Mike DeWine

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to proceed for 10 minutes as in morning business.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to a truly remarkable Ohioan--a man who has covered Cincinnati Reds baseball for the Dayton Daily News for the last 31 years. This weekend, Hal McCoy will join many legendary baseball players and sports writers when he is inducted into the writers wing of the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame. This is a fitting and well-deserved tribute to a man who reminds all his readers everyday about why we love baseball. I am a life-long fan of the Cincinnati Reds. For the last 31 years, I have counted on Hal McCoy for complete, detailed, objective coverage of their games. When I am back home in Ohio, the first thing I do when I pick up the Dayton Daily News in the morning is read Hal's reports. When I am in Washington, I read them off the Internet. For more than 3 decades, Hal McCoy has brought to life in vivid detail thousands of Reds games. Through his words and insights, he has taken readers, like me, onto the field and into the clubhouse. With his stories, we have felt the players' pride in their wins and the pain in their losses. Hal McCoy has brought readers right to the game, giving us a real glimpse into the highs and lows of the Reds seasons. One of the things I admire most about Hal is his incredible work ethic--unbelievable. Hal McCoy is, some people have said, almost a machine. I have always been amazed by his ability to crank out so much material and so many anecdotes and ``notes'' from the games. Nothing stops him. You pick up the paper in the morning and you see the account of a game. Sometimes you will see a column to go along with that, you will see another story on the back page, and then you will see the notes of the game--sometimes three, sometimes even four stories just in one paper by one writer. That is Hal McCoy. He works and works and works and has an unending, unfettered enthusiasm, after all these years, for the game of baseball. Hal McCoy is a very special man. I wish to take a few minutes today to tell my colleagues a little bit about his life and his career as a sports writer. Hal was born and raised in Akron, OH. He played Little League baseball in Summit County and later graduated from Akron East High School. He then graduated from Kent State University in 1962, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a major in Journalism. Upon receiving his diploma, Hal immediately put his degree to good use when he started a job as a Dayton Journal Herald reporter, covering the Dayton Public prep league. Hal first covered the Cincinnati Reds for the Dayton Daily News in 1973. No one knew at the time that Hal would be holding our Nation's longest-running tenure, covering one team continuously or that he would be recognized as one of the finest journalists in Ohio history, let alone one of the finest ever in his profession. A few years ago, Hal suffered a stroke in his right optic nerve while covering a Reds game in St. Louis. He lost half of his vision as a result. While this would cause most people to slow down or stop, Hal could not be deterred. He overcame this adversity with grace and continued his post with the Reds. Then, on January 23, 2003, Hal suffered a stroke in his other eye. Suddenly, legally blind, Hal was faced with a seemingly insurmountable obstacle-- the eyes that he had been using for years to ``show'' the game to his readers essentially stopped working for him. But, Hal wouldn't let that stop him. He persevered. He never complained. And, when faced with the choice to retire, his resolve to write his legendary stories only became stronger. Today, Hal continues to attend and report on Reds games using a special large-size scorebook that he designed. He says: I tell everybody I'm going to do this until my head hits the laptop, when I pass out in the press box. That's how much I love this job. And let me tell you that Hal's fans couldn't be happier! Many, many Reds fans, like me, still can't wait to get up in the morning and read his stories. That is how much we enjoy his work and what he produces every day. The publisher of the Dayton Daily News, Brad Tillson, has said this of Hal: I've been reading Hal McCoy's coverage of Major League Baseball and the Cincinnati Reds for more than 30 years, and I never cease to be amazed at his insight into the game and his ability to communicate it to the readers. He calls the games as he sees them with candor, integrity, and authority. Sometimes it's more illuminating to read Hal's account of the game than it is to watch it. I must also add that the respect of the players Hal McCoy covers is also very illuminating. When Hal was faced with the loss of his sight, some of the players went to him and told him: You can't quit. You need to keep doing what you love to do. He is held in respect by the people he covers. I think that says a lot about Hal McCoy. Of course, if you ask Hal about the secret to his success, he would respond that it is ``the readers, the people.'' That connection with the people is very powerful. It is not at all surprising that Hal hasn't missed a road series in 30 years. Hal has said: When I sit down at my laptop, it is the readers I have in mind. What would they want to know? I've tried to inform them, entertain them, and tell them the truth to the best of my capacities . . . I can never thank all the readers who have been so supportive. You are what we are all about. It is this humble spirit and gratitude for his readers that Hal's friends and readers love most. As Hal takes his destined place in the writers wing of the Baseball Hall of Fame, I join many other proud Ohioans in saying thank you. Hal Mccoy is a terrific writer, a magnificent storyteller, and an exemplary and well-respected member of his community. My family--my dad and my children--extends its warmest congratulations and sincerest thanks to Hal for his wonderful writing and his dedication to continuing to do what he loves despite difficult challenges. We thank him for his service to the Dayton community, to the Miami Valley, to Ohio, and to our Nation. I look forward to many more Cincinnati Reds seasons that Hal will cover and many more great stories. Thanks Hal. We appreciate the great work you do. I thank the Chair. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I rise today to submit a resolution supporting the establishment of a National Stalking Awareness Month. Each year, approximately 1.4 million Americans--over 1 million women and about 400,000 men--are stalked. This statistic is truly staggering. Yet given the prevalence of stalking, this crime surprisingly goes largely unrecognized. Stalking is an issue that affects 1 in 12 women and 1 in 45 men during their lifetime. It cuts across all lines of race, age, and gender. Women and men from all walks of life across the United States have struggled emotionally and financially to rebuild their lives after being victimized by stalking. Stalking is a tremendous problem, and it is one that we need to do more to address. A National Stalking Awareness Month would help to educate and increase awareness about stalking. This resolution applauds the efforts of policymakers, law enforcement officers, victim service agencies, and non-profit organizations that currently promote awareness of stalking. This resolution also encourages these groups to examine new and innovative ways to promote prevention and prosecution of stalking crimes. By increasing awareness and devising practical, effectual methods for handling stalkers, we can help the police, we can help prosecutors, and most importantly, we can help victims to confront this horrible crime. I encourage my colleagues to support this resolution. We can--and we should--do more to ensure that stalkers are brought to justice and that their victims are not forced to live in fear.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I would like to take a moment this evening to pay tribute to our dear friend and former colleague, Strom Thurmond, a man who gave of himself personally to his constituents and to his colleagues here in the Senate. All of us will always remember Strom. We will remember him seated right in front of the Presiding Officer at his desk. We will remember him for his smile. We will remember him for his greeting. Frankly, I don't think any of us will ever walk into this Chamber again without almost seeing him down there at his desk. He was a man who gave so much of himself to his constituents. We will remember him for the way he treated each one of us, the way he treated his constituents, and the individual attention he gave to us and his constituents. I saw the way he personally dealt with his constituents. I also saw the personal attention he paid to me and the personal interest he took in my family. In particular, I am grateful to him for the hospitality and attention he showed to my son Brian, who just recently graduated from his beloved Clemson University. A few years ago, when I told Strom that my son Brian was going to Clemson, I remember the big smile on his face. Of course, I knew he was a graduate of Clemson. I could tell how delighted and eager he was to share stories about his experience at Clemson. And I remember a lot of those stories. Of course, the first thing he told me was: ``You know, I went to Clemson''--which, of course, I did know. And I then asked him: ``Strom, what year did you graduate from Clemson?'' He said: ``1923.'' I said: ``Strom, that was the year my dad was born''--which it was. During the 4 years that Brian was at Clemson, almost every time I saw Strom on the floor, Strom would say: ``How's your boy? How is that boy of yours doing down at Clemson? Does he like it?'' Of course, I told him he did, which Brian certainly did. After Brian graduated, Strom invited Brian and myself up to his office. Strom showed him all the pictures on the wall. Strom invited him over and had his picture taken with Brian, a picture that Brian now has, and a copy of another picture that I have of Brian and myself and Strom that is in a prominent place in my office today in the Russell Building. Strom Thurmond paid this same level of attention, which he paid to his colleague in the Senate and to his colleague's son, to all his constituents. And we know that. We have all heard the stories. It did not matter whether you were a U.S. Senator or whether you worked in a filling station or who you were in his home State of South Carolina; it did not matter. That was Strom Thurmond. It did not matter who you were, Strom paid attention to you. We have all heard the stories about the birthdays and the anniversaries, constituent problems. It did not matter, Strom was there. Strom Thurmond has left a mark on his State and our country through his kindness and his personal attention to others--a mark that surely will not be forgotten or held in anything less than the highest regard. We thank Strom for his service to our country, to South Carolina, and to the people who will miss his kindness and his friendship. We thank Strom for his extra efforts to help those in need, those he loved, and those he came to the Senate to represent. We will remember this man, our friend, fondly. He was a man of courage, a man of integrity, a man of passion, a man who loved this country dearly. We thank you, Strom. We miss you. We respect you.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate immediately proceed to executive session to consider the following nominations on today's Executive Calendar: Calendar No. 302 and 303. I further ask unanimous consent that the nominations be confirmed, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table and the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action, and that the Senate then return to legislative session.

Mr. DeWINE

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

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to a period of morning business.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand in recess until 9:30 a.m., Thursday, July 24. I further ask consent that following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and the Senate then begin a period of morning business, with the first 15 minutes under the control of the minority leader or his designee, and the next 15 minutes under the control of Senator Hutchison or her designee; provided that following morning business, the Senate resume consideration of Calendar No. 192, H.R. 2555, the Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill. I further ask consent that the Senate observe a moment of silence at 3:40 p.m. tomorrow in honor of Capitol Police Officers Jacob Chestnut and John Gibson.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. If there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate recess under the previous order, following the remarks of Senator Dayton for up to 15 minutes.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the committee amendment be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of calendar No. 143, S. 285.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I thank my colleague. I am sorry we are not able to bring this bill up today. I hope that what I hear from my colleague from Nevada is encouraging words and that we will be able to get an agreement shortly. Let me say, as my colleague from Tennessee, the majority leader, has pointed out, that now in over half the States in the Union, if you commit a crime of violence against a pregnant woman and her unborn baby dies, you can be punished for the violence against both the mother and the unborn child. But the other side of that story is, in roughly half of the States in the Union, they do not have this law, and in the Federal Government we do not have this law. We have been trying to rectify this since 1999, which is the first time I introduced this bill. My colleague Lindsey Graham, who is going to speak in a moment, was the leader in the House of Representatives when they passed the bill several times in the past. So, this is not something that just came up in the last few months. Let me make a couple comments before I yield to my colleague. First, this has nothing to do with abortion. We have a very specific exception in this bill in very definite language that states it has nothing to do with abortion. You can't write it any clearer or any plainer than we have written the language. Second, let me give an example that will show the compelling need for this bill. Even though over half of the States now have very similar legislation, consider this situation. Assume that an airman stationed at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware attacks a pregnant woman--his girlfriend, wife, someone he doesn't know. Assume his intent is to terminate her pregnancy and he savagely beats her with a specific intent to terminate that pregnancy. Assume that, in fact, that is what happens, and the child does, in fact, die. Under current Federal law, the only thing the Federal prosecutor could charge him with is the assault against the mother. The reason for that is there is no Federal law such as the one we are talking about, and Delaware does not have a law. That is not right. That is not justice. We need to say that is not right. We need to close that loophole because everyone in this country, I believe, recognizes there is a second victim, and it is not just, it is not right that that child should not be recognized as a victim. And there is no one in this country who believes that man should walk away with the only charge against him being a simple assault. We had a case in Ohio a few years ago that turned out differently. It was a tragic case, but at least justice was done. It was the exact same case--a man was stationed at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, an airman, had a pregnant girlfriend. He decided that he was going to end her pregnancy. He savagely beat her, terminated her pregnancy. She aborted and lost her child. The Federal prosecutor gets the tragic case and finds out there is no Federal law that says he can charge. He looks around and says: What am I going to do? Fortunately, Ohio had just passed a law similar to this. So under the Federal assimilative law he was able to assimilate the Ohio law into the Federal code and was able to charge him with the murder of the child. But in those States, those 23 States that do not have that, if that Air Force base had been located in any of those States, justice would not have been done. What we are saying is, it is time for there to be justice. It is time for there to be a Federal law. This law simply recognizes what every person in this country understands that there is, in fact, a second victim. I yield back to the majority leader.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to Dave Thomas--a man who was known by many and loved by all. Dave was a great American, who launched an extremely successful career by opening his first Wendy's restaurant in my home State of Ohio in Columbus. He passed away in January 2002, at the age of 69. Earlier this year, along with several of our colleagues, Senator Levin and I introduced--and the Senate accepted by unanimous consent--a resolution to honor Dave Thomas. And today, President George W. Bush is awarding Dave Thomas the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his lifetime of philanthropy and service to his fellow man. While this award is being given to Dave posthumously, his tremendous spirit continues to be felt in Ohio and across our Nation. Although he faced incredible challenges as a child, Dave committed himself to success through a simple life philosophy: ``work hard and be honest.'' Dave grew up in a family that was constantly on the move, his father always looking for steady work. Getting a start in the restaurant business at the young age of 12, Dave worked hard to help his struggling family while going to school at the same time. However, school wasn't easy for Dave Thomas. The constant moving landed him in 12 schools in 10 years. Dave dropped out of the 10th grade because it interfered with his work. He did, however, eventually earn his GED as an adult in 1993, a GED from Coconut Creek High School in Fort Lauderdale, FL. In 1953, Dave had a job working for Phil Clauss at one of his Hobby House restaurants in Fort Wayne, IN, but Dave's father decided to move the family again. Dave refused to leave his job and stayed at a YMCA, without the comforts of home or his loved ones. Soon after, Thomas served in the Korean war as a cook. When he came back, Phil Clauss promoted him to be an assistant manager of his newest Hobby House restaurant. It was then that Dave met COL Harland Sanders, who had stopped by the restaurant one day to promote his Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise. Clauss acquired four in Columbus, but they didn't fare well, so he recruited Thomas to turn them around in exchange for 45 percent ownership. Not surprisingly, Dave succeeded. By 1968, Dave sold his interest back to KFC for $1 million. The capital that Dave collected from the Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants allowed him to open up his own hamburger restaurant in Columbus--and the rest is history. Dave Thomas built his successful restaurant dynasty upon his sound and strong moral beliefs. However, his corporate achievements take a distant second place to his philanthropic contributions--especially to the cause of adopted children. He was given up for adoption as an infant, and his adoptive mother died when he was only 5 years old. But it was a sense of family--of belonging to a group of people who cared for him--that got Dave through his early life adversity. Dave Thomas never forgot the benefits his adopted life gave him. And so later, he committed his life to provide the same opportunities for others. Dave contributed millions of dollars to hospitals and charitable organizations. He founded the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption in 1992 and the profits from his books go directly to the Foundation. Dave also established the Dave and Lorraine Thomas Clinical Laboratories at Columbus' Children's Hospital. He believed in philanthropy with a personal touch, whether it be his own letter-writing campaign to CEOs of the Fortune 1000 companies to ask them to make adoption benefits available to employees, or meeting with lawmakers to push for important adoption legislation. Dave truly believed that giving back to his community was of paramount importance, and I commend him for that. We shared our interest in finding safe, loving, and permanent homes for thousands of at-risk children in this country. I remember Dave to be a kind and genuine person who remarked that his greatest heroes were the children and parents who had come together as families. I had the opportunity to work with Dave Thomas in the development of the Adoption and Safe Families Act. As a national advocate for adoption rights, he played a key role in helping us get the bill passed and signed into law. At the bill's signing ceremony in 1997, then-President and First Lady Clinton praised Dave's work and his tireless commitment to children. In January 2002, President Bush praised Dave's adoption work at the signing ceremony of the Promoting Safe and Stable Families law, which Senator Rockefeller and I introduced in the fall of 2001. President Bush was quite right when he said: ``Dave's vision of America was one in which all children would be a part of a loving family, so they could grow into healthy and happy and successful adults. The bill I'm [signing] will bring us closer to his vision.'' I couldn't agree more. Indeed, Dave Thomas was a successful businessman who used his good fortune to help those in need. By helping so many children at risk, he testified to his true compassion and dedication to humanity. As Chesterton once said: ``Great men take up great space even when they are gone.'' Dave Thomas will continue to take up great space on this Earth--not just in buildings or foundations but in lives touched and lives changed. He will continue to live on through his great work and his deep compassion and commitment to bringing families together. We will remember Dave Thomas always.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of calendar 183, S. 650.

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I rise this evening in support of the passage of this bill, the pediatric rule. Passage of this bill will be a very important step in protecting the health of our children. This bill will help keep the pediatric rule in place to help ensure the drugs we give our children when they are sick are actually tested for use by our children. The tragic reality is there are medicines on the market today that are being used by and prescribed for our Nation's children that are oftentimes not being tested for their use. It has been that way for years and years. For many years, doctors have had to take a chance when prescribing medicines for our kids. Doctors have literally had to tell parents to cut the pill in half or in quarters to be given to a child. The doctors have used the best information they have to literally guess how much medicine to give a child. That is all they could do with the medicines; they have had to guess. Quite frankly, these medicines have been overprescribed, underprescribed, or maybe not prescribed at all when they should have been prescribed. For example, recently the drug Paxil, which is an antidepressant, has been prescribed without being tested in children at all. Many people have heard of this drug. Many people have heard of the beneficial effects for adults with anxiety and panic disorders. What people did not know, what doctors did not know, was what we have recently found out. Recently the British Government has warned doctors to stop prescribing this drug for children, warning that the medicine increased the risk of suicide or suicidal thinking among children with depression. This action, in turn, spurred the FDA to conduct its own investigation into the safety of this drug for younger patients, resulting in a similar warning to physicians here in the United States: Don't prescribe this drug for children. That is just one example. We have page after page of examples of drugs that have been prescribed to children in the past and once we then tested them, once the protocols were done, the testing was done, lo and behold, we found they were more effective for children than we thought. Sometimes they were not effective, sometimes the prescriptions, the amount, the dosage that had been used was too much, sometimes not enough. The facts are these. As we all know, children are not just miniature adults. You can't just take the weight and just reduce the dosage. Kids react differently. That is why it is so important to have the testing done. Yet when Senator Chris Dodd and I first started on this cause, 5 or 6 years ago, 80 percent of the drugs that came on the market had never been tested for children at all. It has been over a year now since this Senate passed and the President signed into law the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act. The Best Act was a bill that followed the Better Pharmaceuticals for Children Act, which we passed a few years before that. That law, the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act, was part of the solution, just part of the solution to address the problem of getting medicines tested for use by children. That law provides, as its predecessor bill did, a 6-month patent extension to pharmaceutical companies in exchange for the testing of medicines in children. That was a voluntary law and it has worked pretty well. For as long as the bill has been law--its predecessor was law--the Food and Drug Administration reported success in ensuring that more medicines are tested for use in children. With this economic incentive by this Best Pharmaceutical and Better Pharmaceutical bill in place, companies are seeing the value of studying their drugs in children and are applying for the patent extension, and children are benefiting. But the Best Pharmaceuticals incentive cannot work alone. It was never intended to work alone to ensure that medicines for children are properly tested for their use. In order to ensure that no medicines needed to treat children, including vaccines or other biologics, would go untested, the FDA, in 1997, proposed what is known as the Pediatric Rule, a companion rule. The Pediatric Rule allowed the FDA to require that drugs deemed important for children be tested for their safety, for their effectiveness, and that they be properly, then, labeled for children. Unfortunately--and this is what brings us to the Senate floor tonight to consider this bill--the Pediatric Rule came under legal challenge and was, in fact, overturned in court in October 2002, last year, by a district court. That court ruled that the FDA lacked the statutory authority to require pediatric studies. What the court said was it was incumbent upon Congress to fix it. That is why we are here tonight. This was a troubling step backward for children's health, considering that today 75 percent of the medicines on the market still, even with the Better Pharmaceutical bill and the Best Pharmaceutical bill, still 75 percent of the medicines on the market today are not tested and labeled for pediatric use. Without the Pediatric Rule in place, without the necessary authority provided to the FDA, new medicines and biologics coming onto the market are not required to be tested for use in kids. Since that court decision on October 17, 2002, the FDA has indicated that over 300 medicines either have applications pending or incomplete studies pending, and that unless the Pediatric Rule stays in place these will all be lost. Many more, hundreds more will be lost in the future. Pediatricians will not know how to prescribe these drugs in the future or whether to prescribe them at all. That is why Senator Clinton, Senator Dodd, and myself introduced the bill that we hope to pass tonight. It is a bill that would codify a significant piece of the Pediatric Rule to assure that it stays in place and ensures that children will remain on safe footing when it comes to the testing of the medications that they use. Furthermore, we need to keep the Pediatric Rule in place right now because the Pediatric Rule and incentives work together to ensure that drugs are tested for use in children. The Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act, as I said already, was never intended to be a substitute for the rule but, rather, to reinforce and work with the rule. For example, the Pediatric Rule may be invoked in instances where pediatric information is essential but the patent exclusivity incentive is no longer available. The Pediatric Rule also applies to biologics, whereas the Best Pharmaceutical bill does not. A significant portion of therapeutics used in children, including many cancer treatments or biological products--by that, of course, we mean products that include a live agent. Because the Best Pharmaceutical law does not apply to biologics, the Pediatric Rule is the only way to ensure proper and effective pediatric labeling. Finally, the Best Pharmaceutical Act is voluntary. For any number of reasons, including insufficient sales, a manufacturer simply may choose to not conduct the necessary testing to receive additional exclusivity under the ``Best'' law, and when that happens and the drug is not tested for kids, children are the losers. But just because a drug manufacturer chooses not to study the drug in children does not mean that the drug is not critical to the proper care of your children and my children or grandchildren. Without the Pediatric Rule that is in front of us today, there is no way to guarantee that a drug that is used in the pediatric population is tested for children's use. With the establishment of the Pediatric Rule and the financial incentives of the Best Pharmaceutical law, which will go with this, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of studies that have been undertaken. Let me quote from the Government's Response to Plaintiff's Notice of Reauthorization of FDA Modernization Act. This is the document the Government filed to defend the lawsuit against the rule. These two options--Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act and the Pediatric Rule--have resulted in a number of drugs being labeled for use in pediatric applications. As of March 31, 2001, 94 applications containing complete or partial pediatric use and information have been submitted to the agency. Of these 94 applications, 45 are attributable to the statutory exclusivity provision. FDA attributes 48 of the 94 applications to the authority of the pediatric rule alone. So you can see how the two must work together, how important the rule is. Our legislation is a step toward assuring this progress that we have made so far will not erode. Our bill, as amended, provides that the FDA may only impose the pediatric study requirement for already- marketed drugs when the pediatric exclusivity incentive provisions fail to yield necessary pediatric information. This means that for already- marketed drugs, drugs that the FDA has already approved and are already on the drugstore shelf, before FDA can require a company to study the drug for use in children, the incentive provisions of the Best Pharmaceuticals law have to be used first. So the drug manufacturer has to choose to use the incentive provisions first, before FDA can invoke the pediatric study requirement. Our bill also preserves the waiver and deferral process so that drug companies can get waivers or deferrals for a range of legitimate reasons. Waivers are a simple concept. Drugs, such as those used to treat Alzheimer's disease--those drugs that would not be used in children at all--obviously should not be tested for use in children. Those drug manufacturers would be allowed to waive the pediatric drug study requirement. Deferrals are similar. For drug manufacturers who require additional time to complete the drug study or need to get additional information in the adult population before beginning to study the drug in children can, in consultation with the FDA, defer the pediatric drug studies until a later date. Again, I am very pleased that my colleagues have agreed to pass our bill. It is a vital step toward ensuring that children are no longer a therapeutic afterthought. Our bill puts children on a level playing field with adults for the first time. Before I yield the floor, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the many people who have worked diligently to draft this bill and to help get it passed. I would like to thank Majority Leader Frist and Senators Clinton, Dodd, Gregg, Kennedy, and Murray for their leadership on this issue. Without their support, this bill would not be a reality. I would also like to thank Abby Kral of my staff for her dedication and hard work on this issue--she spent an unbelievable amount of time on it--as well as Christina Ho from Senator Clinton's Staff, Ben Berwick with Senator Dodd, Vince Ventimiglia with Senator Gregg's Staff, and David Dorsey with Senator Kennedy. Finally, I would like to recognize two groups that provided my staff and the staff of the HELP Committee with invaluable comments and insights--the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. Thank you all for your efforts and commitment to protecting our children's health and safety.

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the committee amendment be agreed to, the Gregg amendment be agreed to, that the bill, as amended, be read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements and colloquies relating to the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, for the information of all Senators, tomorrow the Senate will be in a period of morning business until approximately 10 a.m. Following morning business, the Senate will resume consideration of H.R. 2555, the Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill. Again, it is the majority leader's intention to complete action on this bill during tomorrow's session. There are several Democratic Senators who still have amendments to offer, and we will try to enter short time agreements with respect to those amendments. Rollcall votes, therefore, should be expected throughout the day tomorrow as the Senate will continue to work through the remaining amendments to the bill. Senators will be notified when the first vote is scheduled. As a reminder, the Senate will observe a moment of silence tomorrow at 3:40 p.m. to pay tribute to two of our fallen Capitol Police officers. Members are encouraged to remain in the Chamber during that moment of silence.

Mr. DeWINE. Let me just, if I could, conclude before I yield.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I rise today to join my colleagues to highlight the absolutely critical need to fund the Abrams tank program and the M1A2 System Enhancement Program, specifically. We have a moral obligation to our military forces to see that they are armed with the best equipment available when they put their lives on the line. The M1A2 System Enhancement Program is an important step in achieving this goal because it will help ensure the tank crews and the troops they protect get the highest, cutting edge technology possible. Like Senator Voinovich, I am extremely proud of the employees at the Lima Army Tank Plant, who themselves take such pride in the important work they do every day to make sure our tanks continue to be the best in the world.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, on behalf of the majority leader, the Senate will be in a period for morning business until 10:30 a.m., with the time under the control of the two leaders or their designees. Following morning business, the Senate will resume debate on H.R. 2658, the Department of Defense appropriations bill. The chairman and ranking member were able to work through several amendments yesterday and we will continue the amendment process today. There are several Senators who want to speak on the bill but the majority leader remains hopeful that we can complete action on this vital appropriations bill during today's session. Rollcall votes will occur throughout the day today. The Senate will recess for the weekly party lunches from 12:30 to 2:15 p.m.

Mr. DeWINE. Yes.

Mr. DeWINE. I say to my colleague that when I see that tie, I think it is simply a good indication that the Senate will get a lot of work done. That is usually an indication that my colleague from Alaska is resolved to see the job through.

Mr. DeWINE. Or else, yes, that is absolutely true.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the privilege of the floor be granted to Jennifer Bacigalupi, an assistant in my office, during today's session.

Mr. DeWINE

Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to an extraordinary individual, a woman of great vision and passion who has dedicated her life to helping people in their time of need. Her name is Luceille Fleming, and she just retired this past Friday, ending her over 14-year tenure as the first and only Director of the Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services. Luceille Fleming is an extremely intelligent, wonderfully caring woman who has given so much to the State of Ohio. To say that she will be missed is an understatement, because Luceille Fleming built this Ohio agency from the ground up and turned it into a nationally- recognized statewide drug and alcohol treatment network. Simply put, Luceille Fleming has spent the last 14 years saving lives. She led the effort to create a system that has helped countless Ohioans to help themselves, to reclaim their lives from all-consuming addictions. While I have come to the Senate Floor today to speak about Director Fleming's contributions to my home State of Ohio, she actually came to Ohio from Pennsylvania. After graduating from Chatham College in Pittsburgh, Director Fleming began her career as a communications specialist for a CBS affiliate in Harrisburg, PA. She then went on to found and run her own company called Dunhill of Harrisburg. In these positions, she cultivated her skills as a great leader and a great motivator. In 1977, she became the executive director of the Alcoholism and Addiction Association of Pennsylvania. In this position, she established the first successful statewide collaboration in Pennsylvania between alcoholism treatment efforts and drug abuse treatment efforts. She brought the treatment groups together with the recognition that both alcoholism and drug abuse are addictions. Today, that connection between alcoholism and drug addiction seem so logical. It has become an accepted notion. But it was Luceille who was at the forefront of bringing these two groups together. From there, Luceille was appointed deputy secretary of Health for Drug and Alcohol Programs in Pennsylvania. She supervised the policy and implementation of the State's drug and alcohol treatment effort. This experience at the State government level gave Luceille insights into how an effective statewide alcohol and drug addiction services agency should be run. Fortunately, Luceille was willing to bring these insights to our State of Ohio. In 1989, Luceille was hired after an exhaustive search to develop a cabinet-level agency to manage a statewide substance-abuse treatment network. She was hired by then-Governor Dick Celeste. Prior to her arrival, Ohio had two different agencies overseeing drug and alcohol treatment programs. A panel recommended combining the two agencies. Luceille was tasked with the creation of that single agency. It was a huge job but one for which she was more than qualified. While she excelled in her previous positions, as director of the Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services, Luceille truly thrived. Under Director Fleming's leadership, the agency developed innovative programs, reaching out to many different communities. Director Fleming fostered programs for juveniles and children, including youth mentoring, Head Start, and underage drinking prevention. She also established and supervised programs that served women recovering from substance abuse, helping them to reunite with their children. What could be more important than that? During her 14-year tenure under three Ohio Governors, including the current occupant of the chair, one of Director Fleming's top priorities was the expansion of the drug courts program which helped reduce recidivism, encouraging the proper treatment of offenders with substance abuse programs. When Director Fleming started, there was only one drug court in the State of Ohio. Today, there are 55. That is thanks, certainly, to the current occupant of the chair, and it is also thanks to Director Luceille Fleming. I have had the pleasure of working with Luceille directly, both when I was serving as lieutenant governor and now as Senator. Her experience, her judgment have proven invaluable to me. I have sought her advice many times, both as lieutenant governor and now for the last 9 years as Senator. I can tell Members of the Senate, many days I have picked up the phone and called Luceille to get her advice on a bill or program. She has always been very candid, very open, very helpful, and had very good insight. I am grateful for her advice and her expertise as we collaborated on the safe and drug-free schools bill and other bills. Luceille's insights and contributions added tremendously to that law and helped make it a truly effective piece of legislation. After Luceille's retirement was announced, I read several news stories about her career and her contributions to the State of Ohio. While reading, I was struck in particular by one quote from Paul Coleman, president of Maryhaven, a substance abuse treatment center in Ohio. He said Director Fleming has ``a passion that burns to help people.'' Paul Coleman's statement says it all. If I had to come up with one statement that sums up Luceille Fleming, it would be she truly has a passion that burns to help people and she has channeled this passion into a life of service and dedication to others. Luceille Fleming retired last week at the age of 79--yes, 79--to take a breather and enjoy some time off. Those who know Luceille know she probably won't take a lot of time off and she will plunge back into something. She has been working at the Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services since she was 65 years old. Most people at that point in their life would have decided to take it easy, kick back, and maybe relax. But not Luceille. She instead decided to take a position in government to build a State agency from the ground up. Her energy and her drive are truly remarkable. I conclude my remarks with a quote from Luceille herself. Upon taking her position with the agency, somebody asked at her first press conference about her age. To this question she simply said: ``Well, you know, I think the hair thins, the hips thicken, but the mind sharpens.'' I cannot speak to the first two parts of that statement, but I can tell you for certain that the last part is true in regard to Luceille. Luceille is sharp, she is bright, she is focused--more today than ever. She has helped so many people during her career, and the people of Ohio and the Nation are, indeed, grateful. Luceille, you will be missed at the agency. You will be missed in the State of Ohio. We are grateful for what you have done. The Presiding Officer and I had the opportunity to work with Luceille. It was my job as lieutenant governor to work with the current occupant of the chair, my colleague from the State of Ohio, in the drug addiction area, substance abuse area, when I was lieutenant governor and the current occupant of the chair was Governor. Dick Celeste, former Governor, picked Luceille to head up this new agency, to create this new agency. She had run it for a number of years and built it up. Then-Governor-elect Voinovich had taken over, and it was our job to decide whether Luceille was going to continue in that position. We looked all over the State of Ohio and across the country to determine who should occupy that position. After a long search, we decided--then- Governor-elect Voinovich decided that Luceille Fleming, the person who was in that position, was the best person to continue. We were not disappointed. We had the opportunity to work with Luceille, to sit in Cabinet meetings with her. I had the chance to work with her many times on a detailed basis to talk about substance abuse problems, alcohol and addiction problems, wrestled with these problems, problems in the prisons, problems in our communities. She is just an amazing person, someone who truly understands the gravity of the problem, how it infests our communities, the damage it does to our young people. She was always optimistic, always believed we could do more, always said: Mike, if we could just move in this direction, if we could just move forward a little bit more, we could save some lives. We could turn some young people's lives around. We can make a difference. Let's try this. Let's try that. We can do better. To see someone now 79 who still has that optimism, who still has that belief--we can do better, we can do more--is a wonderful thing to see. I salute Luceille Fleming for her 14 years of service to the State of Ohio, for her optimism, for her vision. Luceille, thank you for the work you have done. Those in Ohio who have worked with you are truly grateful for your service to the people of the State. We appreciate it very much. You are a true visionary. You are a dear person, someone who has contributed a great deal to our State and to the people we always serve. I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.