Susan Collins

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the committee amendment be agreed to, the bill as amended be read a third time, passed, and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, that the title amendment be agreed to, and that any statements related to the bill appear in the Record with the above occurring without intervening action or debate.

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I now ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 400, S. 2069.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, for the information of all Senators, the Senate will reconvene tomorrow at 9:45 a.m. and begin a period of morning business until 11:15 a.m. Following morning business, the Senate will resume consideration of the tobacco bill. At 12 noon, the Senate will proceed to vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the modified tobacco committee substitute. Assuming cloture fails, the Senate will continue debate on the tobacco bill. It is hoped that Members will come to the floor to offer and debate remaining amendments to the bill throughout Thursday's session. The Senate may also consider any other legislative or Executive Calendar item that may be cleared for action. Therefore, rollcall votes are possible throughout Thursday's session of the Senate.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate agree to the amendment of the House.

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask the Chair lay before the Senate a message from the House of Representatives on the bill (S. 1900) to establish a commission to examine issues pertaining to the disposition of Holocaust-era assets in the United States before, during, and after World War II, and to make recommendations to the President on further action, and for other purposes. The PRESIDING OFFICER laid before the Senate the following message from the House of Representatives: Resolved, That the bill from the Senate (S. 1900) entitled ``An Act to establish a commission to examine issues pertaining to the disposition of Holocaust-era assets in the United States before, during, and after World War II, and to make recommendations to the President on further action, and for other purposes'', do pass with the following amendment: Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 363, S. 1364.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent there now be a period for the transaction of morning business with Senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that there now be a period for the transaction of routine morning business, with Senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Thank you, Mr. President. I thank the distinguished senior Senator from West Virginia for allowing me to precede him. I yield the floor. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Senate Resolution 244 submitted earlier today by Senators Collins, Lott, Hutchison, and Abraham.

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, yesterday was the ninth anniversary of the massacre of hundreds of prodemocracy students on Tiananmen Square in Beijing by troops acting under the orders of the Communist Government of China. In memory of the brave students who suffered and died there for speaking out peacefully against political repression, and in memory of those who are imprisoned still, last night I attempted to introduce this resolution expressing the sense of the Senate that our Government should remain committed to honoring the memory of these victims of oppression and also that supporting China's peaceful transition to democracy should be a principal goal of our foreign policy. I know that such sentiments are shared by all Members of this body. After all, who could possibly object to honoring the Chinese student martyrs to democracy on the ninth anniversary of their massacre? After all, our most cherished political ideals are those of inalienable rights and democratic self-rule. Unfortunately, however, we were unable to get the resolution cleared last night on the Democratic side. This objection prevented the Senate from making any statement in memory of the victims of Tiananmen Square on the ninth anniversary of their murder. I am pleased, however, to report today that the cold light of morning has helped bring some perspective to this issue and that the objection to my resolution has now been withdrawn. I am very grateful for the cooperation of the Democratic leader in resolving the issue on his side. I spoke at some length last night about the purpose of this resolution, so I will not repeat those remarks now. Let me merely say that it is deeply gratifying to see all of us join together in expressing our heartfelt commitment to democracy and human rights in China and in honoring the memory of those slain in the pursuit of these ideals. It may be 24 hours late, Mr. President, but history will not find the U.S. Senate to have been voiceless in remembrance of the victims in the Tiananmen Square massacre of June 4, 1989. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble agreed to, and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I now ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Senate Concurrent Resolution 102, introduced earlier today by Senator Rockefeller and others.

Ms. COLLINS. I ask unanimous consent the concurrent resolution be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements related to the concurrent resolution be printed in the Record at the appropriate place as if read.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of a Senate resolution at the desk which would express the sense of the Senate on the ninth anniversary of the massacre of prodemocracy demonstrators on Tiananmen Square in China. I ask further consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and that the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I am really surprised and shocked that apparently there is objection on the Democratic side of the aisle to consideration of this important resolution. I had hoped that we would consider this evening a resolution expressing the sense of the Senate upon the ninth anniversary of the tragic massacre of Chinese students in Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989. My resolution, had I been permitted to proceed with it this evening, was cosponsored by the distinguished majority leader, by the Senator from Arkansas, Senator Hutchinson, and by the Senator from Michigan, Senator Abraham. Regrettably, my colleagues from the Democratic side of the aisle have blocked consideration of this resolution. I would, however, like to take a moment to explain why I consider it to be very important. Mr. President, 9 years ago, thousands of students were peaceably assembled on Tiananmen Square in Beijing, peacefully protesting their government's refusal to permit them even the most basic freedoms of expression, association, and political activity. As a symbol of their hopes and aspirations for a democratic China, these students constructed a scale model of our own Statue of Liberty. It was to them, as it is to us and to untold millions around the world, a symbol of freedom's promise for people everywhere. Quoting Thomas Jefferson, these brave Chinese students spoke eloquently of the need for China to develop democratic institutions, and finally to allow a degree of political progress to match its dramatic economic change and development in recent years. Nine years ago today--today--the excitement and the promise of this Chinese democracy movement were extinguished as troops and armored vehicles were ordered into action against the peaceful students. Mr. President, it may never be known exactly how many died in the resulting bloodbath, but hundreds of Chinese demonstrators were certainly killed and many thousands more were arrested for so-called counterrevolutionary offenses that consisted only of attempting to assert rights that it is the duty of civilized governments everywhere to observe, protect and promote. I am wearing, Mr. President, a ribbon to commemorate just one of those political prisoners from that very sad period. I had hoped to introduce and have the Senate pass this resolution to make very clear to everyone in this country and, indeed, around the globe that the U.S. Senate has not forgotten what occurred in Tiananmen Square 9 years ago today. Mr. President, my resolution sought to do no more than to make clear that what occurred on June 4, 1989, was profoundly wrong and that we should not permit ourselves or our Government ever to forget this. This resolution would have merely expressed the sense of the Senate that our Government should remain committed to honoring the memory and the spirit of the Chinese citizens who died on Tiananmen Square and that assisting China's peaceful transition to democracy should be a principal goal of our foreign policy. Mr. President, it is important that we remember Tiananmen Square today precisely because we do enjoy increasingly close ties with the regime in Beijing. Relations with the People's Republic of China are-- and must--be a continual balancing act. The memory of Tiananmen Square should help us find the appropriate bounds, preventing us from giving way to a wholly unchecked enthusiasm in U.S.-Chinese relations by disregarding the fundamental nature of the regime with which we are dealing. China is not a democracy, after all, and its government still has few qualms about using armed force to suppress the legitimate aspirations of its people for basic liberties. I do not expect democracy to flower overnight in China. But it is today quite clear that China is capable of democracy. The very strength of the student movement that Communist authorities tried to crush on Tiananmen Square nine years ago attests to the powerful appeal that democracy and human rights have in China. The successes of pro- democracy candidates in Hong Kong's recent elections also attest to how strong democratic ideals can be in China when not suppressed by autocrats intent upon preserving their own power and privileges. Most of all, the new and thriving democracy on Taiwan stands as the clearest indication that the phrase ``Chinese democracy'' is not an oxymoron. In fact, the phrase ``Chinese democracy is a ray of hope for a quarter of our planet's population. This is why it is important always to keep Tiananmen Square in our minds as we pursue our ``engagement'' with China. While we cannot ignore China and its huge population, neither can we ignore the human rights abuses committed by its government. Sound public policymaking is about pragmatism, but it is about the pragmatic pursuit of principles. Without principle, pragmatism is no more than a fraud, a process that lacks a purpose; there is no substitute for an underlying moral compass. This is why I very much wanted to introduce my resolution today: in U.S.-China relations, the memory of Tiananmen Square is one of the cardinal points on our moral compass, without which we cannot navigate. I ask unanimous consent that the text of the resolution I would have introduced be printed in the Record.

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I find myself in the awkward position of having to object to consideration of my own resolution. I want to make this clear that I am doing this solely as a courtesy to the Democratic leader.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that there now be a period for the transaction of routine morning business with Senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, in the short time that I will take to deliver these remarks, a woman will be diagnosed with breast cancer. And every 12 minutes, a woman will die from it. Just this past year, breast cancer has touched my life twice: one member of staff, aged 37, and the spouse of another member of my staff both developed breast cancer. Watching these women in their daily struggles has been a heart-wrenching experience as well as a call to action. I know that several of my colleagues' lives have also been personally touched by breast cancer. The senior Senator from Maine, Olympia Snowe, lost her mother to breast cancer at a tragically young age. Throughout her career in Congress, Senator Snowe has been a tireless advocate for breast cancer awareness and increased funding for research. Her leadership on this issue has been invaluable--even lifesaving--for countless women across the country. Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in women in the United States. However, when breast cancer is detected early and treated promptly, suffering and the loss of life can be significantly reduced. Approximately one out of every eight women will develop breast cancer during her lifetime. In 1998 alone, an estimated 180,200 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer. Even more disturbing, breast cancer is the leading cause of death among women aged 35 to 54. Washingtonians will have the opportunity to call attention to breast cancer and raise much-needed research dollars when the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation hosts its 9th annual National Race for the Cure on Saturday, June 6. Those of us who work on Capitol Hill have an added opportunity to contribute to the cure for breast cancer thanks to a challenge grant from Eli Lilly and Company. The third annual Lilly Capitol Hill Challenge will match the registration fees for all members of Congress, their spouses, and staff who participate in the National Race for the Cure. Since 1996, Lilly and Capitol Hill have raised $200,000 for breast cancer prevention, research, and treatment--75% of which stays in the DC metropolitan area. Two weeks ago, all the women in the Senate joined me in circulating a ``Dear Colleague'' letter encouraging Members of Congress and staff to take advantage of Lilly's generous offer and register for this year's race. And I would like to let my colleagues know that it is not too late to participate. Late registrations are being accepted up until Friday evening at 6:30 in the lobby of the Department of Commerce. Today, I rise to the floor to once again encourage my colleagues to alert members of their staff, their families and friends to this valuable opportunity to support the Komen Foundation and Race for the Cure on June 6th. Thank you, Mr. President. I yield the floor.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. I thank the Chair.

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that I be permitted to proceed as if in morning business for approximately 5 minutes.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Ms. COLLINS. I now ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Senate Resolution 243 submitted earlier today by Senators Bryan and Reid.

Ms. COLLINS

Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.