far distant from their homes and 
families. These are but a few of the multitude of tasks now being 
carried out by West Virginia mountaineers in service to our country.
  The men and women of these military units, like the rest of our 
troops, did not join the armed forces to fight Saddam Hussein. They did 
not ask to be sent to the harsh climes of the Arabian desert. Our 
troops volunteered to serve our country and uphold our Constitution. 
They are to be commended for their dedication to our country.
  I stand foursquare behind our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines. 
I urge every American to pray for our troops, and pray that they will 
return safely from those faraway sands, to the loving arms of their 
families. I will do everything in my power as a member of the 
Appropriations Committee, and as a member of the Armed Services 
Committee to provide our troops with the funds that are needed to 
ensure their safety.
  I do not agree with every word of this resolution. I have strong 
reservations that the new doctrine of preemption does not meet the test 
of international law. I have strong reservations about the assertion 
that the Congress has ``fully authorized'' this war against Iraq. I do 
not believe that Congress can cede its constitutional power to declare 
war to the President of the United States.
  I have questions about our long-term strategy for the reconstruction 
of Iraq, the plans to democratize the Middle East, and the application 
of the pre-emptive doctrine that has led the United States to war in 
2003.
  But I have no question about the ability of our military to deliver a 
crushing blow to whatever army might stand in their way in Iraq. I have 
no question that our armed forces will carry out their mission with 
honor and resolve. I have no question that our Nation has the 
obligation to finish the job and destroy whatever chemical, biological, 
and radiological weapons that Saddam Hussein possess.
  Last night, in his address to the Nation, the President said that 
``our forces will be coming home as soon as their work is done.'' I 
support these words by the President, for they speak to the millions of 
Americans who now wonder when their loved ones might return home. This 
is the ultimate measure of support that our Government can give to our 
military servicemen and women.
  We do not know how long this war might last, or how long our troops 
might occupy Iraq after our victory. We should not rule out the 
possibility that Saddam Hussein could flee at anytime during the course 
of the battle, precluding further carnage. In the coming days, the 
television news is sure to show pictures of smart bombs dropping on 
targets, and perhaps grainy, night-time images of our troops moving to

[[Page 7065]]

take their objectives. These sanitized images do not reflect the true 
cost of war. They cannot hope to convey the perils that our military 
will encounter as the war continues. But I hope the words spoken on the 
floor of the Senate today will convey the deep and abiding support of 
every Member of this body for the men and women of the United States 
military serving in the Persian Gulf.
  I close by referring to those words by Longfellow in ``The Building 
of the Ship'':

     Thou, too, sail, on, O Ship of State!
     Sail on, O Union, strong and great!
     Humanity with all its fears,
     With all the hopes of future years,
     Is hanging breathless on thy fate!
     We know what Master laid thy keel,
     What workmen wrought thy ribs of steel,
     Who made each mast, and sail, and rope,
     What anvils rang, what hammers beat,
     In what forge and what a heat
     Were shaped the anchors of thy hope!
     Fear not each sudden sound and shock,
     'Tis of the wave and not the rock;
     'Tis but the flapping of the sail,
     And not a rent made by the gale!
     In spite of rock and tempest's roar,
     In spite of false lights on the shore,
     Sail on, nor fear to breast the sea!
     Our hearts, our hopes, are all with thee,
     Our hearts, our hopes, our prayers, our tears,
     Our faith triumphant o'er our fears,
     Are all with three,--are all with thee!

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Virginia.
  Mr. WARNER. I yield 2 minutes to the Senator from Arizona.
  Mr. KYL. Mr. President, last night leading elements of our coalition 
forces began to rid the land and the people of Iraq of the oppression 
of Saddam Hussein and eliminate the threat he poses to the rest of the 
world.
  Throughout our history, our Nation has experienced moments that have 
defined our spirit, our cause.
  We really do hold ``these truths to be self evident. * * * That all 
men are created equal,'' that all ``men are endowed by their Creator 
with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, 
and the Pursuit of Happiness.'' This applies to the innocent Iraqis who 
have been brutalized by a cruel and morally bankrupt regime as much as 
it applies to the citizens of our Nation who deserve to be free of 
Saddam Hussein's threats.
  In the past, Americans have crossed oceans to free subjugated peoples 
and protect ourselves. On more than one occasion in the past century, 
our friends on the European continent have required our intercession 
and our sacrifice to extricate them from the foul pit of regional war, 
and genocide perpetrated by the evil men of those times.
  Our experience of war on our own soil also brought with it defining 
moments. On July 2, 1863, in a field outside of a little town in 
Pennsylvania called Gettysburg, a young Colonel named Joshua Lawrence 
Chamberlain addressed a group of his men, men of the 20th Maine, who 
were about to play a pivotal role in the success of the Union forces in 
that horrible battle. For his part in this battle, he was awarded the 
Congressional Medal of Honor.
  Though no exact record of his words exist, the following has been 
attributed to him, and I believe it reflects our motive, our mission, 
and the attitude of our men and women who are now in harm's way. He 
said to the assembled group: ``We all volunteered to fight for the 
Union * * * ours is a different kind of army. * * * If you look back 
through history, you will see men fighting for pay, women, some other 
kind of loot * * * they fight for land or power * * * because a king 
leads them or because they like killing. We are here for something 
new--this has not happened much in the history of the world--We are an 
army out to set other men free.''
  To those who do not agree with us right now, to those who believe 
that the threat posed by Saddam Hussein is not worth the effort or the 
cost required to remove him, I offer the words of one of the great 
philosophers of liberty. The Englishman John Stuart Mill wrote: ``War 
is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and 
degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing 
is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is 
willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal 
safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless 
made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.''
  Mr. President, I call upon everyone to pray for our troops; to pray 
for their safety, to pray that the battle will be quick, and that their 
families will see them home again soon. I call upon the country to 
pray, too, for the innocent civilians of Iraq and the citizens of 
nearby nations whom Saddam seeks to harm; that all of them as much as 
we may be protected from his evil designs.
  Mr. LEVIN. How much time remains?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator has 4\1/2\ minutes.
  Mr. LEVIN. I yield 2 minutes to the Senator from Washington.
  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I rise in support to the resolution 
before the Senate.
  The President has now started an operation that we had all hoped to 
avoid. Now that battle has begun, we must win the war and win the 
peace.
  There has been considerable disagreement leading up to this moment--
in this chamber, in this country, and throughout the world. Many people 
have very strong feelings about the military operation in Iraq, and 
they have expressed those feelings.
  The debate has been vigorous. But now that American forces are in 
combat, our soldiers should not doubt our support for them.
  We stand firmly behind the men and women of our military. They have 
volunteered to serve their country. We are proud of their service, and 
we admire their courage. During this difficult time, our thoughts and 
prayers are with them and the families who await their return.
  My State of Washington is home to thousands of soldiers, sailors and 
airmen. I have had the privilege of meeting many of them--at Fort 
Lewis, Fairchild Air Force Base, McChord Air Force base, Whidbey Naval 
Air Station, Everett Naval Station, Bremerton Naval Station, the Bangor 
Sub base, and our Coast Guard stations.
  Some of Washington State's finest are now serving in the Middle East, 
and may be seeing combat. I have no doubt they will distinguish 
themselves in carrying out their missions.
  Many of these soldiers have family back in Washington State. 
Throughout my state and across the nation, families are anxious, 
knowing that their loved ones are in military action.
  We take comfort in knowing that America's soldiers are the best-
trained, best-equipped, and most capable fighting force the world has 
ever known. They will carry out this dangerous mission, and they will 
prevail. We are proud of their dedication and courage, and we all pray 
for their safe and swift return.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time?
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I yield to the distinguished Senator from 
Georgia, and I understand the Senator desires to speak and will yield 
to the Senator from South Carolina.
  Mr. CHAMBLISS. Mr. President, I thank Senator Levin for his 
leadership on this resolution and on this issue.
  Last night, the Liberty Bell of freedom and democracy began to ring 
again. Last night, the United States of America headed down a path of 
freeing the people of Iraq from the cruel dictator, Saddam Hussein. I 
don't know how long President Bush or Prime Minister Blair will be in 
office, but this has to be the most difficult decision that they have 
made or will ever make. But I commend them for their courage and their 
leadership. No one wants to see war. But there are times in our 
country, in the history of our country, when military conflict is 
necessary to ensure that America and Americans are safe and secure.
  I am very proud of all the Active Duty, Reserve and Guard personnel 
from my State who have been deployed from 8 of the 13 military 
installations in Georgia. We wish them Godspeed, a successful and quick 
victory, and wish that they come home safely, sound and soon.
  I am privileged to yield the remainder of my time to the only member 
of the Reserve serving in the Senate, my good friend from South 
Carolina, Lindsey Graham.

[[Page 7066]]


  Mr. GRAHAM of South Carolina. I thank the Senator for yielding.
  Mr. President, there is a better day coming. It is a cloudy day right 
now. We are worried about our families and our troops, but there is a 
bright day coming. Our American servicemen will give freedom to Iraq, 
make us more secure. They are a blend of who we are: Rich, poor, black, 
white, Jew, Gentile, all mixed up into the American military. The 
strength of our military is they are an optimistic bunch. They are 
fighting for causes greater than their self-interest. That is why we 
will win.
  Mr. LEVIN. How much time remains?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator has 2 minutes 44 seconds.
  Mr. LEVIN. I yield 1 minute to Senator Landrieu and 1 minute to 
Senator Stabenow.
  Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, less than 24 hours ago, President Bush, 
our Commander in Chief, issued orders to begin military actions to 
disarm Saddam Hussein and his totalitarian regime. War is never our 
first choice, but it is sometimes a necessary last choice. As a mature 
democracy, we prefer to settle disputes peacefully and use diplomacy 
whenever possible. But sometimes, disputes cannot be settled 
peacefully. Force must be used to defend against threats to our freedom 
and liberate an oppressed people. That is what we are doing in Iraq. I 
want to express my support for our men and women in uniform and this 
course of action.
  I wish to offer my wholehearted and unwavering support for those 
serving in our Armed Forces. The men and women serving our country in 
the military symbolize the best America has to offer. They are 
dedicated to the defense of our Constitution and willing to make the 
ultimate sacrifice, if necessary, to protect the Constitution for every 
American. More importantly, they volunteer to do so. They are well-
trained and ready to defend our way of life and improve the lives of 
Iraqis. Along with the people of Louisiana, I will be praying for our 
troops and their families. I wish our men and women safety in their 
missions and a quick return home.
  Barksdale--B-52s and A-10s from the 2d Bomb Wing and 917th Air Wing 
are making great contributions in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Guam. I am so 
proud of Barksdale's leadership, pilots, flight crews, and their 
families.
  Fort Polk is the premiere light armored training center in the world. 
Our Army will succeed in Iraq because it trained for victory at Fort 
Polk. Currently, 4,000 men and women of the 2d Armored Cavalry are 
working to liberate Iraq, and I could not be more proud. Their families 
should also be proud.
  Louisiana has 14,000 Air and Army National Guardsmen; 2,400 are 
currently deployed, and many are in Iraq and Afghanistan. Many 
Guardsmen have been activated three times since September 11. In the 
last 18 months, they have seen little of their families, but they have 
done much for their country. These proud warriors have served above and 
beyond the call of duty.
  Belle Chasse is the premiere Joint Reserve Base for the Marine 
Reserve, Navy Reserve, Air Force Reserve, and Air National Guard. Belle 
Chasse has contributed A-10s, Cobras, F-15s, and F-18s; pilots and 
crews to the war on terrorism. These men and women, too, have been 
called up a number of times. They have served valiantly and with 
distinction.
  In closing, I want to thank our allies who have joined us to defend 
our shores, bring liberty to the people of Iraq, and root out 
terrorism. British Prime Minister Tony Blair risked his political 
career to do what is right for world security. I want to tell him that 
the American people appreciate his courage. Australia is committing 
forces, and we are grateful. Additionally, Eastern European countries 
like Romania, Bulgaria, and Poland have been staunch supporters of 
disarming Saddam Hussein. They have done so because not long ago they 
lived under dictators. They have recently experienced the sweet breaths 
of freedom, and they want the Iraqi people to experience the same. God 
bless our troops.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Michigan.
  Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I thank my esteemed colleague and 
leader, Senator Carl Levin.
  With the first shots fired last night, I rise today to talk about the 
need to support our troops now fighting in the gulf, as well as those 
on duty around the world.
  From that freezing winter in Valley Forge to the baking heat and 
swirling dust storms of the gulf today, our men and women in uniform 
have shown over and over the hardships they are ready to endure in 
service to their country.
  They are all in our thoughts and prayers. And we pray this ends 
quickly and with little loss of life.
  I have met with many of these men and women and their commanders and 
have been impressed with their professionalism, training, and sense of 
duty and sacrifice.
  From my home State of Michigan, the men and women of the 127th Air 
National Guard Wing in Selfridge, the 110th Fighter Wing in Battle 
Creek and the Combat Readiness Training Center in Alpena have been 
mobilized and deployed to bases around the world, including Kuwait, 
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, South West Asia, and Turkey.
  Army National Guard and Reserve unites from Owosso, Taylor, Grand 
Ledge, Grayling, Sault Ste. Marie, Midland, Pontiac, Three Rivers, 
Augusta, Selfridge, and Ypsilanti have all been mobilized and are 
awaiting their deployment orders.
  Many of these men and women leave families and well-paying jobs 
behind, creating hardships for themselves and their family just so they 
can serve their Nation.
  As the sole remaining superpower, we are asking a tremendous amount 
of our Armed Forces today. When we look around the globe, the numbers 
are staggering.
  Right now about 225,000 troops are deployed in the Mideast--with more 
on the way.
  But, again, as the sole remaining superpower we still have 
responsibilities around the globe.
  We still have 38,000 Active Duty troops in Korea, nearly 40,000 in 
Japan, more than 100,00 permanently stationed in Europe, and about 
50,000 sailors and soldiers afloat on ships in foreign waters.
  In fact, according to the Department of Defense, the U.S. military is 
operating in more places around the globe than at any time in its 
history, including World War II, with a military presence in about 140 
nations.
  These men and women in uniform need to know their Nation will do 
everything in its power to give them the support they need to do their 
jobs--and also that gratitude for their sacrifice they will have our 
support when they come home as well.
  General George C. Marshall, who oversaw the movement of forces in 
Europe and the Pacific in World War II, knew that the morale of the 
troops is crucial if the Armed Forces are to be effective. He once 
said:

       It is not enough to fight. It is the spirit which we bring 
     to the fight that decides the issue. It is morale that wins 
     victories.

  I agree.
  And I believe one of the things we must do in this Congress to ensure 
high morale among our 2.3 million men and women in uniform, including 
Active, Reserve and Guard units, is to show them we are treating the 25 
million veterans who came before them, including about 875,000 from 
Michigan, with the respect a grateful nation owes them.
  One thing I would like to see is a change of policy so that our 
600,000 disabled men and women who wore their country's uniform could 
collect both full pensions and disability benefits.
  I also want to make sure our veterans have access to the best 
possible health care by fully funding the Veterans Affairs health care 
system.
  If you cared enough to wear the uniform, you should be guaranteed 
high-quality, uniform care.
  We also need to eliminate bottlenecks at the Veterans Administration 
for veterans who need prescription drugs.

[[Page 7067]]

  Finally, we need to pass legislation creating tax fairness for 
military personnel.
  We need to send to the President S. 351 that would address long-
overdue tax reforms for National Guard and Reserve personnel.
  We also need to remember that in the world after 9-11, our first 
responders are now also a crucial part of our national security, and 
they need our full support as well.
  They were then, and remain now, on the front lines of hometown 
defense in this new war against terrorism.
  For the past several months I have been traveling throughout Michigan 
meeting with the public safety officials who have been given the 
mission of trying to prevent an attack--or be first on the scene to 
save lives if one occurs.
  In nine meetings from Michigan's Upper Peninsula to Detroit, I heard 
the same message over and over:

       Help us get the training, personnel and equipment we need 
     to protect the people we need to protect, and help us meet 
     our obligations in the face of these new threats to our 
     communities.

  Mr. President, I hope we will do just that as soon as possible.
  This Sunday I will participate in a special ceremony that puts this 
all in perspective for me. This Sunday I meet with an American hero of 
World War II to present him a long overdue and richly deserved Bronze 
Star.
  His name is Sergeant Herbert Munford and his story is inspiring.
  Sergeant Munford had already earned a Silver Star at the Battle of 
the Bulge. Of the 385 men in his company when the battle began, only 18 
were standing at the end--the rest killed, captured, or wounded.
  Months later, SGT Munford's platoon was scouting along the Rhine, 
looking for a place to cross in advance of General George S. Patton's 
3rd Army.
  A German machine gun nest opened up on the platoon. SGT Munford made 
a run for some tall grass, hoping to hide himself while he circled 
around behind the machine gun.
  He was shot in the hip as he was making his run out in the open. But 
he still managed to make it into the tall grass, circle behind the 
machine gun nest and take it out.
  And what does SGT Munford say today about his heroic act. Well, he 
jokes about it. He called being shot in the hip his ``million dollar 
wound.''
  Why? Well, in his own words SGT Munford says:

       I can't swim. I didn't know how I was going to get across 
     the Rhine in the first place. I was sent back to be treated 
     for my wound and when I got back about two days later, Patton 
     had taken the Rhine and built a bridge so I could just walk 
     across.

  What modesty! And keep in mind, that German bullet is still lodged in 
his hip today.
  And his story doesn't end there. SGT Munford went on to win an Oak 
Leaf Cluster for his Bronze Star for bravery under fire in Korea.
  I tell this story, because I think SGT Munford's story, like the 
stories of so many of our veterans, shows the great patriotic tradition 
of our Nation--a tradition that is on display today in the Gulf and 
around the world.
  And when I meet with SGT Munford on Sunday--and he's standing there 
with his family and fellow veterans--I want to be able to look each and 
every one of them in the eye and tell them in this time of conflict 
this Nation is doing all it can to support our present military 
personnel serving in the Gulf and other duty stations around the globe. 
And that we stand behind our veterans of past wars as well.
  I want them to know that we are committed to the proposition that 
those who answered the call to duty will never need to call out for 
help due to indifference.
  I want them to know that those who sacrifice for their country will 
return to a country ready to sacrifice for them as well.
  And I want them to know that those who wear the uniform of this 
Nation with honor, will themselves be honored long after that uniform 
has been put away and the guns gone silent.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The time of the Senator has expired.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There is a 
sufficient second.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, is there any time remaining?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Eleven seconds.
  Mr. LEVIN. The men and women we have now placed in harm's way are 
carrying the prayers of every single Member of this body and every 
single man, woman, and child in this Nation. They are carrying on in 
the greatest traditions of the American military. We thank them.
  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, this has been a historic debate, fully 
participated in by many Senators. I am privileged to be a part of that 
debate. I again salute the distinguished majority leader and the 
Democratic leader for drawing up this resolution. The Senate has 
spoken.
  As we conclude this historic debate, which conclusively states the 
support of the Senate behind our President, our men and women in 
uniform and their families, I believe it is appropriate to include as 
part of this record the speech given to the British Parliament on March 
18, 2003 requesting authority to use British forces alongside American 
forces in the liberation of the people of Iraq, by the Prime Minister, 
the Honorable Tony Blair, whom I and others view as Churchill II. My 
colleagues will recall that Prime Minister Blair was specifically 
mentioned in the text of this resolution I read earlier. This was a 
purposeful reflection of our great esteem for this courageous leader 
who has stood so firm arm-in-arm with America. His request to use force 
was not a popular motion, but he prevailed. The following is the text 
of his speech and I commend it to my colleagues. I ask unanimous 
consent to print the speech in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                          Tony Blair's Speech

       I beg to move the motion standing on the order paper in my 
     name and those of my right honourable friends.
       At the outset I say: it is right that this house debate 
     this issue and pass judgment. That is the democracy that is 
     our right but that others struggle for in vain.
       And again I say: I do not disrespect the views of those in 
     opposition to mine.
       This is a tough choice. But it is also a stark one: to 
     stand British troops down and turn back; or to hold firm to 
     the course we have set.
       I believe we must hold firm.
       The question most often posed is not why does it matter? 
     But why does it matter so much? Here we are, the government 
     with its most serious test, its majority at risk, the first 
     cabinet resignation over an issue of policy. The main parties 
     divided.
       People who agree on everything else, disagree on this and 
     likewise, those who never agree on anything, finding common 
     cause. The country and parliament reflect each other, a 
     debate that, as time has gone on has become less bitter but 
     not less grave.
       So: why does it matter so much? Because the outcome of this 
     issue will now determine more than the fate of the Iraqi 
     regime and more than the future of the Iraqi people, for so 
     long brutalized by Saddam. It will determine the way Britain 
     and the world confront the central security threat of the 
     21st century; the development of the UN; the relationship 
     between Europe and the U.S. the relations within the EU and 
     the way the U.S. engages with the rest of the world. It will 
     determine the pattern of international politics for the next 
     generation.
       But first, Iraq and its WMD.
       In April 1991, after the Gulf war, Iraq was given 15 days 
     to provide a full and final declaration of all its WMD.
       Saddam had used the weapons against Iran, against his own 
     people, causing thousands of deaths. He had had plans to use 
     them against allied forces. It became clear after the Gulf 
     war that the WMD ambitions of Iraq were far more extensive 
     than hitherto thought. This issue was identified by the UN as 
     one for urgent remedy. UNSCOM, the weapons inspection team, 
     was set up. They were expected to complete their task 
     following declaration at the end of April 1991.
       The declaration when it came was false--a blanket denial of 
     the programme, other than in a very tentative form. So the 
     12-year game began.
       The inspectors probed. Finally in March 1992, Iraq admitted 
     it had previously undeclared WMD but said it had destroyed 
     them. It gave another full and final declaration. Again the 
     inspectors probed but found little.
       In October 1994, Iraq stopped cooperating with UNSCOM 
     altogether. Military action was threatened. Inspections 
     resumed. In

[[Page 7068]]

     March 1995, in an effort to rid Iraq of the inspectors, a 
     further full and final declaration of WMD was made. By July 
     1995, Iraq was forced to admit that too was false. In August 
     they provided yet another full and final declaration.
       Then, a week later, Saddam's son-in-law, Hussein Kamal, 
     defected to Jordan. He disclosed a far more extensive BW 
     (biological weapons) programme and for the first time said 
     Iraq had weaponised the programme; something Saddam had 
     always strenuously denied. All this had been happening whilst 
     the inspectors were in Iraq. Kamal also revealed Iraq's crash 
     programme to produce a nuclear weapon in 1990.
       Iraq was forced then to release documents which showed just 
     how extensive those programmes were. In November 1995, Jordan 
     intercepted prohibited components for missiles that could be 
     used for WMD.
       In June 1996, a further full and final declaration was 
     made. That too turned out to be false. In June 1997, 
     inspectors were barred from specific sites.
       In September 1997, another full and final declaration was 
     made. Also false. Meanwhile the inspectors discovered VX 
     nerve agent production equipment, something always denied by 
     the Iraqis.
       In October 1997, the U.S. and the U.K. threatened military 
     action if Iraq refused to comply with the inspectors. But 
     obstruction continued.
       Finally, under threat of action, in February 1998, Kofi 
     Annan went to Baghdad and negotiated a memorandum with Saddam 
     to allow inspections to continue. They did. For a few months.
       In August, cooperation was suspended.
       In December the inspectors left. Their final report is a 
     withering indictment of Saddam's lies, deception and 
     obstruction, with large quantities of WMD remained 
     unaccounted for.
       The U.S. and the U.K. then, in December 1998, undertook 
     Desert Fox, a targeted bombing campaign to degrade as much of 
     the Iraqi WMD facilities as we could.
       In 1999, a new inspections team, UNMOVIC, was set up. But 
     Saddam refused to allow them to enter Iraq.
       So there they stayed, in limbo, until after resolution 1441 
     when last November they were allowed to return.
       What is the claim of Saddam today? Why exactly the same 
     claim as before: that he has no WMD.
       Indeed we are asked to believe that after seven years of 
     obstruction and non-compliance finally resulting in the 
     inspectors leaving in 1998, seven years in which he hid his 
     programme, built it up even whilst inspection teams were in 
     Iraq, that after they left he then voluntarily decided to do 
     what he had consistently refused to do under coercion.
       When the inspectors left in 1998, they left unaccounted 
     for: 10,000 litres of anthrax; a far reaching VX nerve agent 
     programme; up to 6,500 chemical munitions; at least 80 of 
     mustard gas, possibly more than ten times that amount; 
     unquantifiable amounts of sarin, botulinum toxin and a host 
     of other biological poisons; an entire Scud missile 
     programme.
       We are now seriously asked to accept that in the last few 
     years, contrary to all history, contrary to all intelligence, 
     he decided unilaterally to destroy the weapons. Such a claim 
     is palpably absurd.
       1441 is a very clear resolution. It lays down a final 
     opportunity for Saddam to disarm. It rehearses the fact that 
     he has been, for years in material breach of 17 separate UN 
     resolutions. It says that this time compliance must be full, 
     unconditional and immediate. The first step is a full and 
     final declaration of all WMD to be given on 8 December.
       I want to go through all the events since then--the house 
     is familiar with them--but this much is accepted by all 
     members of the UNSC: the 8 December declaration is false. 
     That in itself is a material breach. Iraq has made some 
     concessions to cooperation but no-one disputes it is not 
     fully cooperating. Iraq continues to deny it has any WMD, 
     though no serious intelligence service anywhere in the world 
     believes them.
       On 7 March, the inspectors published a remarkable document. 
     It is 173 pages long, detailing all the unanswered questions 
     about Iraq's WMD. It lists 29 different areas where they have 
     been unable to obtain information. For example, on VX it 
     says: ``Documentation available to UNMOVIC suggests that Iraq 
     at least had had far reaching plans to weaponise VX . . .
       ``Mustard constituted an important part (about 70%) of 
     Iraq's CW arsenal . . . 550 mustard filled shells and up to 
     450 mustard filled aerial bombs unaccounted for . . . 
     additional uncertainty with respect of 6526 aerial bombs, 
     corresponding to approximately 1000 tonnes of agent, 
     predominantly mustard.
       ``Based on unaccounted for growth media, Iraq's potential 
     production of anthrax could have been in the range of about 
     15,000 to 25,000 litres . . . Based on all the available 
     evidence, the strong presumption is that about 10,000 litres 
     of anthrax was not destroyed and may still exist.''
       On this basis, had we meant what we said in resolution 
     1441, the security council should have convened and condemned 
     Iraq as in material breach.
       What is perfectly clear is that Saddam is playing the same 
     old games in the same old way. Yes there are concessions. But 
     fundamental change of heart or mind.
       But the inspectors indicated there was at least some 
     cooperation; and the world rightly hesitated over war. We 
     therefore approached a second resolution in this way.
       We laid down an ultimatum calling upon Saddam to come into 
     line with resolution 1441 or be in material breach. Not an 
     unreasonable proposition, given the history.
       But still countries hesitated: how do we know how to judge 
     full cooperation?
       We then worked on a further compromise. We consulted the 
     inspectors and drew up five tests based on the document they 
     published on 7 March. Tests like interviews with 30 
     scientists outside of Iraq; production of the anthrax or 
     documentation showing its destruction.
       The inspectors added another test: that Saddam should 
     publicly call on Iraqis to cooperate with them. So we 
     constructed this framework: that Saddam should be given a 
     specified time to fulfill all six tests to show full 
     cooperation; that if he did so the inspectors could then set 
     out a forward work programme and that if he failed to do so, 
     action would follow. So clear benchmarks; plus a clear 
     ultimatum. I defy anyone to describe that as an unreasonable 
     position.
       Last Monday, we were getting somewhere with it. We very 
     nearly had majority agreement and I thank the Chilean 
     President particularly for the constructive way he approached 
     the issue.
       There were debates about the length of the ultimatum. But 
     the basic construct was gathering support.
       Then, on Monday night, France said it would veto a second 
     resolution whatever the circumstances. Then France denounced 
     the six tests. Later that day, Iraq rejected them. Still, we 
     continued to negotiate.
       Last Friday, France said they could not accept any 
     ultimatum. On Monday, we made final efforts to secure 
     agreement. But they remain utterly opposed to anything which 
     lays down an ultimatum authorizing action in the event of 
     non-compliance by Saddam.
       Just consider the position we are asked to adopt. Those on 
     the security council opposed to us say they want Saddam to 
     disarm but will not countenance any new resolution that 
     authorizes force in the event of non-compliance.
       That is their position. No to any ultimatum; no to any 
     resolution that stipulates that failure to comply will lead 
     to military action.
       So we must demand he disarm but relinquish any concept of a 
     threat if he doesn't. From December 1998 to December 2002, no 
     UN inspector was allowed to inspect anything in Iraq. For 
     four years, not a thing.
       What changed his mind? The threat of force. From December 
     to January and then from January through to February, 
     concessions were made.
       What changed his mind? The threat of force. And what makes 
     him now issue invitations to the inspectors, discover 
     documents he said he never had, produce evidence of weapons 
     supposed to be non-existent, destroy missiles he said he 
     would keep? The imminence of force.
       The only persuasive power to which he responds is 250,00 
     allied troops on his doorstep.
       And yet when the fact is so obvious that it is staring us 
     in the face, we are told that any resolution that authorizes 
     force will be vetoed. Not just opposed. Vetoed. Blocked.
       The way ahead was so clear. It was for the UN to pass a 
     second resolution setting out benchmarks for compliance; with 
     an ultimatum that if they were ignored, action would follow.
       The tragedy is that had such a resolution been issued, he 
     might just have complied. Because the only route to peace 
     with someone like Saddam Hussein is diplomacy backed by 
     force.
       Yet the moment we proposed the benchmarks, canvassed 
     support for an ultimatum, there was an immediate recourse to 
     the language of the veto.
       And now the world has to learn the lesson all over again 
     that weakness in the face of a threat from a tyrant, is the 
     surest way not to peace but war.
       Looking back over 12 years, we have been victims of our own 
     desire to plactate the implacable, to persuade towards reason 
     the utterly unreasonable, to hope that there was some genuine 
     intent to do good in a regime whose mind is in fact evil. Now 
     the very length of time counts against us. You've waited 12 
     years. Why not wait a little longer?
       And indeed we have.
       1441 gave a final opportunity. The first test was the 8th 
     of December. He failed it. But still we waited. Until January 
     27, the first inspection report that showed the absence of 
     full cooperation. Another breach. And still we waited.
       Until February 14 and then February 28 with concessions, 
     according to the old familiar routine, tossed to us to whet 
     our appetite for hope and further waiting. But still no-one, 
     not the inspectors nor any member of the security council, 
     not any half-way rational observer, believes Saddam is 
     cooperating fully or unconditionally or immediately.

[[Page 7069]]

       Our fault has not been impatience.
       The truth is our patience should have been exhausted weeks 
     and months and years ago. Even now, when if the world united 
     and gave him an ultimatum: comply or face forcible 
     disarmament, he might just do it, the world hesitates and in 
     that hesitation he senses the weakness and therefore 
     continues to defy.
       What would any tyrannical regime possessing WMD think 
     viewing the history of the world's diplomatic dance with 
     Saddam? That our capacity to pass firm resolutions is only 
     matched by our feebleness in implementing them.
       That is why this indulgence has to stop. Because it is 
     dangerous. It is dangerous if such regimes disbelieve us.
       Dangerous if they think they can use our weakness, our 
     hesitation, even the natural urges of our democracy towards 
     peace, against us.
       Dangerous because one day they will mistake our innate 
     revulsion against war for permanent incapacity; when in fact, 
     pushed to the limit, we will act. But then when we act, after 
     years of pretence, the action will have to be harder, bigger, 
     more total in its impact. Iraq in not the only regime with 
     WMD. But back away now from this confrontation and future 
     conflicts will be infinitely worse and more devastating.
       But, of course, in a sense, any fair observer does not 
     really dispute that Iraq is in breach and that 1441 implies 
     action in such circumstances. The real problem is that, 
     underneath, people dispute that Iraq is a threat; dispute the 
     link between terrorism and WMD; dispute the whole basis of 
     our assertion that the two together constitute a fundamental 
     assault on our way of life.
       There are glib and sometimes foolish comparisons with the 
     1930s. No one here is an appeaser. But the only relevant 
     point of analogy is that with history, we know what happened. 
     We can look back and say: there's the time; that was the 
     moment; for example, when Czechoslovakia was swallowed up by 
     the Nazis--that's when we should have acted.
       But it wasn't clear at the time. In fact at the time, many 
     people thought such a fear fanciful. Worse, put forward in 
     bad faith by warmongers. Listen to this editorial--from a 
     paper I'm pleased to say with a different position today--but 
     written in late 1938 after Munich when by now, you would have 
     thought the world was tumultuous in its desire to act.
       ``Be glad in your hearts. Give thanks to your God. People 
     of Britain, your children are safe. Your husbands and your 
     sons will not march to war. Peace is a victory for all 
     mankind. And now let us go back to our own affairs. We have 
     had enough of those menaces, conjured up from the continent 
     to confuse us.''
       Naturally should Hitler appear again in the same form, we 
     would know what to do. But the point is that history doesn't 
     declare the future to us so plainly. Each time is different 
     and the present must be judged without the benefit of 
     hindsight.
       So let me explain the nature of this threat as I see it.
       The threat today is not that of the 1930s. It's not big 
     powers going to war with each other. The ravages which 
     fundamentalist political ideology inflicted on the 20th 
     century are memories. The Cold War is over. Europe is at 
     peace, if not always diplomatically.
       But the world is ever more interdependent. Stock markets 
     and economies rise and fall together. Confidence is the key 
     to prosperity. Insecurity spreads like contagion. So people 
     crave stability and order.
       The threat is chaos. And there are two begetters of chaos. 
     Tyrannical regimes with WMD and extreme terrorist groups who 
     profess a perverted and false view of Islam.
       Let me tell the house what I know. I know that there are 
     some countries or groups within countries that are 
     proliferating and trading in WMD, especially nuclear weapons 
     technology.
       I know there are companies, individuals, some former 
     scientists on nuclear weapons programmes, selling their 
     equipment or expertise.
       I know there are several countries--mostly dictatorships 
     with highly repressive regimes--desperately trying to acquire 
     chemical weapons, biological weapons or, in particular, 
     nuclear weapons capability. Some of these countries are now a 
     short time away from having a serviceable nuclear weapon. 
     This activity is not diminishing. It is increasing.
       We all know that there are terrorist cells now operating in 
     most major countries. Just as in the last two years, around 
     20 different nations have suffered serious terrorist 
     outrages. Thousands have died in them.
       The purpose of terrorism lies not just in the violent act 
     itself. It is in producing terror. It sets out to inflame, to 
     divide, to produce consequences which they then use to 
     justify further terror.
       Round the world it now poisons the changes of political 
     progress: in the Middle East; in Kashmir; in Chechnya; in 
     Africa.
       The removal of the Taliban in Afghanistan dealt it a blow. 
     But is has not gone away.
       And these two threats have different motives and different 
     origins but they share one basic common view: they detest the 
     freedom, democracy and tolerance that are the hallmarks of 
     our way of life.
       At the moment, I accept that association between them is 
     loose. But it is hardening.
       And the possibility of the two coming together--of 
     terrorist groups in possession of WMD, even of a so-called 
     dirty radiological bomb is now, in my judgment, a real and 
     present danger.
       And let us recall: what was shocking about September 11 was 
     not just the slaughter of the innocent; but the knowledge 
     that had the terrorists been able to, there would have been 
     not 3,000 innocent dead, but 30,000 or 300,000 and the more 
     the suffering, the greater the terrorists' rejoicing.
       Three kilograms of VX from a rocket launcher would 
     contaminate a quarter of a square kilometer of a city.
       Millions of lethal doses are contained in one liter of 
     Anthrax. 10,000 liters are unaccounted for. 11 September has 
     changed the psychology of America. It should have changed the 
     psychology of the world. Of course Iraq is not the only part 
     of this threat. But it is the test of whether we treat the 
     threat seriously.
       Faced with it, the world should unite. The UN should be the 
     focus, both of diplomacy and of action. That is what 1441 
     said. That was the deal. And I say to you to break it now, to 
     will the ends but not the means that would do more damage in 
     the long term to the UN than any other course.
       To fall back into the lassitude of the last 12 years, to 
     talk, to discuss, to debate but never act; to declare our 
     will but not enforce it; to combine strong language with weak 
     intentions, a worse outcome than never speaking at all.
       And then, when the threat returns from Iraq or elsewhere, 
     who will believe us? What price our credibility with the next 
     tyrant? No wonder Japan and South Korea, next to North Korea, 
     has issued such strong statements of support.
       I have come to the conclusion after much reluctance that 
     the greater danger to the UN is inaction: that to pass 
     resolution 1441 and then refuse to enforce it would do the 
     most deadly damage to the UN's future strength, confirming it 
     as an instrument of diplomacy but not of action, forcing 
     nations down the very unilateralist path we wish to avoid.
       But there will be, in any event, no sound future for the 
     UN, no guarantee against the repetition of these events, 
     unless we recognise the urgent need for a political agenda we 
     can unite upon.
       What we have witnessed is indeed the consequence of Europe 
     and the United States dividing from each other. Not all of 
     Europe--Spain, Italy, Holland, Denmark, Portugal--have all 
     strongly supported us. And not a majority of Europe if we 
     include, as we should, Europe's new members who will accede 
     next year, all 10 of whom have been in our support.
       But the paralysis of the UN has been born out of the 
     division there is. And at the heart of it has been the 
     concept of a world in which there are rival poles of power. 
     The U.S. and its allies in one corner. France, Germany, 
     Russia and its allies in the other. I do not believe that all 
     of these nations intend such an outcome. But that is what now 
     faces us.
       I believe such a vision to be misguided and profoundly 
     dangerous. I know why it arises. There is resentment of U.S. 
     predominance.
       There is fear of U.S. unilateralism. People ask: do the 
     U.S. listen to us and our preoccupations? And there is 
     perhaps a lack of full understanding of U.S. preoccupations 
     after 11th September. I know all of this. But the way to deal 
     with it is not rivalry but partnership. Partners are not 
     servants but neither are they rivals. I tell you what Europe 
     should have said last September to the U.S. With one voice it 
     should have said: we understand your strategic anxiety over 
     terrorism and WMD and we will help you meet it.
       We will mean what we say in any UN resolution we pass and 
     will back it with action if Saddam fails to disarm 
     voluntarily; but in return we ask two things of you: that the 
     U.S. should choose the UN path and you should recognise the 
     fundamental overriding importance of re-starting the MEPP 
     (Middle East Peace Process), which we will hold you to.
       I do not believe there is any other issue with the same 
     power to re-unite the world community than progress on the 
     issues of Israel and Palestine. Of course there is cynicism 
     about recent announcements. But the U.S. is now committed, 
     and, I believe genuinely, to the roadmap for peace, designed 
     in consultation with the UN. It will now be presented to the 
     parties as Abu Mazen is confirmed in office, hopefully today.
       All of us are now signed up to its vision: a state of 
     Israel, recognised and accepted by all the world, and a 
     viable Palestinian state. And that should be part of a larger 
     global agenda. On poverty and sustainable development. On 
     democracy and human rights. On the good governance of 
     nations.
       That is why what happens after any conflict in Iraq is of 
     such critical significance.
       Here again there is a chance to unify around the UN. Let me 
     make it clear.
       There should be a new UN resolution following any conflict 
     providing not just for humanitarian help but also for the 
     administration and governance of Iraq. That must now be done 
     under proper UN authorisation.
       It should protect totally the territorial integrity of 
     Iraq. And let the oil revenues--

[[Page 7070]]

     which people falsely claim we want to seize--be put in a 
     trust fund for the Iraqi people administered through the UN.
       And let the future government of Iraq be given the chance 
     to begin the process of uniting the nation's disparate 
     groups, on a democratic basis, respecting human rights, as 
     indeed the fledgling democracy in Northern Iraq--protected 
     from Saddam for 12 years by British and American pilots in 
     the no-fly zone--has done so remarkably.
       And the moment that a new government is in place--willing 
     to disarm Iraq of WMD--for which its people have no need or 
     purpose--then let sanctions be lifted in their entirety.
       I have never put our justification for action as regime 
     change. We have to act within the terms set out in resolution 
     1441. That is our legal base.
       But it is the reason, I say frankly, why if we do act we 
     should do so with a clear conscience and strong heart.
       I accept fully that those opposed to this course of action 
     share my detestation of Saddam. Who could not? Iraq is a 
     wealthy country that in 1978, the year before Saddam seized 
     power, was richer than Portugal or Malaysia.
       Today it is impoverished, 60 percent of its population 
     dependent on food aid.
       Thousands of children die needlessly every year from lack 
     of food and medicine.
       Four million people out of a population of just over 20 
     million are in exile.
       The brutality of the repression--the death and torture 
     camps, the barbaric prisons for political opponents, the 
     routine beatings for anyone or their families suspected of 
     disloyalty well documented.
       Just last week, someone slandering Saddam was tied to a 
     lamp post in a street in Baghdad, his tongue cut out, 
     mutilized and left to bleed to death, as a warning to others.
       I recall a few weeks ago talking to an Iraqi exile and 
     saying to her that I understood how grim it must be under the 
     lash of Saddam.
       ``But you don't,'' she replied. ``You cannot. You do not 
     know what it is like to live in perpetual fear.''
       and she is right. We take our freedom for granted. But 
     imagine not to be able to speak or discuss or debate or even 
     question the society you live in. To see friends and family 
     taken away and never daring to complain. To suffer the 
     humility of failing courage in face of pitiless terror. That 
     is how the Iraqi people live. Leave Saddam in place and that 
     is how they will continue to live.
       We must face the consequences of the actions we advocate. 
     For me, that means all the dangers of war. But for others, 
     opposed to this course, it means--let us be clear--that the 
     Iraqi people, whose only true hope of liberation lies in the 
     removal of Saddam, for them, the darkness will close back 
     over them again; and he will be free to take his revenge upon 
     those he must know wish him gone.
       And if this house now demands that at this moment, faced 
     with this threat from this regime, that British troops are 
     pulled back, that we turn away at the point of reckoning, and 
     that is what it means--what then?
       What will Saddam feel? Strengthened beyond measure. What 
     will the other states who tyrannise their people, the 
     terrorists who threaten our existence, what will they take 
     from that? That the will confronting them is decaying and 
     feeble.
       Who will celebrate and who will weep?
       And if our plea is for America to work with others, to be 
     good as well as powerful allies, will our retreat make them 
     multilateralist? Or will it not rather be the biggest impulse 
     to unilateralism there could ever be. And what of the UN and 
     the future of Iraq and the Middle East peace plan, devoid of 
     our influence, stripped of our insistence?
       This house wanted this decision. Well it has it. Those are 
     the choices. And in this dilemma, no choice is perfect, no 
     cause ideal.
       But on this decision hangs the fate of many things.
       Of whether we summon the strength to recognise this global 
     challenge of the 21st century and meet it.
       Of the Iraqi people, groaning under years of dictatorship.
       Of our armed forces--brave men and women of whom we can 
     feel proud, whose morale is high and whose purpose is clear.
       Of the institutions and alliances that will shape our world 
     for years to come.''
       I can think of many things, of whether we summon the 
     strength to recognise the global challenge of the 21st 
     century and beat it, of the Iraqi people groaning under years 
     of dictatorship, of our armed forces--brave men and women 
     whom we can feel proud, whose morale is high and whose 
     purpose is clear--of the institutions and alliances that 
     shape our world for years to come.
       To retreat now, I believe, would put at hazard all that we 
     hold dearest, in turn the UN back into a talking shop, stifle 
     the first steps of progress in the Middle East; leave the 
     Iraqi people to the mercy of events on which we would have 
     relinquished all power to influence for the better.
       Tell our allies that at the very moment of action, at the 
     very moment when they need our determination that Britain 
     faltered. I will not be a party to such a course. This is not 
     the time to falter. This is the time for this house, not just 
     this government or indeed this prime minister, but for this 
     house to give a lead, to show that we will stand up for what 
     we know to be right, to show that we will confront the 
     tyrannies and dictatorships and terrorists who put our way of 
     life at risk, to show at the moment of decision that we have 
     the courage to do the right thing.
       I beg to move the motion.

  Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, resolutions, such as the one before us, 
are not possible without a dedicated, bi-partisan effort. Our staffs 
have worked hard and well together over the past few days to help 
members craft this resolution. I want to especially recognize and thank 
Steve Biegun of the Majority Leader's Office, Dennis McDonough of the 
Democratic Leader's Office, and Judy Ansley, Rick DeBobes and Chuck 
Alsup of the Armed Services Committee staff, for their efforts in 
helping draft this important resolution.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.
  Mr. FRIST. Has all time expired?
  Mr. LEVIN. May I make a unanimous consent request.
  I ask unanimous consent Senator Landrieu be added as a cosponsor, and 
every Member of the Senate who chooses to, who wants their name added, 
be allowed to do so, and even though it comes after the vote, that it 
appear that it occurred before the vote.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. WARNER. I specifically ask the Senator from New Mexico be added 
as a cosponsor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The majority leader.
  Mr. FRIST. I will close on leader time.
  Mr. President, I welcome the strong bipartisan support and the 
bipartisan spirit in which this debate has been conducted today, the 
bipartisan support over the last several hours of remarks. American 
soldiers, American sailors, and airmen are fighting to end the regime 
of one of the world's worst tyrants.
   Our men and women in uniform are in harm's way. They are engaged in 
battle as we speak. Let us pray for their safety and their success.
  I am confident of their victory, and I am confident that it will 
occur at the earliest possible moment. In passing this resolution, the 
Senate says to the men and women who wear our Nation's uniform and to 
their families: We are grateful for your sacrifice.
  As they act to free the Iraqi people from Saddam Hussein's oppressive 
regime, let there be no mistake--they are defending our own liberty as 
well.
  Again I ask in this vote we send a clear message to those brave 
Americans who are risking their lives for us on the battlefield. Our 
prayers are with you. Godspeed toward victory.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the resolution. 
The yeas and nays have been ordered. The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk called the roll.
  Mr. REID. I announce that the Senator from Georgia (Mr. Miller) is 
necesarily absent due to a family medical matter.
  I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from 
Georgia (Mr. Miller) would vote ``aye''.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Smith). Are there any other Senators in 
the Chamber desiring to vote?
  The result was announced--yeas 99, nays 0, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 61 Leg.]

                                YEAS--99

     Akaka
     Alexander
     Allard
     Allen
     Baucus
     Bayh
     Bennett
     Biden
     Bingaman
     Bond
     Boxer
     Breaux
     Brownback
     Bunning
     Burns
     Byrd
     Campbell
     Cantwell
     Carper
     Chafee
     Chambliss
     Clinton
     Cochran
     Coleman
     Collins
     Conrad
     Cornyn
     Corzine
     Craig
     Crapo
     Daschle
     Dayton
     DeWine
     Dodd
     Dole
     Domenici
     Dorgan
     Durbin
     Edwards
     Ensign
     Enzi
     Feingold
     Feinstein
     Fitzgerald
     Frist
     Graham (FL)
     Graham (SC)
     Grassley
     Gregg
     Hagel
     Harkin
     Hatch
     Hollings
     Hutchison
     Inhofe
     Inouye
     Jeffords
     Johnson
     Kennedy
     Kerry
     Kohl
     Kyl
     Landrieu
     Lautenberg
     Leahy
     Levin
     Lieberman
     Lincoln
     Lott
     Lugar
     McCain
     McConnell
     Mikulski
     Murkowski
     Murray

[[Page 7071]]


     Nelson (FL)
     Nelson (NE)
     Nickles
     Pryor
     Reed
     Reid
     Roberts
     Rockefeller
     Santorum
     Sarbanes
     Schumer
     Sessions
     Shelby
     Smith
     Snowe
     Specter
     Stabenow
     Stevens
     Sununu
     Talent
     Thomas
     Voinovich
     Warner
     Wyden

                             NOT VOTING--1

       
     Miller
       
  The resolution (S. Res. 95) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                               S. Res. 95

       Whereas Saddam Hussein has failed to comply with United 
     Nations Security Council Resolutions 678, 686, 587, 688, 707, 
     715, 949, 1051, 1060, 1115, 1134, 1137, 1154, 1194, 1205, 
     1284, and 1441;
       Whereas the military action now underway against Iraq is 
     lawful and fully authorized by the Congress in Sec. 3(a) of 
     Public Law 107-243, which passed the Senate on October 10, 
     2002, by a vote of 77-23, and which passed the House of 
     Representatives on that same date by a vote of 296-133;
       Whereas more than 225,000 men and women of the United 
     States Armed Forces are now involved in conflict against 
     Iraq;
       Whereas over 200,000 members of the Reserves and National 
     Guard have been called to active duty for the conflict 
     against Iraq and other purposes; and
       Whereas the Senate and the American people have the 
     greatest pride in the men and women of the United States 
     Armed Forces, and the civilian personnel supporting them, and 
     strongly support them in their efforts: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) commends and supports the efforts and leadership of the 
     President, as Commander in Chief, in the conflict against 
     Iraq;
       (2) commends, and expresses the gratitude of the Nation to 
     all members of the United States Armed Forces (whether on 
     active duty, in the National Guard, or in the Reserves) and 
     the civilian employees who support their efforts, as well as 
     the men and women of civilian national security agencies who 
     are participating in the military operations in the Persian 
     Gulf region, for their professional excellence, dedicated 
     patriotism and exemplary bravery;
       (3) commends and expresses the gratitude of the Nation to 
     the family members of soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and 
     civilians serving in operations against Iraq who have borne 
     the burden of sacrifice and separation from their loves ones;
       (4) expresses its deep condolences to the families of brave 
     Americans who have lost their lives in this noble 
     undertaking, over many years, against Iraq;
       (5) joins all Americans in remembering those who lost their 
     lives during Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert 
     Storm in 1991, those still missing from that conflict, 
     including Captain Scott Speicher, USN, and the thousands of 
     Americans who have lost their lives in terrorist attacks over 
     the years, and in the Global War on Terrorism; and
       (6) expresses sincere gratitude to British Prime Minister 
     Tony Blair and his government for their courageous and 
     steadfast support, as well as gratitude to other allied 
     nations for their military support, logistical support, and 
     other assistance in the campaign against Saddam Hussein's 
     regime.

                          ____________________