[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 13]
[Senate]
[Pages 17423-17427]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                LEGISLATION AND ISSUES BEFORE THE SENATE

  Mr. FRIST. If we could just go back to regular order, I will do my 
statement because I know there will be a response back and forth. At 
this juncture, I have about a 15-minute statement.
  I opened the Senate, now about 45 minutes ago, and as my colleagues 
can tell, there is a lot of interest in a whole lot of both legislation 
and issues that people want to get out front on. What I would like to 
do is take a few minutes and give an overview of where we have been a 
little bit, but also where we are going over the next several weeks.
  I talked to Senator Daschle earlier today. We will continue our 
discussions over the course of today and tomorrow, meeting with the 
leadership on both sides of the aisle, and our various caucuses. We 
will work out the details.
  I want to step back and paint the larger picture because we have so 
little time with so many huge issues before us. Each Senator has four 
or five issues that mean the most to them.
  What is absolutely critical, from a leadership standpoint on both 
sides of the aisle, is to have a framework so we can accomplish the 
Nation's business and move America forward. With a limited number of 
days and what we know is going to be a very trying season because of 
the campaigns that are going on and the politics that go on that are 
necessarily related to the campaigns, it is going to be a huge 
challenge before us.
  As I said an hour ago, I do want to welcome everybody back. I do hope 
everybody is energized--which we have seen already on the floor of the 
Senate--but also that everybody is relaxed

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and understands the importance of the issues before us. I am delighted 
people have had the time to spend back at home with their constituents 
and, what is probably most important for periods like this, with their 
family and friends.
  We all must expect a very busy legislative session on the floor--
which people will see laid out in our debate on amendments on the 
important issues--but also on a whole range of issues that are either 
in conference today or will soon be in conference. There are a number 
of crucial items before us that we must complete this year.
  Stepping back to our timeline, our goal is to finish this session of 
Congress by October 8. Some people said it would be October 1, some 
October 15. The goal is October 8. There will be discussions about a 
lameduck session and people will be writing about it. Our goal is to 
complete this session by October 8. I look forward to working with the 
leadership in conferences and caucuses on both sides of the aisle to 
accomplish this because we are moving America forward. For whom? It is 
for the American people. So we absolutely must be working together.
  Today on our first day back, our top priority--it may spill into 
tomorrow morning, but our top priority is to address what is happening 
in Florida as we speak and as we have seen it play out over last night 
and the day before and, indeed, over the last several weeks. We need to 
reach out and aggressively respond to help the people of Florida who 
have seen their homes literally devastated, who are displaced from 
their homes, displaced from their communities, huddling with their 
families a long way from where they live.
  We have had two devastating storms in a short 3-week period in 
Florida. As our Senators from Florida know, as we have discussed, we 
will be there, we will respond as soon as possible. I was talking to 
Senator Nelson on the floor about this.
  Over the last weekend, even before Hurricane Frances touched the 
eastern shores of Florida, the Congress, this body, was notified that 
FEMA would be obligating funds for these disasters at a rate greater 
than what had been appropriated for this year. In other words, what 
that means is FEMA would be operating in a deficiency. Currently the 
administration estimates that FEMA indeed will be out of funds by the 
end of tomorrow. Therefore, last night the President of the United 
States transmitted to us an emergency $2 billion supplemental request 
for FEMA. The President has asked us, asked this body, to take 
immediate action on this request.
  I have been in contact with officials from the administration, with 
the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, with officials and 
Representatives from Florida, and everyone agrees we should act as soon 
as possible. I anticipate the House of Representatives will act no 
later than tomorrow morning and perhaps even tonight. We should follow 
that immediately upon receipt of this emergency supplemental, and I 
will be working with the minority to structure an arrangement for quick 
passage in the Senate to help those people in Florida who are 
struggling this very moment. Our neighbors in Florida are depending on 
us for emergency response, for shelter, for food, and other types of 
care.
  In his letter to us last evening, the President says he anticipates a 
further request in coming days as the full impact of Hurricanes Charley 
and Frances become clearer. I expect we will need to include further 
FEMA funding on the Homeland Security appropriations bill for fiscal 
year 2005 that we will be turning to tomorrow morning. But we must act 
first on this initial $2 billion emergency request. Our prayers and 
thoughts do go out to the people of Florida who are suffering, who are 
living in shelters, without homes to return to, and who must live with 
that ever-present possibility that other storms will strike them, that 
they may be on the way, given the fact that the hurricane season is 
only half over as I speak. We must act quickly to provide the hard-
working staff at FEMA, who have done such a tremendous job over the 
last several weeks, with the funds and with the resources they need to 
continue to aid the people of Florida.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, will the Senator yield?
  Mr. FRIST. I will be happy to yield.
  Mr. DORGAN. If I might inquire on that point. I thank very much the 
majority leader for his indulgence.
  My understanding is the proposed $2 billion to restore FEMA money 
needs to be acted on quickly. I understand that. I think everyone would 
want to cooperate with the majority leader on that point. The majority 
leader indicated that the White House would intend then to send down a 
second request. The reason I am asking a question about that is this. 
There are, as the Senator knows, other areas of the country that have 
suffered substantial weather-related disasters. In North Dakota, for 
example, 1.7 million acres could not even be planted in farmland this 
year, so we have some farmers in pretty tough shape. It is not only 
North Dakota, but Minnesota, Montana, and other parts of the area. 
There are some drought-stricken areas out West as well. Some of us 
would want to include some help for those producers.
  I don't think we would want to interrupt what is going on today. The 
Senator is absolutely correct, we need to move quickly to respond. But, 
Senator Frist, you indicated the second request may well be put on a 
Homeland Security appropriations bill. Yet I know there is a unanimous 
consent request being offered today, or at least one that is being 
talked about, that would preclude amendments to that that would not be 
about Homeland Security.
  How would we get an emergency or disaster piece on that bill? Would 
those of us who want to add to it to deal with the disaster in farm 
country have an opportunity to do so?
  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, the details we will get into. I have two 
points I wanted to make, even in mentioning it. A, we need to respond 
and we need to respond quickly, as the Senator from Florida and I were 
talking about. From a FEMA standpoint, this money is needed now. 
Everybody with FEMA down there is working hard. They should not have to 
be worrying about money coming in. They are responding directly to the 
people.
  Even the $2 billion, as we have seen from estimates in the newspaper, 
what has happened in Florida is going to eventually cost, at least from 
the estimates I have seen, several-fold that. I don't want to send the 
signal that when we move so quickly on the $2 billion, we are excluding 
the earlier events in Florida, the full ramifications of the current 
hurricane, or other needs. The real issue is whether we wait on this $2 
billion and address the other needs and assess wherever they are in the 
country. There is general agreement we need to move now with this 
installment that FEMA needs because they are out of money, and then the 
specific vehicle we need to discuss.
  I haven't talked to anybody about how we want to do that, but we will 
have to have a second supplemental of some sort to address needs in 
Florida and possibly other needs.
  Let me continue to try to get through because the specifics we can 
come back to and talk about, because I have a whole range of issues, if 
that is all right.
  I want to come back to homeland security because I mentioned in my 
opening statement today the importance of going to the Homeland 
Security appropriations bill, and thematically that is the issue which 
I believe will dominate the next 4 weeks. I will come back to how the 
various pieces will fit in when addressing what is the overriding issue 
of this body over the next several weeks.
  As Senator Daschle mentioned, last week we saw the terrible school 
siege in Beslan, Russia, which served as a reminder that our enemies 
are ruthless and determined. Those pictures and the coverage we have 
seen are burned into our minds at this juncture, and the ferocity of 
the enemy in that small town in southern Russia. Al-Qaida-linked 
militants literally slaughtered hundreds of schoolchildren, parents, 
and teachers on what should have been a joyous day--the first day of 
school. It was a massacre. There is really no

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other way to describe it. There are 334 people dead and 200 people 
missing right now. Our hearts ache and reach out to the people of 
Russia and to the families who have been devastated by this sickening 
act of violence. America understands the pain that is felt by those 
families, by that country, and by those communities. We are determined 
to defeat those forces of terror which were depicted by that horrendous 
event and to do so quickly and responsibly.
  We must strengthen our homeland security, and we will turn to that 
legislation tomorrow. We need to reform our intelligence systems.
  Thirdly, we need to address the vacancy of that top post of the CIA.
  These are three objectives we need to keep coming back to and to stay 
focused on over the course of the next several days since we have so 
little time. Those three objectives we absolutely must achieve.
  Tomorrow morning we will go to the Homeland Security appropriations 
bill. In the past there have been efforts to bog down the process with 
unrelated amendments, nongermane amendments. We should all agree and we 
do all agree that homeland security should not be used to advance 
separate, unrelated political issues.
  Our first responders and the American people are depending on this 
body to act. Both Democratic leadership and Republican leadership agree 
to go to this particular bill, an important bill which funds our 
homeland security in this country. I urge my colleagues again to act 
swiftly, to amend appropriately but act swiftly on this important bill. 
We need a bill that is appropriately debated, amended, passed, signed, 
and enacted before we adjourn.
  I will continue to work with our Democratic colleagues in terms of an 
agreement that will allow us to consider the Homeland Security 
appropriations bill and amendments with hopes of finishing that bill as 
expeditiously as possible.
  As our top focus--protecting our Nation--must go beyond homeland 
preparedness, America will only be secure if we deal with threats 
before they happen, not just after they happen. As the 9/11 Commission 
Report so grimly outlined, our intelligence community calls out for 
major reform.
  President Bush has already taken steps following a careful review of 
the Commission's recommendations. President Bush has issued three 
Executive orders to strengthen our intelligence system. The CIA 
Director will now have expanded powers to ensure a joint, unified 
national intelligence effort. The President has also ordered the 
creation of a national counterterrorism center which will be 
responsible for analyzing and integrating foreign and domestic 
intelligence which is acquired across various departments and agencies. 
With the third Executive order, the President directed our intelligence 
agencies to give the highest priority to detection, prevention, 
disruption, preemption, and mitigation of efforts of terrorist 
activities against the United States. He has ordered our agencies to 
maximize their ability to exchange intelligence so we can put together 
each piece of the puzzle and preempt terrorist plotting.
  President Bush's top priority is defending America.
  These directives are crucial to winning the war on terror, but as we 
all acknowledge and the reason we must act in this legislative body is 
that these measures are interim measures. Here in the Senate we began 
responding to the 9/11 Commission Report as soon as it came out, but we 
have much work to do, as was outlined by several of my colleagues over 
the last hour, this month to respond to the 9/11 Commission Report, its 
criticisms, its critiques, as well as its recommendations.
  There are three major areas we need to address in the coming weeks: 
First, legislation to reform intelligence analysis and coordination in 
the executive branch; second, the confirmation of a new CIA Director; 
and third, the Senate's role in oversight of intelligence and homeland 
security; that is, what goes on here in the U.S. Senate. What is our 
role? Go back and look at it and engage appropriate reform. Those are 
the three issues we must address.
  I mentioned that after the 9/11 Commission Report this body began to 
respond immediately. In July, just before the recess began, Senator 
Daschle and I immediately set the process in place in the Senate to 
respond legislatively to the 9/11 Commission Report.
  First, on executive reform in the executive branch, Senator Daschle 
and I asked the Governmental Affairs Committee in close consultation 
with other committees that have a stake in these changes to carefully 
evaluate the Commission's proposals regarding reorganization of the 
executive branch and then to determine how best to implement those.
  Over the August recess--a time that is typically just a recess and 
people are back at home with constituents in their States--Congress 
held over two dozen committee hearings. In the Senate, four committees 
worked through August and heard testimony from roughly two dozen 
witnesses. Those committees included the Governmental Affairs 
Committee, the Intelligence Committee, the Commerce Committee, and the 
Armed Services Committee. Each carefully examined the recommendation of 
the 9/11 Report, and each brought in expert testimony to review past 
performance and future reforms.
  The Governmental Affairs Committee, led by Chairman Susan Collins and 
Senator Joe Lieberman, is taking the lead to determine how we can best 
reorganize and revitalize intelligence agencies and activities in the 
executive branch. This is a complicated undertaking. It is a serious 
undertaking but one which is absolutely vital to the security of our 
country.
  Much work has been done over the last 6 weeks after the 9/11 
Commission Report, but we have a huge amount of work to do in the next 
several weeks.
  The second issue is the CIA Director. As with the President, the 
Senate's highest priority is to protect the American people. Our top 
concern must be ensuring that we are as effective as possible in 
dealing with the threat of terrorism. That is why we must act promptly 
in this body to confirm Congressman Porter Goss to the currently vacant 
post of CIA Director. It is obvious that we need a permanent CIA 
Director, and it is time for this body to act. The nomination has been 
made. With the schedule that will be outlined in the next several days, 
we must act on this important position. At a time of homeland general 
insecurity with the threat of terrorism, whether it is in the homeland 
or international, we should not allow this critical post to remain 
vacant.
  Congressman Goss, I might add, is an outstanding choice to lead the 
agency. As chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and a former 
CIA agent, he has long experience in the field of intelligence. He 
knows clearly the challenges ahead. We must confirm Congressman Goss 
without delay. There is no time to lose.
  Thirdly, Senate oversight. I mentioned the relationship with the 
executive branch, which the Governmental Affairs Committee addressed. 
Second, I mentioned the importance of our responsibility to go ahead 
and move this nomination of Congressman Goss. The third issue is what 
we do in the U.S. Senate in terms of our appropriate responsibility and 
in terms of oversight.
  In a separate effort regarding the 9/11 Commission Report response 
from the Governmental Affairs Committee, Senator Daschle and I 
established a task force to evaluate the September 11 Commission 
proposals and to offer specific reforms as they relate to Senate 
intelligence in homeland security oversight. Senator McConnell and 
Senator Reid are cochairs of this task force. Their work is underway.
  This is a pivotal moment to make over the Senate so it operates 
efficiently, effectively, more responsibly, and more transparently in 
overseeing the security of our homeland. We cannot lose this 
opportunity. We should not lose this opportunity. There will be the old 
battles, I am sure, that will play out again and again in terms of 
jurisdiction, in terms of power, in terms of prestige, or in terms of 
the way we have been locked in in the past

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in this body in dealing with intelligence oversight.
  Our national defense requires no less than a new unified bipartisan 
effort to transform the Senate to meet these new threats. Time is of 
the essence. It is not my intent that the task force spend months and 
months and months reviewing options and then see time run out on this 
Congress. We need to act deliberately, give a lot of thought to it, 
debate it, and then act decisively. I know from conversations the 
Democratic leadership agrees with this as well.
  As we move forward to strengthen our national security, I will shift 
gears a bit from the agenda of the next several weeks and turn to the 
issue of protecting America's taxpayers. Four important family tax 
revisions are set to expire at the end of this year. They include the 
increase in the child tax credit to $1,000, marriage penalty tax 
relief, expansion of the 10-percent tax bracket, and the increase in 
the alternative minimum tax exemption. Each of these provisions impacts 
families. Each has helped ease the burden on millions of American 
families.
  If we do not act in this body to extend the provisions, millions of 
hard-working American families will pay the price. They will be 
unfairly penalized. If we do not act, their taxes will go up and their 
household budgets will shrink. They will have less freedom and less 
ability to make ends meet.
  For example, if we do not act, 70 million women will see their taxes 
increase on average $660. If we do not act, 46 million married couples 
will each pay on average a whopping $900 more in taxes. It we do not 
act, 38 million families with children will pay $900 more, on average. 
If we do not act, 8 million single women with children will see their 
taxes increase by nearly $370. If we do not act, 11 million elderly 
would each have to pay $383 more. If we do not act, 23 million small 
business owners would incur tax increases averaging $784. Nearly 2 
million individuals and families who currently have no income tax 
liability would once again become subject to the income tax.
  That is what is at stake. That is what is before the Senate. That is 
simply unacceptable. We cannot allow the American people to suffer an 
automatic and totally unavoidable tax hike because we in this body fail 
to act.
  There is bipartisan consensus to take action to extend these family 
tax provisions and to protect the American family. Protecting the 
homeland, protecting the American family, are tall goals, but they are 
absolutely crucial to the security and the well-being of our country.
  Meanwhile, we also have a responsibility to deliberate on the 
President's judicial nominees under the previous order at 5:30 today. 
We will have two votes on the two district judge nominations, Virginia 
Maria Hernandez Covington of Florida and Michael H. Schneider, Sr. of 
Texas. Both are exceptional nominees. Both enjoyed bipartisan support. 
Following these votes, we will consider another excellent nominee, 
District Judge Michael Watson. His nomination will not require a 
rollcall vote.
  Judge Hernandez Covington is a Florida native and currently serves on 
the Second District Court of Appeals. She stands before us as a nominee 
to the middle district court of Florida as an appellate judge. 
Hernandez Covington authored over 110 opinions and has heard more than 
1,000 cases. The American Bar Association unanimously rated judge 
Hernandez Covington well-qualified for the U.S. District Court.
  The second judge under consideration today is Michael Schneider. He 
currently presides on the Texas Supreme Court. President Bush has 
nominated Judge Schneider to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern 
District of Texas. As an appellate and trial judge, Justice Schneider 
has heard civil and criminal matters from across the State. He was 
honored in 1994 as the Texas trial judge of the year. In 2001 he was 
awarded Texas's appellate judge of the year. Judge Schneider received 
the ABA's highest rating, unanimously well-qualified.
  Our third nominee, Judge Michael Watson, has been an appellate and 
trial court judge in the Ohio State courts for over 8 years. He 
currently serves on the Tenth District Court of Appeals. The American 
Bar Association has rated Judge Watson qualified to serve on the U.S. 
District Court.
  Each of these candidates is indeed outstanding. I expect their votes 
to go smoothly this afternoon.
  I would be remiss, however, if I did not mention the fact that 10 
other nominees are still in limbo. Since 2003, seven appellate court 
nominees have been filibustered. They have been denied something very 
simple: an up-or-down vote by each Senator in the Senate. They have 
been denied that through filibusters. We believe that is wrong. We 
believe the obstruction tactics to which these individuals have been 
subjected is harmful and unfair. They are unfair to the nominees--
public servants all--and they are harmful to the judicial system and to 
the Senate which is charged by the Constitution to do something very 
simple; that is, advice and consent. That means an up-or-down vote: Yes 
or no. If they want to vote no, they should be able to vote no. And if 
they want to vote yes, they should be able to vote yes. They deserve a 
vote.
  I ask my colleagues to stop the obstruction and to allow an up-or-
down vote on all these nominees. A simple up-or-down vote: Yes or no.
  In closing, as we all know, President Clinton had heart surgery, and, 
as so many people have done, we offer our best wishes to the President 
for a speedy recovery. He underwent coronary bypass grafting and by all 
accounts has done very well. This is something that is very close to 
me. The coronary bypass grafting is an operation I performed routinely, 
an operation I did every day before coming to the Senate. It is 
routine. Now there are 330,000 done a year, about 1,000 a day--even 
more than that. About 500,000 were done before the new technology of 
stints and angioplasty came in. Although it is a routine procedure for 
many hospitals, postcoronary artery bypass grafting is a big operation. 
It is like being hit by a truck in terms of the recovery. It takes a 
few days.
  President Clinton, by all accounts, has done very well. We heard last 
night from the surgeons. Obviously, we all have had the opportunity to 
extend our thoughts and prayers to our colleague, Senator Clinton, here 
and to their entire family over the last several days.
  I also briefly mention in early August we tightened security around 
the Capitol significantly. Over the recess, Senator Daschle and I met 
with the Sergeant at Arms and other law enforcement and intelligence 
people. We agreed that new information regarding potential threats 
required our Capitol to establish some temporary perimeter security 
checkpoints at all streets leading into the complex, as well as a 
number of other security measures.
  That said, we are working closely with the Capitol police and the 
District of Columbia to minimize any inconvenience.
  We look forward to a busy session, a productive session over the next 
days and weeks. We will address legislation that is absolutely critical 
to the security of our homeland, to the security of the United States, 
and to the well-being of our fellow Americans. We will vote on, and I 
am confident we will pass, the supplemental appropriations bill for the 
State of Florida to help them respond to the devastation of Hurricanes 
Charley and Frances.
  By working in a bipartisan manner--and as I said when we opened, I 
know the environment, and the larger environment, is going to be very 
politically charged, but if we in this body can work in a bipartisan 
manner, a focused manner, I am convinced we can accomplish the goals 
that are set out and move America forward. We will strengthen our 
security, we will strengthen our homes, and we will lend a hand to our 
neighbors as we confront the challenges ahead.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senator from 
Florida is recognized for 10 minutes.

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