Mike DeWine

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Would my colleague agree--my colleague certainly is an expert on Haiti, having traveled there many times--the situation in Haiti is certainly not getting any better today; with this trade legislation we have talked about, both the House version of the bill and the Senate version of the bill would appreciably help the situation for the people of Haiti as well as help our foreign policy.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I recently received a letter from Iva D. Fesler Johnson. In it, she recalls what her grandmother, whom she called ``Grand Ma,'' told her about slavery. I would like to thank her for sharing this with me. Grand Ma's story is one of strength and perseverance--a story that took place during one of the darkest points in our Nation's history. The following is the story contained in the letter: On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation declaring ``All Slaves Free.'' I, Iva D. Jones, was born the daughter of Richard and Lottie Foster Jones. My father's mother was Cicly Belle Graham, the daughter of Henry and Fanny Graham. She was my grandmother. She was a slave. ``Grand Ma,'' as we called her, was brought to this country from Africa by ship. Grand Ma was sold three times by auction on the auction block at Washington, Kentucky. She was sold to the highest bidder. She was given the name of her slave master. So, she was Cicly Marshall at one time, another time, Cicly Smith. Grand Ma plowed the fields with oxen. She was the mother of nine children. She birthed some of the children in the field that she was plowing. Her slave master did not allow her to return to the cabin in which she lived until the day's work was done. She worked from sun up to dark. She was not paid any money for this work. She was married three times by jumping across a broomstick. The slaves would sometimes try to escape from the ``Life of Slavery'' to Canada. Grand Ma tried to escape. She was caught by ``Blood Hounds'' and ``Slave Catchers.'' She was punished by being whipped, and salt and pepper was put on the cuts made by the whip to help healing. Grand Ma developed the gift of mid-wife. She delivered two sets of twins for her daughter, Margaret O'Banion, and her husband, Lucian O'Banion. The slaves could not read or write. No one in the slave owner's family was allowed to teach the slaves because it was against the law. Some taught the slaves to read and write in secret. There were no schools for the slaves until after they were free. Grand Ma said she saw President George Washington and President Abraham Lincoln. Grand Ma lived through the Civil War. She said she prayed we would one day have a place to worship God under our own vine and fig tree and the slave master's whip would no longer be stained with African blood. God has answered her prayers. God has given us places to worship. One writer states, slavery lasted 250 years in the United States. Millions of people were sold into bondage so that their owners could grow rich, selling sugar, tobacco, rice, and cotton grown by their slave laborers. The slaves loved to sing as they worked--such songs as ``Steal Away to Jesus,'' ``Go Down Moses,'' and ``Swing Low, Sweet Chariot.'' At dawn, the slaves would awake every morning except Sunday to the sound of the overseer's horn. Men, women, and children would scramble out of a pile of straw, piled high on the mud floor of their hut, with hoe in hand to the field. Mid- morning, they were told to fix their breakfast, which was cornmeal put in a pot of boiling water to make hoe-cakes. The hoe-cakes were cooked on the blade of their hoe over the fire. Once a week, they were given a little piece of salt pork and fish. Sometimes the slaves would drop little pieces of grains in the boiling water. The slaves did not have shoes to wear and their clothes were ragged. The slave master would ride a horse to the slave auction. The slaves were chained together, barefoot and raggedy. They were taken to the auction block. As they worked in the field, the overseer would ride a horse to watch the slaves work. If he thought the slaves were not working hard enough, he would flog them with a cowhide whip. After slavery, Grand Ma worked for pay because she had to find a home. The master's wife told Grand Ma to leave Grand Ma's daughter, whose name was Ellen, with her while she looked for a home. Grad Ma said on Sunday morning a man riding a horse told Grand Ma, Ellen is dead and buried. Little Ellen was nine years of age. The man told Grand Ma that the missus said Ellen wasn't washing the hearth right. So the missus hit Ellen in the head with a sick of wood and Ellen died. Other slaves were sold at auction, and members of a family were separated. Husbands and wives, brothers and sisters, and children did not know the whereabouts of others. Grand Ma was finally able to get a home of three rooms on a one acre lot in Lewisburg, Kentucky. She lived there many years and died in her home on June 26, 1926. The House has been modernized. It stands there today. I was 15 years of age when Grand Ma died. Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I'm found. I was blind, but now I see. Written by Mrs. Iva Johnson These are things my grandmother told me about slavery.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, on May 29, 2004--coinciding with the dedication of the National World War II Memorial in Washington, DC-- World War II veterans, their families, and their friends gathered at the Don Gentile American Legion Post 532 in Columbus, OH to honor their comrades who fought bravely in World War II. Fifty veterans attended the service where they were honored by a crowd of more than 500. Guest speakers included Columbus Dispatch columnist Mike Hardin, Post 532 commander Ray Papp, and Isabella Gentile Beitman, the Post namesake's widow. Memorabilia was displayed throughout Post 532, area ROTC units paraded, and the Columbus Symphony Orchestra provided the music. Following the memorial garden dedication, military planes conducted a fly-by. Additionally, each veteran received a framed certificate with the Memorial picture and an angel pin, signifying how our veterans are truly guardian angels. The Post 532 members' hard work made this service possible, and I would like to personally thank auxiliary secretary, Gladys Caudill, who registered more than 300 World War II veterans for their inclusion in the National Registry. These efforts and the dedication ceremony are fitting reminders of the sacrifices these brave men and women made for our freedom--sacrifices that have shaped all of our lives, our children's lives, and the lives of our grandchildren. I thank them for all they have done for us so that we may continue to enjoy Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness--all because of their efforts some 60 years ago. I would like to honor the members of Post 532 by printing their names in the Record. They selflessly fought for our Nation in World War II, I remember them and honor them at this time. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Members of Post 532 Branch Hometown ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Acocella, Guydon............ Navy........... Columbus, OH Albrecht, Richard........... Navy........... Columbus, OH Arrasmith, James............ Navy........... Columbus, OH Bailey, Carl................ Air Force...... Columbus, OH Barker, Robert.............. Army........... Fairmont, WV Bartoe, Oral Jr............. Air Force...... Logan, WV Bauer, Chester.............. Air Force...... Albert, TX Bauman, Ray................. Army........... Lancaster, OH Beitman, Jesse.............. Air Force...... Baltimore, MD Berg, Omer.................. Navy........... Columbus, OH Boggs, John................. Navy........... Hilliard, OH Bricker, Paul............... Navy........... Uhrichsville, OH Brown, Harry................ Army........... Barnesville, OH Bryant, Jack................ Army........... Columbus, OH Buhacevich, Milton.......... Navy........... Columbus, OH Burchfield, Leo............. Air Force...... Columbus, OH Callarik, George............ Army........... Bridgeport, OH Callif, George.............. Marines........ Columbus, OH Carpenter, Elmer Ellworth... Army........... Hopewell, KY Carter, Clyde............... Navy........... Columbus, OH Cavanaugh, Thomas........... Navy........... Columbus, OH Chase, Thomas............... Army........... Columbus, OH Compton, Edward............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Connor, Phillip............. Navy........... Logan, OH Cox, Raymond................ Army........... Wash. Ct. House, OH Cramer, Charles............. Air Force...... Columbus, OH Crites, Robert.............. Coast Guard.... Columbus, OH Curtiss, Richard (deceased). Navy........... Columbus, OH Davis, Delbert (Nick)....... Navy........... Thurman, OH DelCeillo, Vito............. Army........... Columbus, OH Delia, Joseph............... Marines........ New York, NY Diebold, Robert............. Marines........ Newark, OH Dillon, Howard.............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Donnelly, William Jr........ Army........... Junction City, OH Douglas, Russell............ Army........... New Lexington, OH Driscoll, Ray............... Navy........... Columbus, OH Dymek, Joseph............... Army........... Columbus, OH Edwards, Harold............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Eilerman, Cletus............ Navy........... Sidney, OH Eiselstein, Jack............ Army........... Columbus, OH Emrick, Frank............... Army........... New Straitsville, OH Estep, James................ Army........... Huntington, WV Evans, Robert............... Navy........... Columbus, OH Fickle, Glenn (deceased).... Army........... Columbus, OH Fisher, William............. Army........... Columbus, OH Fitzpatrick, T. J........... Army........... W. Prestonburg, KY Flichia, Gus................ Navy........... Columbus, OH Foresman, Earl.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Francis, Joseph............. Army........... Logan, OH Frazee, Jack................ Army........... Dayton, OH Fultz, Russell.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Gallagher, Paul............. Air Force...... Columbus, OH Ganczak, Richard............ Air Force...... Buffalo, NY Geiszler, George............ Navy........... Columbus, OH Gibson, Robert.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Gill, Merrill............... Army........... Columbus, OH Goldhardt, William.......... Navy........... Grove City, OH Graves, Victor.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Gray, Richard............... Air Force...... Columbus, OH Green, Clyde................ Navy........... Madison, OH Greer, James................ Army........... Columbus, OH Griffiths, Robert........... Army........... Columbus, OH Griggs, Benjamin Sr......... U.S. Coast Columbus, OH Guard. Grinstead, Roy.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Hankison, Franklin (Hank)... Navy........... Columbus, OH Hatzer, Sheldon............. Army........... Columbus, OH Haycook, Joseph............. Marines........ Columbus, OH Heise, Robert............... Army........... Columbus, OH Hemmer, Paul................ Air Force...... Indianapolis, IN Herderick, George........... Army........... Columbus, OH Hinzey, Charles............. Navy........... Detroit, MI Hirn, Joseph................ Navy........... Columbus, OH Hoenie, Arthur (deceased)... Army........... Columbus, OH Hopwood, Harry.............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Immel, Phillip Jr........... Navy........... Columbus, OH Johnson, Richard............ Army........... Columbus, OH Johnson, William............ Navy........... Columbus, OH Johnston, Raymond........... Navy........... Columbus, OH Jones, Charles (Chuck)...... Navy........... Columbus, OH Justice, Oscar.............. Army........... Pikeville, KY Kazee, Henry................ Army........... Ashland, KY Keckley, Harry.............. Army........... Utica, OH Keller, Kenneth............. Marines........ Jackson, OH Kelley, Edward.............. Air Force...... Columbus, OH Kelly, Kenel................ Army........... Columbus, OH Kent, Willard............... Army........... Ethel, WV Kerber, John................ Navy........... Columbus, OH Kerchmar, Carl.............. Navy........... Elyria, OH Kincade, Howard............. Army........... Columbus, OH Kinney, Otis Jr............. Army........... Columbus, OH Kirby, James................ Navy........... Columbus, OH Kline, Francis.............. Air Force...... Columbus, OH Knapp, Donald............... Army........... Obetz, OH Knight, Lake (Shorty)....... Army........... Columbus, OH Krebs, Henry................ Navy........... Columbus, OH Krizinski, Roman............ Air Force...... Dowagiac, MI Kueterman, Harold........... Air Force...... Versailles, OH Landes, Leo Jr.............. Air Force...... Columbus, OH Large, Thomas Sr............ Coast Guard.... Columbus, OH Larue, Leah Fox............. WAC............ Boise, Idaho Lash, Homer................. Navy........... NW Canton, OH Lavinger, Joe............... Navy........... Bethlehem, PA Lawler, Joseph.............. Coast Guard.... Columbus, OH Lease, Harry Jr............. Army........... Belfontaine, OH Lehman, Robert.............. Army........... Mansfield, OH Lewis, James................ Navy........... Columbus, OH Lowther, Robert Jr.......... Navy........... Columbus, OH Luke, Arthur................ Navy........... Pittsburgh, PA Lusk, Mike.................. Air Force...... Cambridge, OH Lyons, Joseph............... Army........... Columbus, OH Madden, Robert.............. Navy........... Chillicothe, OH Markham, Howard............. Army........... Columbus, OH Marmon, Boyd................ Army........... Columbus, OH Martin, Ralph............... Marines........ Columbus, OH Maue, Joseph................ Army........... Dayton, OH McGrail, John Jr............ Air Force...... Columbus, OH Mertens, John............... Navy........... Columbus, OH Michalzuk, Daniel........... Navy........... Columbus, OH Milburn, Keith.............. Navy........... Anderson, IN Miller, Carl................ Navy........... Columbus, OH Miller, Eugene.............. Army........... Bee, VA Miller, George.............. Air Force...... Martins Ferry, OH Miller, Robert Lee.......... Navy.......... Canal Winchester, OH Minnix, Robert.............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Montoney, Jack Sr........... Navy........... Columbus, OH Moore, Charles.............. Air Force...... Delaware, OH Morse, Harold (Hal)......... Army........... Columbus, OH Murphy, Donald.............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Murphy, John................ Navy........... Clifton, NJ Murphy, Lon................. Army........... Glen Alum, WV Nelson, Thearl.............. Air Force...... Omar, WV Nolan, Westland............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Notturiano, Darwin.......... Navy........... Columbus, OH Notturiano, Rudy............ Army........... Columbus, OH OBryan, John................ Navy........... Louisville, KY Ocker, Reed................. Navy........... Scranton, Iowa Parr, Robert................ Army........... Mansfield, OH Parsley, Wilson............. Army........... Crum, WV Pemwell, Harvey Jr.......... Navy........... Springfield, OH Perry, Chester.............. Merchant Columbus, OH Marines. Phillips, Robert (Bob)...... Air Force...... Ironton, OH Powers, William Jr.......... Air Force...... London, OH Quivey, Charles............. Merchant Middleport, OH Marines. Rains, Charles Sr........... Army........... Columbus, OH Randolph, John.............. Navy........... Crooksville, OH Rice, Lou................... Navy........... Columbus, OH Roberts, Bernard............ Air Force...... Jeanette, PA Roberts, Raymond Lee Sr..... Navy........... Columbus, OH Sanfillipo, Joseph Jr....... Navy........... Columbus, OH Sarto, William.............. Army........... Lore City, OH Schellhaas, Edwin........... Army........... Grove City, OH Schnitzer, Frederick........ Navy........... Mount Vernon, OH Schreck, Margaret........... Army........... Hilliard, OH Schreck, Victor............. Army........... Marienthal, KS Scott, Ivan................. Navy........... Columbus, OH Shank, Stephen.............. Navy........... Glendale, PA Sharpe, Gerald.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Shea, John.................. Navy........... Columbus, OH Shirley, Frank.............. Army........... Ieager, WV Siniff, R. Edward........... Army........... Columbus, OH Sipe, William Jr. (Bill).... Army........... Columbus, OH Smith, Clyde................ Navy........... Columbus, OH Smith, Harold............... Army........... Columbus, OH Smith, Lawrence............. Army........... Columbus, OH Snedegar, Garland........... Army........... Dayton, OH Sottovia, Virginia.......... WAC, Army...... Manchester, OH Souders, Albert............. Army........... Columbus, OH Stafford, Victor............ Army........... Columbus, OH Stange, Robert.............. Army........... Grove City, OH Stauch, Donald.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Steiner, John............... Army........... Bellaire, OH Stephenson, Charles......... Navy........... Ironton, OH Stewart, Richard............ Air Force...... Wellston, OH Susi, Arthur Sr............. Marines........ Columbus, OH Swain, Lindsay.............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Taylor, Archie.............. Navy........... Loudenville, OH Taylor, Robert.............. Air Force...... Columbus, OH Terman, Robert.............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Thomas, Donald.............. Army........... Cheshire, OH Thomas, Earnest............. Army........... Columbus, OH Thompson, John (Wiltshire).. Navy........... Columbus, OH Tonti, Edward............... Army........... Columbus, OH Townsend, Delbert........... Army........... Columbus, OH Tracy, Martin............... Navy & Marines. Columbus, OH Triffon, Manuel............. Army........... Columbus, OH Tuttle, Harold.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Underdown, Guy.............. Army........... St. Clairesville, OH Vagnier, John............... Air Force...... Lancaster, OH Verne, Stephen.............. Coast Guard.... Columbus, OH Vawters, Howard............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Wade, Kenneth............... Army........... Galloway, OH Walker, John................ Air Force...... Gallia, OH Walls, Howard............... Army........... Pittsburgh, PA Walters, Howell............. Army........... Columbus, OH Warren, Charles............. Army........... Athens, OH Weaver, Fred................ Army........... Columbus, OH Wells, Robert............... Army........... Columbus, OH Wihl, Lewis................. Navy........... Columbus, OH Wiley, Paul................. Army........... Columbus, OH Williams, Charles........... Army........... Columbus, OH Willis, Richard Sr.......... Coast Guard.... Columbus, OH Woehrle, John............... Navy........... Columbus, OH Wolfe, John................. Navy........... New Lexington, OH Yates, Tony................. Air Force...... Pittsburgh, PA Yoder, Leroy................ Coast Guard.... Marion, OH Non-members or Deceased: Acocella, Pat............... Army........... Columbus, OH Amspoker, Richard Leo....... Army........... Columbus, OH Anderson, Howard............ Army........... Waverly, OH Ballengee, Sherman Sr....... Marines........ Reed, WV Bartoe, Robert.............. Army........... Logan, WV Bennett, Paul............... Army........... West Jefferson, OH Beougher, Howard............ Air Force...... Columbus, OH Bonham, Gerald.............. Marines........ Galloway, OH Bowling, Richard............ Army........... Memphis, TN Bowling, Walter Carl........ Navy........... Columbus, OH KIA Brogan, Bernie.............. Army........... Rainelle, WV Brooks, Walter.............. Navy........... Columbus, OH MIA Brown, Paul................. Army........... Huntington, WV Carter, Dave................ Army........... London, OH Clark, Duane................ Marines........ Columbus, OH Clifford, Charlie........... Army........... Columbus, OH Clifford, Jack.............. Air Force...... Columbus, OH Cole, Howard Alton.......... Navy........... Preston, MD KIA Cole, Kenneth Hynson........ Army........... Preston, MD Cole, Leonard Francis....... Army........... Preston, MD Corbett, Joseph............. Army........... Crooksville, OH Cosgrove, James............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Cosgrove, John.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Cosgrove, Robert............ Army........... Columbus, OH Crown, Sam.................. Navy........... Columbus, OH MIA Capuano, Patsy.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Daum, Ray................... Army........... Columbus, OH DeWeese, Albert............. Army........... Ripley, WV Divney, Don................. Air Force...... Columbus, OH Divney, James............... Army........... Marion, OH Divney, Raymond............. Army........... Columbus, OH Domrose, Richard Wm......... Air Force...... Oak Harbor, OH Domrose, Ramone George...... Army........... Oak Harbor, OH Edwards, Harold............. Coast Guard.... Oak Hill, OH Estep, Walter............... Army........... Delaware, OH Farrand, Larry.............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Flick, Stanley.............. Navy........... Wooster, OH Follmer, Edward............. Army........... Columbus, OH Gentile, Dominic (Don)...... Air Force...... Piqua, OH Get z , George Jr........... Army........... Columbus, OH Goldhardt, Richard.......... Army........... Georgesville, OH Griggs, Mary (Buckler)...... Auxiliary...... Columbus, OH Griggs, Dorel Dobbins....... Navy........... Columbus, OH Griggs, John Robert......... Marines........ Columbus, OH Griggs, Stanley Evans....... Mer.Mar./Army.. Columbus, OH Griggs, Jack................ Army........... Columbus, OH Griggs, Charles Ernest...... Navy........... Columbus, OH Hammock, Wilbur............. Air Force...... Columbus, OH Hammond, Clarence........... Navy........... Ironton, OH Hammond, Lawrence........... Army........... Ironton, OH Hartley, Paul............... Army........... Stoutsville, OH Haverfield, Frank........... Army........... Evanston, IL Horton, Richard............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Ingles, Goble............... Army........... McDermott, OH Jamison, Robert............. Air Force...... Columbus, OH Jubeck, Jack................ Air Force...... Pittsburgh, PA Knisley, Earl............... Army........... Columbus, OH Knisley, Hal Richard........ Army........... Columbus, OH Knisley, Jesse.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Lester, Quinten............. Army........... Kentucky Mace, Jacob Andrew.......... Navy........... West Virginia McCleese, Daniel Scott...... Air Force...... Columbus, OH McLane, Paul................ Navy........... Elmira, NY Monroe, George.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Morse, Fred................. Army........... Columbus, OH Moore, Keith................ Navy........... Columbus, OH Norton, Naldo............... Navy........... Columbus, OH Oestreicher, Frank.......... Air Force...... Columbus, OH Overturf, James............. Army........... Columbus, OH Papp, Frank Jr.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Papp, John.................. Army........... Columbus, OH Papp, Joseph................ Air Force...... Columbus, OH Pearce, Charles............. Army........... Radcliff, OH Perry, John Wm.............. Marines........ Fredricktown, MO Ponthier, Ory............... Air Force...... Bossier City, LA Pritchard, Joe.............. Army........... Westerville, OH Rankin, William............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Rinehart, Robert............ Army........... Columbus, OH Roush, George............... Army........... Mason City, WV Russo, Lawrence............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Salmons, Anderson........... Army........... Hamden, OH Sanders, Ralph.............. Army........... Plain City, OH Shea, James................. Army........... Columbus, OH Sisson, Kenneth............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Smith, Sherwood............. Army........... Rome, NY Snider, Fred................ Army........... Columbus, OH Sottovia, William........... Air Force...... Brockport, PA Stein (Gregory)............. Army Nurse..... West Pittson, PA Stratton, Jack Harry, Jr.... Navy........... Raymond, OH Sullivan, John.............. Navy........... Elmira, NY Tarquino, Anthony........... Air Force...... Columbus, OH Taylor, Virgil.............. Army........... Columbus, OH Walls, Henry................ Navy........... Columbus, OH Wharton, Paul............... Navy........... Columbus, OH Wherrity, Eugene............ USN/MC......... Mauch Chunk, PA Williams, Paul.............. Navy........... Columbus, OH Zervis, Roy................. Navy........... Hamden, OH ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Those in attendance at the WWII celebration day not listed above: Bennett, Paul; Dawson, Donald; Griggs, Carl; Landman, William; Pennell, George (Duke); Puchovich, Jordan; Stevens, Harold; Watson, Leland.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I come to the floor in support of the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act. On October 11, 2004, the Senate passed this bill and on October 30, 2004, President Bush signed it into law. I am very pleased that this law is now on the books because it will help address a serious problem that I have talked about before on several occasions. Each year, more than 700,000 individuals with serious mental illness are booked into our Nation's jails. A recent Justice Department study revealed that 16 percent of all inmates in America's state prisons and local jails today are mentally ill. This has created one of the biggest challenges facing our front-line police officers, judges, prosecutors, and corrections officers and has left mentally ill inmates caught in a destructive cycle. As a former prosecuting attorney, I know about the helplessness that law enforcement officers feel when they have no other option than to arrest and incarcerate a person with mental illness who has committed a non-violent crime. I have seen the cycle of a non-violent, mentally ill offender who is arrested repeatedly and put into the system repeatedly--never being treated for his illness and, as a result, becoming more and more ill. I also have shared the frustration of judges who repeatedly sentence these low-level offenders, knowing that, without connection to needed services, they will just end up right back in the courtroom. Despite the complexity of these issues, recent initiatives demonstrate that we can increase public safety and reduce the numbers of mentally ill people trapped in the criminal justice system. We know that if given appropriate care early, the special needs of the mentally ill can be addressed to avoid a growing problem that increases the likelihood of repeat offenses. Four years ago, Senator Pete Domenici, Representative Ted Strickland, and I authored America's Law Enforcement and Mental Health Act. As a consequence of this law, the U.S. Department of Justice made available to 37 jurisdictions $7 million in funding and technical assistance for mental health courts. These courts are staffed by a core group of specialized professionals, including a dedicated judge, prosecutor, and public defender, who deal with mental illness cases and a court liaison to the mental health services community. While still early in their implementation, mental health courts have shown promising results. Mentally ill persons who choose to have their cases heard in a mental health court often do so because that is the first real opportunity that many have had to seek treatment. Last year, Senator Leahy, Senator Domenici, Representative Strickland and I introduced the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act. Our bill authorizes a grant program to help states and counties design and implement collaborative efforts between their criminal justice and mental health systems. This would allow, for example, a State corrections department to partner with the mental health system to ensure that people with mental illness released from prison are provided medications and connected to community-based service providers. It also could provide for programs to train local law enforcement on responding to individuals with mental illness. These programs would be proposed and controlled by the local and State officials most knowledgeable about the needs of their communities. Since its inception, our Nation has stood on the foundations of compassion and justice. These programs envisioned by this bill are a wonderful embodiment of both ideals and have earned a broad coalition of support from law enforcement, mental health advocates, state officials and private groups, including the Council of State Governments, the National Sheriffs' Association, the Police Executive Research Forum, and the American Correctional Association. With this bill, we move closer to both addressing the needs of the mentally ill and easing the burden upon our police and correctional workers. It will make a real difference, and I thank my colleagues--especially Ranking Member Leahy, Senator Grassley, Senator Durbin, Senator Domenici, Senator Cantwell, Chairman Hatch, and Senator Murray for their support. I would also like to thank Congressman Strickland and Chairman Sensenbrenner for championing this issue on the House side.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that during my discussion this morning I be able to display several packs of cigarettes and a container of macaroni and cheese which I have in front of me.

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I urge my colleagues today at 1 o'clock to vote no on the cloture vote. The conference committee stripped out from this bill the FDA regulation of tobacco. I think it was a serious mistake. It really represents a missed opportunity--a greatly missed opportunity--for us to cut health costs in this country and to save lives. All of us come to this floor so many times and talk about saving lives. We come all the time talking about what has happened with health care costs in this country. There is nothing we could do which would be more important than to pass the FDA regulation of tobacco. There is nothing we could do that would be more important to save lives and to cut health care costs in this country. Yet, unbelievably, the conference committee stripped this provision out of the bill. How long are we going to allow the tobacco companies to remain above the law and outside the law? What am I talking about? I talked about this a little bit on the floor yesterday, but I want to explain it again. When I say ``above the law,'' I really mean above the law. Macaroni and cheese--everyone knows macaroni and cheese. Kids eat a lot of macaroni and cheese, at least mine do. The side packet has every piece of information anyone would want to know about it and a lot more: calories, fiber, sugar, dietary fiber, saturated fat. It is all on here. It includes citric acid, sodium phosphate; everything is listed. But the same company that makes the macaroni and cheese also makes Marlboros. Guess what. Pick up a pack of Marlboros and there is no information about the contents. Why? Because there is a loophole in the law; Marlboros are outside the law. How about claims made by tobacco companies? Marlboro Lights--it means nothing. When you have yogurt and it says ``light yogurt,'' it means something. You read on here ``one-third less calories.'' It is regulated by the Government. Not tobacco. What about the other claims by the cigarette companies? When they make a claim, it doesn't mean anything, unlike every other product in the stream of commerce today. Take Advance Premium Lights. The back says ``All the taste, less of the toxins.'' One would assume that means they are safer. Who knows there are less toxins? No one checks this. The Government does not regulate it. It is a dangerous product, and the Government does not regulate it. How crazy is this? How long are we going to put up with this? Eclipse, another product. I read from the back what they claim: Scientific studies show compared to other cigarettes Eclipse may present less risk of cancer, bronchitis, possibly emphysema, reduces secondhand smoke by 80 percent, leaves no lingering odor in hair or clothes. More health claims, yet nothing to back it up. The worst thing the tobacco companies do, the worst thing we allow them to do, the worst thing this Congress continues to allow them to do is to target kids. Skoal, a pinch better. Apple blend. Does anyone think longtime Skoal users are using apple blend? Give me a break. Who is using this? Who are they targeting? Entry-level users. They are after kids with apple blend. Cigarettes: Liquid Zoo, vanilla flavor. Give me a break. Kool, Mocha Taboo. Who is that after? Kids. Camels, Beach Breezer. Or this one: Kauai Kolada. Do you think a 60-year-old longtime tobacco consumer of Camels is using this? Obviously not. Who is using this and who the tobacco companies are targeting is kids. That is who they want to use this entry-level drug. They want to get them hooked. They get them hooked on something like this: Mandarin Mint Camels. That is what they do. We allow this to continue. The FDA regulation bill would have stopped it, the bill the conference committee inexplicably stripped out of this bill, a bill the Senate passed overwhelmingly and sent to the conference committee. The conferees turned their backs on children's health, turned their backs on public health, and stripped it out. That is the reason we all should vote no on this conference report. We come to the Senate many times and we talk about health costs. We say we need to do something about health costs. Let me state the figures from my home State of Ohio. If we do not think the passage of this bill would have done a lot, the annual health care costs in Ohio for smoking, our annual health care costs, what it costs in Ohio, is $3.4 billion, and that is just my home State of Ohio alone. Our Medicaid costs, much paid for by taxpayers--Federal, State--$1.1 billion. That is not even talking about the cost in human life. The cost in human life, adults in Ohio who die each year prematurely because of tobacco, 18,900; kids 18 years of age and younger in Ohio who ultimately die prematurely from smoking, 314,000. I have today with me letters from the American Heart Association, the American Lung Association, the Ohio Children's Hospital Association, the American Thoracic Society, and the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids which I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record.

Mr. DeWINE. They all make the point that the FDA provision that was in this bill would have saved lives, would have made a difference, would have protected our society. Members may say: There are good things in this bill--I have to vote for this bill--good things for my State. I simply point out to them at some point we have to say enough is enough. At some point we have to say the status quo is not acceptable. At some point we have to look at the bigger picture than what is going on in this bill. Yes, there are good things for Ohio, there are good things for your State, but the statistics I cited, the tremendous health care costs in dollars and cents and human cost, have to be considered. At some point we have to take a stand. We may not win this battle today, but we will be back. We will be back to finally regulate this one product that is escaping the law, the one product we are not regulating today, a product which, even when it is used as intended, is a dangerous product that kills many Americans. It must be regulated. It must be brought under the law. We must stop the tobacco companies from targeting our kids. We must stop them from going after children every single day, trying to make more children addicted, trying to kill more children. It is wrong. It is morally wrong. This Congress, some day I hope in the not-too-distant future, will say we have had enough; we are not going to stand for it anymore; we are going to do what we have to do to save our children. The fringe benefit, besides saving lives, is going to be that we will dramatically slash health care costs in this country. I urge a ``no'' vote.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, several hours ago, Senator Hatch came to the floor to discuss the DNA bill that we have been able to pass. I congratulate him for the fine work on that bill. A number of people have worked on that bill. I became interested in this issue a number of years ago. I have been interested in the whole area of crime technology, frankly, going back to my work as county prosecuting attorney in Greene County, OH, many years ago. In those days, we did not have DNA. We did not have a lot of the technology we have today. I have been able to watch over the years, as I know the current occupant of the chair has, the great development of technology which has revolutionized what we can do today in law enforcement to solve crime. It has been one of the things I have worked on since I have been in public office--first, my time in the State legislature, then in the House of Representatives, and when I was Lieutenant Governor of the State of Ohio, and now, in the last decade, in the Senate. I specifically became interested in what turned out to be this bill we have been talking about today, the DNA bill, several years ago when I met with the BCI back in Ohio, which is our State lab and State bureau, and went out there to find out some of the things that needed to be done. I had a long discussion with them in London, OH, about the real problem we have in Ohio and the problem we have across this country. It is a problem of what we call rape kits; where there is a rape victim, the police go in, they take evidence from that victim, and then many times, tragically, I have learned--I know my colleague who is in the chair understands this--these rape kits are stored, they are never processed, and that information never gets into any central database. There is a tremendous backlog of this across this country. Because of this, to try to help clear up this backlog, I introduced S. 149, the Rape Kits and DNA Evidence Backlog Elimination Act of 2003. About the same time, roughly the same time, Senator Biden introduced a bill which had the same intent to deal with this problem. Chairman Hatch asked me later on to combine my bill with his and those of other Members to create the bill we have today. When he asked me to do that, I gladly agreed. Today, we all proudly stand as cosponsors of this bipartisan legislation. I know my colleague in the chair has worked on this legislation. I think it is a piece of legislation that all Americans can be proud of and that will help Americans be safer. The provisions of my original bill that are included in the legislation we passed today will protect innocent victims and will, in fact, put criminals behind bars. It will do both. This bill includes my language to authorize over $1 billion to eliminate the backlog of over half a million rape kits that are sitting on the shelves of evidence lockers in police stations across this Nation. Let me emphasize again that there are over half a million rape kits that have not been tested and therefore have not been put into a central database. How many of these rape kits contain evidence that would take a rapist off the streets? Well, we can't be sure, but we do know statistically that approximately one in eight of all kits currently tested in Ohio do, in fact, result in a match in our DNA database to a rapist. That is an unbelievable figure, one in eight will result in this statistical match. In fact, approximately the same number will link the rape to another crime scene, giving our law enforcement officers one more piece of critical evidence that may, in fact, lead to the arrest of a criminal and the prevention of future crimes. If you add these two figures together, you can see that nearly one in four of all rape kits tested will result in key evidence for law enforcement. That is a staggering statistic and demonstrates the power of modern technology when, in fact, it is used to fight crime. This bill also includes my language that will expand the number of criminals that we put in our Federal DNA database. Very simply, this language will expand the current reporting requirement to include all Federal felons, not just a few specific felons as required under current law. Of course, the more information that goes into the DNA database, the more likely it becomes that we will match evidence from the crime scene to the DNA profile of the criminal in the database. Additionally, this language will permit States to cross-reference DNA information from people under State indictment with the current Federal database. For example, if a criminal is arrested and indicted in New York, and the New York law enforcement officers enter the DNA information in their State database, this law permits New York to share this information with the Federal database so all participating States can access the information. This means that a police officer could link DNA evidence from a crime in Ohio to an arrestee in New York. Again, by realizing the full potential of available technology, we will identify more criminals, prevent more crimes, and protect more innocent victims. Finally, this bill includes my language that will extend the period of time in which law enforcement officers can utilize DNA evidence to solve crimes. Under current law, the statute of limitations for all Federal offenses starts when the crime is committed. Under my language, if DNA evidence is found at the crime scene, the statute of limitations for most crimes does not start to run until the DNA evidence is matched to a criminal in the database. This means that criminals will not be able to escape justice merely because they were able to avoid capture for a specific period of time. This bill also contains the Crime Victims Act for which I am an original cosponsor. This act provides victims with the right to be heard and considered during Federal criminal prosecutions. As I know everyone here agrees, we owe it to rape victims, crime victims in our society as a whole, to do all we can to apprehend violent criminals. This bill takes a significant step in that direction. I thank Senator Hatch for his excellent leadership, being so steadfast in doggedly pursuing the agreement necessary in the Senate to pass this bill. Passage of this bill is a testament to his leadership as chairman of our committee. I also thank Senators Leahy, Biden, and Feinstein for working tirelessly to achieve this momentous outcome. I thank Chairman Sensenbrenner, as well as Representative Delahunt in the House for their outstanding leadership that resulted in a nearly unanimous vote of support by that body. Our great Nation will be safer and our confidence in our standing judicial system will be reinforced as a result of this timely and much needed legislation. I would also like to thank the many staff who worked on this bill. Specifically, I would like to recognize the Chief Counsels of the Senate and House Judiciary Committees for their commitment to get this bill done: Bruce Artim and Phil Kiko. I also thank Brett Tolman, who crafted a key compromise in the bill that allowed the parties to come together; Katy Crooks, who worked tirelessly to better this bill; Jay Apperson and Mark Agrast, who brought their outstanding wisdom to the process, Julie Katzman, Neil McBride, Jon Meyer, Christine Leonard, Louisa Terrell, Bruce Cohen, Tara Magner, David Brog, Ted Lehman and David Hantman for their strong knowledge of critical issues; and my exceptional legislative team that worked so very hard on this for me and the people of Ohio: Paul Palagyi, Peter Levitas, Robin Blackwell, Ann O'Donnell and my Crime Counsel Robert Steinbuch. And my former Crime Counsel Evelyn Fortier.

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I rise this evening to thank----

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

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I thank the Chair and yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that I be allowed to speak for 12 minutes and that immediately after I speak Senator Landrieu be recognized.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. I will explain a little bit to my colleagues what the bill we sent to the conference committee would have done, because I want to explain the gravity of this. I will talk a little bit about the nature of what the tobacco companies can do that nobody else can do. I will start with macaroni and cheese. We all buy it. If one has kids, they buy it, anyway. We all know what it is. I ask my colleagues, when they go home tonight, to look at the carton of macaroni and cheese and read what is in it. I am not going to bother to read everything that is in it but it has everything. It has calories, salt; then there is a whole long list of enriched macaroni, durum wheat flour, citric acid, sodium phosphate. It goes on and on. The thing one has to do is have pretty good eyes. If one is my age, they have to hold it back a little bit to make sure they can read it well, but it is there, and it can be read. Everything one wants to know, and probably more; every health item in the world. The same company makes Marlboros. Try to figure out what is in here. If you do not smoke, go buy one, anyway, and take a look at it, or pick it up if you do not want to support the tobacco companies. Take a look. There is nothing on here. There is a Surgeon General warning but there is not a whole lot on here. One cannot tell what is on here. Do my colleagues know why? Tobacco is exempt. Nobody regulates them. Nobody requires them to list what is in here. The same company: One makes macaroni and cheese and one makes Marlboros. Why? Because it is not in the law. How long are we going to put up with this? It is wrong. Now I will turn to the claims that cigarettes make. Marlboro Lights, well, that must mean something. I am sure it means something, but we do not know what it means. Yogurt, light yogurt. When you see light yogurt, it means something. When you turn it around, it says one-third fewer calories, and it better be one-third fewer calories. Definable, measurable; it means something. If it is on cigarettes, it doesn't mean anything. It may mean something. I don't know what it means. Again, no Government regulation. Cigarette companies are exempt. A loophole this law would have closed, now they stripped it out and it will not close it now. Tell me that is right. Explain that to the American taxpayer. Explain that to American citizens. Why? No explanation. There is no logic behind that. How about the claims of cigarettes? ``Premium Lights.'' Again we are back to the ``lights.'' ``All of the taste, less of the toxins.'' The average person who buys cigarettes probably thinks this means something. Maybe it does. Maybe it doesn't. We will never know. We will never know as long as this Congress continues to refuse to regulate the tobacco industry. We will never know. The American consumer will never know whether, when the cigarette companies put claims on here like ``all of the taste, less of the toxins,'' that is really true or whether ``less of the toxins'' means anything. Most people would think it would. Maybe that is healthier or not as dangerous, but we don't know that and we never will know it until this Congress changes the status quo. Here is another one. This is Eclipse, ``20 Class A cigarettes,'' it says. Here is what it says on the back, and again who knows if this is true: Scientific studies show that compared with other cigarettes, Eclipse may present less risk of cancer, bronchitis, and possibly emphysema, reduces secondhand smoke by 80 percent, leaves no lingering odor in hair or clothes. That is important. Then, of course, they add: All cigarettes present some health risk, including Eclipse. That is nice of them to say. Again, how do we know the accuracy of this claim? But again the average consumer picks this up and feels a little better with this. There is nobody to test it, nobody to regulate it. Some people say: Mike DeWine, adults ought to know no cigarette is safe. So buyer beware. Who cares? I don't think that is the right attitude because I believe some adults do rely on less tar, less this, lighter, and scientific studies have shown that. But what about kids? It is here that the cigarette companies reach the low point, absolutely the low point where nobody can defend them. I will challenge anybody to come to this floor and defend what they are doing. I have a whole bag of these. This is what they are doing. The cigarettes I am holding in front of me are not focused on a 57-year-old Camel smoker, I will guarantee. I don't see any 57-year-old Camel smokers smoking this stuff. These are aimed at kids. Let me read it to you: Camel Mandarin Mint: A blend of menthol and citrus flavor. This is Liquid Coconut Flavor, Liquid Zoo: An exotic blend of coconut flavored tobacco for a sweet, fresh taste and aroma. Camel Beach Breezer: Sultry, smooth and swingin'. Oh, this one, this is the old one, I guess; this is a Camel Kauai Kolada: Hawaiian hints of pineapple and coconut. There we go. It goes on and on. This is really exotic. This is Mocha Taboo: Inviting and surprising, Mocha Taboo will entice you with its sweet indulgence, while leaving you with a refreshment that's unmistakably menthol. And again, Liquid Zoo flavored cigarettes: An exotic blend of coconut flavored tobaccos for a sweet, fresh taste and aroma. I invite my colleagues, if any Senator wants to, to come up later and actually smell these; it will not permeate the entire Chamber, but if you get close you can smell them. This is something kids would like. This is clearly targeted at kids, and this is what they are selling. Nothing stops them from selling this. This bill would at least stop them from selling this trash. It is not prohibition. But these products are designed for one reason and one reason only--to get kids hooked. It is an entry level drug. You entice them, you get them in, start them on this, and move them to something else. There is no other reason. When we vote for this conference report and condone what the conferees have done, we are saying it is OK to allow this to continue. This is Sports Illustrated. Any kid in this country who likes sports--I have had a whole household full of them, and I still have one at home--reads Sports Illustrated. This is a new edition, ``Smashing In St. Louis.'' Everybody reads Sports Illustrated. Why should kids be subjected to full-page ads in Sports Illustrated, full-page, color, inviting ads? There it is. We have tolerated this for too long in this country. I had a Senator, when we were discussing this off the floor, tell me that he didn't trust the FDA. I have had people tell me that. I guess my reaction to that would be, do you trust the people who are trying to hook our kids with this stuff? Do you trust them? Do you want them to continue to try to hook our kids with this stuff? I hope not. People would say it is too late, this bill is already done. I agree, this bill is done. But we should be sending a message and we should be saying we are not going to tolerate this Senate passing this bill, this FDA reform, sending it on to the House, and then having it stripped out of this conference report. It is too serious an issue. It is too important. I am not the only one who feels that this is a public health vote of immense importance. I have a letter from the American Lung Association dated October 7. I would like to read it in part: Dear Senator DeWine: How can the Congress give $10 billion to tobacco growers without requiring anyone to exit the tobacco farming business and fail to do anything for public health? This in unconscionable. Over 440,000 people die prematurely from tobacco-related illness each year and two thousand children become addicted regular smokers every day. Nearly 90 percent of lung cancer and 80 to 90 percent of emphysema and chronic bronchitis are caused by tobacco use. Despite this deadly assault on lung health, tobacco products are the most unregulated consumer products on the market today.... Please implore your colleagues to change course and include the FDA oversight of tobacco in the FSC bill. Tobacco companies continue to aggressively market their products to our children, cynically targeting ``replacement smokers'' for those who die or quit smoking. New flavored cigarettes including R.J. Reynolds' Camel Exotic Blends Kauai Koloda with ``Hawaiian hints of pineapple and coconut'' and Kool Caribbean Chill and Mocha Taboo are aimed at young people. The tobacco companies make health claims of ``reduced carcinogens'' or ``less toxins'' without any oversight of the veracity of the statements or their impact on health. FDA regulation of tobacco would: Ban flavored cigarettes. Stop illegal sales of tobacco products to children and adolescents. Require changes in tobacco products, such as the reduction or elimination of harmful chemicals, to make them less harmful or less addictive. Restrict advertising and promotions that appeal to children and adolescents. That was from the American Lung Association. This is a letter from the American Thoracic Society: Dear Senator DeWine: Congress is about to give the Big Tobacco the one thing they want, continued access to the most attractive market for their deadly products--our children. Don't let Big Tobacco continue to peddle their products to our children. The best way to protect our nation's children from the continuing disease and addiction caused Big Tobacco and their deadly products is by granting the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the authority to regulate tobacco. The bipartisan compromised reached in the Senate FSC bill would have granted the FDA the authority needed to regulate tobacco and reduce underage smoking throughout America. Unfortunately, during conference the supporters of Big Tobacco struck the one provision that would have given our children a fighting chance against the pervasive marketing power of tobacco companies. If Congress fails to give FDA the authority to regulate tobacco, our children will pay the price. Children will pay the price through a lifetime of addiction to tobacco products. Children will pay through the diseases associated with tobacco addiction--lung disease, heart disease and cancer. Children will pay the price, literally, with their lives. Here is another letter from the Ohio Children's Hospital Association: Dear Senator DeWine: I write today to express the terrible disappointment felt among Ohio's children's hospitals that Congress has lost an opportunity to protect the health of America's children. This is a shameful waste of a rare opportunity to take the bold action needed to reduce a staggeringly dangerous health risk that hurts kids and increases the cost of health care. Ohio has been working hard to reduce youth smoking, and children's hospitals have long been at the frontlines of this battle to protect our children from the devastating tool that tobacco exacts. But, for every step forward we take (youth smoking in Ohio is down recently), we face a barrage of new and cunning attempts by the tobacco industry to regain its foothold with Ohio's children. The tobacco industry is spending more than ever to market its products in ways that appeal to children. As a depressing example, we now face the prospect of candy-flavored cigarettes. Across the country, every day 2,000 more children become regular smokers, one-third of whom will die prematurely as a result. FDA regulation of tobacco products represents the best tool for combating the tobacco industry's reckless assault on our children's health. We need the FDA to have the authority to subject tobacco products to the same rigorous standards we impose on other consumer products, including ingredient disclosure, truthful packaging and advertising, and manufacturing controls. Here is a letter from the American Heart Association: To the Members of the U.S. Senate: On behalf of the American Heart Associations' 22.5 million volunteers and advocates, I write you to express our deep dismay over the Foreign Sales Corporation (FSC) conference vote that failed to grant the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authority to regulate tobacco products. This represents a squandered opportunity to protect the public against dangerous tobacco products, a failure to protect our children from the marketing of tobacco products, and also the adoption of the wrong tobacco buyout plan. How can Congress explain such neglect for our nation's health? Tobacco use is responsible for more than 440,000 deaths each year, with more than one in three from heart disease or stroke. Each day, 4,000 youth try their first cigarette and 2,000 become regular daily smokers. This FDA legislation offered our best chance to reverse that trend and reduce the senseless death and disease that results from tobacco use. Finally, a letter from Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids: Dear Senator DeWine: We were profoundly disappointed by yesterday's decision by the House/Senate conference on the FSC legislation not to include provisions establishing FDA regulation of tobacco products. An historic opportunity to protect the Nation's children and the nation's health was lost. Enacting FDA regulation of tobacco products is the single most important thing Congress could do to reduce cancer, heart disease, emphysema, chronic bronchitis and a host of other diseases. It is the single most important thing Congress could do to improve the health of our children and protect our children from unscrupulous marketing by an industry that produces a product that kills one out of two long-term users. Close to 90 percent of all tobacco users start as children. First and foremost, it is our children who were ignored and who are the big losers by the decision not to include FDA in the FSC/ETI legislation. The tragedy is not only that an opportunity to prevent disease has slipped through our fingers, but also that literally hundreds of thousands, if not millions of kids, one addicted, eventually will die of these tobacco-related diseases. And these deaths will be needless. They will occur because of the actions of the House/Senate Conferees who failed to include FDA in the original Conference draft and who voted not to add it to the final bill. Tobacco use is also a leading cause of premature birth. If congress had given FDA authority over tobacco products, Congress could have dramatically reduced the number of children born prematurely with serious medical programs due to tobacco use. Rarely does Congress have the opportunity to take an action that will improve the lives and well being of millions of Americans. This was such an opportunity. Tobacco companies market candy flavored cigarettes, promote their products in a myriad of ways that make them more appealing to children, hide the truth about the dangers of their products and fail to take even the most minimal steps to reduce the number of Americans who die from tobacco use. By the decision not to include the FDA provisions adopted overwhelmingly by the Senate in this bill, Congress is doing nothing to stop them. Yesterday's vote by the FSA conference committee against FDA authority over tobacco is a big victory for the tobacco industry that will carry a heavy price in lives lost and kids addicted to tobacco. The Nation will also pay a price in growing cynicism about government when Congress appears willing to trade tax breaks for kid's lives. We urge all Senators and Members of Congress to oppose the FSC Conference Report until the FDA provisions are included. In conclusion, I think if you gave the average American a list, maybe if you give them a quiz and you said here is a list of macaroni and cheese, peanut butter, granola bars, milk, cheese, cigarettes, bottled water, and asked them to check which one of these products the Government does not regulate, check which one of these products the maker of the product doesn't have to list the ingredients, which one of these products was not tested, which one of these products the maker of the product can put a claim on and not have to substantiate, which one will the average American pick? You would think they would pick the one product that by design or if it is used as intended, admittedly we all know is dangerous to your health. I don't think so. It defies common sense. No one in their right mind would pick that product. No one in their right mind, if we were starting all over again, would say, That is the product we are not going to regulate; we are not going to list the ingredients on that product; that is the worst product we are going to allow the manufacturer to make any claim they want--lighter, better, safer, whatever they want to say. Yet that is the status of the law today. By approving this conference report and by saying, yes, we are going to move forward with it--that will be the vote tomorrow--we are acquiescing in that. We are saying it is OK to give up the opportunity we had, the best shot we have had in years to change the status quo and to say we are not going to tolerate this anymore; we are not going to put up with this anymore. The time is here to change that. It defies common sense. There are historic votes in this Chamber. This is a historic vote. This is a historic time. This was a historic opportunity to make a difference and to change things. I often think, as a public official and as an American, we do not want to be on the wrong side of history. We all have our own list of things that if we were here or if we were involved in this debate 10 years, 20 years ago, 50 years ago, 100 years ago we would not have wanted to be on a particular side. I don't want to be overly dramatic, but Members do not want to be on the wrong side of this debate. We may lose this time, but there will be a day when the American people rise up and say they have had enough, and this Congress hears it and this Congress takes votes to finally regulate this product, as we do every other product, and finally say we have had enough. We are going to make the tobacco companies list what is in the product, list the ingredients, come clean with the American people and say, This is what is in it, and hold them to the same standard we hold for a company that makes peanut butter of macaroni and cheese, a granola bar, a bottle of water or milk. They should not be above the law. Someday that will happen. I say to my colleagues, that day will come. That day may not be this session of Congress, but it will come. People do want to be on the right side of history. We will regulate them. We will bring them into the mainstream. This is a very dangerous product. We are not going to go to prohibition. That has not worked in this country. It did not work with alcohol, and it will not work with cigarettes. That is not what this debate is about. This debate is about common sense, about doing what is rational, about doing something that makes good common sense. I conclude by urging my colleagues to vote no on this bill, to vote no on cloture, to send a message strongly and loudly that we have had enough, and it is time to bring tobacco into the mainstream of the law. No longer should they be outside the law. A ``no'' vote tomorrow is a vote for safety and the health of our kids. It is a vote or the safety and the health of the American people. I yield the floor.

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I rise this afternoon to discuss the FSC bill. Some may view this as a tax bill, and it is; some have called it the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004, and I think that is fair; I am sure it will do that. But let me say to the Members of the Senate, my colleagues, what this bill could have been, what this bill should have been, and what it was when it left here, when we sent it to the conference committee. What it should have been, what it could have been, what it was was the most important public health bill to be considered by this Congress. Before the FDA provision to regulate tobacco was stripped out by the conference committee, it was the most important public health bill to be considered by this Congress. It was the most important children's health bill to come before this Congress. Tragically, the conference committee stripped out the FDA provision that would have, for the first time, put the marketing of the sale of tobacco under the same terms and conditions as the sale of every other product in this country. In this bill, which has so many things in it, there just wasn't room, according to the conference committee, for this FDA provision. This is a sad day for the Congress. This Senate voted on an amendment, 78 to 15, to include the tobacco buyout that helped tobacco farmers, which I supported and continue to support, coupled with, for the first time, having the tobacco controlled like every other product in this country and regulated by the Government. This bill we have in front of us represents a missed opportunity. It is a missed opportunity to help our children, our grandchildren, and the public health. Two thousand children a day in this country start smoking; 400,000 people a year die of tobacco-related diseases. Yet we failed in this bill; we turned our back on this historic opportunity. I truly believe that in public life, as well as in life as individuals, we are judged not only by what we do, but also by what we fail to do. I think we ultimately are held accountable for what we don't do. So I intend to vote no on this bill. I intend to vote no on cloture because of the failure of the conferees to include this historic provision. We had the opportunity and missed the opportunity to close this loophole in the law, to deal with this anomaly in the law. Every product that comes on the market is regulated. When you walk in the supermarket today and you buy a product, every single product is regulated. The ingredients are on the package. If there is a claim that is made, that has to be substantiated. Every single product, except one, and that product is tobacco--cigarettes and smokeless tobacco; they are exempt. King tobacco is exempt in the law today. That is wrong. This bill, as we sent it out of the Senate, in the wisdom of the Senate, would have changed that. Yet the conferees stripped out that provision. So we should vote no on cloture and on the conference report. This was a historic opportunity that will not come again. The coupling of the tobacco buyout and the coupling of the FDA-controlled tobacco--we will not have the opportunity to do that again. This bill, in fact, contained the tobacco buyout. I support that. If this bill passes, the tobacco buyout will be done and we will no longer have the opportunity to couple these together. We will have lost that--let's be candid--political opportunity to put these two together. So we have lost that chance and that opportunity. A yes vote on this conference report, a yes vote on cloture says it was OK to strip that out. A yes vote says it is OK to turn our backs on our kids once again on this issue. A yes vote says it is OK, the status quo is fine, and business as usual is fine. How long are we going to tolerate this? How long are we going to say tobacco is different than every other product in this country? How long are we going to say tobacco should not be regulated? How long are we going to say when one goes in and buys products on the market, every other product is regulated, one knows what they are buying but not tobacco? Why should tobacco be different? Some Members may say, I cannot vote against this bill; there is too much in it. It has too much for my State, too many good things. There are a lot of good things in there. There are things for my home State of Ohio. There are some things in there that are not that good, but there are some good things in that bill, and I know that. I have been in politics and Government for 30 years. I have been in the Senate for 10 years. I have cast a lot of votes. When people say, I cannot vote no, when people say I have to do it, I say this to them: I have been in politics for 30 years, and they do not have to do anything. There is nothing that compels anybody to vote any way on any bill. The longer one is doing this, I think the more they realize that. So I say to my colleagues, they do not have to vote for this bill. They do not have to vote for cloture. There is nothing that compels them to. It is the wrong vote. Sometimes one has to look at the big picture. Sometimes I think my colleagues have to stand back from what would appear to be the parochial interests and look at the big interests, but I would maintain that if they look at the interests of their State and look at the interests of the people of their State, not to mention the interests of the people of their country, they will come to the conclusion that voting no on the motion on cloture, no on this bill is the right thing to do. Look at my home State of Ohio. Yes, there are good things in here for Ohio, but I will read to my colleagues the statistics from Ohio. I share them with my colleagues as an example of what their State is probably like as well. Here are the statistics from the State of Ohio: 22.2 percent of high school students smoke; 12.8 percent of the male high school students use smokeless or spit tobacco. The number of kids under 18 who become new daily smokers each year is 36,800. The number of kids who are exposed--this is all just Ohio, now. The number of kids who are exposed to secondhand smoke at home, 919,000; packs of cigarettes bought or smoked by kids each year in Ohio, 36.3 million; adults in Ohio who smoke, 2,251,000. That is 26.6 percent. How about deaths from smoking? Adults who die each year from their own smoking, that is 18,900 just in my home State of Ohio. Kids now under 18 and alive in Ohio who will ultimately, if they continue to smoke, die prematurely from smoking, 314,000. Adults, children, and babies who die each year from others' smoking, that is secondhand smoke, is estimated between 1,800 to 3,200. If we do not care about people, what about dollars and cents? Well, annual health care costs in Ohio directly caused by smoking, $3.41 billion. That is ``billion.'' Portions covered by the State Medicaid program, that is what you and I pay if you are a resident of Ohio, $1.11 billion, and it goes on. Smoking-caused productivity losses in Ohio, that is $4.14 billion; resident State and Federal tax burden from smoking-caused Government expenditures, that is $534 per household. Those are the figures. I look at this vote and I try to balance the fact that there are some good things that might be in here for my State versus what we could have achieved, what we could have done, and it is a pretty easy choice. The conference committee had no business scuttling the will of the Senate and throwing out the FDA provision. It was wrong. They should not have done that. I ask unanimous consent to use a few items in my speech. I am looking at them right now. They are some packages of cigarettes, a macaroni and cheese carton, yogurt, as well as a Sports Illustrated Magazine.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I rise this evening to say thank you to the men and women serving in our Armed Forces. Too often, we don't take the time to show our appreciation and tell them what their service means to us. They are there for us each day, dedicated to protecting all that we hold dear. They are there for us, making our world more secure. They are there for us, making our world a better place--a safer place. They are there for us, protecting our freedom. That freedom, though, as we know so well, does not come without a price. It does not come without sacrifice. As General Douglas MacArthur once said: The soldier, above all other men, is required to perform the highest act of religious teaching--sacrifice. . . . The soldier who is called upon to offer and to give his life for his country is the noblest development of mankind. This evening, I rise to honor a Mansfield, OH, serviceman who selflessly gave his life while saving those of his comrades. Army SP Allen Jeffrey Vandayburg--``A.J.'' to his family and friends--earned the Bronze Star Medal with Valor for his final act of bravery--an act that ultimately saved the lives of the men and women serving with him. On April 9, 2004, in Barez , Iraq, A.J. and other members of the Army's 1st Infantry Division--the ``Big Red One''--found themselves in the middle of a fierce firefight with Iraqi insurgents. A.J. was manning the gunner position of his Bradley fighting vehicle when his unit was fired upon. According to an official Army report, A.J. fought valiantly, drawing enemy fire to himself. The report detailed the following: Vandayburg's unparalleled reflexes allowed him to destroy an [enemy] who was attempting to fire a rocket propelled grenade within 50 meters of his vehicle. Vandayburg had to swivel the entire turret, acquire the target, and destroy the enemy before the rocket-propelled grenade could be fired. A.J. prevented that grenade from hitting his convoy. He saved many lives that day--an act that ultimately took his own life. His valiant efforts prompted the insurgents to focus their fire on his vehicle. A.J. was killed in the onslaught. He was just 20 years old. A.J. was truly a great soldier--a courageous young man who put the safety of others above his own. We will never be able to repay A.J. for what he has done, and we will never be able to honor him the way he truly deserves. We can, however, remember this American hero as he was--as a strong, independent young man who did a great deal of good in this world. In his all too brief 20 years, A.J. touched many lives. His mother, Chantil, fondly recalls that ``everybody loved him.'' It was his smile; it was hard to stay mad at him.'' A.J.'s father, Allen, remembers that he was the kind of kid who could walk into a room and just light it up. A.J. loved his family very much. In the summers, A.J. always looked forward to their family vacation to Myrtle Beach, SC. A.J. loved kids. Family friend, Kim Loveland, recalled that she would pay A.J. to watch her children, only to have him turn around and use the money to buy the kids candy. A.J. went to Mansfield High School, where he played golf and baseball. He was known as a ``good guy'' who had a lot of good friends. After graduation in 2001, A.J. enlisted in the Army. He would eventually serve in Kosovo, Germany, Kuwait, and Iraq. Allen and Chantil Vandayburg treasure the picture they have of their son with children in Kosovo. Allen likes to call A.J. ``a warrior who also had a soft side.'' A.J. was a lot like his father. Allen is a 25-year veteran of the Mansfield Police Department. A.J. learned from his dad the value of public service and how to trust your comrades--lessons he would bring with him overseas. A.J.'s parents knew that their son believed in what he was doing in Iraq. A.J. e-mailed them as often as he could and would tell them not to worry--that he trusted his fellow soldiers and knew they would look out for him. In his final battle, it was A.J. who paid the ultimate sacrifice for his comrades and for Iraqis he did not know. A friend of A.J.'s, Nathan Pival, who is serving in Afghanistan, posted the following message on a Web site honoring A.J.: A.J.--I found out what happened to you my first week in Afghanistan. To say the least, I felt like a piece of me died, too. I mean, who would have thought that you and me would end up in the Army after high school? I know you didn't find out I was in the service until you tried to call my cell when I was in Basic, but I want you to know that you were the person that helped to convince me that the military would help me out. It has helped me. . . . You are a hero, and you did the right thing, and that is what matters. I believe in a higher purpose, so I know I will see you again some day, but I'm still pretty upset that I am going to have to wait so long to tell my Army stories to my buddy who motivated me to join. If it wasn't for you, I'd probably . . . be going nowhere. I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you man. See you again someday. A.J.'s family found solace in the final act of devotion from one brother to another. Though he described it as ``the hardest thing I've ever had to do,'' A.J.'s brother Chris, a Marine, crossed military branches to escort his brother's body from Dover Air Force Base to their home in Mansfield. Hundreds of people came to support the Vandayburg family at A.J.'s memorial service. Hundreds more lined the funeral route. The outpouring of support was a truly moving display. At the memorial service, Reverend David Root spoke to the standing-room-only crowd. He said: [A.J.] was special and that is why you are all here. He chose to take the tough road. He knew the risks. . . . He changed the history of this country. A.J. Vandayburg was indeed special. He will be remembered always for his bravery, compassion, and sacrifice. He will be remembered as a hero. I close my remarks with the heartfelt words of A.J.'s 11-year-old sister, Taylor. Her words speak volumes about A.J., her hero--and A.J., her big brother: Bubby, you are my biggest hero, and I will always love you, but that does not mean I am still not mad at you for leaving, `cause I am. But, I will always and forever love you. I miss you so much. You are loved and missed so much by me, Mom, Dad, and Chris. . . . You are my hero and my bubby and I love you so much. I am not saying goodbye because you are not gone. You are still with me, and you are the biggest and bravest soldier I know and I know God has a plan for you, but I had one for you to be right here beside me. You still are. I love you so much. Abuse of Foreign Detainees

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I rise today to submit a Resolution that would recognize the value and importance of automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in our Nation's communities. It is an important Resolution that sends a message of support to our communities, neighborhoods, schools and businesses. For my colleagues who do not know, AEDs or automated external defibrillators, are devices that, when used properly, administer an electric shock through the chest wall to the heart. These devices are used on people who are suffering from heart attacks or have gone into full cardiac arrest. Many of my colleagues may have seen these devices in airports or in other public spaces such as stadiums or shopping malls. They have been made widely visible and available because, according to the American Heart Association, ``AEDs strengthen the chain of survival. They can restore a normal heart rhythm in sudden cardiac arrest victims.'' What makes AEDs so valuable to our communities is that they are extremely effective and they are easy to use. A microprocessor, which is embedded in the AEDs analyzes a person's heart rhythm and determines whether an electrical shock is necessary to restore normal heart function. The American Heart Association makes clear the value of having access to AEDs--``When a person suffers a sudden cardiac arrest, for each minute that passes without defibrillation, their chance of survival decreases by 7 to 10 percent.'' Fortunately, many communities have realized the benefit of AEDs and have begun creating Public Access Defibrillation programs (PADs). There are a number of Public Access Defibrillation programs throughout our country, and I'm happy to say a few of them are in Ohio. These State, local and community PAD programs are a valuable asset because they ensure that automated external defibrillation accessible and available to cardiac arrest victims in the community and provide appropriate training in performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the use of automated external defibrillators. This resolution simply recognizes the Public Access Defibrillator programs for all of their good work to make it possible for communities to access these life-saving devices. My resolution also encourages the continued creation of PADs so that more people, in more places, have access to AEDs. Finally, my Senate colleagues and I have long supported automatic external defibrillators and their increased use in communities, particularly rural communities. In fact, just this year, the Senate Labor Health and Human Services Appropriations subcommittee provides $10,933,000 for rural and community access to emergency devices. This funding provides grants to expand placement of automatic external defibrillators and to provide for training. I ask my colleagues to support this resolution, to pass this resolution, and to encourage the continued development of Public Access Defibrillator (PAD) programs.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, today I rise with my colleague, Senator Jack Reed, to introduce the Services for Ending Long-Term Homelessness Act. I would like to thank Senator Reed for his support in introducing this bill. I appreciate his dedication and commitment to this issue. The chronically homeless are about 10 percent of the entire homeless population, but consume a majority of the services. There are approximately 200,000 to 250,000 people who experience chronic homelessness. Those numbers include the heads of families, as well. Tragically, for these individuals, the periods of homelessness are measured in years--not weeks and months. They tend to have disabling health and behavioral health problems: 40 percent have substance abuse disorders, 25 percent have a physical disability, and 20 percent have serious mental illness. These factors often contribute to a person becoming homeless, in the first place, and are certainly an impediment to overcoming it. The President has set a goal of ending chronic homelessness in 10 years. The President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, chaired by the Ohio Department of Mental Health Director, Mike Hogan, recommended that a comprehensive program be created to facilitate access to permanent supportive housing for individuals and families who are chronically homeless. This recommendation is so important because affordable housing, alone, is not enough for this hard to reach group. And, temporary shelter-housing does not provide the stability and services needed to provide long-term positive outcomes. Only supportive housing, where the chronically homeless can receive shelter and services, such as mental health and substance abuse treatment, has been effective in decreasing their chances of returning to the streets and increasing their chances for leading productive lives. Not only is it right to help this group of hard to reach individuals, but it is also fiscally responsible. This group is one of the most expensive groups to serve. As I mentioned previously, they represent 10 percent of the overall homeless population, however they consume a majority of the services for the homeless. They consume the most emergency housing and health care services, which are also the most costly to provide. By encouraging supportive housing, we are providing the services necessary for these individuals and families to really get back on their feet. We can either continue to provide expensive emergency services to these needy people or we can give them the right kind of help--the type of help they need for their long-term well-being and long-term well-being of our communities. Unfortunately, current programs for funding services in permanent supportive housing, other than those administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), were not designed to be coordinated with housing programs. These programs were also not designed to meet the challenging needs of this specific subgroup of the homeless. That is why the bill we are introducing today would provide the authorization to fund services to the chronically homeless in supportive housing by providing grants which can be used with existing programs through HUD and State and local communities. This bill also would encourage those who provide services to the chronically homeless, such as SAMHSA within the Department of Health and Human Services, to work with and coordinate their efforts with those who provide the physical housing, such as HUD. Under the current administration, these two departments have started to truly coordinate their efforts and this bill would encourage and support that continued collaboration. This is a good bill, and it could make a real difference in the lives of so many individuals in need. I ask my colleagues to join us in support. I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, today I rise with my colleague, Senator Jack Reed, to introduce the Services for Ending Long-Term Homelessness Act. I would like to thank Senator Reed for his support in introducing this bill. I appreciate his dedication and commitment to this issue. The chronically homeless are about 10 percent of the entire homeless population, but consume a majority of the services. There are approximately 200,000 to 250,000 people who experience chronic homelessness. Those numbers include the heads of families, as well. Tragically, for these individuals, the periods of homelessness are measured in years--not weeks and months. They tend to have disabling health and behavioral health problems: 40 percent have substance abuse disorders, 25 percent have a physical disability, and 20 percent have serious mental illness. These factors often contribute to a person becoming homeless, in the first place, and are certainly an impediment to overcoming it. The President has set a goal of ending chronic homelessness in 10 years. The President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, chaired by the Ohio Department of Mental Health Director, Mike Hogan, recommended that a comprehensive program be created to facilitate access to permanent supportive housing for individuals and families who are chronically homeless. This recommendation is so important because affordable housing, alone, is not enough for this hard to reach group. And, temporary shelter-housing does not provide the stability and services needed to provide long-term positive outcomes. Only supportive housing, where the chronically homeless can receive shelter and services, such as mental health and substance abuse treatment, has been effective in decreasing their chances of returning to the streets and increasing their chances for leading productive lives. Not only is it right to help this group of hard to reach individuals, but it is also fiscally responsible. This group is one of the most expensive groups to serve. As I mentioned previously, they represent 10 percent of the overall homeless population, however they consume a majority of the services for the homeless. They consume the most emergency housing and health care services, which are also the most costly to provide. By encouraging supportive housing, we are providing the services necessary for these individuals and families to really get back on their feet. We can either continue to provide expensive emergency services to these needy people or we can give them the right kind of help--the type of help they need for their long-term well-being and long-term well-being of our communities. Unfortunately, current programs for funding services in permanent supportive housing, other than those administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), were not designed to be coordinated with housing programs. These programs were also not designed to meet the challenging needs of this specific subgroup of the homeless. That is why the bill we are introducing today would provide the authorization to fund services to the chronically homeless in supportive housing by providing grants which can be used with existing programs through HUD and State and local communities. This bill also would encourage those who provide services to the chronically homeless, such as SAMHSA within the Department of Health and Human Services, to work with and coordinate their efforts with those who provide the physical housing, such as HUD. Under the current administration, these two departments have started to truly coordinate their efforts and this bill would encourage and support that continued collaboration. This is a good bill, and it could make a real difference in the lives of so many individuals in need. I ask my colleagues to join us in support. I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I want to thank Senator Jeffords from Vermont for his recognition of the situation we are facing in the Great Lakes with Asian carp. We are currently trying to keep this invasive species out of the Great Lakes ecosystem by constructing a dispersal barrier in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. It is very important that this barrier be completed soon before this destructive invasive species makes it way to the Lakes. I know that my colleague from Vermont has the same problem in Lake Champlain, and I plan to do everything I can in the next Congress to work with him to authorize and fund a dispersal barrier for Lake Champlain.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. I thank my colleague for her answer, and that is something that should alarm all the Members of the Senate. I believe there is a general consensus--certainly there is in the intelligence community, a general consensus at least, and I think there is among Members of the Senate--that the power of the DCI today is not enough, and to think that we would be thinking about passing a bill that would pass with this amendment possibly that would weaken the head of our intelligence agencies and give that person less power to me is a shocking thought. I believe our whole goal should, in a very responsible, rational way, create a new system, which this bill has done, to empower one person to have the authority to run the intelligence in this country. I am afraid, as this discussion has pointed out between my colleagues and myself, that the Byrd amendment will take us actually in the wrong direction. It is a weakening amendment. At least for this Member, it is a gutting amendment. It, frankly, would make it impossible for me to vote for this bill. It would destroy the power of the head of intelligence, this new position, and it would be the wrong thing to do. It is very well intended, but it would be a very serious mistake. This discussion we just had certainly brings that out. Again, I want to congratulate my colleagues. They have done a very good job in trying to deal with all of the diverse needs we have in the intelligence community, the Defense Department, and all the other agencies. It has been a very tough job, and I congratulate them for their work. I yield the floor.

Mr. DeWINE. When I came to the Senate floor last week, I was asking questions of both the Senator from Connecticut and my colleague from Maine, and I was happy to hear some of the answers about the Senator's understanding of this bill that has been drafted, but I am concerned that under the amendment from our colleague from West Virginia, these powers would be gone. For example, I asked about the ability to move personnel around, and the Senator assured me under his bill the national intelligence director would be able to move personnel around from one department to another as long as it was a national intelligence program. Is it the Senator's understanding under the amendment from our colleague from West Virginia that power would be gone?

Mr. DeWINE. The other programs that are not national intelligence programs would not come under, then, the national intelligence director?

Mr. DeWINE. That is the way the Senator's bill is written?

Mr. DeWINE. If I may ask an additional question for Senators who are watching today, maybe the answer is obvious, but what is the importance of that distinction, the inability to do that, having that money go through the Defense Department as opposed to the national intelligence director?

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I rise today in support of the Assistive Technology Act of 2004, which passed the Senate last week by unanimous consent on September 30, 2004. I thank Senator Gregg for his commitment to this very important issue and to my colleagues who have spent several months working on this bill. The Assistive Technology Act is legislation that helps those individuals with disabilities receive the necessary equipment, devices, and services that allow them to live independently, improve their education, or assist with employment opportunities. This program is open to all ages, so it may help the smallest child receive equipment that will help him or her in the classroom or older adults who may need a device to adapt their workspace so they continue on the job. Many States, such as Ohio, offer many different services to individuals with disabilities. Successful programs--equipment exchange programs and demonstration centers, for example--help ensure that the individual needing assistance is receiving the appropriate equipment to address the obstacle he or she is trying to overcome. Programs like these and the financial loan program help provide everyone in need with the opportunity to receive and purchase the technology and devices necessary to lead productive lives. This legislation is very important to the millions of individuals with disabilities living in the United States. Again, I thank Senator Gregg and my colleagues on the HELP Committee for working on this issue. I look forward to working with my colleagues on other legislation that will address the needs of individuals with disabilities. I ask unanimous consent the text of three letters from groups supporting the Assistive Technology Act be printed in the Record.