Barbara Boxer

Mrs. BOXER

Mrs. BOXER. I came to thank the Senator for bringing out that chart, if he would keep it up there for a minute, and for making this point to our colleagues and anyone else who might be listening. It is one thing for us to critique the administration and say they are not addressing the real issues. When I go home, people say this administration cares about everybody else in the world; there is money for everybody else in the world; we are going to help everybody else; we are going to help the people of Iraq. Fine, but they are going to have universal health care and we are not? They are going to have their classrooms built and we are not? And it goes on. So what I believe our people want us to address is what is happening to them, and what my friend has done in a most eloquent way, as he always does, is to point out this middle-class squeeze that is hitting our people. These are the problems I care about. I say to my friend, we have a bill about reforming class action. I have taken a look at some class action lawsuits, and I have realized that is one tool to help middle- class families who may be harmed by products that are not safe. So I do not know why they are running off to do that and they are ignoring all of these other things. I guess my question to my friend is, As we debate the Presidential election and we have a point of view that this administration is ignoring this middle-class squeeze, do we not find that happening right here with the Republicans who are in charge of this Senate? Are they not ignoring this middle-class squeeze? The best way to prove the point is what they bring up before the Senate. Are they bringing up anything to deal with college tuition and giving tax breaks to those folks who so desperately need it? Are they doing anything at all to help with gas prices, health care premiums, or prescription drugs, or are we going to face, after this class action debate, these constitutional amendments my friend referred to that I have to say in all honesty and frankness I have never had one person in California come up to me and say: Senator, the most important thing facing us is gay marriage. That is just ruining my life. Take that up. Ban it because that is what I think about night and day. No. They tell me they are worried about paying college tuition; they are worried about filling up their gas tank; they are worried about not being able to afford prescription drugs. So my question to my friend is, Could we not do more to implore this leadership to take up some of the issues that are really affecting the people we all represent?

Mrs. BOXER

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, last month California bid farewell to President Ronald Reagan. This month, on a happier note, we are greeting a great new ship named in his honor. On July 23, 2004, the people of California will welcome the USS Ronald Reagan, CVN 76, to her new homeport in San Diego. As the Navy's newest and most technologically sophisticated aircraft carrier, the Reagan will project tactical airpower over the sea and inland while providing critical sea-based air defense and antisubmarine warfare capabilities. It is proper and fitting that the new carrier be based in our State: Ronald Reagan was one of California's own. Though he traveled the world and served two terms in the White House, he always called California his home. The Reagan crew will find a warm welcome in San Diego, a beautiful and vibrant city that is proud to be a navy town. San Diego is a cornerstone of America's national defense, and the Navy is a cornerstone of San Diego. On behalf of the people of California, I want to welcome the USS Ronald Reagan and her crew to your new homeport. We are pleased and proud to have you with us, and we will do all we can to make you feel at home.

Mrs. BOXER

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I rise to pay tribute to 34 young Americans who have been killed in Iraq since May 6. I have been doing this all throughout the war. All of them were from California or they were based in California. LCpl Jeremiah E. Savage, age 21, died May 12 of wounds received due to hostile action in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. SGT Brud Cronkrite died May 14 from injuries sustained in Karbala. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 37th Armor, 1st Armored Division, Friedberg, Germany. Sergeant Cronkrite was from Spring Valley, CA. PFC Michael A. Mora, age 19, died May 14 in An Najaf when his military vehicle slid off the road and turned over. He was assigned to the Army's 3rd Squadron, 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment, 1st Calvary Division, Fort Polk, LA. Private First Class Mora was from Arroyo Grande, CA. PFC Brian K. Cutter, age 19, was found unconscious on May 13 and was later pronounced dead in Al Asad, Iraq. Cause of death is under investigation. He was assigned to 3rd Assault Amphibian Battalion, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. Private First Class Cutter was from Riverside, CA. PFC Brandon Sturdy, age 19, died May 13 from hostile fire in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. LCpl Bob W. Roberts died May 17 due to hostile fire in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 1st Combat Engineer Battalion, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. SPC Marcos Nolasco died May 18 in Baji, Iraq, as a result of an electrocution accident. He was assigned to Battery B, 1st Battalion, 33rd Field Artillery, 1st Infantry Division, Bamberg, Germany. He was from Chino, CA. PFC Michael M. Carey, age 20, died May 18 in Iraq. He apparently fell into a canal and did not resurface. His remains were recovered on May 18. He was assigned to 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. Cpl Rudy Salas, age 20, died May 20 from fatal injuries sustained when his vehicle was involved in an accident while conducting a resupply convoy in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. Corporal Salas was from Baldwin Park, CA. Sgt Jorge A. MolinaBautista, age 37, was killed May 23 in an explosion while conducting combat operations in the Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. He was from Rialto, CA. PFC Daniel P. Unger, age 19, died May 25 in Forward Operating Base Kalsu during a rocket attack. He was assigned to the Navy National Guard's 1st Battalion, 185th Armor, 81st Separate Armor Brigade, Visalia, CA. He was from Exeter, CA. LCpl Kyle W. Codner, age 19, died May 26 due to hostile action in Al Anbar Province, Iraq. He was assigned to 1st Combat Engineer Battalion, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. Cpl Matthew C. Henderson, age 25, died May 26 due to hostile action in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 1st Combat Engineer Battalion, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. LCpl Benjamin R. Gonzalez, age 23, was killed May 29 from an explosion while conducting combat operations in the Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. He was from Los Angeles, CA. Pfc Cody S. Calavan, age 19, died May 29 due to hostile action in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. LCpl Rafael Reynosasuarez, age 28, was killed May 29 from an explosion while conducting combat operations in the A1 Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. He was from Santa Ana, CA. Cpl Dominique J. Nicolas, age 25, died May 26 from hostile fire in A1 Anbar Province, Iraq. He was assigned to 1st Combat engineer Battalion, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. 1LT Kenneth Michael Ballard, age 26, died May 30 in Najaf during a firefight with insurgents. He was assigned to the Army's 2nd Battalion, 37th Armored Regiment, 1st Armored Division, from Friedburg, Germany. He was from Mountain View, CA. LCpl Dustin L. Sides, age 22, died May 31 from hostile fire in A1 Anbar Province. He was assigned to 9th Communications Battalion, I Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, CA. Cpl Bum R. Lee, age 21, died June 2 as the result of multiple traumatic injuries received from an explosion while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. He was from Sunnyvale, CA. LCpl Todd J. Bolding, age 23, died June 3 of wounds received due to hostile action in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. LCpl Jeremy L. Bohlman, age 21, died June 7 from hostile action in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 1st Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. PFC Sean Horn, age 19, died June 19 due to a non-hostile incident at Camp Taqaddum, Iraq. He was assigned to Combat Service Support Group 11, 1st Force Service Support Group, Camp Pendleton, CA. He was from Orange, CA. SSgt Marvin Best, age 33, died June 20 due to hostile action in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st marine division, Twentynine Palms, CA. SPC Thai Vue, age 22, died June 18 in Baghdad when a mortar round hit the motor pool where he was working. He was assigned to the Army's 127th Military Police Company, 709th Military Police Battalion, 18th Military Police Brigade, V Corps, Hanau, Germany. He was from Willows, CA. LCpl Pedro Contreras, age 27, died June 21 from hostile fire in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. LCpl Deshon E. Otey, age 24, died June 21 from hostile fire in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. Cpl Tommy L. Parker, Jr., age 21, died June 21 from hostile fire in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. LCpl Juan Lopez, age 22, died June 21 from hostile fire in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. 2LT Andre D. Tyson, age 33, died June 22 in Balad, Iraq, when enemy forces ambushed his ground patrol. He was assigned to the Army National Guard's 579th Engineer Battalion, Petaluma, CA. He was from Riverside, CA. SPC Patrick R. McCaffrey, Sr., age 34, died June 22 in Balad, Iraq, when enemy forces ambushed his ground patrol. He was assigned to the Army National Guard's 579th Engineer Battalion, Petaluma, CA. He was from Tracy, CA. LCPL Manuel A. Ceniceros, age 23, died June 26 from an explosion while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to Regimental Combat Team 1 Headquarters Company, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. He was from Santa Ana, CA. Sgt Kenneth Conde, Jr., age 23, died July 1 due to injuries received from enemy action in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. LCPL James B. Huston, Jr., age 22, died July 2 in a vehicle accident while his unit was responding to hostile action in Al Anbar Province. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, lst Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. Mr. President, 206 soldiers who were either from California or based in California have been killed while serving our country in Iraq. I pray for these young Americans and their families, and I pray for those who are over there. I look forward to the day when we have a plan to bring our troops home. I, again, thank Senators Leahy and Hatch and I yield the floor.

Mrs. BOXER

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I am introducing today with my colleague, Senator Gordon Smith, a bill that addresses an ecological crisis in California and Oregon that quite literally threatens to change the face of our States, as well as others. The beloved oak trees are in grave peril. Thousands of black oak, coastal live oak, tan and Shreve's oak trees--among the most familiar and best loved features of California's landscape--are dying from a disease known as Sudden Oak Death Syndrome (SODS). Caused by an exotic species of the Phytophthora fungus--the fungus responsible for the Irish potato famine--SODS first struck a small number of tan oaks in Marin County in 1995. Now the disease has spread to other oak species from Big Sur in the south to Humboldt County in the north. The loss of trees is approaching epidemic proportions, with tens of thousands of dead trees appearing in thousands of acres of forests, parks, and gardens. As the trees die, enormous expanses of forest, some adjacent to residential areas, are subject to extreme fire hazards. Dead oak trees near homes significantly increase fire hazards, so residents who built their homes around or among oak trees are in particular danger. Yet, the spread of the fungus-like pathogen that causes SODS is not limited to oak trees. It has also been found on rhododendron plants in California nurseries, bay trees, wild huckleberry plants and other nursery stock and small fruit trees. Due to genetic similaries, this pathogen potentially endangers Red and Pin oak trees on the East Coast, as well as the Northeast's lucrative commercial blueberry and cranberry industries. SODS has already had serious economic and environmental impacts. After the initial discovery of the Sudden Oak Death, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) imposed a quarantine on oak products and some nursery stock in 10 counties in Northern California and Curry County, Oregon. Subsequently, two other counties in Northern California were also put under quarantine. The discovery of the pathogen that causes SODS in two Southern California nurseries in March 2004 led the USDA to impose restrictions on the interstate movement of host and potential host plants--as well as plants within 10 meters of these plants--from all nurseries in California. To date, 17 States and Canada have placed their own restrictions on the importation of California's nursery stock, and some States have banned plants from California altogether. If left unchecked, SODS could cause major damage to our commercial nurseries, as well the health, productivity and biodiversity of our forests. California is the nursery industry's lead producer of horticultural plants, valued at $2 billion a year. The State's oak woodlands provide shelter, habitat, and food to over 300 wildlife species. They also reduce soil erosion and help moderate extremes in temperature. Not only does SODS put all these benefits at risk, but dead and infected trees from this disease increase the threat of wildfire, threatening our communities. More needs to be known about the pathogen that causes SODS. Scientists are struggling to better understand SODS, how the disease is transmitted, and what the best treatment options might be. In 2000, the U.S. Forest Service, the University of California, the State Departments of Forestry and Fire Protection, and County Agricultural Commissioners created an Oak Mortality Task Force to help coordinate research, management, monitoring, education, and public policies aimed at addressing SODS. Although we have learned a great deal about SODS since the, adequate Federal support is needed if we are to stop the spread of this disease before it is too late. That is why I am introducing the Sudden Oak Death Syndrome Control Act of 2004, which is based on legislation I introduced in 2001 and which passed the Senate in 2002. The Sudden Oak Death Syndrome Control Act of 2004 would authorize $44.2 million annually over the next five years for creation of a Sudden Oak Death research and monitoring program, management and treatment activities, fire prevention activities, and education and outreach. The bill would also provide funding for a comprehensive national survey of the fungus-like pathogen that causes SODS and a risk assessment of the threat posed by this pathogen to natural and managed plant resources. Combined with the efforts of state and local officials, this legislation will help to prevent the dire predictions from becoming a terrible reality. This bill is endorsed by the American Nursery & Landscape Association, the California Association of Nurseries and Garden Centers, the Nursery Growers Association of California, the state, local and private members of the California Oak Mortality Task Force, and the Marin County Board of Supervisors. I thank Senator Smith for working with me on this bill and for joining me in introducing it. I urge my colleagues to join us in this effort to help ensure the protection of our nation's commercial nursery industry and precious woodlands. I ask unanimous consent that letters from these organizations be printed in the Record.

Mrs. BOXER

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I am introducing today with my colleague, Senator Gordon Smith, a bill that addresses an ecological crisis in California and Oregon that quite literally threatens to change the face of our States, as well as others. The beloved oak trees are in grave peril. Thousands of black oak, coastal live oak, tan and Shreve's oak trees--among the most familiar and best loved features of California's landscape--are dying from a disease known as Sudden Oak Death Syndrome (SODS). Caused by an exotic species of the Phytophthora fungus--the fungus responsible for the Irish potato famine--SODS first struck a small number of tan oaks in Marin County in 1995. Now the disease has spread to other oak species from Big Sur in the south to Humboldt County in the north. The loss of trees is approaching epidemic proportions, with tens of thousands of dead trees appearing in thousands of acres of forests, parks, and gardens. As the trees die, enormous expanses of forest, some adjacent to residential areas, are subject to extreme fire hazards. Dead oak trees near homes significantly increase fire hazards, so residents who built their homes around or among oak trees are in particular danger. Yet, the spread of the fungus-like pathogen that causes SODS is not limited to oak trees. It has also been found on rhododendron plants in California nurseries, bay trees, wild huckleberry plants and other nursery stock and small fruit trees. Due to genetic similaries, this pathogen potentially endangers Red and Pin oak trees on the East Coast, as well as the Northeast's lucrative commercial blueberry and cranberry industries. SODS has already had serious economic and environmental impacts. After the initial discovery of the Sudden Oak Death, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) imposed a quarantine on oak products and some nursery stock in 10 counties in Northern California and Curry County, Oregon. Subsequently, two other counties in Northern California were also put under quarantine. The discovery of the pathogen that causes SODS in two Southern California nurseries in March 2004 led the USDA to impose restrictions on the interstate movement of host and potential host plants--as well as plants within 10 meters of these plants--from all nurseries in California. To date, 17 States and Canada have placed their own restrictions on the importation of California's nursery stock, and some States have banned plants from California altogether. If left unchecked, SODS could cause major damage to our commercial nurseries, as well the health, productivity and biodiversity of our forests. California is the nursery industry's lead producer of horticultural plants, valued at $2 billion a year. The State's oak woodlands provide shelter, habitat, and food to over 300 wildlife species. They also reduce soil erosion and help moderate extremes in temperature. Not only does SODS put all these benefits at risk, but dead and infected trees from this disease increase the threat of wildfire, threatening our communities. More needs to be known about the pathogen that causes SODS. Scientists are struggling to better understand SODS, how the disease is transmitted, and what the best treatment options might be. In 2000, the U.S. Forest Service, the University of California, the State Departments of Forestry and Fire Protection, and County Agricultural Commissioners created an Oak Mortality Task Force to help coordinate research, management, monitoring, education, and public policies aimed at addressing SODS. Although we have learned a great deal about SODS since the, adequate Federal support is needed if we are to stop the spread of this disease before it is too late. That is why I am introducing the Sudden Oak Death Syndrome Control Act of 2004, which is based on legislation I introduced in 2001 and which passed the Senate in 2002. The Sudden Oak Death Syndrome Control Act of 2004 would authorize $44.2 million annually over the next five years for creation of a Sudden Oak Death research and monitoring program, management and treatment activities, fire prevention activities, and education and outreach. The bill would also provide funding for a comprehensive national survey of the fungus-like pathogen that causes SODS and a risk assessment of the threat posed by this pathogen to natural and managed plant resources. Combined with the efforts of state and local officials, this legislation will help to prevent the dire predictions from becoming a terrible reality. This bill is endorsed by the American Nursery & Landscape Association, the California Association of Nurseries and Garden Centers, the Nursery Growers Association of California, the state, local and private members of the California Oak Mortality Task Force, and the Marin County Board of Supervisors. I thank Senator Smith for working with me on this bill and for joining me in introducing it. I urge my colleagues to join us in this effort to help ensure the protection of our nation's commercial nursery industry and precious woodlands. I ask unanimous consent that letters from these organizations be printed in the Record.

Mrs. BOXER

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in the United States today, and about 40,000 women will die from the disease this year. It is important that we maintain funding in 2005 for the Department of Defense's Breast Cancer Peer Reviewed Research Program. The program has funded groundbreaking research, including the discovery of the drug Herceptin, which prolongs the lives of women with a particularly aggressive type of advanced breast cancer. This drug could not have been developed without research that was funded in part by the DOD Breast Cancer Research Program. This is a program, I should add, in which 90 percent of the funds go directly to research. An overwhelming, bipartisan majority in the Senate supports this program every year. This year 66 Senators signed a letter to appropriators urging the continuation of the DOD Breast Cancer Peer Reviewed Research Program earmark at a funding level of $150 million for FY '05. Mr. President, as we proceed to conference on the Department of Defense Appropriations bill, I urge my colleagues to maintain this level of funding for breast cancer research.

Mrs. BOXER

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I take this moment to reflect on the life of Ray Charles. I feel lucky to have grown up with the innovative and passionate sounds of Ray Charles unique mix of gospel and blues. His work took listeners from the depths of his profound sadness to cathartic heights in his love and performance of music. Ray Charles will be deeply missed by fans and fellow musicians alike. Ray Charles Robinson was born September 23, 1930, in Albany, GA. The child of a mechanic, Bailey Robinson, and a saw-mill worker, Aretha, Ray Charles' life was a lesson in triumph over adversity. A young Charles began losing his sight at infancy and was clinically blind by the age of 7. Two years prior his brother had accidentally drowned, and by age 15, Charles lost both parents and had no immediate family. Alone, sad, and orphaned, Ray Charles went to live with friends of his mother, nearly 200 miles away from home, in Jacksonville, FL. Charles lived in Jacksonville for a year developing his talent as a musician before moving to Orlando, supporting himself, a 16 year-old orphan, with only his seemingly dauntless optimism to help him along. Work was sparse, and income was never guaranteed. He left Florida, looking for a new city with potential for new challenges, took what little money he had and made a five-day bus trip to Seattle, WA. It was here that Charles formed his first group, a small jazz group called the McSon Trio. Emulating the vocal styles of his musical idol, Nat King Cole, Ray Charles formed a rhythm and blues group led by vocalist Ruth Brown. The band played night after night in smoky back-alley clubs throughout Seattle's red light district. As Charles reflected in his autobiography, these clubs consisted of little more than a big room with a band in one corner, liquor in the other, and a shoulder to shoulder audience. Playing in Seattle, Ray Charles met Quincy Jones, showing the young future producer how to write and compose music. It was the beginning of a lifelong friendship. It was on the West Coast that Ray Charles' famous career truly began to develop. Swingtime Records signed Charles in Seattle, giving him his first break in the music business. And in 1950, the company flew him to Los Angeles to record. In 1952 his contract was purchased by Atlantic Records, and by 1954, Charles had formed his own band recording his unique raw and tortured mix of gospel and rhythm n' blues a style that would later be known as soul music--with songs like ``I Got A Woman,'' and the later ``Georgia on my Mind,'' with ABC-Paramount. Ray Charles, the innovator and musical provocateur was being called ``The Genius'' by contemporaries and playing at such famous venues as Carnegie Hall and the Newport Jazz Festival. In the 1960s, Ray Charles would truly come to call Los Angeles home. He had his own studio designed and built by long time friend and business manager Joe Adams, and recorded his first album, ``Country and Western Meets Rhythm and Blues,'' at the studio in 1965. Charles would continue his recording career here for nearly 40 years until his death, and once said of the studio, ``I love this place. It's the only home I've truly had for most of my professional career, and I would never leave it.'' Charles would go on to produce numerous hits in his Los Angeles location, continuing an impressive career that would later earn him 12 Grammy Awards between 1960 and 1966, including best R&B recording for three consecutive years. The Ray Charles Studio was designated a Los Angeles historical landmark on April 30, 2004 thanks to the hard work of Councilman Martin Ludlow and City Council President Alex Padilla. Ray Charles made his last public appearance in Los Angeles at his studio as the site was designated a city historic landmark, a living testament to Charles' 40 years living and working in the city of Los Angeles. The music of Ray Charles was a deep and powerful reflection of the American musical tradition. From troubled origins in the south that would characterize the blues aspect of Charles lyrical style to the gospel influences present in so many of Charles' hits, soul music encapsulates so much of the American story. From racism, to heartache, to loneliness, to redemption, Ray Charles was writing the songs that could only come from an American artist and influencing a generation of musicians. He was at once expert composer, rock and roller, long- sufferer, genius, and poet. He was, to say the least, one of America's greatest artists, and will be deeply missed.

Mrs. BOXER

Mrs. BOXER. Yes.

Mrs. BOXER. Sure.

Mrs. BOXER. We want operational testing. We want the tests to be done by the appropriate office. That is the purpose of the amendment. That is exactly what the generals are saying. That is what the admirals are saying.

Mrs. BOXER. I thank the Senator. I think we have had a good debate. I am just saying to colleagues, these are the names of retired admirals and generals you all admire. They are saying we have to delay this deployment because we have no idea that this system works. To my colleagues who said let's deploy it and then test it, the Pentagon in its own words has said they can't do it. It is not safe. Here it is. They say: Due to safety considerations, no tests are currently planned to launch interceptors from the operational missile fields. So the Pentagon has said very clearly--and good for them because it would be too dangerous--they are not going to operationally test from the missile fields. So what are we doing? We are investing $3.7 billion out of the $10 billion to move forward with a system that is untested. For those people who say this is a devastating amendment, why do they support ``fly before you buy,'' which is the way we do things around here? This is a way to get around realistic testing. That doesn't make us any safer; it makes us weaker. It makes us vulnerable. So I hope you will stand with these 49 generals and admirals and Senator Levin and me and vote for the Boxer-Levin amendment.

Mrs. BOXER. Here we have a situation where you have an amendment that does not cut any money from this, that just says fly before you buy. I hope my colleagues will approve it. I yield the floor.

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I will take this time to rebut some of what has been said. The amendment I am offering with Senator Levin does not cut one slim dime from the National Missile Defense Program. All it says is, let us make sure the system works before we expend $3.7 billion to deploy it. How people can say that is devastating is beyond belief. If one wants to talk about devastating, devastating is investing money in something that will not work when it is needed. Devastating is something where the people of this country are told they are protected when they are not because the agency that was set up to test this is not in charge of the operational testing. The opponents to this amendment also say something else over and over again: It is important we deploy these. Then we will test. The fact is, the Pentagon themselves--and I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record this Pentagon report in which they say: Due to safety considerations, no tests are currently planned to launch interceptors from the operational missile fields.

Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, is there any time for me to rebut some of what was said?

Mrs. BOXER. So when Senator Warner says essentially we need to go ahead because we are going to test this once they are deployed, what I hear my colleague saying the Pentagon told him, and they put it in writing, is because of safety concerns there will be no operational testing at those sites; is that correct?

Mrs. BOXER. Will the Senator yield for a question on that point?

Mrs. BOXER. Absolutely not.

Mrs. BOXER. I am sorry. My staff was pointing out something. You are asking me if what?

Mrs. BOXER. The reason I am reading these names is because these are names we know. These are our heroes: Major General Appleby, Major General Boatner, Major General Bradshaw, Major General Brady, Major General Burns, Rear Admiral Center, Major General Crawford, Major General Edmonds, Rear Admiral Elliot, Major General Faith, Rear Admiral Gormley, Major General Griffitts, Rear Admiral Grojean, Major General Haddock, Major General Holbein, Major General Hyman, Major General Jackson, Major General Lawson, Major General Luchsinger, Major General LeCleir, Major General Willoughby, Brigadier General Cannon, Brigadier General Costa, Brigadier General Cowan, Brigadier General Foote, Brigadier General Forney, Brigadier General Grubbs, Brigadier General Hastings, Brigadier General Johns, Brigadier General Roush. This is not easy for these people to come out here now and do this. They believe, as I do, and as I hope colleagues on both sides of the aisle feel--and I don't know what will happen with this--that with all of the threats we face today, we have to take care of everything. But for goodness' sake, before we make a $3.7 billion deployment decision, let us test the system with the agency that was set up to do it, not with the program that is kind of fighting for its life always because that is what happens around here, whether it is in the military or any service. You can't rest with that and with the contractors that have the economic stake. This separate objective office is the one. I stand with the scientists who say we need the realistic test. I stand with the 49 former generals and admirals who say the militarily responsible course is not to spend this money until these tests pass. The Pentagon's current Director of the DOT&E, Thomas Christie, says we can't be sure the system will work against a real North Korean missile. So why wouldn't we fly before we buy? Why wouldn't we be sure that we are spending the money for the taxpayers in a wise way? I want this as much as anybody else. I want this very much to work. But I don't want to spend the money until we know we have tested the system realistically, and that is common sense. Again, I named the names of these admirals. They want to go even further. They want to postpone this. I am saying let's not take away the money. Keep the money in place. Let's just make sure the appropriate agency does the testing. That appropriate agency is the Director of Operational Test and Evaluation. It is very simple. I hope my colleagues will support this. We are being told by the people who know that it is not ready yet for deployment. I thank my colleagues for their patience. I yield the floor. I look forward to a good vote.

Mrs. BOXER. I will finish in 5 minutes.

Mrs. BOXER. I am happy to take another 7, 8 minutes and then finish.

Mrs. BOXER. OK.

Mrs. BOXER. Sure.

Mrs. BOXER. Yes.

Mrs. BOXER. May I ask the Senator, I do get a vote on this?