Alfonse D’Amato

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, next week Secretary Christopher will attend the Annual Bi-National Commission meeting in Mexico City. Secretary Christopher should use this meeting to convey the United States' deep concern over the pervasive and consistent flow of narcotics from Mexico into the United States. The administration must insist that the Mexican Government make real and substantial efforts to stop the flow of illegal drugs into our country. Yesterday, the Administrator of the DEA, Thomas Constantine and Attorney General Janet Reno announced the successful completion of law- enforcement operation Zorro II which resulted in the arrest of members of a major Mexican drug cartel. In Zorro II, 130 individuals were arrested for their involvement in a cocaine smuggling and distribution network that had been operating, and flourishing, in the United States. This successful law enforcement initiative is a major victory in the war against the drugs and narcotics-related crimes which are ravaging our cities. Mr. President, there are daily news reports of rampant corruption and abuse within the Mexican Government involving members of its law enforcement. I will ask to have printed in the Record an article from last Sunday's Washington Post, entitled ``The Drug Fiefdom of Northern Mexico.'' According to this April 28 article, ``The four main Mexican drug mafias--all headquartered along the 2,000 mile U.S.-Mexico border--now supply more than 70% of the cocaine and half of all the marijuana sold in the U.S. The drugs funnel as much as $30 billion a year in illegal proceeds back into Mexico--more than the country's top two legitimate exports combined.'' Maybe the administration and the Mexican Government are finally willing to acknowledge the severity and impact of the drug problem. According to other news reports, Mexican narcotics organizations rely on protection from members of the government, police, and judiciary for their continued success and growth. These drug syndicates then turn to the Mexican banks and exchange houses to launder their dirty money. This incredible expansion of the Mexican narcotics trade and the alleged corruption of Mexican Government officials and business leaders is unprecedented. Unfortunately, Mexico's drug problems are not confined to the south side of our shared border. Mr. President, I was encouraged to learn that the Mexican Government finally took a long-overdue first step with its enactment earlier this week of an anti-money-laundering bill, but this is only the first step. The true test will be whether, and how, the law is actually enforced. One thing is certain, the defensiveness and reluctance of Mexican officials to acknowledge the severity of the money laundering problem is very disturbing. I am in full support of the recent, and valid, statements made by Thomas Constantine, Administrator for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency regarding this money laundering epidemic. Mr. Constantine's leadership in this war on drugs is exemplified by Operation Zorro II's success. Mr. President, I sincerely hope that strong and decisive action against Mexican drug traffickers is a fundamental part of the administration's recently released 1996 National Drug Control Strategy. On behalf of the administration, and with the support of this Senator, Secretary Christopher should forcefully urge the Mexican Government to cooperate with United States requests for extraditions of Mexican narcotics traffickers and other criminals who have committed heinous acts of violence in the United States. It is a fact that to date, Mexico still has not extradited a single Mexican national convicted of drug trafficking in the United States. At the Banking Committee's recent hearing, perhaps the most compelling, and disturbing testimony came from T. J. Bonner, a border patrol agent. Mr. Bonner testified about his first hand views of life on the firing lines in this war on drugs. He also provided a disturbing account of the January 1996 killing of Border Patrol Agent Jefferson Barr. Mr. Barr was shot and killed while intercepting a group of Mexican drug smugglers in Eagle Pass, TX. One of Mr. Barr's murderers was identified and located by the FBI in a hospital in Mexico. This killer was charged with murder and the United States is seeking his extradition. But the Government of Mexico has failed to honor this request. This is an outrage and a tragedy. The United States administration must get tough with the Mexican Government and demand their full cooperation in dealing with these criminals. Mr. President, the flood of narcotics being sent from Mexico to the United States is tearing apart the social fabric of our country. Senator Feinstein and I recently introduced a bill, S. 1547, which would prevent the administration from wasting more taxpayer dollars on the Mexican bailout unless concerted measures are taken to stop the massive flow of narcotics from Mexico into the United States. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. Mr. President, the administration must continue to open their eyes to these problems. We cannot pretend as if they do not exist and simply hope they will disappear. As a result of the administration's past neglect and unwillingness to confront the drug problem, the narcotics crisis in this country has escalated in the last 3 years. The administration's charade in declaring Mexico as ``fully cooperative'' under the Foreign Assistance Act must end. If the Mexican Government wants to pretend there are no problems and feign indignation when confronted with these issues, then they should not expect United States financial support in any form. The future of our country and our children is at stake. Mr. President, Secretary Christopher should take a strong antidrug message to Mexico. We must employ every weapon in our arsenal in this war on drugs--diplomatic, financial, enforcement, and education. Every high-level U.S. official must be recruited in our battle with the drug epidemic waging war on this country. I ask that the Washington Post article, to which I earlier referred, be printed in the Record. The article follows: [From the Washington Post, Apr. 28, 1996] The Drug Fiefdom of Northern Mexico (By Molly Moore and John Ward Anderson) Nueva Casas Grandes, Mexico.--The only sign of prosperity in this bleak desert city, 75 miles south of El Paso, is a gigantic, fake medieval castle rising like a strange mirage above cactus and scrub brush, abandoned houses and closed shops. Camelot, as the ostentatious, slate-blue disco and concert hall is known, stands as a stark reminder of how the culture of narcotics trafficking can ravage cities as well as people. Bountiful narco-dollars--brought in by drug lords who used clandestine airstrips outside of town for cocaine shipments to the United States--built the castle and fueled an economic boom in the city. Then, as quickly as the narco-dollars poured in, they suddenly evaporated when the new boss of Mexico's most powerful drug mafia started using Boeing 727 cargo planes to bypass Nueva Casas Grandes and similar cities, transforming their narco booms into recessionary busts. ``The drug dealers brought shoes in by the boxes, but now the money is not coming this way,'' complained Ricardo Contreras, 24, who shines shoes in the town square. His is not the only ruined city along the U.S.-Mexican border. The rise and demise of Nueva Casas Grandes reflects how drug trafficking has reshaped the economic, social and political landscape of northern Mexico in the last five years. Shifting dynamics in the international drug trade, as well as growing pressure on traffickers in Colombia, where cocaine largely is produced, have turned this region known for its booming manufacturing industry, burgeoning consumer class and progressive politics into a land of laundered drug money, riddled with corruption and violence. Northern Mexico's slide toward becoming a new Latin fiefdom for the movement of drugs is a major problem for the United States, long accustomed to viewing the region as a model of development. The four main Mexican drug mafias--all headquartered along the 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border--now supply more than 70 percent of the cocaine and half of all the marijuana sold in the United States, in addition to large quantities of heroin and methamphetamine. The drugs funnel as much as $30 billion a year in illegal proceeds back into Mexico--more than the country's top two legitimate exports combined. For a decade, northern Mexico has been the embodiment of American hopes about where its southern neighbor was going. It has been the region where private enterprise and export- oriented manufacturing flourishes, where peasants move up from poverty, where the North American Free Trade Agreement is gospel, and where pluralism and the beginnings of real democracy in Mexico have taken root. Now it is threatening to become an enormous menace--an empire of drug lords who smuggle cocaine and weapons across the border, corrupt officials on both sides of the border and terrorize border cities with assassinations. Here, where the money first arrives from the United States in car trunks, by wire transfers and--in recent months--through huge third-party check-buying networks, the influence of billions of narco- dollars has become embedded in the culture of the frontier, transcending the usual symbols of drug trafficking: the ostentatious pink mansions of the newly wealthy, the crude graffiti of the multiplying street gangs in border slums, the frequent shootouts between feuding drug factions and the wars between corrupt police units. The money is financing the businesses where residents eat, play, work, shop and invest. It is altering the lives and health of their children and families, leading to skyrocketing homicide and overdose rates. It is greasing the governments that run the cities, states and nation. ``It is part of everyday life in northern Mexico,'' said Luis Astorga, a sociologist who has written extensively about the social and cultural impact of the drug trade in his native frontier region. ``It cannot be separated from the legitimate economy or the authorities in power.'' Northern Mexico has been a major smuggling route since early in this century, when cattle rustler-turned-guerrilla Pancho Villa stormed across the desert frontier fomenting the revolutionary fervor of 1917. It is a vast territory of dry lake beds ideal for landing cocaine-packed jets, scrub desert perfect for eluding border guards, industrial areas with numerous warehouses for stockpiling tons of illegal drugs and border stations where customs officials check barely 5 percent of the 87 million vehicles that cross each year. The cities of northern Mexico have diverse economies, developed from decades of legitimate cross-border trade and tourism with their richer northern neighbor. The border was crossed last year by about 232 million people, making it the world's busiest international boundary. It is Mexico's most prosperous and industrialized region, stretching from Tijuana--the country's most visited tourist destination--through dusty desert villages, past grimy Cuidad Juarez on the border and eastward toward the high-rises and belching industries of Monterrey, dubbed the Pittsburgh of Mexico. Despite the country's deepest economic recession in 60 years, northern Mexico's border cities continue to boom, adding jobs in a year of record unemployment nationally and building new industries during a period of unprecedented bankruptcies and collapsing businesses. But now the underground economy built from decades of smuggling contraband, people and drugs to the United States has become so intertwined with the region's legitimate wealth that the two are almost indistinguishable, according to investigators. The constantly flowing river of people and money--magnified by the North American Free Trade Agreement among the United States, Mexico and Canada--is a perfect disguise for moving drugs in a narco-dollars out of the United States, investigators say. One highly audible indication of how drug culture has penetrated the north of Mexico is found on the radio airwaves, where the most popular songs are ``narco-ballads'' about daring trafficking escapades with drug lords as the heroes and police as the bad guys. The songs belt out the tales of mafia rivalries and hapless U.S. drug agents with extraordinarily accurate details of the constantly changing drug world. ``Mess with the mafia and pay with your hide,'' one warns. While the exact amount of narcotics money flowing back to Mexico is impossible to calculate, Mexican Assistant Attorney General Moises Moreno Hernandez, speaking at a conference last August, estimated that $30 billion was returned to Mexico in 1994. The U.S. Treasury's Financial Crime Enforcement Network estimates it at $10 billion to $30 billion. Nowhere are the effects of the drug trade more evident than in booming border cities such as Ciudad Juarez, a roiling metropolis of 1.3 million that is joined by five bridges to El Paso, Tex. Authorities say it is the home of Mexico's most powerful drug cartel. Despite the nationwide recession, Juarez--along with many of its sister cities along the border--is growing, if not prospering. Employment is up, glitzy new office buildings are under construction, and its bars and restaurants are packed. While much of the city's economic success is the result of legitimate business, a strong industrial base and cross- border tourism from El Paso, city residents from all walks of life say drug money has become so entwined in their local economy that above-board businesses and those financed by narco-dollars are difficult to separate. The influx of drug money has helped shape the city, from seedy discos and bars that run along the underbelly of downtown Juarez to ritzy country club estates clustered around a green oasis of golf courses in newly developing suburbs. The Juarez Cartel and the many local organizations that are its subcontractors for transporting the drugs have bought heavily into trucking businesses and car dealerships for their operations. One major trafficking family owns a petroleum company and is said to use its tanker truckers for smuggling drugs, according to U.S. and Mexican law enforcement officials. And the boss of the Juarez cartel, Amado Carrillo Fuentes, allegedly owns several small airlines. In Tijuana, the Arellano-Felix brothers--leaders of the violent Tijuana Cartel--are suspected of using a local racetrack to launder their drug money. Juan Garcia Abrego, the recently arrested head of the Gulf Cartel, reportedly owned more than a dozen used-car and automotive parts stores along the south Texas-Mexican border. But law enforcement officials and local business leaders say it has become difficult to track the investments of the cartels and their associates. ``They're getting much smarter,'' said a Juarez businessman. ``You can't drive down the street anymore and say that and that and that was built by the drug lords. Now they're using middlemen to buy buildings.'' For many residents, the map of northern Mexico is determined not by highways and state lines but by the frequently changing territories controlled by drug- trafficking organizations. The areas shift each time a kingpin is assassinated or jailed. Today, two mafias dominate the region--the Juarez and the Tijuana cartels--and two other powerful groups, the Sonora and Gulf cartels, operate variously at odds or in concert with them. The major trafficking organizations are known by several names, but generally are associated with their areas of geographic control. They, in turn, subcontract the logistics of transporting their drugs among an estimated 250 families and gangs that work specific smuggling routes across the frontier. The Juarez Cartel, headed by Carrillo, today is undisputedly the most powerful mafia, controlling the central trafficking corridor between Juarez and El Paso. In recent months Carrillo also has begun expanding east into the territory of the Gulf Cartel, which is in disarray after the arrest earlier this year of its alleged kingpin, Garcia Abrego. Carrillo, who took over the Juarez Cartel after his rival for the leadership was gunned down on a Cancun beach three years ago, is considered the pioneer of the new breed of shrewder, more corporate cartel bosses who shun the limelight. With many more billions of dollars at risk, Carrillo and his competitors are seldom seen in the restaurants and discos they have built across northern Mexico. They have not given up their lavish lifestyles, but now they entertain in private while threatening local newspaper editors to keep away their photographers. Often traffickers invite well-known music stars to sing for select guests inside well-guarded ranches near their northern Mexico headquarters and lavish compounds in more glamorous parts of the country, such as Guadalajara, Acapulco and other resort areas. But Carrillo and his counterparts are no less brutal than those before them. Shootouts between rival groups often occur along the border; in some major cities, drug assassinations are nearly a daily occurrence. The victims' bodies are left with the telltale mafia signatures: hands tied and a single bullet in the head. Last year, the largest cities along the border recorded more than 1,000 slayings, more than half of them drug-related and unsolved. In Tijuana, for example, there were 121 homicides in the last six months, and officials say at least half involved drugs. Last year in Juarez, homicides were up 25 percent to 295, of which police estimate 70 percent were drug-related. Two years ago, the tortured bodies of the city's newly retired police chief and two of his sons were found in the trunk of their car, which had been parked on one of the busy bridges connecting Juarez and El Paso. Family members said they believed the three were murdered by drug lords who suspected the 26-year veteran policeman of being an informant for U.S. law enforcement officials. City officials say much of the sharp rise in homicides and other crimes in Juarez is a side effect of the Juarez Cartel's practice of subcontracting its transportation and distribution needs to numerous smaller organizations along the border. Those groups in turn often hire local smuggling families on street gang members to carry the drugs into the United Sates in the trunks of cars, on the backs of mules in more remote desert areas, or hidden in boxes of tennis shoes, tomatoes or other legitimate commercial items hauled by 18- wheel trucks. As a result, hundreds of newly created ganps--put at 450 today, up from 120 five years ago--are battling for control of the street sale of drugs in Juarez. In many parts of downtown Juarez, gangs with names such as Los Gatos (The Cats) or El Puente Negro (The Black Bridge gang), the city's most notorious, rule the night and mark their territory with bold spray-painted graffiti. With so much cocaine entering northern Mexico, an increasing amount never leaves. The Mexican drug cartels often take payment from their Colombian cocaine suppliers in the form of drugs rather than cash--a portion of which they sell locally. Juarez last year reported that drug ``shooting galleries'' multiplied faster than police could track them. So while Mexico's national leaders are fond of saying drugs merely pass through Mexico en route to the world's largest consumer market of illegal narcotics, the outspoken mayor of Juarez, Ramon Galindo Noriega, says that is no longer the case. Last year, 90 people died of overdoses--up from four or five the previous year, according to the major. According to court testimony in the United States and U.S. and Mexican law enforcement officials, the cartels pay as much as $500 million a year in protection money to Mexican police, politicians and government officials--from the lowest border guard to the highest reaches of the federal government. Just this month, the governor of the border state of Nuevo Leon was forced to resign following accusations of mismanagement and drug-related corruption. In some respects, northern Mexico should have had the best chance of any region of the nation to shake off decades of political corruption and offer tough resistance to the rise of the drug kingpins. It was the first region of the country where members of the conservative opposition National Action Party (PAN) broke the stranglehold of the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), winning governorships, mayoralties and municipal seats with promises of fighting entrenched corruption. Instead, the drug cartels are more powerful than ever. One of the first PAN governors in the north, Ernesto Ruffo Appel, former governor of Baja California, said he found drug-based corruption too institutionalized to clean up from the governor's office. ``The system doesn't work,'' said Ruffo, who works at the national party level. ``Everybody's on the take. There's just too much money.'' According to many law enforcement officials and political specialists, the institutionalization of corruption is a key milestone in northern Mexico's journey toward becoming a drug fiefdom. ``In the past, you had specific protection rackets that were between particular people,'' said a U.S. law enforcement official who monitors drug trafficking on the border. ``Now you increasingly have protection [for the cartels] regardless of who sits in a particular law enforcement job.'' At the low end, police, because of their poor pay, traditionally have been thoroughly corrupted by drug cartels. Police frequently act as bodyguards and assassins for the kingpins, and raging gun battles among local, state and federal police units--some in the pay of the cartels, the others trying to arrest them--are commonplace. Late one night a few weeks ago, a Wild West-style shootout exploded on the streets of Juarez--police were fighting it out with police. Carloads of federal police surrounded city police headquarters and within minutes shooting broke out, leaving one federal officer dead on the bloodied pavement and several city police wounded in what many officials described as an outgrowth of simmering tensions between rival drug protection rackets. ``I know I have policemen who are paid by the drug dealers,'' said Mayor Galindo. ``I pay 2,200 pesos [$297] a month. A drug dealer can give $1,000 a week for protection. I can't compete. When I listen to the politicians in Mexico City talk about the drug struggle, they don't know what they're talking about. Where can I hire police I can trust?'' A few months before the shootout, Juarez city police-- frustrated that their federal counterparts, charged with enforcing drug laws, were taking no action to stop the proliferation of drug shooting galleries in the city--leaked the addresses of 90 known drug houses to a local newspaper. The paper published the list and confronted the federal police, who said they had never been given the list. ``We published the list as proof that they'd received it,'' said an editor. ``And they did nothing.'' Ruffo and others say even the judicial system has become co-opted, by money or fear. ``Judges are afraid they might be killed. It's very risky to confront this,'' Ruffo said. On that, he shares the pessimism of many in northern Mexico: ``If we can't even trust the judicial system, we have nothing.'' the mexican federation Four organizations dominate the international drug trade in northern Mexico. Together with about a dozen smaller groups, they have been dubbed The Mexican Federation by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and gross an estimated $10 billion to $30 billion annually in narcotics sales in the United States. Family ties are important to the groups, most of which can trace their lineage back decades to the cross- border smuggling of contraband such as stolen cars. the tijuana cartel Currently the second most powerful cartel. Considered the most violent of the Mexican organizations. Best known for the ambush of Catholic Cardinal Juan Jesus Posadas Ocampo at Guadalajara Airport in May 1993. Leaders: Arellano-Felix brothers--Benjamin, Ramon, Javier and Francisco (currently jailed in Mexico)--who are the nephews of Guadalajara Cartel co-founder Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo. Activities: Controls most of drug smuggling across the California border; has recently diversified to become one of the main suppliers of methamphetamine, consolidating its position through a violent turf war in San Diego. the sonora cartel Also known as the Caro Quintero organization; made up of remnants of the old Guadalajara Cartel, best known for the brutal 1985 torture and killing of DEA agent Enrique Camarena. Leaders/co-founders: Rafael Caro Quintero, under arrest. Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo, arrested in 1989, remains a major player from prison. Acting leader: Miguel Caro Quintero, brother of Rafael. Activities: Among the first Mexican organizations to transport drugs for the Colombian kingpins. Main trafficking routes through Arizona border area known as ``cocaine alley'' with movements also coordinated through the Juarez Cartel in the territory controlled by that organization. the juarez cartel Currently the most powerful of the Mexican cartels. Leader: Amado Carrillo Fuentes, about 40; took over in 1993. Shuns flamboyant lifestyle of his competitors, and is said to represent a new breed of kingpin who believes in compromising with rivals. Activities: Carrillo Fuentes pioneered the use of Boeing 727s for bulk shipments of as much as 15 tons of cocaine between South America and northern Mexico. Cartel operates primarily through Juarez-El Paso and surrounding desert along the west Texas and New Mexico borders. the gulf cartel Once undisputed champ of the Mexican organizations. Cartel's fortunes began to fade about a year ago after its alleged kingpin, Juan Garcia Abrego, 51, had to go underground. He was arrested in January and deported to the United States, where he is standing trial in Houston. Leader: Oscar Malherve, one of Abrego's top lieutenants and money-launderers. Activities: Moves drugs primarily through the Texas border region, particularly Matamoros-Brownsville, and along the Gulf coastal shores.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise today in support of H.R. 1836 which will allow for the protection of New York's rarest plant species, the sandplain gerardia--also a federally endangered species--and six other rare plants while offering New Yorkers with spectacular recreational opportunities. I was happy to cosponsor identical legislation, S. 1422, which was introduced by my friend and colleague Senator Moynihan. This bill will authorize the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to purchase a parcel of land on the South Fork of Long Island known as Shadmoor. The Shadmoor property is a one-half mile stretch of sand, plants, and wildlife habitat fronted by 70-foot cliffs that reminded early settlers of the English moors. It is not only home to a number of rare and endangered plants, but also a wetland visited by several species of migratory birds. Also, the property is of interest to history buffs, as the property contains several bunkers constructed for the defense of America's coastline during World War II. It is truly a unique area that many will agree needs to be maintained. Currently, this beachfront land with its wonderful vistas and serene beauty is threatened by development. However, because of the need to protect the sandplain gerardia, in order to provide for the habitat for migratory birds, and for the recreational opportunities it affords to all New Yorkers, it is an area that must be given proper and prompt consideration. This bill achieves these goals by allowing for the acquisition of this land for the purposes of preserving it for generations to come. In addition, an amendment to this bill will make a technical correction in the maps of the Coastal Barrier Resources System [COBRA]. This amendment is identical to S. 1352 which I introduced earlier this year with my friend and colleague Senator Moynihan. In addition, Congressman Forbes introduced similar legislation, H.R. 2005, which passed the House of Representatives on October 30, 1995. Mr. President, the administration testified in support of the correction contained in this amendment before the Oceans, Fisheries, and Wildlife Subcommittee of the House Committee on Resources. The Department of the Interior's Fish and Wildlife Service acknowledges that it was in error when it designated part of the Point O' Woods community on Fire Island in New York as part of an otherwise protected area. This legislation directs the Secretary of the Interior to correct this error and thereby allow the residents of the Point O' Woods community to participate in the National Flood Insurance Program [NFIP]. It will ease community efforts to relocate houses away from high erosion zones and allow the community to practice effective coastal barrier management. The Federal Government actively encourages participation in the NFIP in order to minimize taxpayer costs in the event of a natural disaster. The technical correction made by this amendment will rectify a longstanding error and provide all eligible citizens with the opportunity to protect their homes with flood insurance. I thank Senator Moynihan, Senator Chafee, the members of their respective staffs, and especially the staff of the Senate Committee on Environmental and Public Works for working so diligently to ensure the passage of this important legislation. Amendment No. 3957 (Purpose: To direct the Secretary of the Interior to make technical corrections to a map relating to the coastal Barrier Resources System)

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, if we pass this amendment what you are saying is let people come in with illegal documents with just plain political persecution, and set them lose. They just continue. You are just going to compound this problem. You do not have to the facilities to hold them in, nor the facilities to have hearings. You will be gutting this bill. It absolutely flies in the face of what we are attempting to do.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I am prepared to yield the remainder of my time.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, let me say I have no need for any further time. I am prepared to yield the remainder of my time so we can vote. May I inquire of the President whether or not I have to ask for the yeas and nays or whether or not that has been agreed to already?

Mr. D'AMATO. I sent a letter to the Attorney General in which I called out for the murderer of Leon Klinghoffer to be extradited, Abu Abbas; that Leon Klinghoffer is entitled to justice, as every American is, and it has been denied, and, indeed, the Attorney General has the duty and obligation to see to it that we look to extradite Abu Abbas, Leon Klinghoffer's murderer. Let me conclude by saying this. This is a very simple and straightforward case. If we fail to seek justice in this case, then what kind of message do we send to other terrorists who would look to target U.S. interests, U.S. citizens? Are we saying you can get away with this and you can simply offer an apology 10 years from now and say it was a mistake? Is that what we are going to be saying? I think it is about time the Justice Department of the United States began to live up to its name and seek justice in the case of Leon Klinghoffer. Exhibit 1 U.S. Senate, Washington, DC, April 26, 1996. Hon. Janet Reno, Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Dear Madam Attorney General: I am writing to urge you in the strongest terms to seek the immediate extradition of Abu Abbas, the man convicted in an Italian court, in 1986, for the murder of Leon Klinghoffer during the hijacking of the Achille Lauro cruise ship in October 1985. It is absolutely essential that the United States obtain custody of Abbas so that he can stand trial for this brutal murder of a wheelchair-bound innocent American whose body was callously dumped overboard following the murder. Just this week, Abbas, while attending the meeting in Gaza of the Palestine National Council stated that the killing was ``a mistake'' and that Mr. Klinghoffer was killed because he ``had started to incite the passengers against [the kidnappers].'' This pathetic excuse only reinforces our need to gain his extradition. The fact that he remains free is an insult to the memory of Leon Klinghoffer. Abbas was convicted by a Genoan Court and sentenced to life in prison, in absentia, for ``kidnapping for terrorist ends that caused the killing of a person.'' The evidence against Abbas, according to the Italian magistrate, was ``multiple, unequivocal, and overwhelming.'' His actions in training and financing for this operation, and in choosing the target, as well as planning the escape, in the eyes of the magistrate, made Abbas guilty of the murder. Mr. Klinghoffer's murder cries out for justice. For far too long, Abbas has cheated justice. Now it is our duty to locate, apprehend, and return him for trial in this country. Again, I urge you in the strongest of terms, to seek the immediate extradition of Abu Abbas. Sincerely, Alfonse M. D'Amato, United States Senator.

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, this resolution is very straightforward and it is long overdue. It calls on the Attorney General of the United States to seek the detention and extradition to the United States of Mohammed Abbas, otherwise known as Abu Abbas. Abu Abbas was the leader and is the leader of the Palestinian Liberation Front. In October 1985, under his leadership and his plan-- and let me tell you what the Italian courts found. They found that the evidence was ``multiple, unequivocal and overwhelming'' that Abbas trained, financed, and chose the targets, as well as the escape, in seizing the Achille Lauro. It was his men who killed Leon Klinghoffer and threw his body overboard on October 7, 1985. When this question was raised to Mr. Abbas just recently, he said that he was sorry. He said it was ``a mistake.'' And then he went on to say that Mr. Klinghoffer, an American citizen from New York, was killed because ``he had started to incite the passengers against [the kidnappers].'' Imagine that, a 70-year-old man, 70 years old, in a wheelchair, totally unarmed, and that is his excuse. And he says it was ``a mistake.'' We owe it to every American citizen, not just to Leon Klinghoffer and to his family, but to every American citizen to say to those cowards, to those murderers who would target U.S. citizens, that they cannot escape justice, that they will be tracked down, that we will seek their extradition, that we will seek their detention, and their eventually being brought to trial for their acts, in this case a cowardly act of killing a man in a wheelchair, a U.S. citizen. Let me tell you again what the Italian courts found when they tried Abu Abbas in absentia. They said that the evidence was ``multiple, unequivocal, and overwhelming.'' I sent a letter to the Justice Department. I ask unanimous consent it be printed in the Record.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I am pleased to cosponsor Senate Concurent Resolution 56, which recognizes the 10th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, the worst of its kind in history, and supports efforts to close the Chernobyl nuclear powerplant. In the early morning hours of April 26, l986, reactor number 4 at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in northern Ukraine exploded, releasing massive amounts of radioactive substances into the atmosphere. This explosion released 200 times more radioactivity than was released by the atomic bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, profoundly affecting the health of millions of people in the surrounding contaminated areas. A decade after, Chernobyl's legacy continues and shows no signs of abating. At a hearing earlier this week of the Helsinki Commission, which I co-chair, four experts, including the Ambassadors to the United States from both Ukraine and Belarus, the countries most adversely affected by the explosion, testified eloquently about the environmental, health, social, political, and economic consequences of the Chernobyl disaster. Their testimonies only reinforced the fact that Chernobyl's deadly fallout continues. Thyroid cancers, especially among children in the contaminated areas in Belarus and Ukraine have risen dramatically. The rate of leukemia, and of birth defects, appears to be increasing. And an article in today's New York Times reports that scientists claim that they have found inherited genetic damage in people exposed to the fallout. While the depressing consequences to human health and the environment are increasingly coming to light, we need to understand more about the ongoing ramifications of the disaster. Mr. President, Senate Concurrent Resolution 56 addresses the legacy of Chernobyl, recognizing the serious health and socioeconomic consequences for millions of people in Ukraine, Belarus, and western Russia. Ukraine and Belarus, in the process of a painful transition following 60 years of communism, simply are unable to deal with the full consequences of what is, ultimately, a global problem. The resolution calls upon the President to support continued and enhanced assistance to provide medical relief, humanitarian assistance, and hospital development for the countries most afflicted by Chernobyl's aftermath. It also calls upon the President to encourage research efforts into the public health consequences of the disaster, so that the world can benefit from the findings. Importantly, the resolution supports the December 1995 Ukraine--G-7 memorandum of understanding which calls for closing the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and broadening Ukraine's regional energy sources to reduce its dependence on any individual country. Mr. President, continued and enhanced international cooperation is essential to address the suffering of the millions affected, and to prevent future Chernobyls. I urge my colleagues to join with me in supporting Senate Concurrent Resolution 56 as an expression of the American people's concern for the victims of Chernobyl.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise today to discuss an issue that continues to trouble me, namely that of the role played by Swiss banks and their continued retention of assets belonging to European Jews and others before and during World War II. In a document from the State Department, entitled, ``Nazi and Fascist Capital in Latin America,'' dated March 23, 1945, found at the National Archives, details Nazi capital infiltration of Latin and South America. Yet, within the report, there are sections which explain the role of the Swiss bankers in helping to secret Nazi assets out of Europe. At this time, Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that this report be printed in the Record. The relevant part of the report states that, ``Accusations have also been voiced that Nazi German capital is escaping in Swiss diplomatic pouches, probably without the knowledge of the Swiss federal government, because of the government's practice of entrusting diplomatic missions to its bankers and businessmen traveling to the Western Hemisphere.'' If this is true, it suggests that Swiss bankers might have directly help get Nazi assets out of Europe to Latin and South America. This revelation could lead to serious questions about the sincerity of the Swiss bankers with regard to Jewish assets in their possession, as well as those of the Nazis. Where did all of the money go? That is what the Banking Committee will try to find out. The report follows: Nazi and Fascist Capital in Latin America Ever since the Nazis and the followers of Mussolini began to lose confidence in their ultimate victory, they started to establish safe refuges for their capital in neutral countries. The object of these transfers is only, in a minor degree, for the purpose of establishing coches for their loot, for the purpose of enjoying a comfortable old age, with personal and economic security, such as that of Kaiser Wilhelm II in the Netherland town of Doorn. The main purpose is the reestablishment of German industrial and financial power or influence in countries from which they could again attempt to dominate the world, first economically and later politically. These transfers are being accomplished by various methods. Most of them are being made by the intermediacy of neutral countries. A great deal of capital, British and United States currency, jewels, and technical secrets and stock certificates have been transported from Germany to neutral Switzerland, Spain, Tangier, and Portugal, and from there to the final destination, largely to neutral Argentina where the capital is expected to enjoy safety from any Allied interference. Spanish Falangists, aristocrats, and businessmen have been helping in these transfers, with their voyages from Spain to Argentina. These activities gained momentum in 1944. In Spanish ships and German submarines, as much as possible of Germany's capital, American and other currency of the Allied nations, confiscated by the Nazis, inventions, technical personnel, officers, and machinery has been sent to Latin America, including some industrial plants complete with administrators. A typical example was the arrival in Argentina, at the beginning of 1945, of the heads of the CHADE (Compania Hispano-Americana de Electricidad), Juan Ventosa y. Calvet and F.A. de Cambo. The heads of the Deutsche Bank and the Allgemeine Elektrizitats Gesellschaft figure prominently on the board of directors of CHADE which controls electric light and power for the city and province of Buenos Aires. Before his trip to Argentina, Ventosa y. Calvet was seen several times in Berne and Montreux, Switzerland, in the company of Hitler's financial advisor, Dr. Hjalmar Schacht. That is one example of how the Argentine Government has managed to speed up the development of war industries. In that way, Fritz Mandl, former Austrian munitions manufacturer, organized his armament factories in Argentina. Collaborators with German investments in Argentina are: Gen. Basilio Pertine, Dr. Arnold Stoops, Guillermo Schulenberg, Max Kleiner, Federico Curtins, Dr. Alejandro Czisch, Fernando Ellerhorst, Dr. C.E. Niebuhr. All of them are members of the board of directors of the most important German, or German-controlled, companies in Argentina: Siemens Bauunion, Siemens Schuckert, Osram, Wayss & Freytag, Bayer, Allgemeine Elektrizitats Gesellschaft, known as A.E.G., and many others. The main German investments include banks, such as the Banco Aleman Transatintico and the Banco Germanico de la America del Sud; insurance companies, such as La Germano Argentina, Compania de Segures Aachen y Munich; construction companies, such as Siemens Bauunion; electric machinery companies, such as the half-dozen subsidiaries of Siemens- Schuckert, and Siemens & Halske; chemical companies, most of the subsidiaries of I.G. Farbenindustrie, such as Quimica Bayer S.A., Quimica Schering, Quimica Merck Argentina, Anilinas Alemanas; machinery distributors, such as Compania de Motores Otto Deutz Legitima S.A., Sociedad Tubos Mannesman Ltda., Aceros, Roechling-Buderus, S.A., Aceros Schoeller- Bleckman, S. de R.L. and many others. Accusations have also been voiced that Nazi German capital is escaping in Swiss diplomatic pouches, probably without the knowledge of the Swiss federal government, because of the government's practice of entrusting diplomatic missions to its bankers and businessmen traveling to the Western Hemisphere. The vast fortunes of Nazi party leaders and industrialists, sent out of the Reich for safe-keeping to neutral countries, but mainly to Buenos Aires, are ready to resume business through Germany's industrial and chemical cartels in new headquarters as soon as Germany surrenders. The alleged or Swiss aid to Germany in these matters is believed to have contributed to Russia's refusal to attend last year's international Aviation Conference in Chicago because of the presence there of Swiss and Spanish delegates. The personal fortunes of Nazi officials, including Hermann Goering, Joseph Goebbels, Robert Ley and others, are said to be reaching Geneva via German diplomatic pouches, and from there--it is alleged--they are sent to Buenos Aires. The Nazis once used Spanish diplomatic pouches in Venezuela and other countries to send strategic materials like industrial diamonds and platinum home from South America. Before Argentina broke its official ties with Germany, the Nazis sent vital materials to Berlin in their diplomatic pouches and received large shipments of such diverse items as propaganda, short-wave radio transmitters, and the blueprints for war weapons now produced in several Argentine arms plants, notably that of the former Austrian munitions king, Fritz Mandl. Another method of obtaining allied or ``free'' currency in neutral countries, a method which furthermore obviates the necessity--often involving a certain risk--of smuggling currency, valuables, or stock certificates into neutral countries, was extortion from Germans living in neutral countries. The system of extortion, which the Nazis had employed on a world-wide scale during that year, was based upon the sale of exist permits from Germany and occupied territories. Persons seeking such permits were compelled to persuade their relatives or friends in the Western Hemisphere to place at the disposal of the Nazis large sums of ``free'' currency of the neutral powers. At the same time, residents of the American Republics were informed that their relatives or friends in Germany, or in territories occupied by it, would be sent to concentration camps or subjected to other tortures if the specified sums of money were not paid within a fixed period of time. Through this procedure, many persons in Europe, who had ties of friendship or relationship with residents of the New World, were held as hostages pending the payment of ransom in the free currencies. The fortunes in securities, bullion and cash transferred to the Argentine capital are only part of the sums being invested abroad for the Nazi hierarchy by banks of neutral countries. International financial speculators have invaded the United States, Argentina, and Panama to assist the Germans in one of the greatest mass exodi of capital ever known. United States Government agents have successfully blocked the activities of a number of these speculators but have as yet been unable to do anything about the misuse of diplomatic immunity of neutral countries. Such neutral diplomatic pouches are passed without inspection on Spanish, Portuguese, and Swiss merchant ships at the British control stations in Gibraltar and Trinidad. It is reported that Reichsmarshal Goering lately used this method to transfer personal funds. According to these reports, Goering previously sent more than $20,000,000 of his personal fortune to Argentina via the Dresdener Bank of Berlin and the Schweizer Bankverein of Geneva. His representative in Argentina is Dietrich Borchardt, a German of Argentina citizenship, who not long ago visited the United States and engaged in financial transactions. Goering is also reported to have transferred some funds to Argentina by a Nazi submarine which in the Spring of 1943 surfaced near Mar del Plata on the Argentina coast and transferred some forty boxes to a tugboat of an Axis-owned line in Buenos Aires. Part of that money is said to have been invested in the ``Electro Metalurgica Sema'' arms plant in Buenos Aires which Goering recently sold to the Argentine government for $5,000,000. One of the latest reports is the discovery that Nazi Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels has $1,850,000 in United States money in a safety deposit box in a German-controlled bank in Buenos Aires, under the name of a friend of German origin there. Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop has a large sum deposited in the name of his cousin, a German named Martin, who recently received $500,000 from a Swiss bank from the account of the Nazi diplomat. Admiral Karl Doenitz, chief of the German Navy, has an undisclosed sum in the care of a relative, Edmundo Wagenknecht, owner of one of the largest German import and export firms in Argentina. Robert Ley, Chief of the Nazi Labor Front, recently bought a large farm near Bahia Blanca, Argentina, under the name of Franz Borsemann, a trusted Nazi friend. It is estimated that in 1939 German investments in Latin America amounted to at least 150 million dollars or 16 percent of the total foreign investment of Germany. This figure does not include the capital belonging to persons of German lineage or capital employed by those who had acquired an American citizenship while maintaining Nazi contacts and sympathies. It consists of those investments whose ownership is known to be German, hence it is a minimum figure. Much of this, although small in proportion to British and United States holdings, was effectively and intensively organized and integrated into the Nazi political system. When the Germans overran almost all of continental Europe, they seized many millions of French francs, Dutch guilders, Belgian belgas, Norwegian and Danish kronen, Czech korunas, Polish zlotys, and a great deal of American and British currency found in the banks of these countries. They transported or transferred them to neutral banks, and from there much of it went to South America, mainly to Argentina. This money was partly used for the purpose of expanding Nazi controlled industries in these neutral countries. According to some Argentine estimates, the Germans have $750,000,000 cashed or invested in South America, including their pre-war investments. During the war, these investments have been considerably increased through the infiltration of German capital. ``Anilinas Alemanes'' (German Anilines), which is part of the huge German dye trust, is an example. According to figures registered by this company with the Argentine government, its capital there in 1940 was 5,000,000 pesos. In 1943 it was 9,600,000 pesos, the balance having been invested from abroad during the war. Although the company officially was cut off from all supplies from Germany during that period, its 1939 profits of 69,453 pesos had soared to 1,731,847 pesos in 1943. German government officials ``bought'' millions of dollars in Argentine securities from their owners in occupied Europe, giving the victims worthless German paper money or securities in exchange. The Argentine securities thus obtained have been sent to Buenos Aires for safe-keeping. Future attempts of the victims to recover these Argentine securities will be a difficult, if not impossible task. Previous Commercial Ties Industries and commercial houses operated by Germans in Latin America conducted their activities as though nationalized by the Third Reich, in the interest of the Party and often with little regard for financial profit and ordinary business enterprise. Commercial enterprises such as retail and wholesale distribution, importing and exporting, commodity brokerage, and drug compounding and distribution were the types preferred for German investment. More than half of the German capital in Latin America was invested in this field of endeavor. The largest and most extensive investments were made by Germans in Brazil. Here the basis for a thriving trade in German and Brazilian commodities existed as a result of a large colonies of Germans in Brazil which had been established under the leadership of the Hanseatic Colonization Company beginning in 1887. Most of these early colonists were farmers and laborers and as their economic status became stronger and more prosperous, German industrialists, traders, technicians, and small capitalists were attracted to the country. Thousands of farms owned by Germans and citizens of German descent and in 1939 an estimated 40 million dollars in German capital was invested in commercial houses. German traders maintained the closest of ties with Germany, dealing principally in German goods and in products specially prepared, packed and shipped from Brazil to German markets. These strong commercial ties were fully utilized by the Nazi party organization not only to extend the party network but to provide powerful financial support. Similar commercial penetration occurred throughout Latin America reaching a position of dominance in Chile, Colombia, and Bolivia. In 1939, German investments in commercial firms in Chile were estimated at 16 million dollars, in Colombia 9 million, and in Bolivia 5 million. German business agents covered the area reaching remote districts with products of German industry and seeking commodities in exchange. Easy credit terms were extended, personal favors granted, and buyers tied to sellers by means of continuing obligations. Such firms as Bayer, Becker, Elsner, Kyllman, Swertzer, and Zeller operated prosperously and with extensive credit furnished by banks with German connections. With typical thoroughness the Germans extended their control until dominance was achieved in many fields. In Uruguay a Nazi gauleiter named Delldorf used the firm of Lahusen and Company as a center of party espionage. This firm with other German- owned and controlled units dominated the wool export trade of the country. The financial strength and commercial prestige of these firms enabled them to exert effective powers over press and radios; a power which was fully used. In addition to these strictly German investments there were substantial capital holdings in the hands of local citizens of German descent with Nazi sympathies and connections. In Colombia alone there were an estimated 225 firms of this type with capital aggregating about 5 million dollars. Agricultural Investments Second in size to German investment in commercial enterprises were German land holdings in Latin America. In Argentina, German colonies were established, principally in Patagonia. More than half of the population in this area was foreign, the Germans numbering 15,000. Several of the richest and most extensive land holdings in Patagonia were dominated directly or indirectly by powerful German interests. The Germans lived here as Germans speaking their own language, retaining German customs, schools, and religion, celebrating German holidays, and spreading a continuous flow of Nazi propaganda. The area was virtually a Nazi State, followed the party line, and kept alive the issue of creating a separate State. In Peru, Gildermeister and Company with home offices in Lima and Berlin operated under the name of Negociacion Agricola Chicama, Limitada (formerly Casagrande Luckner Plantagen, A.G.). In 1939 this firm owned the largest sugar plantation in the world (more than 1.5 million acres) and controlled the production of more than half of all sugar produced by Peru. The capital investments of this firm were estimated at about 20 million dollars; it possessed its own private seaport, Puerto Chicama, but the total quantity and composition of exports and imports which flowed through the port is a matter of conjecture. Gildermeister maintained close ties with the Nazis, one of the Gildermeister brothers serving as the Peruvian ambassador in Berlin until 1942. The concern employed German as well as native personnel, and dominated completely the economy of the Chicama Valley. In Central America, notably Guatemala and Costa Rica, German land holdings were substantial. In Guatemala, German capital controlled about 60 percent of the coffee acreage and the amount invested was estimated at 20 million dollars. Similarly, in Costa Rica about 5 million dollars of German capital was invested in coffee and sugar plantations. Banking Interests Ranking third in size, the German investments in banking in Latin America were of considerably greater importance as instruments of Nazi control then might appear from their capital. German personnel was strategically placed in local banks; correspondent contacts were developed and maintained on an extensive scale; loans to institutions of strategic importance and to governments were made and the dominant motive was often clearly political rather than economic. In every report or news dispatch from South America, two banks have been named as the key transmission-belts for financing German enterprises in Latin America: the German Overseas Bank (Deutsche Ueberseeische Bank) and the German- South American Bank (Deutsche-Suedamerikanische Bank). The former--its Spanish name is Banco Aleman Transatlantica--is under the control of the Deutsche Bank, the largest private bank in Germany, with eighteen branches in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru, and Uruguay. Its board of directors contains, besides the heads of the Deutsche Bank, the director of the Krupp combine, Dr. Busemann; the general director of the potash trust, Dr. Diehn; and representatives of the Steel Trust and of Siemens-Schuckert, one of the two largest electricity trusts in Germany. The German Overseas Bank has interests in the Central Banks of Argentina, Chile, and Peru. The majority of shares in the German-South American Bank (Banco Germanico de la America del Sud) belong to the Dresdener Bank, Germany's second largest private bank. Here, too, the Krupp combine is represented in the person of Krupp's brother-in-law, Baron von Wilmosky. Hermann Buecher, chairman of the board of AEG, Allgemeine Elektrizitats Gesellschaft, the largest German electricity trust, is also a director of the bank. Consul Heinrich Diederichsen, head of a large Hamburg import and export house, is a director of the bank; while his son, utilizing the money of the German-South American Bank, plans a very important role in the fascist Integralists movement in Brazil. German banks were of notable importance in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Chile, operating with numerous branches and controlled from Berlin. The former Banco Italiano (now El Banco Credito del Peru) was a 10 million dollar Axis institution which dominated the banking business of Peru. It has such power that few important steps, affecting government finance or of major economic importance, were taken without consulting the officers of this institution. Through selective financing, it controlled the public utilities and a substantial number of private business interests in Peru. Investments in Transportation The major German investment in Latin American transportation was made in airlines. The systems developed in strategic areas. The principal lines, Condor, Lufthansa, Sedta, Varig, Scadta, and Lloyd Aero Boliviano, operated largely with German personnel (some of whom were officers in the Nazi Army) and systematically mapped the strategic areas of Latin America. This subject is treated in a separate section of this report. German shipping companies forced to suspend business activities as a result of the British blockade did not close their offices but in many cases expanded and opened new offices to carry on propaganda functions. The Compania Union Industrial de Barranquilla was the only shipbuilding firm in Colombia for the river trade. Its control was German, most of its personnel was German and nearby property and business was owned or dominated by Germans. Public utilities Though direct financial investments by Germans in public utilities in Latin America were small, Germans held key positions in many utility concerns, notably Argentina; and in Uruguay, the German firm, Siemens, contracted to build a great hydroelectric power and distribution system at Rio Negro using German technicians and German equipment and installations. The entire technical personnel of the electric plant in Quito was German. The chief engineer on this project was Walter Giese, a Nazi gauleiter who established in Ambato a powerful Nazi radio transmitting station. transfer of italian fascist capital The Italian Government in Rome, cooperating with the Allied Commission, seized and sequestered Fascist estates valued at $80,000,000 in liberated Italy. But high-ranking Fascists are said to have smuggled between $400,000,000 and $500,000,000 into neutral countries, most of which is the result of wholesale looting. Edda Mussolini, the Duce's daughter and widow of Count Ciano, executed Fascist Foreign Minister, escaped to Switzerland and is credited with having stored away more pillage than any other Italian Fascist. Other nations where Fascists have succeeded in hiding funds include Portugal, Argentina, and Brazil, according to an Allied Commission official. Italian ``epuration'' (purge) officials are not investigating a report that Mussolini himself hid some loot in the United States. Mussolini's family, including children and grandchildren, his mistress, Clara Petacci and all of her family, comprise sixteen names of 267 whose estates in liberated Italy have thus far been sequestered. Not all of the 267 are Fascist leaders. Some are simply profiteers and war contract swindlers. Swiss Bankers and German Capital Three members of the Swiss delegation of the International Business Conference, held at Rye, N.Y., in November 1944, made several attempts to induce the U.S. Treasury Department to rescind its ruling that the true ownership of all funds deposited by Swiss banks in this country be revealed within one year after hostilities cease in Europe. The Swiss banking system in which numbers designate accounts instead of names, makes it enormously difficult to trace secret or hidden funds. According to sources having connections in Geneva and Buenos Aires, the reason for Swiss bankers; anxiety to evade disclosure of their clients, names is the fact that Swiss banks have for several years been aiding in the transfer of immense fortunes of Nazi leaders and their European collaborators to the United States, Spain, Argentina, and Brazil. The Swiss Committee, headed by Edmond Barbey of Lombard, Odier et Cie., includes Andre Fatio of Ferrier, Lullin, and F.H. Bates, all representing the Union de Bancs Suisses (The Swiss Banking Association). They are basing their plea on the Swiss banking tradition of absolute secrecy concerning their clients' accounts--or even of the fact that the account exists. At present Swiss funds deposited in the United States anonymously are blocked by the Treasury Department which promises to release them upon definite proof that they do not belong to enemy aliens or war criminals. The chairman of the Swiss delegation to the International Business Conference was Hans Sulzer of Gebrueder Sulzer in Geneva (and a branch in Frankfort-on-Main, Germany), who was on the British blacklist. (Charged with supplying Diesel engines for Nazi submarines, Sulzer hotly replied, ``They were not for submarines!). In allowing men like Sulzer and their bankers the cloak of diplomatic immunity, the Swiss government has, probably unwittingly, enabled German leaders like Goering, Goebbels, and von Ribbentrop to spirit huge funds abroad. For centuries Swiss banks have been confidants of men who want to keep their financial transactions secret. A banker is forbidden by the Swiss constitution from disclosing his clients' maneuvers. He would rather go to jail than do so. The Swiss Banking Association is therefore doubly anxious to induce the United States to refrain from insisting on postwar disclosure of the names of its depositors here. Besides being forced to confess their relations with war criminals, they will have lost the advantage of secrecy which has enabled them to vie in world influence with the greatest banks.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise to call my colleagues' attention to the solemn anniversary of the Armenian genocide. In 1915, the Ottoman Turkish Government launched an extermination campaign against all Armenians on its territory. The result of that gruesome policy was the death of about 1.5 million people, the destruction of a once flourishing community, and the scattering of the survivors around the globe. Many Armenians came to America, where they have rebuilt their communities, prospered and become a vital part of the American body politic. They have nurtured our democracy, while maintaining their traditions and always remembering the circumstances that forced them from their homeland. Meanwhile, their brothers and sisters in Armenia endured communism and Joseph Stalin, but despite the different fates of these two communities, they remained stubbornly and proudly Armenian, even when contact between them was difficult. In 1991, Armenia became an independent country and has worked hard to consolidate its independence since then. Today Armenia is a respected member of the international community, its progress toward democratization and economic well-being promoted by the worldwide Armenian Diaspora and by supportive governments, especially the United States. Independence confers freedom, but not necessarily freedom from hardship. Apart from the devastating December 1988 earthquake, Armenia has also endured the consequences of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and the adversities caused by blockades imposed by neighboring Azerbaijan and Turkey. Happily, the Nagorno-Karabakh cease-fire has held since May 1994, offering grounds to hope that the conflict will be peacefully resolved in the foreseeable future. All the parties to this dispute must pursue its peaceful resolution through the OSCE process, and with active American involvement, bring about a lasting, stable peace. In the spirit of reconciliation and looking ahead to Armenia's future, President Ter-Petrossyan said in Washington last year that ``Armenia has no enemies.'' All of us who are friends of Armenia are working for precisely that future, for an Armenia without enemies, while remembering the victims of the Armenian Genocide. Mr. President, in light of the fact that, for the first time since World War II, there are international tribunals investigating two current genocides, one in Bosnia and one in Rwanda, it is very important that all of us remember the first genocide of the 20th century, and dedicate ourselves to the proposition that there will be no new genocides in the future.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I am pleased to join my colleagues in introducing the Federal Gang Violence Act. The provisions of this bill are greatly needed in order to reduce the growing threat of gang violence. The Department of Justice released a report last month stating that 79 of our largest cities have over 3,800 youth gangs, with a total of 200,000 gang members. The gangs are taking over our cities and towns. With an increase in the presence of gangs comes an increase in their criminal activities. The Justice Department reports that while gang presence seems to be increasing, these gangs are also establishing an organizational sophistication that they did not possess before. With an expected surge in juvenile violent crimes, loopholes in the law must be corrected. And now. Let me clarify one thing first. Gangs are not an urban problem; gangs are located in every geographical location--cities, suburbs, and rural areas. There is not one common gang activity; each gang performs different illegal activities. Gang activities are not restricted to certain areas of cities; the gangs' reach extends to our schools. It is clear that the response must be as varied as the problem. This bill takes the diversity into account and responds to those different activities by taking the most effective action--increasing the sentences. The penalty is doubled for any interstate gang-related crimes. Doubles the penalty for gang members that extort, bribe, deal in drugs, intimidate a witness or participate in a drive-by shooting. Any violent crime committed as part of gang activity gets an increased sentencing offense level. Stiffer punishment is essential if we are to combat gang violence. A Department of Justice report states that 68 percent of male inmates in juvenile correctional facilities admit that their gang had regularly bought and sold guns and over 60 percent described driving around shooting at people regularly. Because recruitment is so important to perpetuate the criminal gang activities, whether the person recruited is a minor or an adult, a new offense must be created. And this bill will do just that. It is imperative to stop the recruitment. Gangs can only continue to wreak havoc if they have the members to carry out their misdeeds. A provision of the Federal Gang Violence Act treats alien smuggling as a predicate act under the RICO--racketeering. It will also make alien smuggling a money laundering crime. This is especially timely after the indictment last February of 64 violent organized crime gang members of the Flying Dragons in Chinatown. These smugglers brought in hundreds of illegal Chinese immigrants and then proceeded to kidnap, torture, and extort money. These provisions could only add to their sentences if convicted. These people should be in prison for decades for the acts alleged. These provisions are a commonsense approach. For instance, any criminal who wears body armor during the commission of a felony certainly deserves to get an additional 2 years mandatory minimum. The intent is clear; the gang member committing a felony wearing body armor knows the dangers involved. The potential gang members have much to fear themselves. A special report completed by the National Gang Crime Research Center found that two-thirds of gang members have had friends or family members killed because of the gang violence. These victims may never have chosen the route of gang violence but were swept in by the activities of the gang members. The violence committed by gangs affects our entire country. The wreak havoc on business owners, individuals, family members, and themselves. It is time to do something about it. I thank my colleagues for working to enhance the penalties of the crimes committed by gang members and am pleased to be an original cosponsor of this legislation. I urge my colleagues to cosponsor this bill.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President. I rise today in support of Senate Joint Resolution 51, a resolution to commemorate the 205th anniversary of Poland's constitution. This resolution was introduced by my good friend, the distinguished Republican leader and senior Senator from Kansas, Bob Dole. The purpose of the resolution is to salute and congratulate Polish people around the world, including Americans of Polish descent, as on May 3, 1996 they commemorate the 205th anniversary of the first Polish constitution, to recognize the rebirth of Poland as a free and independent nation in the spirt of the 1791 constitution, and to urge the people and state and local governments of the United States to observe this anniversary with appropriate ceremonies and activities. The Polish constitution of 1791 is closely related to our own constitution, because it was heavily influenced by a Polish hero of the American Revolution, General Thaddeus Kosciuszko, who returned to his native land after the war, carrying with him the concepts we fought to establish and preserve in the revolution. While Poland enjoyed this new constitution for less than 2 years, it established principles and ideals that still live in modern Poland. Polish people have made major contributions to the United States in all fields of endeavor. The first manufacturing facility in America was established by a Pole in Jamestown, VA. The first institution of higher learning in New Amsterdam was established by Dr. Alexander Kurcyusz. In addition to General Kosciuszko, another famous Pole, Count Casimir Pulaski, aided our fight for independence from Great Britain. He is known as the ``Father of the American Cavalry'' because General Washington put him in charge of developing and leading that arm in the war. He had a brilliant career in the Continental Army. Unfortunately, he was mortally wounded in the siege of Savannah and later buried at sea. More modern Polish-Americans who made notable contributions range from Arthur Rubenstein to Stan Musial and Leon Jawarski. In every field, Polish-Americans worked hard to make America what it is today. New York is home to a great many Americans of Polish descent. Almost 1.2 million New Yorkers claim a Polish heritage. According to the Census Bureau, about 17 percent of all U.S. residents who speak Polish at home live in New York. I am confident that our adoption of this resolution will be met with appreciation and that May 3 will be a date that will be met with appropriate celebration in the Polish-American community. I again express my strong support for this resolution and I urge my colleagues to vote for it.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I am pleased to join my colleagues in introducing the Federal Gang Violence Act. The provisions of this bill are greatly needed in order to reduce the growing threat of gang violence. The Department of Justice released a report last month stating that 79 of our largest cities have over 3,800 youth gangs, with a total of 200,000 gang members. The gangs are taking over our cities and towns. With an increase in the presence of gangs comes an increase in their criminal activities. The Justice Department reports that while gang presence seems to be increasing, these gangs are also establishing an organizational sophistication that they did not possess before. With an expected surge in juvenile violent crimes, loopholes in the law must be corrected. And now. Let me clarify one thing first. Gangs are not an urban problem; gangs are located in every geographical location--cities, suburbs, and rural areas. There is not one common gang activity; each gang performs different illegal activities. Gang activities are not restricted to certain areas of cities; the gangs' reach extends to our schools. It is clear that the response must be as varied as the problem. This bill takes the diversity into account and responds to those different activities by taking the most effective action--increasing the sentences. The penalty is doubled for any interstate gang-related crimes. Doubles the penalty for gang members that extort, bribe, deal in drugs, intimidate a witness or participate in a drive-by shooting. Any violent crime committed as part of gang activity gets an increased sentencing offense level. Stiffer punishment is essential if we are to combat gang violence. A Department of Justice report states that 68 percent of male inmates in juvenile correctional facilities admit that their gang had regularly bought and sold guns and over 60 percent described driving around shooting at people regularly. Because recruitment is so important to perpetuate the criminal gang activities, whether the person recruited is a minor or an adult, a new offense must be created. And this bill will do just that. It is imperative to stop the recruitment. Gangs can only continue to wreak havoc if they have the members to carry out their misdeeds. A provision of the Federal Gang Violence Act treats alien smuggling as a predicate act under the RICO--racketeering. It will also make alien smuggling a money laundering crime. This is especially timely after the indictment last February of 64 violent organized crime gang members of the Flying Dragons in Chinatown. These smugglers brought in hundreds of illegal Chinese immigrants and then proceeded to kidnap, torture, and extort money. These provisions could only add to their sentences if convicted. These people should be in prison for decades for the acts alleged. These provisions are a commonsense approach. For instance, any criminal who wears body armor during the commission of a felony certainly deserves to get an additional 2 years mandatory minimum. The intent is clear; the gang member committing a felony wearing body armor knows the dangers involved. The potential gang members have much to fear themselves. A special report completed by the National Gang Crime Research Center found that two-thirds of gang members have had friends or family members killed because of the gang violence. These victims may never have chosen the route of gang violence but were swept in by the activities of the gang members. The violence committed by gangs affects our entire country. The wreak havoc on business owners, individuals, family members, and themselves. It is time to do something about it. I thank my colleagues for working to enhance the penalties of the crimes committed by gang members and am pleased to be an original cosponsor of this legislation. I urge my colleagues to cosponsor this bill.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, let me just take several moments to thank the distinguished leaders, the majority leader and the minority leader, and a number of my colleagues on the Banking Committee on both sides of the aisle for helping us arrive at an agreement that will permit the business of the Senate to be conducted in an orderly, thoughtful, thorough fashion so that we can complete the work of the Whitewater Committee in a timely manner, recognizing that we are fast approaching--we are already in--the political season, but that season becomes even more and more political as the days and weeks move ahead. It is my hope that working together, as we have in most of our undertakings on the Banking Committee and on the special Whitewater Committee, we can handle the matters that come before us, even those that may be somewhat contentious, in a bipartisan manner. Ours was to get the facts. Ours is to report back to the Senate of the United States as best we can. Ours is not to prejudge. Ours is not to preclude. But ours is to be the searcher of facts, again, given the limitations that exist. It does not pay for us to go into what the limitations are. I must say that there are those areas beyond the ability of the Senate and its investigation to control or to deal with as it relates to time, availability of witnesses, et cetera. So, recognizing those, we may never be able to satisfactorily complete the job of getting all of the facts or determining all of them, recognizing the limitations that we have. But I think if we do the best we possibly can, if we work together in the spirit of people who are willing to understand each other's problems, the limitations that we do have on us, ours will be an important task, it will not be an easy task, but it will be one that we can attempt to fulfill and meet the mandates of the Senate and, indeed, of the Constitution and, more importantly, of our people. We are going to be thorough, comprehensive, but yet fair. Let me conclude by saying that I hope that we can finish by the 14th of June. That is the time which we have spelled out. I believe that reasonably, if we see that there are matters that are yet to be addressed that are important, that are substantial, that we can come to an accommodation to deal with that. It is my hope, though, that we will be able to deal with this, conclude the public hearings by the 14th of June, and thereafter have our report within the 3 days that we have provided. I believe this is the best manner in which to proceed, less in the way of contention. I certainly hope--as my colleagues have, my Democratic colleagues have helped and assisted in arriving at this agreement--that they will work with us. We pledge to work with them to get all of those concerns, all of those people that we wish to get evidence from, testimony from, to be as cooperative and to use the good offices of my colleagues on the Democratic side to accomplish this goal. So I want to commend both leaders. I want to thank Senator Sarbanes, Senator Dodd, the other members, the Republican members, of the committee for being patient, for being thoughtful, and doing a very difficult process. I believe that the agreement that we have hammered out is in the best interest of the Senate and, more importantly, the people of the United States. I yield the floor. Mr. SARBANES addressed the Chair.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise to honor Rabbi Morris S. Friedman of Temple Hillel in North Woodmere, NY, on his retirement after so many years of dedicated service. In October 1984, Rabbi Friedman welcomed then-President Ronald Reagan to his synagogue, Temple Hillel in North Woodmere, where the President spoke to a packed congregation. Afterwards, Rabbi Friedman hosted the President at his home for lunch. Together they sat, with the rabbi's wife and children, as well as Secretary of State James Baker and myself. The visit by President Reagan to Rabbi Friedman's temple and home was testimony to the influence and cachet of Rabbi Friedman himself, and to the enormous prestige that Temple Hillel amassed over the 33 years of Rabbi Friedman's leadership. It may have been the first time that a sitting President lunched at the home of a rabbi; but it was not the first time that Rabbi Friedman held conversations with world leaders. From his corner of the world in North Woodmere, Rabbi Friedman has influenced many thousands of lives, those on the world stage and those presiding over the births and deaths and joys and sorrows of a congregation that each year tops 1,000 people. In June of this year, Rabbi Friedman will retire from the pulpit at Temple Hillel. ``One of my favorite books in the Bible,'' said Rabbi Friedman when he announced his retirement, ``is the Book of Ecclesiastes. The third chapter begins with a statement, `A season is set for everything, a time for every experience under Heaven.' '' His congregation will honor and pay tribute to him, and to his wife, Mrs. Adelaide Friedman, at a dinner on April 21. ``My years at Hillel are truly a love affair between me and the congregation. The friendship, affection and devotion showered upon me and Addi by the congregation, made my service to the community a privilege, a joy and an exciting spiritual adventure,'' said Rabbi Friedman, looking back at a 33-year relationship. It will be one of a long line of testimonial dinners made in his honor, because Rabbi Friedman's dedication to Jewish causes reached far and wide beyond his own temple. He has been honored by Boy's Town in Jerusalem; by Bet El, a 13-year-old-settlement in Judea Samaria in Israel; by Touro College's School of Health Sciences, among others. He has received numerous awards and much recognition, such as the Zedakah Award from the UJA Federation of Jewish Philanthropies in New York, and the degree of honorary fellow conferred upon him by Bar Ilan University in Israel. The Jewish Theological Seminary of America conferred upon him an honorary doctor of divinity degree in 1975. His stature in the Jewish community led him to his former, very prestigious, role as the president of the New York Board of Rabbis, the largest rabbinic organization in the world. He was also chairman of the United Jewish Appeal-Federation Rabbinic Advisory Council. He served for 2 years, as well, as chairman of the Rabbinical Assembly Campaign for the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. For the past 5 years, he has cochaired the Annual Nassau County Dinner for the Shaare-Zedek Hospital in Jerusalem. Rabbi Friedman has further enriched the spiritual lives of this congregants by guiding them through Israel on dozens of visits over the years. His own personal travels have taken him to Israel and Europe many times over. But he would be the first to say the true richness of his life comes from the joy and love of his family, his wife Adelaide, his daughter, Naomi, his 2 sons, Mark and David, and his 12 grandchildren. Mrs. Adelaide Friedman has also greatly enriched the lives of those around her. With degrees in English literature, a bachelor's from Long Island University and a master's from Hofstra, Mrs. Friedman taught English literature at the high school level in girls' yeshivas. She herself has been writing all her life, poetry and short stories, as well as articles and book reviews. Mrs. Friedman wrote a regular, monthly column for the Jewish World several years ago and her book reviews have also appeared in Lifestyles magazine and the quarterly publication for the New York Board of Rabbis. She has had articles published on Jewish subjects in several magazines and periodicals, such as the Algemeiner Journal, a Yiddish newspaper. Mrs. Friedman taught adult education courses at Temple Hillel on Jewish literature and has given lectures on Jewish women in literature at the Hewlett-Woodmere Library. Her creative talents encompass art as well as writing. She loves to work with oils and pastels and the portraits and still-lifes she has painted hang on the wall of her home and her children's homes. But it is her role as a rebbitzen for 46 years that has presented truly great rewards. ``I loved being involved in something bigger than myself,'' said Mrs. Friedman. ``I loved the idea of connecting with Jewish events as they unrolled and being inspired by lectures and great personalities. It was a very exciting period in my life because I wasn't only a wife and a mother and eventually a grandmother, much as I enjoyed those roles--and still enjoy those roles, I was also part of what was transpiring among the Jewish people.'' Before Rabbi and Mrs. Friedman came to North Woodmere, he served in Congregation Beth David in Lynbrook for 13 years as their rabbi. He had been ordained by the Jewish Institute of Religion in New York and had received a master of Hebrew literature degree and a BA degree from Long Island University. Temple Hillel will say goodbye to Rabbi Friedman this June with much reluctance. But the congregation knows he will continue to be nearby to offer his guidance and wisdom for years to come, as the rabbi emeritus of Temple Hillel. It is a guidance that has taken Temple Hillel to great heights. Said Rabbi Friedman, ``I feel, without any hesitation, that we have achieved stardom in the galaxy of Conservative Congregations in the New York Area, and even worldwide!''

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise today to join with my friend and colleague, Senator Moynihan, in introducing legislation that will allow for the commencement of a project of immense economic significance in the city of New York and the Borough of Queens. This project, which has been named Queens West, will produce a myriad of waterfront apartment buildings, parkland, hotel, and commercial space and will create 14,000 construction jobs as well as 10,000 permanent jobs. This ambitious project will rejuvenate this section of New York and add to its vitality for countless generations to come. As I am sure many of my colleagues can understand, there is a great deal of excitement about the Queens West project. However, with the parties ready to close, a single issue has emerged that could delay the financing and disrupt the timing of this project. Some of the land upon which Queens West is to be built falls within the historic, unobstructed high water mark of the East River that was established in the 1800's. However, a bulkhead has since been established in this particular area and industrial development has occurred there for many years. Nevertheless, this area still remains defined as ``navigable in law'' which allows the Federal Government to retain a right to navigational servitude. Because of this glitch, the project may not be insurable and may not therefore commence in a timely fashion. The legislation that Senator Moynihan and I are introducing will rectify this situation. Simply, it will declare this portion of the land nonnavigable and thus take the property out of navigational servitude. Should no permanent structure be built on this site within 20 years, the area reverts to its current status. Once this bill is passed, the Borough of Queens and indeed all of New York will receive a vital economic boost. This legislation is identical to H.R. 2987, which Congressman Tom Manton introduced in the House of Representatives, and enjoys support from State and city officials. Mr. President, the thousands of jobs, the housing, the recreational opportunities, and the commercial benefits created by the Queens West project are urgently needed. I urge my colleagues to join Senator Moynihan and I in supporting speedy passage of this legislation.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise today to discuss the issue that I spoke about yesterday, namely that of the return, by Swiss banks, of assets deposited by European Jews and others in the years preceding the Holocaust. Today, I would like to discuss the revelations disclosed in newly discovered documents by my staff. These documents explain the connections of certain wartime Swiss bankers with Nazi Germany. The documents are disturbing to read, especially when one considers the history of the times and the horrors that took place because of the murderous actions of the Nazi regime with which these men dealt. One such declassified document, dated August 2, 1945, from the American Embassy in London, from which made up the American Occupational project, ``Operation Safe Haven,'' details the membership of the board of directors of the I.G. Farben Co. I.G. Farben was, at the time, the largest chemical company in the world, and is known, quite infamously for the fact that one of its subsidiaries produced ``Zyklon B,'' the poison gas used in the gas chambers in the Nazi extermination camps in Europe. While voluminous, the document provides short biographies of the directors. At this time, I would like to ask unanimous consent that a portion of this document be printed in the Record at the conclusion of my remarks. It is in this document that several Swiss nationals are listed and some are listed as owners or directors of Swiss banks. Following are the names of the bankers: August Germann: Described as the ``Director of the Bank Fuer Unternehmungen, Zurich.'' Carlo Mollwo: Described as ``A cover man for I.G. Farben formally holding 100 percent of the shares of the Swiss bank, Ed. Greutert & Cie. (Now H. Sturzenegger & Cie.).'' Hans Sturzenegger: Described as ``A Swiss and relative of Greutert, became Managing Director of the Swiss Bank, Ed. Greutert & Cie. * * * In 1942, Sturzenegger was listed as the unlimited partner of the bank and Industrie Bank A.G. of Zurich was listed as the limited partner.'' Theodor Wolfensperger: Described as the ``President of Industrie Bank, Zurich. Known as a member of the I.G. clique.'' Mr. President, I know that this is the stuff of history, but it serves to point out one vital factor in understanding how this controversy in Switzerland today, came about. Here we have Swiss owners, or directors of banks in Switzerland, which might well have been the place of deposit for funds of European Jews, and they are sitting on the board of I.G. Farben, clearly a notorious company, by any standard. These men, as you will see by the document, also headed companies which acted as fronts for the Nazis, and later perhaps helped get assets looted by the Nazis, out of Europe. My question is, if they would do all this for the Nazis, what would they do with the assets of Europe's Jews? Mr. President, this is a disturbing question, and to one that I truly do not know the answer. Nevertheless, I fear the worst. Yet, when considering this question, it inevitably begs a further question. What role did the Swiss Government play in this regard? To provide a possible answer to this question, I would like to introduce the now declassified report of Daniel J. Reagan, then Counselor of Legation for Economic Affairs at the U.S. legation in Bern, who wrote to the Secretary of State on October 4, 1945 concerning the lack of cooperation of the Swiss Government. I would ask that the text of this report be inserted in the Record at this time. Mr. President, this is a devastating indictment of the Swiss Government and it illustrates how the Swiss went out of their way to avoid cooperating with the Allies in breaking up the German war effort and its vast economic structure. This is only the beginning of our inquiry. We are finding documents daily, and with each search, we find more evidence which, I hope will place us closer to the truth, namely the authoritative, accurate and final accounting of all assets that numerous Swiss banks continue to hold from this time period and to which the survivors and rightful heirs are entitled. The report follows: Secret Attachment Sponsor Agency: External Security Intelligence Coordinating Committee, Washington, D.C. 11. In Switzerland or Connected with the Swiss Business. Fritz Fleiner--Member of the Board of I.G. Chemie. Dr. Albert Gadow--I.G. Farbon's Swiss representative. Member of the Board of each chief figure in I.G. Chemie, Basle. Brother-in-law of Hermann Schmitz. August Gormann--Member of I.G. Chemie's Board of Directors, and Director of the Bank Fuer Unternehmungen, Zurich. Paul Haefliger--(See IV. A.2.). Anton Heinrich--(See IV. A.3.). Ernst Huelsmann--(See IV. A.3.). Felix Iselin--President of I.G. Chemie, Basle, replacing Hermann Schmitz in 1940. One of most important lawyers in eastern Switzerland, a colonel in the Swiss Army, and chief of its Intelligence Service. Also President of the Schweizerische Treuhand--Gesellschaft of Basle, the chartered accountant firm of the Swiss chemical concerns Ciba, Geigy, and Sandoz. A former colleague of Iselin's has stated that Iselin is a prominent representative of absolutely German interests, and that he goes to Berlin to take orders from Hermann Schmitz and then telephones them to New York from Basle, thus pretending to protect Swiss interests where he is really protecting the interests of I. G. Farben. Gottfried Keller--Member of the Board of Directors of I.G. Chemie, Basle. Carlo Mollwo--German by birth, married to a Swiss, Became a Swiss citizen. ``A cover man for I.G. Farben'' formerly, holding 100% of the shares of the Swiss bank, Ed. Greutert & Cie. (now H. Sturzenegger & Cie.). He was especially active for I.G. in the nitrogen cartel through Greutert & Cie. President of the Board of Administration of Societe Auxiliaire de Participations et de Depots S.A., and member of the Board of Directors of I.G. Chemie, Basle. Chief auditor for I.G. Chemie since 1929. Karl Pfoiffer--(See IV. A.1.). Hormann Schmitz--(See IV. A.2.) Resigned as President of I.G. Chemie in 1940 and was replaced by Felix Isolin. Hans Sturzeneggor--A Swiss and relative of Groutort, became Managing Director of the Swiss bank, Ed. Greutert & Cio., upon the death of Greutort in 1939, and the name of the bank was changed to H. Sturzeneggor & Cio. He had been trained in the Frankfurt offices of Metallgesellschaft and in the Finance Dept. of I.G. In 1942 Sturzenogger was listed as the unlimited partner of the bank and Industrie Bank A.G. of Zurich was listed as the limited partner. He is a member of the Board of I.G. Chemie Theordor Wolfensperger--President of Industrie Bank, Zurich, Switzerland. Known as a member of the I.G. clique. He has been used as a nominee for I.G. in other dummy holding companies, as for instance Mapro, an I.G. camouflaged holding company in the Dutch East Indies. 12. Turkey Widmann--Manger of Bayor; Turkey. His private funds and personal possessions insured for LT 85,000 are held by Dr. Feridun Frik, Istanbul, at the house of Salahettin Ozgen, Eskisohir. 13. Latin American Johann Carl Ahrons--Nominal partner in A. Quimica. Bayor Lda., Brazil, Probably a front for I.G. Farben. Ernst Holmut Andreas--German radio engineer who operated a radio station, ``Radio Bayer'' in Managua, Nicaragua, from 1929 to 1940. It advertised Bayer products and in the later years its programs included Nazi propaganda. (In 1940 the station was sold to Joso Mondoza.) He was deported to the U.S. in 1942 and in 1945 was a soldier in the U.S. Army. Believed to be a Nazi and to have operated a secret transmission set in Managua.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, this bicameral task force was established for one reason: To closely examine the current state of affairs of our national drug policy. Along with my Senate and House colleagues, I am distressed that the problem has escalated to this present level. The one startling and depressing fact revealed by the report released yesterday is that drug use among teenagers is actually on the rise, after years of decline. There is no disputing the rise in illicit drug use by adolescents. Studies have shown that 2.9 million teenagers used marijuana in 1994, an increase of 1.3 million just from 1992. This alarming trend shows that one in three high school seniors smoke marijuana. Since 1992, drug use by 10th graders has risen nearly two-thirds. Drug use by eighth graders has nearly doubled since 1991. Of a class of 30 students in a New York City high school or junior high, approximately 5 use marijuana or other illicit drugs heavily. The rise in marijuana use has serious implications. The Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse indicates that teenagers who use marijuana are 85 times more likely to use other dangerous drugs in the future, such as cocaine. Obviously, the use of drugs cannot be pushed aside but must be placed on the national agenda and confronted. Real efforts must be made to reverse this trend. Ignoring these numbers is destructive to our children. A report by the Senate Judiciary Committee notes that, ``If such increases are allowed to continue for just 2 more years, America will be at risk of returning to the epidemic drug use of the 1970's.'' The impact on our Nation's cities will be just as detrimental. The Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University in New York released a report showing the costs related to substance abuse were $20 billion in the city of New York. These costs take into account all types of substance abuses and reflect the amount spent in terms of crime, violence, health care, emergency services, abuse, social programs, and business costs. If drug use is rising among teenagers, the cost to New York City will skyrocket as they get older. Even more frightening is the fact that the authors of the study state that ``Among 15- to 24-year-olds, substance abuse, in the form of AIDS, homicides, and drug and alcohol overdoses, accounts for 64 percent of deaths.'' Those deaths could have been prevented. Our law enforcement agencies are feeling the rise in drug use. The March issue of Police Chief, which is dedicated to the war on drugs, describes the growing presence of illegal drugs and the ever-increasing rise in violence that accompanies it. The result is a scared populous and an overextended law enforcement, including local law enforcement. An article coauthored by Chief Bob Warshaw of the Rochester Police Department in New York and DEA Assistant Administrator Paul Daly describes the feeling across the Nation: ``The distribution and abuse of powder and crack cocaine have resulted in an unprecedented wave of violence across our country, the debiliating effect of which has been seen in cities and towns, large and small, throughout the United States.'' It is our obligation, and the responsibility of the administration, to find the reason for the increase in teenage drug use and to tackle it forcefully. We must start taking an aggressive action against this drug epidemic. The Clinton administration, however, has become complacent and that is reflected in their lack of attention to the illicit drug trade. The number of Federal prosecutions dropped by 12 percent within 2 years. Overall, transit zone seizures, or disruptions, decreased more than 50 percent, from 1993 to mid-1995. Budget priorities were shifted in the Customs Service, the Department of Defense, and the U.S. Coast Guard away from counternarcotics. With drug use on rise with teenagers, the administration has to start allocating adequate resources in order to reduce the presence of narcotics in the United States. But instead, when President Clinton took office, he cut the Office of National Drug Control Policy from 147 to 25, an indication of the President's priorities. When faced with criticism of a failed drug strategy, President Clinton has found the need to restaff the drug czar's office. While the administration prefers to ignore the statistics, the task force has taken matters into its own hands and compiled a list of recommendations that will help to reverse the disturbing trend of teenage drug use. By using state-of-the-art technology at U.S. ports of entry, narcotics can be intercepted at the border, before it ever reaches children. This also means a shift in focus for agencies at our borders and airports that are primarily responsible for drug interdiction. In addition, the United States must do all it can to convince foreign countries to cooperate on the counternarcotics effort. Certification must be strictly applied, and sanctions imposed. When a country fails to cooperate with the United States to combat drug trafficking, the President who has the obligation to accurately report on the certification status of a targeted country, must apply those sanctions accordingly. Unfortunately, this certification process has not been taken seriously. Despite the administration's awareness that 60 to 70 percent of the illegal drugs flowed from Mexico into the United States, and that 75 percent of the cocaine in the United States comes from our neighbor to the South, the administration certified Mexico as fully cooperating in the counternarcotics efforts. Sanctions must be applied, we can no longer pay lipservice to the certification process. And efforts must be stringent in the United States. Drug traffickers and drug-related violent criminals must serve their full sentence. Drug awareness programs must be accountable. Throwing money at the problem does not solve it. All aspects of drug control strategy must be defined: ``public disapproval, information, law enforcement, interdiction, and treatment.'' While treatment is merely one component of the effort to combat the drug epidemic, it cannot be the sole solution. Alone, it will not work. One clear indication of the failure of treatment alone is the emergency room rate for cocaine and heroin-related cases, as studied by the Drug Abuse Warning Network. Heroin episodes in emergency rooms rose 66 percent in 1993. Evaluations should be conducted so that only effective programs will be maintained. Ninety percent of the American public sees the drug problem as a top priority. It is time the administration does the same. This is our clear, undeniable message: If the administration refuses to be a leader on this issue, then we will. This report was our first step to put a tough drug strategy on the national agenda.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise today to address some of the human rights violations that the Lebanese government is guilty of committing. In testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, a representative of the Independent Communications Network (ICN) explains the repeated limitations that the Lebanese Government places on the freedoms of speech and press. While I disagree with ICN's recommendation concerning the lifting of the State Department's travel ban to the country, I believe that ICN raises some valid points. ICN's testimony details some of the measures taken by the government to repress any political opposition. They are unwilling to allow any form of free and open political debate, and they are vigilant about ensuring that radio and TV airwaves are strictly limited and under their control. The example of the hardships that ICN has had to endure show the oppressive policies of the Lebanese government. As a country that firmly believes in the freedoms of speech and press, we can not sit idly by and tolerate these gross injustices. We must do what is possible to restore a sense of freedom to the country. It is in this spirit that I ask that ICN's testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee be entered into the Congressional Record in its entirety. The testimony follows: Testimony Submitted for the Record by the Independent Communications Network, February 27, 1996 Mr. Chairman. Thank you for this opportunity to testify to this distinguished committee. The Independent Communications Network [ICN] is an independent television broadcaster in Beirut committed to an independent Lebanon. We are philosophically as well as professionally committed to freedom of speech and freedom of the press, two fundamental rights which we believe are threatened in our country. We know you have no jurisdiction in Lebanon, but what you say and do here in Washington and in this respected and influential committee has an impact in Beirut and beyond. The immediate issue before you today is United States ban on travel to Lebanon. We understand the Department of State will announce its decision tomorrow. Such decisions are not and cannot be made in a vacuum. It is with that in mind that we urge you to replace the lifting the travel ban with a strong advisory that not only warns travelers but also makes it clear to the Lebanese government that the United States government expects it to make a concerted effort to improve its efforts to assure the personal security of visitors to Lebanon as well as to secure human rights and freedom of speech for all Lebanese. Lebanon is a unique country in the Middle East, and it has historically chosen a unique mission: spreading the liberty and freedom of speech in our part of the world. This mission, which we share with America, is threatened by a government which seems intent on turning Lebanon into a police state. Before 1990, the Muslims in Lebanon were demanding a fair share of power. Lebanon has been governed since 1943 by a National Pact dividing power between Christians and Muslims on a six-to-five basis in favor of Christians. In 1990, Lebanese parliamentarians met in the Saudi summer resort town of Taif, and under American, Saudi and Syrian auspices developed a ``peace plan'' that shifted the imbalance to the favor of the Muslims this time. This situation has led to an unbalanced government. General elections were boycotted by most Lebanese, leading to a parliament representing no more than 13 percent of the country. We are sliding more and more towards dictatorship and a ``savage ownership'' of the country and the media by the multi-billionaire who is currently prime minister, Sheikh Rafiq Hariri. Today the fundamentalists are gaining influence in our country, taking advantage of a collapsing economy and the government's efforts to gag the media. The government is seeking to stifle dissent by limiting the number of radio and television stations permitted to operate in Lebanon. Those that remain are becoming little more than political booty for the prime minister and his friends and a club to silence the opposition. The government already has approved legislation permitting only six television and 12 radio stations for the entire country. Of those six permitted television stations, one belongs to the Speaker of the Parliament, Nabih Berri; another to the Minister of the Interior, Michel Murr and a third to Prime Minister Hariri. ICN, as its name implies, is an independent voice not beholden to the government or any political party. It is no coincidence that it is not among the six stations sanctioned by Mr. Hariri and his government. The government has ignored the petition of more than 40 members of Parliament asking to review and restudy this unjust law. It also has ignored demonstrations in the streets of Beirut protesting the law and more are scheduled later this week. Mr. Chairman, we wish to share with you an example of the current state of freedom and democracy and respect for human rights in a country that is slaughtering freedom. Earlier this month, ICN was broadcasting live a roundtable discussion with several parliamentary deputies from the opposition who were critical of the government's attempt to parcel out television channels to its supporters. State security forces sealed off the ICN building in Beirut, and the host of the show and some participants were threatened by plainclothes security men about what they were doing and saying. The State Department Report on Human Rights, the Middle East Watch report on human rights and other groups have been critical of the policies of the Lebanese government regarding human rights and freedom of speech. In 1993 the government banned ICN for nine months until a resolution passed by the United States Congress urged that it be allowed to reopen. But the government did not cease its efforts to silence INC, even after the courts found ICN innocent of the trumped up charges made by the government. The Hariri government continues attempting to promulgate what can only be called unconscionable efforts to silence all opposition and criticism. This unbearable political and economic situation has led the Lebanese Workers Union to call for a national strike and demonstrations on February 29. It is no coincidence that threat came from Interior Minister Murr, the owner of one of the six sanctioned television puppet stations. It is important to note that the basis of the Lebanese government's demand that the United States lift the travel ban is its repeated claim that it is in full control of national security. It is also asking the United State and the United Nations to force Israel to withdraw from South Lebanon; President Elias Hraoui contends that the Lebanese Army is ready to deploy and maintain security there. If the government is as strong as it claims, how can it turn around and say it is banning the constitutional right of demonstration to the workers because security is still fragile and that such demonstrations could jeopardize the national security. They can't have it both ways. We urge the Congress to see for itself by dispatching a fact finding mission to Lebanon to look into what the government is doing to protect human rights and freedom of speech. The first stop for that delegation should be the U.S. Embassy, where you and your colleagues can ask America's new ambassador, Mr. Richard Jones, why, if the government has the security control it contends, he had to secretly land in Beirut and clandestinely head to the Embassy earler this month to take up his new post. And ask why it is American officials can only use the ``helicopter bridge'' into Beirut, not their automobiles. In conclusion, Mr. Chairman, we support replacing the travel ban with an advisory, but its continuation should be linked not only to the government's ability to protect public safety and the security of American visitors but also to the government respect for the fundamental rights of its citizens. Mr. Chairman, we appreciate this opportunity to testify before you and this distinguished committee. Thank you.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise today to join with my friend and colleague, Senator Moynihan, in introducing legislation that will allow for the commencement of a project of immense economic significance in the city of New York and the Borough of Queens. This project, which has been named Queens West, will produce a myriad of waterfront apartment buildings, parkland, hotel, and commercial space and will create 14,000 construction jobs as well as 10,000 permanent jobs. This ambitious project will rejuvenate this section of New York and add to its vitality for countless generations to come. As I am sure many of my colleagues can understand, there is a great deal of excitement about the Queens West project. However, with the parties ready to close, a single issue has emerged that could delay the financing and disrupt the timing of this project. Some of the land upon which Queens West is to be built falls within the historic, unobstructed high water mark of the East River that was established in the 1800's. However, a bulkhead has since been established in this particular area and industrial development has occurred there for many years. Nevertheless, this area still remains defined as ``navigable in law'' which allows the Federal Government to retain a right to navigational servitude. Because of this glitch, the project may not be insurable and may not therefore commence in a timely fashion. The legislation that Senator Moynihan and I are introducing will rectify this situation. Simply, it will declare this portion of the land nonnavigable and thus take the property out of navigational servitude. Should no permanent structure be built on this site within 20 years, the area reverts to its current status. Once this bill is passed, the Borough of Queens and indeed all of New York will receive a vital economic boost. This legislation is identical to H.R. 2987, which Congressman Tom Manton introduced in the House of Representatives, and enjoys support from State and city officials. Mr. President, the thousands of jobs, the housing, the recreational opportunities, and the commercial benefits created by the Queens West project are urgently needed. I urge my colleagues to join Senator Moynihan and I in supporting speedy passage of this legislation.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I rise today to discuss an issue of great emotion and importance to Holocaust survivors and their families. The issue at hand is an inquiry into the return, by Swiss banks, of assets deposited by European Jews and others in the years preceding the Holocaust. From the 1930's until the onset of the Holocaust, European Jews and others deposited funds and other assets in Swiss banks for safekeeping. In doing so, they were trying to avoid what some inevitably saw as the writing on the wall, namely the coming Nazi onslaught. Others did so, simply for business reasons. At the end of the war however, a great many Swiss banks denied holding these assets. Throughout the intervening years, the victorious Allies made several requests of the Swiss Government for cooperation in finding these assets. Several organizations, in addition to the Allies made repeated and determined efforts to persuade the Swiss to examine their banks and to find these missing assets. For the Swiss though, the matter was simple, they did all that they could to avoid any type of examination of their banking system, despite clear evidence of very deep cooperation with the Nazis. The Swiss hid behind their 1934 Bank Secrecy Act, claiming that they could not divulge the identity of their account holders. This is quite ironic in view of the fact that the 1934 Act was designed to protect the identity of the account holders from the Nazis. Now, they were using this same law to shield the assets from the survivors and the victims' rightful heirs. Finally, in a series of agreements and treaties with the Allies following the war, Switzerland reluctantly agreed to search their banks' files for these assets. Finally, in 1962, the Swiss Bankers Association undertook a search through their records to find what assets, they denied holding in the first place. At the conclusion of this search, they found approximately 9 million Swiss francs, or some $2 million, belonging to 961 claimants. Nevertheless, some 7,000 claimants were turned down. Numerous sources have questioned the validity of this search, but nothing was done beyond this until another search was performed in 1995. In this new search, according to the Swiss Bankers Association, a total of 893 accounts, holding $32 million were found. These accounts were said to have been dormant for at least 10 years and were opened before 1945. These numbers have been criticized, by a variety of sources, as vastly too small. It is in this vein, as Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, I have begun an inquiry into this situation. The inquiry will examine the procedures by which Swiss banks calculated the amount of assets in their possession. In these post-war searches, in 1962-63, and most recently in 1995, the Swiss banks used different criteria to conduct their examinations. Therefore, the Banking Committee will evaluate how the banks searched their accounts, and what kind of accounts might have been missed. The Committee will try to discern if the searches were comprehensive enough to find all assets. While in the early stages of the search, my staff has found declassified military intelligence documents that detail a variety of fascinating facts vital to this inquiry. In ``Operation Safe Haven,'' a program of the Joint Treasury Department-Justice Department-State Department operation to locate and identify Nazi assets and looted assets in Europe, Military Intelligence officers filed a series of now- declassified reports on these topics. One such document, dated July 12, 1945, details a list of 182 separate bank accounts held by Societe General de Surveillance S.A. of Geneva. These holders of these bank accounts were from Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Croatia, Moravia, Slovakia, France, Holland, and Denmark. This important document is vital to understanding the issue of Holocaust assets in Swiss banks. More importantly, we must compare it to the declarations of the Swiss that they had no real assets in their possession, and to later fulfillment of some claims made with them. To start, I would like to know if these accounts are among those found in the post-war, 1962, and 1995 searches, and if not, where is the money now? At this time, Mr. President, I ask that the above mentioned document be printed in the Record at the conclusion of my remarks. Mr. President, this document proves vital to countering the claim that there were no assets, or very little. With the help of the Congressional Research Service, I would like to list the amount of assets, held in the various currencies reported, converted into dollars at the 1945 rate. Additionally, I will list the value of those assets in 1995 dollars accounting for inflation, as well as what the accounts would hold today with 3 percent, 4 percent, and 5 percent interest respectively. The amounts are as follows: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Currency 1945 amount 1995 amount 1945+3% +4% +5% ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Swiss Francs.................... $2,214,915 $18,738,181 $9,989,266 $16,390,371 $26,667,577 French Francs................... 4,925 41,665 22,261 36,396 59,297 Belgian Francs.................. 713 6,034 3,223 5,269 8,585 British Sterling................ 71,488 604,790 323,126 528,296 860,716 Canadian Dollars................ 264 2,233 1,193 1,951 3,179 U.S. Dollars.................... 119,020 1,006,915 537,970 879,557 1,433,009 Dutch Florin.................... 227 1,923 1,026 1,678 2,733

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Madam President, I am pleased to join my colleagues in introducing this bill that will extend the authority of the Attorney General to collect data on crimes motivated by race, religion, or ethnic hatred. The Act was the first action taken by Congress as a direct response to hate-motivated crimes and has certainly merited its continued existence. When the original act was passed in 1990, the Attorney General was directed to collect data on any crime that evidenced some type of prejudice. It was the first action taken by Congress to address the violence emanating from hate crimes. The reports that have since been prepared by the Attorney General, based on the collected data, describe trends and patterns associated with hate crimes. Having this information is a great asset for Federal officials as well as State and local governments in formulating responses to the vicious behavior of perpetrators of bias crimes. For New York, with its unique mix of people, the collection of hate crime statistics is too important to fall by the wayside. Communities in my State have begun to organize in order to respond to the incidents of hate crimes in their neighborhood. For example, residents in the town of Oyster Bay on Long Island recently met with their councilman to discuss the escalating occurrences of hate crimes. The response by citizens of my State is laudable and, I believe, must be supported by information compiled in these reports. A permanent database will assist in composing effective initiatives that will fight hate crimes. State and local law enforcement in New York have struggled against the rising tide of hate crimes. A uniform compilation of statistics can be an asset in determining strategy, even if the participation in the collection of data is voluntary. With a better understanding of the implications and trends of hate crimes, our criminal justice system can target scarce resources to those mechanisms that work the best to combat bias crimes. Several years ago, the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn saw a senseless violent murder of a young Rabbinical student, a crime that was seemingly motivated by religious hatred. The tension within the community mounted, culminating in days of riots and years of healing. Detecting patterns in the incidents of hate crimes may have forewarned New York City of the horrendous turmoil that was to follow the brutal murder of that young student, Yankel Rosenbaum. If used in the right manner, statistics are a valuable tool. I hope that my colleagues recognize the need to maintain this database and urge the passage of this important legislation.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Madam President, I am pleased to join my colleagues in introducing this bill that will extend the authority of the Attorney General to collect data on crimes motivated by race, religion, or ethnic hatred. The Act was the first action taken by Congress as a direct response to hate-motivated crimes and has certainly merited its continued existence. When the original act was passed in 1990, the Attorney General was directed to collect data on any crime that evidenced some type of prejudice. It was the first action taken by Congress to address the violence emanating from hate crimes. The reports that have since been prepared by the Attorney General, based on the collected data, describe trends and patterns associated with hate crimes. Having this information is a great asset for Federal officials as well as State and local governments in formulating responses to the vicious behavior of perpetrators of bias crimes. For New York, with its unique mix of people, the collection of hate crime statistics is too important to fall by the wayside. Communities in my State have begun to organize in order to respond to the incidents of hate crimes in their neighborhood. For example, residents in the town of Oyster Bay on Long Island recently met with their councilman to discuss the escalating occurrences of hate crimes. The response by citizens of my State is laudable and, I believe, must be supported by information compiled in these reports. A permanent database will assist in composing effective initiatives that will fight hate crimes. State and local law enforcement in New York have struggled against the rising tide of hate crimes. A uniform compilation of statistics can be an asset in determining strategy, even if the participation in the collection of data is voluntary. With a better understanding of the implications and trends of hate crimes, our criminal justice system can target scarce resources to those mechanisms that work the best to combat bias crimes. Several years ago, the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn saw a senseless violent murder of a young Rabbinical student, a crime that was seemingly motivated by religious hatred. The tension within the community mounted, culminating in days of riots and years of healing. Detecting patterns in the incidents of hate crimes may have forewarned New York City of the horrendous turmoil that was to follow the brutal murder of that young student, Yankel Rosenbaum. If used in the right manner, statistics are a valuable tool. I hope that my colleagues recognize the need to maintain this database and urge the passage of this important legislation.

Mr. D'AMATO

Mr. D'AMATO. Mr. President, I do not think it behooves anyone to denigrate a proposal to accomplish that which I believe the American people want and are entitled to. More importantly, it is our constitutional responsibility to get the facts and hold these hearings. The offer put forth by our colleagues on the other side is inadequate. It is a step in the right direction, but it is inadequate because there are key witnesses, facts, and information that will not be available to us by April 5. They just will not be available to us. There is no way, that witnesses who are presently on trial, or who will be called to testify while the trial is taking place will be available to this committee. Their proposal will place us in the position that, come April 5, we will be back here and they will say once again you are doing it. That is why we have to reject it. I hope we can come to some kind of meaningful understanding that would give us the ability to go forth and have, at least, a reasonable opportunity of getting as many of the facts as we can, and avoid the political season and the conventions. Now, my colleague, Senator Mack, has pointed out that much of the delay has been occasioned because the administration has not promptly produced--and/or people who work for the administration--documents that were subpoenaed and requested. Second, this is not some political conspiracy. There have been nine people who have pled guilty already--nine. David Hale pled guilty. He was a former judge, friend of the Clintons, and friend of their business partners, the McDougals; Matthews pled guilty to trying to bribe Hale; Fitzhugh, he worked in the bank, pled guilty; Robert Palmer, real estate appraiser for the Madison bank, pled guilty; Web Hubbell, former law partner of the First Lady, pled guilty; Chris Wade, former real estate broker for Whitewater, pled guilty; Neal Ainley, former president of the Perry County Bank--by the way, that is the bank that lent Governor Clinton $180,000 for his 1990 gubernatorial race-- pled guilty; Stephen Smith, former Clinton aide, former president and coowner of the Madison Bank and Trust that was owned by Governor Tucker, he pled guilty; Larry Kuca, former director, Madison Financial Corp., pled guilty. Now, let me tell you, we are going to attempt to bring a number of these people in to get the complete story. I have to say it seems to me that my colleagues have become an extension of the White House in attempting to keep the facts from coming to the American people. If they want to do that, then they are going to have to take the onus of these things. Again, this is just the beginning. This is the third time we have come to the Senate for an extension, and we run into this filibuster, this stonewall. The New York Times says it is silly. It is silly. The Washington Post says just because Democrats want to bring this to an end does not mean it will end. The people are entitled to the facts. We have offered a compromise and I think it is reasonable--4 months, an extension for 4 months for the public hearings. This proposal would give us an opportunity to do our job, and that is to get all the facts and to present them to the people as best we can. We may not be able to get all of them, but at least we can do the best we can. Finally, this was an undertaking that was voted overwhelmingly, 96 to 3. To attempt to turn this, now, into a political witch hunt, which is how it has been characterized, is wrong and it is improper. We have not been able to complete our work because there has been a conscious effort to shield the facts from the committee and the American people.