J. Cleland

Mr. CLELAND

Mr. CLELAND. Mr. President, I rise today to acknowledge and commend the State of Georgia's HOPE Scholarship program. The HOPE Scholarship, which stands for helping outstanding pupils educationally, has served as a model of excellence in education for a number of other States, and indeed the entire Nation. I am honored to represent a State, which in my opinion, has one of the most innovative educational programs in the country. The HOPE Scholarship provides eligible students wishing to attend a Georgia Pubic College or University with tuition, mandatory fees and a $100 book allowance. The HOPE Scholarship also provides eligible students wishing to attend a Georgia Private College or University with $3000 per academic school year and an additional $1000 in Georgia Tuition Equalization Grants per academic year. To be eligible, students must be a Georgia resident, graduated from high school after a certain date and have completed high school with a ``B'' average. Students must continue to perform well academically and maintain a ``B'' average while in college to continue to receive the HOPE Scholarship. Students wishing to attend a Georgia Public Technical Institute are also eligible for the HOPE Scholarship. The HOPE scholarship provides tuition, mandatory fees and a $100 book allowance for students attending these technical institutions. Since the program began in September of 1993, more than 238,500 Georgia students have been awarded HOPE Scholarships. Because of the HOPE Scholarship college enrollment is up 1.2 percent, full-time private college enrollment is up 32 percent and technical school enrollment is up 24 percent in Georgia. At the University of Georgia, 97 percent of the entering in-state freshman were on HOPE Scholarships for the Fall 1996 quarter. At the Georgia Institute of Technology, 96 percent of in-state entering students in 1996 were on HOPE Scholarships. The HOPE Scholarship has given, and will continue to give, thousands of Georgia students the financial encouragement both to attend college and to persist and gain a degree. Students in Georgia know that if they work hard and do well academically, despite the rising cost of higher education, they will be provided the resources needed to further their education. Not only does the HOPE Scholarship reward those students who are willing to work hard with tuition money, but it also serves as incentive to keep Georgia's best and brightest in the great state of Georgia. A lack of financial resources should not prevent any American from pursuing a college education and thanks to the Georgia HOPE Scholarship, in Georgia, it doesn't. Unfortunately, however, the lack of financial resources remains the number one obstacle to higher education for many American students and their families. This is why it is so important that the necessary financial resources are provided to all students pursuing a higher education and why the importance of current education legislation, such as S. 12, that addresses this crucial need cannot be overlooked. I believe that federal support for education is one of the best investments our nation can make to ensure future security and prosperity. In keeping with this commitment to education I am a proud co-sponsor of S.12. The goal of S. 12 is to make higher education more accessible and affordable for all students. S. 12, ``The Education for the 21st Century Act,'' includes two new forms of assistance to help families meet the costs of higher education. The first form of assistance, also called the HOPE Scholarship, is a $1500 per year refundable tax credit for the first two years of post-secondary education. To qualify for the credit, students must have a ``B'' average and be drug-free. S. 12 also includes a tax deduction of up to $10,000 per year for qualified education expenses. In these days of budget cuts, we must not forget that the future of our country depends on the youth of today. If we deny our youth the necessary tools to grow and learn we deny ourselves a better tomorrow. The Georgia HOPE Scholarship is a shining example of how the people and the government can come together to create an efficient, highly successful program that benefits everyone. The Georgia HOPE Scholarship has been an overwhelming success and Georgians have been very fortunate to have reaped such a wealth of benefits from this innovative program. S. 12 is an attempt to provide similar opportunities for all Americans. We must work together as a nation to ensure that barriers to higher education continue to fall for all Americans. It is my sincere hope that the entire nation will follow Georgia's lead and make education a top priority. The future of our country depends on it.

Mr. CLELAND

Mr. CLELAND. Mr. President, I rise today to highlight National Arson Awareness Week, a massive community based arson prevention program sponsored by the Federal Emergency Management Agency [FEMA], which began Sunday, May 4, and continues through Saturday, May 10. This program is of particular importance to me because a city in my own State--Macon, GA--has been chosen as one of the three pilot cities. The program will focus on a week of special events aimed at educating high-risk neighborhoods on how to prevent arson and on the importance of getting community members involved. The success of this program is vital not only in Macon but in the other two pilot cities, Charlotte, NC, and Utica, NY, because they will serve as models for future American cities. National Arson Awareness Week was inspired by the national arson prevention initiative, which was announced by President Clinton on June 19, 1996, in response to the rash of church burnings, most of which occurred in the South. The President asked James Lee Witt, Director of FEMA, to coordinate, in partnership with the Department of Justice, the Department of the Treasury, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, available Federal, State, local, and private resources for arson prevention. Arson is a growing national problem. One out of every four fires in this country is intentionally set. Over 500,000 arson fires occur each year, causing an estimated 750 fatalities and over $2 billion in property damage. These acts of violence can destroy the very base of a community, but they can be prevented. Mr. President, I ask that you and all of my colleagues recognize this week and the three cities for taking firm hold of this problem and proudly pulling their communities together to prevent future arson fires.

Mr. CLELAND

Mr. CLELAND. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to Jackie Robinson, a true American hero. Born in Cairo, GA and raised by a single mother in Pasadena, CA, Jackie Robinson integrated major league baseball 50 years ago today. It was not an easy task. He faced outright prejudice from fans, other teams, as well as his own teammates. He was cursed and spit upon. It is hard to imagine how one man could endure such circumstances. But, he persevered and paved the way for young blacks who had long dreamed of wearing a major league baseball uniform. His courageous actions forced all Americans to face the issue of integration, and he helped to jump start the civil rights movement. Jackie Robinson was deservedly elected to the Hall of Fame in 1962, his first year of eligibility. He had a career batting average of .311 with the Dodgers; won the 1949 batting title with a .342; was selected as National League MVP in 1949; and named National League Rookie of the Year in 1947. As my dear friend, Hank Aaron, wrote in an op-ed piece which ran in the New York Times on Sunday, April 13, 1997, ``Jackie showed me and my generation what we could do, he also showed us how to do it. By watching him, we knew that we would have to swallow an awful lot of pride to make it in the big leagues.'' Jackie Robinson and Hank Aaron not only made it in the big leagues, but they also succeeded with their lives. Mr. President, I ask that the entire text of Hank Aaron's op-ed that appeared in the New York Times on April 13, 1997, be printed in the Record. The material follows: [From the New York Times, Apr. 13, 1997] When Baseball Mattered (By Hank Aaron) Atlanta.--Jackie Robinson meant everything to me. Before I was a teen-ager, I was telling my father that I was going to be a ballplayer, and he was telling me, ``Ain't no colored ballplayers.'' Then Jackie broke into the Brooklyn Dodgers lineup in 1947, and Daddy never said that again. When the Dodgers played an exhibition game in Mobile, Ala., on their way north the next spring, Daddy even came to the game with me. A black man in a major-league uniform: that was something my father had to see for himself. Jackie not only showed me and my generation what we could do, he also showed us how to do it. By watching him, we knew that we would have to swallow an awful lot of pride to make it in the big leagues. We knew of the hatred and cruelty Jackie had to quietly endure from the fans and the press and the anti-integrationist teams like the Cardinals and the Phillies and even from his teammates. We also knew that he didn't subject himself to all that for personal benefit. Why would he choose to get spiked and cursed at and spat on for his own account? Jackie was a college football hero, a handsome, intelligent, talented guy with a lot going for him. He didn't need that kind of humiliation. And it certainly wasn't in his nature to suffer it silently. But he had to. Not for himself, but for me and all the young black kids like me. When Jackie Robinson loosened his fist and turned the other cheek, he was taking the blows for the love and future of his people. Now, 50 years later, people are saying that Jackie Robinson was an icon, a pioneer, a hero. But that's all they want to do: say it. Nobody wants to be like Jackie. Everybody wants to be like Mike. They want to be like Deion, like Junior. That's O.K. Sports stars are going to be role models in any generation. I'm sure Jackie would be pleased to see how well black athletes are doing these days, how mainstream they've become. I'm sure he would be proud of all the money they're making. But I suspect he'd want to shake some of them until the dollar signs fell from their eyes so they could once again see straight. Jackie Robinson was about leadership. When I was a rookie with the Braves and we came north with the Dodgers after spring training, I sat in the corner of Jackie's hotel room, thumbing through magazines, as he and his black teammates-- Roy Campanella, Don Newcombe, Junior Gilliam and Joe Black--played cards and went over strategy: what to do if a fight broke out on the field; if a pitcher threw at them; if somebody called one of them ``nigger.'' In his later years, after blacks were secure in the game, Jackie let go of his forbearance and fought back. In the quest to integrate baseball, it was time for pride to take over from meekness. And Jackie made sure that younger blacks like myself were soldiers in the struggle. When I look back at the statistics of the late 1950's and 60's and see the extent to which black players dominated the National League (the American League was somewhat slower to integrate), I know why that was. We were on a mission. And, although Willie Mays, Ernie Banks, Frank Robinson, Willie Stargell, Lou Brock, Bob Gibson and I were trying to make our marks individually, we understood that we were on a collective mission. Jackie Robinson demonstrated to us that, for a black player in our day and age, true success could not be an individual thing. To players today, however, that's exactly what it is. The potential is certainly there, perhaps more than at any time since Jackie came along, for today's stars to have a real impact on their communities. Imagine what could be accomplished if the players, both black and white, were to really dedicate themselves--not just their money, although that would certainly help--to camps and counseling centers and baseball programs in the inner city. Some of the players have their own charitable foundations, and I applaud them for that. (I believe Dave Winfield, for instance, is very sincere.) But as often as not these good works are really publicity stunts. They're engineered by agents, who are acting in the interest of the player's image--in other words, his marketability. Players these days don't do anything without an agent leading them every step of the way (with his hand out). The agent, of course, could care less about Jackie Robinson. The result is that today's players have lost all concept of history. Their collective mission is greed. Nothing else means much of anything to them. As a group, there's no discernible social conscience among them; certainly no sense of self-sacrifice, which is what Jackie Robinson's legacy is based on. It's a sick feeling, and one of the reasons I've been moving further and further away from the game. The players today think that they're making $10 million a year because they have talent and people want to give them money. They have no clue what Jackie went through on their behalf, or Larry Doby or Monte Irvin or Don Newcombe, or even, to a lesser extent, the players of my generation. People wonder where the heroes have gone. Where there is no conscience, there are no heroes. The saddest thing about all of this is that baseball was once the standard for our country. Jackie Robinson helped blaze the trail for the civil rights movement that followed. The group that succeeded Jackie--my contemporaries--did the same sort of work in the segregated minor leagues of the South. Baseball publicly pressed the issue of integration; in a symbolic way, it was our civil rights laboratory. It is tragic to me that baseball has fallen so far behind basketball and even football in terms of racial leadership. People question whether baseball is still the national pastime, and I have to wonder, too. It is certainly not the national standard it once was. The upside of this is that baseball, and baseball only, has Jackie Robinson. Here's hoping that on the 50th anniversary of Jackie's historic breakthrough, baseball will honor him in a way that really matters. It could start more youth programs, give tickets to kids who can't afford them, become a social presence in the cities it depends on. It could hire more black umpires, more black doctors, more black concessionaries, more black executives. It could hire a black commissioner. You want a name? How about Colin Powell? He's a great American, a man more popular, maybe, than the President. I'm not out there pushing his candidacy, but I think he would be great for baseball. He would restore some social relevance to the game. He would do honor to Jackie Robinson's name. It would be even more meaningful, perhaps, if some of Jackie's descendants--today's players--committed themselves this year to honoring his name, in act as well as rhetoric. Jackie's spirit is watching. I know that he would be bitterly disappointed if he saw the way today's black players have abandoned the struggle, but he would be happy for their success nonetheless. And I have no doubt that he'd do it all over again for them.

Mr. CLELAND

Mr. CLELAND. Mr. President, I rise to speak on the floor of the U.S. Senate for the first time. I do so with mixed emotions. Following in the great tradition of this seat once held by such notables as Dick Russell and Sam Nunn, I am poignantly aware that freshman Senators should be seen and not heard. However, there is an issue building in this country which I feel obligated to comment on and regarding which I can no longer remain silent. This is the issue of reforming the way we finance our political campaigns at the Federal level, particulary seats in the U.S. Congress, and especially seats in the U.S. Senate. There are many other issues facing our Nation to which we are all compelled to pay time and attention: issues such as eliminating the Federal deficit, taking care of those who have served this Nation in the Armed Forces, caring for our elderly and our young, improving our environment, and recommitting our educational system to excellence. However, as important as these issues are, in my opinion, they are all secondary to the basic issue before us--the need to recapture the public's faith in our democratic processes and our democratic institutions. Without that faith, all of these other endeavors will be undermined. Confucius, the noted Chinese sage, once wrote that there were three things that make up a great nation: First, a strong defense; second a vigorous economy; and third, the faith of people in their government. Confucius noted that a great nation might do without a strong defense, or that a great nation might be able to do without a vigorous economy, but, Confucius noted that a great nation could not remain great without the faith of the people in their government. Mr. President, I am committed to supporting programs and plans for a strong defense for our Nation. I serve on the Senate Armed Services Committee with great pride and a sense of awesome responsibility in this regard. I also am committed to a vigorous economy, and to upgrading the quality of education in America, in particular to creating hope for all of our qualified youngsters that they will have an opportunity to go to college or to receive vocational training. In furtherance of this objective, I am a cosponsor of S. 12, a program designed to provide a $1,500 tax credit and a $10,000 tax deduction to working families so they can see their children achieve the American dream. But I am especially committed to doing those things which we need to do to enhance the faith of people in this country in their own Government by cleaning up the campaign finance mess. When I first came to Washington as a young college student in the fall of 1963, I was inspired by President Kennedy to get involved in public service. I especially enjoyed meeting and learning from Members of the Senate. I can vividly recall personal meetings with Senators Russell and Talmadge from Georgia, and a young Senator from West Virginia named Robert C. Byrd. In those days, my heart was stirred to devote my life to politics. Many of us in this Chamber today got our first taste of politics in the early sixties. For me, that introduction was a positive one. However, when I was sworn in here on the Senate floor on January 7 of this year, I could not help but think how differently our current leaders and our current institutions are perceived by today's public, especially our young people. I do not believe that our leaders or our institutions are of lesser caliber that those of my youth, but something has obviously gone wrong. We in public office today face a hostile and cynical public, quite willing to take the worst possible reports about us and believe them instantly. One of the reasons for this attitude toward our public officials, I think, is the constant money chase that U.S. House and U.S. Senate campaigns have become. Additionally, when this money is spent on 30-second character assassination ads which have become the staple of American politics, can we expect our public to truly speak highly of us? I believe the single most important step we can take in the Congress this year in restoring public confidence and faith in our democracy is to enact meaningful campaign finance reform. This is not a problem for Democrats. This is not a problem for Republicans. It is a problem for us all. We must act together in a bipartisan manner to clean up a system which has gotten completely out of control and which undermines both the operation and reputation of our entire national Government. Throughout my early days in this body, I and all of my colleagues have been under a constant barrage of reports of campaign financing improprieties in the 1996 elections. I feel very strongly that our current campaign system has become a national embarrassment. Will Rogers said back in the 1930's that, ``Politics has got so expensive that it takes lots of money to even get beat with.'' How true that is, especially today. In the 1960's a Georgia politician remarked, ``The only thing tainted about political money is that it 'taint mine and 'taint enough.'' The American public isn't laughing anymore. They are demanding a change in the attitudes of politicians on the question of campaign fundraising. We currently have a political system which is drowning in money and rife with real and potential conflicts of interest. Simply stated, we have too many dollars chasing and being chased by too many politicians too much of the time. This unseemly money chase has taken its toll in terms of public confidence. The election year of 1996 witnessed both a record high in the amount of money spent in pursuit of Federal office--a staggering $800 million--and the second worst voter turnout in American history! In 1996, 10 million fewer voters went to the polls to cast their ballots in that Presidential year than went to the polls 2 years earlier. What's wrong with this picture? Some $220 million was spent on Senate races alone. In my Senate race in Georgia, I raised and spent some $3.5 million, but was outspent by a multimillionaire who spent over $10 million running for the Senate seat--$7 million of which was his own money. Is it any wonder that more and more of our citizens see that there is a for sale sign on more and more public offices in America? If we don't bring about reform of this process, limit expenditures, and establish rules for everyone to play by, the average citizen will have less and less chance to serve in this body or run for public office. Senator Daschle predicts that at the current pace of the money chase, in only 29 years the average Senate race will cost $143 million. This is insanity. We cannot allow the Congress of the United States, especially the U.S. Senate, to become a millionaires' club dominated by the rich and run by the powerful special interests. This system continues to take its toll on this body as the money chase continues. The exodus of distinguished, veteran legislators who have voluntarily departed from the U.S. Senate in the last 2 years is at an historic level. Even in my first 2 months in the Senate, I have seen noted Republican and Democratic legislators like Dan Coats, John Glenn, and Wendell Ford announce their retirement from this body partially because of the frustration of spending the next 2 years doing nothing but raising money for their upcoming campaign. Senator Ford spoke the thoughts of many when he said on his retirement: The job of being a U.S. Senator today has unfortunately become a job of raising money to be reelected instead of a job doing the people's business. Traveling to New York, California, Texas, or basically any State in the country, weekend after weekend for the next 2 years is what candidates must do if they hope to raise the money necessary to compete in a Senatorial election. Democracy as we know it will be lost if we continue to allow government to become one bought by the highest bidder, for the highest bidder. Candidates will simply become bit players and pawns in a campaign managed and manipulated by paid consultants and hired guns. The essential first step in repairing the current system is passage this year of S. 25, the bipartisan McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform bill. I am very proud to be an original cosponsor of this proposal. It was the very first piece of legislation I attached my name to as a U.S. Senator. Briefly outlined, the bill would: ban soft money contributions to national political parties; ban contributions by political action committees to Federal candidates; establish voluntary spending limits, including limits on personal spending, and require that at least 60 percent of funds be raised from home State individuals for Senate candidates; provide candidates who abide by these spending limits with limited free and discounted television time and a discount on postage rates; require greater disclosure of independent expenditures; and prohibit contributions from those who are ineligible to vote in Federal elections, including non-American citizens. Mr. President, the best endorsement I can think of for this measure is that had McCain-Feingold been in effect for the 1996 elections, we would not now need to divert our attention away from the many serious problems facing our country in order to devote time and energy toward the investigation of campaign finance abuses. I serve on the Governmental Affairs Committee which will be conducting this investigation. I fully support the purposes for which this investigation is intended, but I'm saddened it has to be undertaken in the first place. I only hope that this effort will result in meaningful campaign finance reform this year. After we pass McCain-Feingold, we will need to turn to additional reforms in order to further improve our electoral process. I am working on legislation which would strengthen the Federal Election Commission. The proposal would do several things: Alter the Commission structure to remove the possibility of partisan gridlock; eliminate current restrictions on the Commission's ability to launch criminal investigations, and to impose timely, and effective penalties against violations of campaign law; and mandate electronic filing of all reports. In addition, my proposal would expand the free air time provisions of McCain-Feingold in order to help level the playing field for challengers, and attack the single biggest factor in driving up campaign expenditures--expensive television costs. Finally, I am looking for methods to effectively enforce a shorter timeframe for the conduct of campaign-related activities. Strengthening enforcement, expanding public access to information about candidates and their ideas, and reducing the length of the campaign season will, in my judgment, build upon the solid foundation which I hope we will create when we enact S. 25. We have important work ahead, and often times there will be legitimate partisan, philosophical, and regional differences of opinion which should be voiced and acted upon. However, we have a shared interest, as Senators, but more importantly, as American citizens, in always acting to enhance the respect our citizens have for our great country and our democratic institutions, especially this body. In that spirit, and with that commitment, I urge my colleagues to join in the cause of mending our broken campaign finance system. Let us create a new campaign finance system which instills public confidence rather than undermines it, and aids the governing process rather than hinders it. President Grover Cleveland was right: ``A public office is a public trust.'' The current money chase we all engage in is severely eroding that trust. We must act to change a campaign finance system that is broken, or continue to see good men and women from all walks of life and from all political persuasions broken by it. Mr. President, I yield the floor. Several Senators addressed the Chair.

Mr. CLELAND

Mr. CLELAND. Mr. President, I am delighted to have this opportunity to congratulate the University of Georgia men's and women's basketball teams on their outstanding seasons. Georgia fans all over the country have had the pleasure of watching these two teams play great basketball in a conference known for its competitiveness. Tubby Smith's Bulldogs and Andy Landers' Lady Bulldogs earned No. 3 and No. 2 regional seeds, respectively, in the NCAA Tournament, making Georgia one of only three schools in the Nation to claim two top four seeds in the tournament. Coach Tubby Smith, came to Georgia from the University of Tulsa in 1995. He led the 1996 Bulldogs to a 21-10 record and their first NCAA Tournament bid in 5 years. The team won their first NCAA Tournament game in 9 years and made it to the Sweet 16. This year, Coach Smith took a team with no returning starters and tied for the most wins in Georgia men's basketball's 91-year history. As a result of their 24-8 record, they received the No. 3 seed in the NCAA southeast regional. Coach Andy Landers has been coaching the Lady Bulldogs since 1979. During his 17 seasons at Georgia, Landers has become one of our Nation's elite women's basketball coaches. The Lady Bulldogs have appeared in 13 NCAA Tournaments, 4 NCAA final fours, and won 5 SEC titles during Coach Landers' tenure. These achievements have earned him the honors of National Coach of the Year for 3 years and SEC Coach of the Year for 3 years. The Lady Bulldogs were the SEC regular season champions and have a record of 22-5. The University of Georgia is fortunate to have individuals of the caliber of Tubby Smith and Andy Landers coaching their basketball teams. Not only are these fine coaches teaching their players basketball skills, but important lessons for life--courage, stamina, tenacity, and grace under pressure. Although they have enjoyed great success throughout their coaching careers, their achievements go far beyond their great talents in coaching. They have given back to their community in countless ways. Coach Landers contributes his time and energy to the United Way of Northeast Georgia, and Coach Smith is also involved in the United Way of Northeast Georgia, as well as the American Cancer Society and the American Heart Association. I would be hard pressed to enumerate all of their contributions to the University of Georgia, the Athens community and to all of the athletes whose lives they have touched. All of the athletes and coaches of University of Georgia Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs have displayed their skills and dedication to excellence in basketball throughout this entire season. I extend my best wishes to the Bulldogs' and Lady Bulldogs' basketball teams as they begin play in the NCAA Tournament, and to the University of Georgia Athletic Department for its continued success.

Mr. CLELAND

Mr. CLELAND. Mr. President, today, I honor Senator Sam Nunn, my friend, and one of America's most outstanding public servants. In recognition of the exceptional service Senator Sam Nunn has given to Georgia, the Senate, and the United States, I believe it would be fitting that the new Federal building in Atlanta be designated the ``Sam Nunn Federal Center.'' Senator Nunn has provided exemplary bipartisan leadership over the past 24 years, serving in a variety of leadership positions including both chairman and ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and the chairman and ranking member on the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. In his years in the U.S. Senate, Senator Nunn earned the reputation as an internationally recognized expert on economic policy, defense, and national security. Respected and honored by both his colleagues and constituents, it has been said of Senator Nunn, ``Unlike some who gained prominence in the nation's capital, Nunn has not done so at the expense of his home base * * * Public events shift and change, but Sam Nunn keeps right on being Sam Nunn.'' First elected to the Senate in 1972, Sam Nunn has been one of the most admired and respected Members of the U.S. Senate and has consistently been ranked among the most effective Senators in surveys of journalists and congressional staffers. Senator Nunn has recently ended his many years of service as a U.S. Senator and I am deeply honored to now occupy his seat. I believe that naming the Federal building in Atlanta after Senator Nunn would be a permanent way in which we can appropriately recognize Senator Nunn's contributions to the Nation. I urge my fellow colleagues to join me in honoring my friend, and one of America's most admired public servants, and support the passage of the bill to designate the ``Sam Nunn Federal Center.'' In conclusion, I would like to have Senator Byrd's September 27 floor statement made in tribute to Senator Nunn re-entered in the Record. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that additional material be printed in the Record.

Mr. CLELAND

Mr. CLELAND. Mr. President, today, I honor Senator Sam Nunn, my friend, and one of America's most outstanding public servants. In recognition of the exceptional service Senator Sam Nunn has given to Georgia, the Senate, and the United States, I believe it would be fitting that the new Federal building in Atlanta be designated the ``Sam Nunn Federal Center.'' Senator Nunn has provided exemplary bipartisan leadership over the past 24 years, serving in a variety of leadership positions including both chairman and ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and the chairman and ranking member on the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. In his years in the U.S. Senate, Senator Nunn earned the reputation as an internationally recognized expert on economic policy, defense, and national security. Respected and honored by both his colleagues and constituents, it has been said of Senator Nunn, ``Unlike some who gained prominence in the nation's capital, Nunn has not done so at the expense of his home base * * * Public events shift and change, but Sam Nunn keeps right on being Sam Nunn.'' First elected to the Senate in 1972, Sam Nunn has been one of the most admired and respected Members of the U.S. Senate and has consistently been ranked among the most effective Senators in surveys of journalists and congressional staffers. Senator Nunn has recently ended his many years of service as a U.S. Senator and I am deeply honored to now occupy his seat. I believe that naming the Federal building in Atlanta after Senator Nunn would be a permanent way in which we can appropriately recognize Senator Nunn's contributions to the Nation. I urge my fellow colleagues to join me in honoring my friend, and one of America's most admired public servants, and support the passage of the bill to designate the ``Sam Nunn Federal Center.'' In conclusion, I would like to have Senator Byrd's September 27 floor statement made in tribute to Senator Nunn re-entered in the Record. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that additional material be printed in the Record.