Thad Cochran

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I yield the remainder of our time to the distinguished Senator from Alaska.

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, there has been some conversation about disaster assistance for farmers and complaints that this bill does not go far enough to address the needs in the agriculture community for disaster assistance. I point out to Senators that there are funds in here that will provide guaranteed loans for those farmers who are having difficulty getting financing for this year's crop so that the Government will guarantee the repayment of that loan. That will allow them to get loans they otherwise would not be able to get because of the inability to show that this year's crop will produce a profit. This is a real problem, and we are sensitive to that. We have had hearings on that subject, and we are aware of it. In this conference report, we spell out, in addition to the funds I have talked about already in the bill, the following: The conferees recognize the problems facing agricultural producers today and understand that the actual needs for disaster assistance funds provided last year likely will exceed the projections of the Department of Agriculture. The Department of Agriculture has projected that net farm income will decline $3 billion below last year. The conferees expect the administration to monitor the situation closely and if necessary, submit requests for additional funds to the Congress for consideration. This acknowledges that the problems are real. We know they are real. Last year was a big disaster in agriculture, and the Congress and the administration agreed to respond with a multibillion-dollar disaster assistance program. Some of the farmers have not gotten the benefits of that program yet. We provide funds to accelerate the availability of those benefits from the Department of Agriculture, and we are meeting every request that has been submitted by this administration for additional funds for that purpose. The conference is sensitive to those needs. We did reject an amendment that was offered to increase the funding, and we hope the administration will let us know if additional funds are truly needed. In many cases, it is impossible to determine what the assistance needs will be until after the crop year has begun. In many places, we have not even seen planting, but we do think this is responsive to that problem.

Mr. COCHRAN. We would just suggest the absence of a quorum for that time.

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I intend to reserve our time until just before the vote, if that is satisfactory.

Mr. COCHRAN. I thank the Senator from Arkansas for raising this issue and I appreciate the comments of my other colleagues on this subject. I agree with the Senator from Wisconsin that the Department should exercise any preventive measures practicable as the best way to avoid more costly restoration and rehabilitation in the future.

Mr. COCHRAN. I do not intend to object and I hope no one would.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that an additional 10 minutes be authorized for debate on this measure, and that 8 of those minutes be under the control of the Senator from West Virginia, Mr. Byrd, and 2 minutes be under the control of this Senator.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, on March 17, of this year the Senate passed S. 257, the National Missile Defense Act of 1999, by a vote of 97-3. Subsequently, the House adopted as H.R. 4 a different version of the legislation, and today the House has agreed to the substance of the Senate bill. No further action is required on the bill, and it now goes to the President for his signature. After many years of debate, Congress has passed legislation stating the national policy to be that the United States will deploy a national missile defense as soon as technologically possible. Section 2 of the bill notes that, like all discretionary programs, national missile defense is subject to the authorization and appropriation of funds. Section 3 states that we support the continued reductions in Russian nuclear force levels. There is no linkage between Russian nuclear force levels, or any arms control agreement, and the national missile defense deployment policy of the bill. I urge the President to sign this bill and put to rest the concerns of many that our country would continue its vulnerability to ballistic missile attack. With the signing of this bill, a new era of commitment to missile defense will begin.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I thank my distinguished friend from Utah for yielding me time from his debate.

Mr. COCHRAN. I thank the Chair. (The remarks of Mr. Cochran pertaining to the introduction of S. 1029 are located in today's Record under ``Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions.'')

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that I may proceed as in morning business.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, today I am proud to introduce the Digital Education Act, a bill to amend title III of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. I am pleased that the distinguished Senator from Massachusetts, Mr. Kennedy, joins me in introducing this legislation to address some critical technology issues and the role of public broadcasting in education. This bill expands Ready to Learn, a program of combined successful efforts in early childhood education. It expands MATHLINE, a proven model of teacher professional development, and it supports production of new digital educational material. The Digital Education Act includes innovative applications of progressive technology to promote the best practices in teaching and bring up to date information to classrooms throughout the country. The Federal Government, State departments of education, local community businesses, and public television stations have made major investments in educational technology in recent years. These investments have focused on network infrastructure and computer hardware. It is time to invest in instructional resources that will make these new networks relevant and ensure that students and teachers are prepared to benefit fully from the new technology. The Ready To Learn Television program, first authorized in 1994, has made a unique contribution to ensure that American children start school ``ready to learn.'' The program has funded an unprecedented blending of services, including quality children's educational television programming broadcast by the Public Broadcasting Service, and a variety of outreach services for parents, teachers and other care givers. Ready to Learn outreach programs have had tremendous success. Local public television stations that subscribe to Ready to Learn provide training and other services to parents and care givers of preschoolchildren. Ready to Learn has grown from 10 public television stations to 130, reaching approximately 94 percent of the country. Each month Ready to Learn distributes over 35,000 books to children and over 900,000 copies of a custom parent/care giver magazine, specifically designed to integrate programming with reading. Ready to Learn is providing the opportunities for children and parents to build that foundation for success. Over 330,000 parents and child care professionals have been trained in using television to encourage reading. Using Ready to Learn techniques, these adults have nurtured the reading of 4,331,829 children. The Mississippi Educational Network in my home State, targets outreach services to high poverty populations who are particularly disadvantaged. The services include basic lessons in parenting, developmental benchmarks, health and nutrition, nurturing literacy in the home, and using the television programs children watch most to reinforce the lessons. The families in these communities often have no reading material in their house. The first book given to a child by Mississippi Ready to Learn is quite likely to be the first book the child has ever owned. And, while Ready to Learn is designed for prekindergarten children, these families may have older children who may be equally in need. The local design of Ready to Learn allows the Mississippi director, Cassandra Washington, to tailor her workshops and even have a few older child books on hand for these families. Ms. Washington has been very resourceful in her outreach, finding non-traditional places for education, such as the Women Infants and Children Distribution Centers throughout Mississippi where families in need come regularly. The International Reading Association stated recently, ``By the time children are exposed to beginning reading instruction in kindergarten and first grade, they should have a foundation that assures them early success. Recent studies indicate just how critical those positive early experiences are to cognitive development and lifelong reading.'' Congressionally authorized and Federally funded research at the National Institutes of Health found that when parents read to their young children, it literally stimulates the brain development of the children. A recent University of Alabama study found that Ready to Learn families: watch 40 percent less television, watch more education- oriented programming, read more often with their children, read longer at each sitting, read for more educational and informational purposes, and took their children to libraries and bookstores more often than others. Using the best research tested information available, Ready To Learn has driven the development of two major, commercial-free broadcast series for young children. The first, ``Dragon Tales,'' will begin airing this fall and will be integrated with carefully designed home and school resources to develop reading skills in young children. The Digital Education Act will build on the early successes of Ready to Learn. It will authorize funding to increase station grants, produce new outreach and training activities, and generate more services for parents and care givers, so that more children start school truly ready to learn. The Digital Education Act provides for the demonstration of early childhood education digital applications with public television stations that are technologically ready. Currently, there are digital broadcast public television stations in Mississippi, Massachusetts, Missouri, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Washington. These stations can transmit several programming services simultaneously. New applications include a dedicated channel for early childhood education and transmission of Internet accessible supplementary information text and video. Today, children's programs produced by PBS and individual public broadcasting stations are among the television shows most watched by children and most used in classrooms. Many teachers and parents credit these programs for stimulating curiosity, educating, and encouraging continued learning through reading and other resources. The increased funding authorized in this bill will continue the investment of Ready to Learn resources in producing commercial-free children's programming of the highest educational quality. Thirty years ago, Federal funding seeded the creation of Sesame Street. This carved out a meaningful place for educational children's programming as analog public television developed. The Digital Education Act stakes a new claim in the technological frontier for children and educational broadcasting and will ensure that this reinvention of television includes a major education component for children from the beginning. The second element of the Digital Education Act concerns teacher professional development. In 1994, Congress authorized the ``Telecommunications Demonstration Project for Mathematics,'' which has supported a project called MATHLINE. Through MATHLINE, PBS has pioneered a new model of teacher professional development, utilizing a blend of technologies, including online communications and video, to provide quality resources and services to teachers of mathematics. Through public and private funding, PBS MATHLINE developed The Elementary School Math Project for teachers, grades K-5; The Middle School Math Project for teachers, grades 5-8; The High School Math Project: Focus on Algebra for teachers, grades 7-12; and The Algebraic Thinking Math Project for teachers, grades 3-8. Over 5,000 math teachers in 40 States and the District of Columbia have participated in MATHLINE. These innovative teaching techniques have taught more than 1.3 million students. Three separate external evaluators have certified that MATHLINE is making a positive impact on the way teachers teach. For example, an evaluation of the Middle School Math Project by Rockman, et al. found, ``The impact of PBS MATHLINE is clear. It has influenced how teachers see themselves and helped them create a powerful and enriching mathematics environment in their classrooms * * * The gap between belief and performance is narrowing * * * The combination of viewing, communicating, and doing seems to have resulted in substantive changes in teaching.'' The International Reading Association stated in February, ``The most effective professional development programs are those planned by teachers themselves, based on their assessments of their needs as educators and their students' needs as learners.'' MATHLINE does just that. It is real teachers, teaching real students, and passing success on to more teachers. The MATHLINE demonstration has worked. Our legislation would authorize the New Century Program for Distributed Teacher Professional Development. Under this new program, the successful MATHLINE model will expand to other core curriculum areas, such as literature, science and social studies. It will also connect the digitized public broadcasting infrastructure with digital education networks at schools, colleges and universities throughout the nation. Nearly every teacher in the United States will have access to the New Century Program. The third element of our legislation would authorize the Digital Education Content Collaborative. As a nation, we have made tremendous progress in the last decade bringing our schools from the 19th Century to 21st Century technologically. However, there is still one major element that needs to be in place to make it all work. That is world- class educational content that rivals video games for students' attention, is tied to state standards, which teachers seamlessly integrate into daily learning activities. Programs distributed by public broadcast stations are used by more classroom teachers than any other because of their high quality and relevance to the curriculum. A survey commissioned by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in 1997, found that 92 percent of teachers use videos to improve their lessons and public broadcasting programs were the highest rated. However, single channel analog distribution limited station services to a few hours per day of linear video broadcasts. Digital broadcasting will dramatically increase and improve the types of services local public broadcasting stations can offer schools. One of the most exciting is the ability to broadcast multiple video channels and data information simultaneously. A vast library of instructional video materials could be distributed on full time, continuous channels and it could be available on demand, when teachers and students need it. Digitally produced programs will allow local stations broadcast flexibility and new interactive content that matches state standards and fits local curriculums. As Members of the United States Senate, working to reauthorize the programs our elementary and secondary schools depend upon, we are also looking for successful models that lead to true educational reform and improvement. The Digital Education Act takes the best of educational technology programing; improves those proven to work; and places renewed confidence in education's most trusted and successful content development partners. Mr. President, I am proud to be associated with the public broadcasting community, and I am proud of their commitment to our earliest learners. I hope more Senators will join us in supporting this important education legislation. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a copy of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I am proud to cosponsor the Senate Resolution proclaiming this week Teacher Appreciation Week. This week, in every state, students and parents are taking time to thank the school teachers, and we should too. They are the true heroes in our nation's effort to enrich the lives of all our citizens through education. I want to pay tribute today to a special Mississippi teacher. She is Mississippi Teacher of the Year, Mrs. Tina Fisher Scholtes, of Sudduth Elementary School in Starkville, Mississippi. Tina has been an elementary school teacher for sixteen years. She has spent the past fourteen years teaching first grade in Starkville. First grade lays the foundation for formal education. Every parent hopes their child will begin school with an excellent teacher. Tina Scholtes is without a doubt an excellent teacher. Being an excellent teacher requires hard work, along with respect for children and an understanding of the learning process. Tina has those attributes and more. She also cares about outcomes. She wants all her students to succeed. Beyond the Masters Degree she earned at Mississippi State University, Tina has completed professional development for teaching reading and mathematics; the special needs of teaching deaf students; National Board Certification; and training other teachers. Her resume is evidence of her capacity for gaining knowledge and sharing it with others. While continuing her first grade teaching, she has returned to Mississippi State University where as a clinical instructor she directs the activities of student teachers. Tina has brought new teaching techniques into the schools where she has taught. She serves as a mentor to new teachers and has developed school wide curriculum reforms. She also has used local television programs to provide early childhood education lessons to parents. Another indication that she is a dedicated teacher is her participation in the Parent Teacher Association where she served as President while teaching at Emerson Elementary School. Tina recognizes the importance of teachers participating in the community and is active in her church, and in other community activities. I was very pleased that Tina Scholtes took time to visit my office when she was in Washington recently for the National Teacher of the Year recognition events. I congratulate her on all her successes. The first graders in Starkville, Mississippi are lucky, indeed, to begin their lives as students with Tina Scholtes, and we are all grateful to her for being such a good example for other teachers to follow.

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, let me congratulate my friend, the distinguished Senator from Georgia, for organizing this special order and allowing this opportunity to speak on the subject of Teacher Appreciation Week. Tribute to Tina Scholtes, Mississippi's Teacher of the Year

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, when the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra concludes its 54th season with its traditional ``Pops Concert'' in Jackson on May 7, Maestro Colman Pearce will retire after twelve years as music director and principal conductor. During his tenure, Pearce has brought life and vigor to the mission of the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra. He has projected enormous energy into the task of developing audiences from preschoolers to senior citizens, and all ages in between. Maestro Pearce is a gifted conductor of international renown with a brilliant knowledge of musical styles and repertoire. He is an equally gifted pianist and composer. His keen Irish wit, personal charm, enthusiasm, and intellect, combined with a willingness to spread the joy of music whenever and wherever, and special gifts. When Colman came to Mississippi in 1987, he found a group of superb players, an enthusiastic Board of Governors, and a loyal army of volunteers known as the Symphony League. He was aware of a financial deficit, of unrest among the musicians, and of declining audience support. Quickly garnering the support of the board, league and the musicians, Maestro Pearce forged ahead. After a few successful seasons, he led the orchestra into statewide status and it became the Mississippi Symphony. Colman's musicianship, intellect, vision, and savoir faire have made him an appealing stage presence in venues beyond the formal concert halls. He has taken the MSO everywhere audiences can be found--ball parks, schools, city streets, shopping malls, theaters, lakesides, and beaches. Thousands of Mississippians have come to recognize Colman and the musicians by name and by instrument. They have identified with the Symphony as a Mississippi ``product'' of which they are proud. The Symphony has become an accessible commodity across the State. Upgrading the quality of musical offerings, especially in formal concert halls, has been his major focus. However, he has expanded the goals and outreach to include programs at all levels: Chamber Orchestra.--Twenty-eight core musicians present concerts within the regular season at Millsaps College Recital Hall and the Briarwood Presbyterian Church sanctuary. These concerts are viewed as ``learning experiences'' since the programs are always sprinkled with biographical data and interesting anecdotes about the composers whose works are being performed. Programming is innovative, often including contemporary music. Colman plays twentieth century music with flair, challenging the understanding and enjoyment of both the musicians and their audiences. Children's Concerts.--More than 4,000 children in grades three, four, and five literally pack Jackson's city auditorium annually when Colman directs the special concerts. He assists teachers in area schools in the preparation of study materials to acquaint students with the program they will hear. Kinderconcerts.--Programs are planned according to the attention span of pre-school children with emphasis on short classical and new music. Colman has featured the work of Mississippi composer Luigi Zananelli (``The Steadfast Tin Soldier''), and an adaptation of the Dr. Seuss classic, ``Green Eggs and Ham'', to the delight of the young audiences. Academic and Performing Arts Complex.--This branch of the Jackson Public School system has been supported by Colman through lectures, by allowing students to attend orchestra rehearsals, and through invitations to music and dance students to actually perform with the Symphony. Young Artist Competition.--In addition to showcasing young talent whenever possible, Colman has judged competitions, offering insightful feedback to contestants. Winners have often been invited to perform with the Chamber Orchestra. Family Fun Concerts.--In addition to enjoyable and easy listening music performed by the Symphony, the concerts have featured other attractions, such as mimes, dancers, and storytellers, in a casual setting. Colman's final Family Fun Concert featured a performance of Walter Anderson's ``Robinson the Cat,'' a work composed by Maestro Pearce in collaboration with mezzo-soprano Lester Senter Wilson. Pops Concerts.--Old Trace Park at the Reservoir has been the scene of the Symphony Pops for many years, with residents of a five county area gathering on the shore (and in the water) for an early summer evening concert of semi-classical and popular music. The Messiah.--Under the direction of Maestro Pearce, the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra has presented the ``definitive'' performance of Handel's Christmas classic in Thalia Mara Hall each December. Soloists are chosen from throughout the state, and choirs from the state's colleges and universities have been showcased. In recent years, the famed Mississippi Chorus has been featured. A native of Ireland with an honors degree from the National University of Ireland, Dublin, Colman Pearce studied conducting with Franco Ferrara in Hilversum and Hans Swarowsky in Vienna. In 1965, he began a long association with the Irish National Broadcasting Organization, serving as Co-principal, Principal, and now Conductor Laureate of the Irish Radio and Television Symphony Orchestra (now called the National Symphony Orchestra.) In the years prior to accepting his position with the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra and since, he has maintained a busy schedule as a guest conductor in other parts of the United States, and in Brazil, Canada, Argentina, Germany, France, Belgium, Sweden, Spain, Iceland, Israel, Hungary, and in the United Kingdom. Maestro Pearce will now concentrate upon his activities as a pianist, arranger and composer, his recordings of contemporary works, and upon guest conducting from his home in Dublin. Colman leaves the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra financially sound, having established record setting season ticket sales and significantly broadened the orchestra's constituency. When Colman came to Mississippi twelve years ago, he immediately accepted and embraced the best in Mississippians and set about adding value to the state through his development of the orchestra. With his Irish charm, good humor, talent, artistic commitment, and resourceful programming, he has also won the hearts of many Mississippians who now bid him ``Goodbye, and Godspeed.''

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I bring to the Senate's attention the retirement of Mr. David Wolfe, the Deputy District Engineer for Project Management at the Memphis District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Mr. Wolf held several positions during his 39 years with the District, including Assistant Chief of Planning Division, Chief of the Information Management Office, and Chief of the Planning Division. He has served as Deputy District Engineer since 1994. During his time at the Memphis District, Mr. Wolf initiated several projects unique to the District and the Corps of Engineers. The Grand Prairie Region and Bayou Meto Basin, Arkansas Project provides irrigation for agriculture and reverses the depletion of groundwater supply in central Arkansas. The Magnolia Street Project in Hickman, Kentucky is a soil-saving, bluff stability project. Serving as a member of the Mississippi Valley Division's Resource Management Board, Mr. Wolfe led the merging of Memphis District's Planning Division with the Programs and Project Management Division. Mr. Wolfe's outstanding technical and leadership capabilities have made him a vital resource for my office and the people of Mississippi. In particular, he should be recognized for his assistance to the flood control needs of northwest Mississippi. Upon his retirement on March 31, 1999, Mr. Wolfe was presented with the Bronze de Fleury Medal in recognition of his contributions to the Engineer Regiment. I know that all Senators join me in thanking David for his many years of service and in wishing him our best for his retirement.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I am pleased to join my good friend and distinguished colleague, the Senator from Arizona, in introducing this resolution. It seems to me very important at this juncture that the Senate express itself on the subject of our obligation to use whatever force is available to our alliance in NATO to win the conflict quickly and decisively and not to be a party to dragging it out unnecessarily by telling our adversary what military actions we will not use in the conflict. It seems to me that an appropriate analogy to the administration's strategy is someone who gets himself into a fight, a boxing match, and says, ``I am just going to use a left jab in this match, I am never going to use the right hand.'' No one would do that with any expectation of being successful in that conflict, in that encounter. It seems to me that that is exactly what the United States has been doing, and it has been a mistake. This resolution suggests by its clear language that the President of the United States is authorized to use all necessary force and other means, in concert with United States allies, to accomplish United States and North Atlantic Treaty Organization objectives in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. It also spells out in the resolution what those objectives are. It suggests that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia withdraw its forces from Kosovo, permitting the ethnic Albanians to return to their homes and the establishment of a peacekeeping force in Kosovo. Those are our objectives. To accomplish that, we must convince Milosevic that we are very serious that this war will be waged with all necessary force unless he surrenders his efforts to intimidate, kill, and otherwise terrify this region of Europe, and that he stop this military action, and stop it now, or he is going to suffer the most serious military consequences. That is the message he should get from the NATO alliance and from the U.S. leadership. That is what the Senate is saying by adopting this resolution. And I hope the Senate will adopt this resolution. It is unfortunate that we are involved in this military action. It is very unpleasant. It is not something that any of us would have wished to have occurred. We do have to recognize, though, that our NATO allies are very actively involved in this conflict as well. Great Britain, France, Germany, and Italy are all taking--and others--very active roles in the prosecution of this military conflict to achieve the goals that are recited in this resolution. It is an honorable course of action to stop the killing and to stop the atrocities and restore stability in this region of Europe. The NATO alliance was begun on the premise that Europe should be free, with an opportunity for people to live their lives in freedom, without threat from military intimidation or harm. The alliance has decided that this is an appropriate means for achieving that goal, waging a conflict against a person who has proven to be totally disrespectful of human rights, of the right to life, of the right to live in peace with his neighbors. We can no longer tolerate this under any circumstances. So the NATO alliance is involved. And I am hopeful that the Senate will spell out our views on this issue at the earliest possible time. Mr. BIDEN addressed the Chair.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I am pleased to join my good friend and distinguished colleague, the Senator from Arizona, in introducing this resolution. It seems to me very important at this juncture that the Senate express itself on the subject of our obligation to use whatever force is available to our alliance in NATO to win the conflict quickly and decisively and not to be a party to dragging it out unnecessarily by telling our adversary what military actions we will not use in the conflict. It seems to me that an appropriate analogy to the administration's strategy is someone who gets himself into a fight, a boxing match, and says, ``I am just going to use a left jab in this match, I am never going to use the right hand.'' No one would do that with any expectation of being successful in that conflict, in that encounter. It seems to me that that is exactly what the United States has been doing, and it has been a mistake. This resolution suggests by its clear language that the President of the United States is authorized to use all necessary force and other means, in concert with United States allies, to accomplish United States and North Atlantic Treaty Organization objectives in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. It also spells out in the resolution what those objectives are. It suggests that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia withdraw its forces from Kosovo, permitting the ethnic Albanians to return to their homes and the establishment of a peacekeeping force in Kosovo. Those are our objectives. To accomplish that, we must convince Milosevic that we are very serious that this war will be waged with all necessary force unless he surrenders his efforts to intimidate, kill, and otherwise terrify this region of Europe, and that he stop this military action, and stop it now, or he is going to suffer the most serious military consequences. That is the message he should get from the NATO alliance and from the U.S. leadership. That is what the Senate is saying by adopting this resolution. And I hope the Senate will adopt this resolution. It is unfortunate that we are involved in this military action. It is very unpleasant. It is not something that any of us would have wished to have occurred. We do have to recognize, though, that our NATO allies are very actively involved in this conflict as well. Great Britain, France, Germany, and Italy are all taking--and others--very active roles in the prosecution of this military conflict to achieve the goals that are recited in this resolution. It is an honorable course of action to stop the killing and to stop the atrocities and restore stability in this region of Europe. The NATO alliance was begun on the premise that Europe should be free, with an opportunity for people to live their lives in freedom, without threat from military intimidation or harm. The alliance has decided that this is an appropriate means for achieving that goal, waging a conflict against a person who has proven to be totally disrespectful of human rights, of the right to life, of the right to live in peace with his neighbors. We can no longer tolerate this under any circumstances. So the NATO alliance is involved. And I am hopeful that the Senate will spell out our views on this issue at the earliest possible time. Mr. BIDEN addressed the Chair.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand in adjournment until 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, April 14. I further ask that on Wednesday, immediately following the prayer, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed to have expired, the time for the two leaders be reserved, and the Senate then begin a period of morning business until 1 p.m. with Senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each with the following exceptions: Senator Kerry of Massachusetts, 30 minutes; Senator Brownback, 20 minutes; Senator Bayh, 10 minutes; Senators Domenici and Wellstone in control of a total of 15 minutes; Senator Leahy, 15 minutes; and Senator Cleland, 15 minutes.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. If there is no further business to come before the Senate, I now ask that the Senate stand in adjournment under the previous order, following the remarks of Senator Dodd.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, it will be the leader's intention following morning business to begin consideration of S. 767, the uniformed services tax filing fairness bill. For the information of all Senators, the Senate will reconvene on Wednesday at 11:30 a.m. and begin a period of morning business until 1 p.m. Following morning business, the Senate will begin consideration of S. 767, a bill introduced by Senator Coverdell and others regarding tax filing extensions for certain members of the uniformed services. Following passage of that bill, it will be the leader's intention to begin consideration of the budget resolution conference report. There are 10 hours for debate on the conference report, but it is hoped that a significant portion of that time will be yielded back. Members should, therefore, expect rollcall votes throughout Wednesday's session of the Senate in relation to the Coverdell bill or any other legislative or executive items cleared for action.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the bill be printed at the appropriate place in the Record.

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 79, S. 148.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the bill be printed at the appropriate place in the Record.

Mr. COCHRAN. I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 81, S. 380.