Pete Domenici

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. We can't proceed with any of the other amendments.

Mr. DOMENICI. We would like to proceed with the CAFE amendment at this point.

Mr. DOMENICI. I say to Senator Durbin, would you like to then proceed for a few minutes on your amendment?

Mr. DOMENICI. We will get to that. Senator Bingaman wants some time to speak to a Senator. So I ask Senator Durbin, how much time would you like to speak on your amendment?

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. We are trying to work with Senator Bingaman on the Durbin amendment and the other CAFE amendment.

Mr. DOMENICI. We don't need a time agreement on Senator Durbin at this point.

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. We object to granting you that privilege at this point. We understand the time will come, but it isn't certain that she will have the next amendment. That is the point.

Mr. DOMENICI. We have no objection. I misunderstood. I apologize. If you want the Record to reflect that the next Democratic amendment will be Senator Feinstein's amendment on CAFE, we have no objection.

Mr. DOMENICI. That is correct; whenever you do.

Mr. DOMENICI. So you don't have any misunderstanding either, we will be finished with the debate and, as we understand it, we will then vote.

Mr. DOMENICI. That is correct.

Mr. DOMENICI. We want to accommodate. If there was any misunderstanding, it perhaps was on my part. I have no objection. I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum, and I ask unanimous consent that the time be charged equally to the remaining three Senators.

Mr. DOMENICI. That is fine. I was going to make sure he got it by giving him some of mine. I appreciate that very much. It is hard to say who should speak last because the first amendment to be voted on is Senator Bond's amendment. Maybe he should be speaking last. If that is the way we are going to do it----

Mr. DOMENICI. Well, look, Senator Durbin has 15 minutes. We don't need to give him any more time. He can save 2 of that for just before the vote. We need to save Senator Bond 2 minutes. We need to give Senator Bond 2 minutes to speak in opposition. Senator Durbin doesn't need any additional minutes beyond the 15.

Mr. DOMENICI. I thought you had been speaking all afternoon--but it is eloquent.

Mr. DOMENICI. Madam President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. DOMENICI. Madam President, fellow Senators, if you will not leave, we will vote again very shortly. There are 4 minutes with 2 minutes on each side, and then we will vote on the Bond-Levin amendment. The Senator from Illinois has the first 2 minutes and Senator Bond wraps it up. Then we will vote.

Mr. DOMENICI. Madam President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. DOMENICI. Madam President, if I may have the attention of Senators, please, there are two amendments. One is a Durbin amendment, which Senator Durbin indicated when he sent it to the desk was sent up by mistake. It is a so-called Durbin No. 2 tax amendment. He said, then, that he would like to withdraw it. I ask unanimous consent that he be permitted to withdraw that amendment.

Mr. DOMENICI. Madam President, I move to table the Durbin amendment.

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

Mr. DOMENICI. Parliamentary inquiry: Is a motion to set aside the Durbin tax amendment the pending business?

Mr. DOMENICI. A motion to table.

Mr. DOMENICI. Let's go.

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I rise today to honor a wonderful man, Dr. Victor Westphall, who passed away July 22. Dr. Westphall dedicated his life to recognizing and celebrating the service and sacrifice of our Vietnam veterans. Dr. Westphall's dedication to fallen heroes was not surprising because he too was a veteran. He entered the United States Navy in 1943 as an Ensign and served in the South Pacific during World War II. During this time, he was responsible for setting up message centers to allow front-line communication. After 3 years and two full stripes in the Navy, Dr. Westphall moved with his wife and his two sons to New Mexico. He earned his doctorate in history at the University of New Mexico and eventually became a leading author and expert on Southwest American history. On a most painful day in May of 1968, Dr. Westphall received word that his son, David, had been killed in Vietnam. David, a Marine lieutenant, died with 12 of his men in an ambush near Con Thien. Soon after, Dr. Westphall was determined to draw some good out of this tragic event. He decided to use the life insurance payment from his son's death to build the Vietnam Veterans Peace and Brotherhood Chapel in Angel Fire, NM. Although Dr. Westphall struggled to find financial support to help build the memorial, he remained dedicated to the project, and in 1971, the first monument to pay homage to Vietnam veterans in the United States was formally dedicated. The Vietnam Veterans Peace and Brotherhood Chapel stands as a majestic tribute to our veterans who served in Vietnam. Dr. Westphall hired a Santa Fe architect to design a beautiful white chapel with gentle curves sweeping 50 feet upward toward the sky. This serene memorial overlooks the sacred Moreno Valley, just below New Mexico's 13,000 foot Wheeler Peak. It offers visitors the opportunity to remember those who served their Nation proudly in the Vietnam War in a peaceful and spiritual setting. The Chapel's eternal flame illuminates this hallowed place for quiet meditation. I often remember a touching story that Dr. Westphall occasionally recounted about the Chapel. When the memorial was first opened, the Chapel would close nightly. However, one morning Dr. Westphall found a message left by a young veteran on the door: ``I needed to come in and you locked me out.'' Since then, the Chapel remained open every hour of every day. Like the Chapel, Dr. Westphall was always there for our Nation's veterans. I salute Dr. Westphall's lifetime of service and devotion to our veterans, and I am proud and honored to have had him as a friend. He gave his son, his time, his money, his property, and life to honor our fallen heroes. As a fitting tribute, I end with the inscription at the entrance to his son's Chapel, now called the Vietnam Veterans National Memorial: The Ultimate Curse Greed plowed cities desolate Lusts ran snorting thru the streets Pride reared up to desecrate Shrines, and there were no retreats. So man learned to shed the tears With which he measures out his years. --Victor David Westphall III