Bill Frist

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, today the Senate will begin debate on the first concurrent budget resolution for fiscal year 2005. Chairman Nickles and Senator Conrad are prepared to begin the debate under the statutory 50-hour time limitation. Given the nature of the budget resolution and the lengthy debate, on Friday I announced that no rollcall votes would occur today. This afternoon Senators will come to the floor to speak in relation to the budget or the two managers may have amendments to consider over the course of the day. However, any votes ordered today will be delayed until tomorrow. As we begin the week, I do want to put all of our Members on notice that this week will include lengthy sessions each day and into the evening. We have the 50-hour time limit. There will be references made to that time limit during the course of this afternoon and, indeed, every day. It is my hope we will be able to yield back some of the 50- hour time limit. I will be talking to the two managers to see if that will be possible. In any event, the debate will be lengthy; it will be throughout the day and likely, as I mentioned, go into the evening. We have a recess next week. We will finish this bill this week. I have already heard about a number of scheduling conflicts over the course of the week, into Saturday and Friday, and I will do everything possible to accommodate the request, but I need to make it absolutely clear, as I did last week, that we are going to finish the budget resolution this week. Therefore, I ask for all Members to adjust their schedules accordingly, especially on Friday. I do want to comment on the process, the so-called vote-arama, that we come to at this point each and every year. As Members are aware, even after the 50 hours expire, Senators can offer amendments with no debate and they can demand votes, but I think if we look back at past experience almost all Senators will agree that this vote-arama, which in more recent times has come to characterize what follows the 50 hours, is absolutely not the best process for consideration of their amendments. Thus, I encourage, in fact plead, with Members to approach the two managers of the resolution and see if they can limit the excessive number of votes needed at the end of the process. I thank Senators Nickles and Conrad for their hard work in getting this budget resolution ready for floor action.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I want to spend 2 minutes on the service of Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell and his announcement that he is not going to be running for election. For more than 20 years, he has been a tireless advocate and a faithful champion for the people of Colorado. Although I have had the opportunity to discuss with him at length his reasons and understand his reasons, I am saddened by his decision to retire from his well-earned and well-deserved post. The Senate will miss his plain-spoken humor, his astute and keen perspective, and his uncommon drive to improve the lives of those he represents. He has a frank and straightforward approach to the job, and that has helped us and it has helped me as leader walk through some very difficult and contentious issues in a very quiet and dispassionate manner. He is an American original. He served in the Air Force in Korea, was captain of the 1964 U.S. Olympic judo team. He has been a rancher, a jewelry designer, a horse trainer, and a public official. He is the only American Indian serving in the Senate. He carries the distinction of being 1 of 44 chiefs of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe. Senator Nighthorse Campbell's broad experience and background has been invaluable to this body. His direct and honest presence will be greatly missed in the Senate. He has been a very good friend and a great Senator, and I wish the Senator from Colorado and his family all the best in the years ahead.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, we are now on the resolution and the two managers are gathering now to start that debate. In the interim period, I wish to make another comment that has to do with a truly historic occurrence in Iraq. Today is a historic day for the Iraqi people. Today, the Iraq Governing Council will formally sign an interim constitution that represents one of the most liberal and democratic governing documents in the Arab world. It is a historic day for the entire Arab world. The new Iraqi Constitution is a monumental achievement. I applaud the courage and the foresight of Iraq's leaders to seize this historic opportunity before them and to work together to forge a framework for freedom that reflects the aspirations and God-given rights of every single Iraqi citizen. After 35 years of torment and oppression by an evil and dictatorial regime, Iraq is finally emerging from the shadows and becoming a democratic nation by and for the people. Remember, the people of Iraq just 1 year ago were ruled by a tyrant who worshipped Hitler and Stalin, two of the 20th century's most prolific mass murderers--just a year ago. Iraq is emerging from a terrible history, and the Iraqi people deserve our highest praise for their ability to set aside recriminations and to set aside old ethnic conflicts, to confront their fears and overcome mistrust in order to embrace the future. It is my sincere hope that others in the region and around the world will take heart at Iraq's extraordinary progress and that this fledgling nation will one day soon become a beacon of freedom for all. The new interim constitution is rightly a document of principles. It guarantees freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, privacy, thought, conscience, religious belief, and due process. It protects women, ethnic and religious minorities, and strives to balance regional and national imperatives. No longer will the Iraqi people have to fear secret police, government abductions, torture, or arbitrary imprisonment. No more mass graves, no more child prisons, no more forced confessions or mass executions. I have great hopes for Iraq. Like President Bush, I believe all people are capable and deserving of a democratic government. That is because I believe, like President Bush, freedom is an inherent right, not a privilege to be dispensed by pundits or politicians. Securing freedom in Iraq, as we all know, will be hard. The continuing vicious bombings against innocent Iraqis demonstrate that we are up against determined and evil forces. My heart goes out to those victims and to those families. We know from our own 9/11 how truly devastating these acts of evil are to the immediate victims and to the nation that is forced to watch, helpless, in horror. But I have faith that the Iraqi people will persevere. We will not allow our enemies to divide us. We will stand together as two free nations. We will defeat the forces of terror and the Iraqi people will live in peace and freedom.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I want to take several minutes to comment on some good news from Tennessee, good news from Tennessee that underscores the importance of having a good, strong leader as principal of K through 12 schools. Last month, the national, nonprofit New Leaders for New Schools chose the city of Memphis to participate in its education program. Memphis joins other cities--Chicago and New York and Washington--as a participant in this new and innovative reform effort in education. The program is called New Leaders for New Schools. It is the brainchild of John Schnur, a young social entrepreneur and education expert. He came up with the idea while at Harvard Business School. His idea was to take concepts of business leadership and apply it to education K through 12. As we all know, every successful company is led by a successful CEO. Successful schools, in turn, are really no different. Great principals make for great schools. Really, it makes sense. New Leaders for New Schools trains outstanding individuals to become outstanding school principals. The program draws applicants from all walks of life, from former bankers and dot commers, to teachers and, indeed, retired principals. What they share is a deep belief in the potential of every child to succeed. These committed individuals are sent into urban school districts to turn around poor performing schools. As they prove their effectiveness, they can earn flexibility in hiring and carrying out reforms. In Memphis, New Leaders for New Schools will recruit and develop 60 new principals over 3 years to serve in the public school system. City leaders are rightly excited about this great opportunity. The No Child Left Behind Act does set high standards, and a strong and effective school principal is key to meeting these goals. I should note that 45 percent of Memphis school principals are eligible for retirement in the next 3 years. Training the next generation of principals is critical. I am excited for the parents and the teachers of Memphis. I am especially excited for the schoolchildren of Memphis. With strong and motivated leadership at the top, they will have even more opportunities to realize their potential. Every child can learn. Every child can succeed. New Leaders for New Schools is one more step in moving our education system forward. I yield the floor.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, this morning there will be a period of morning business until 10:30 a.m. Following morning business, the Senate will begin consideration of S. 1637, the Jumpstart JOBS or, as it is also known, the FSC/ETI bill. Senators Grassley and Baucus will be here through the morning to begin working through the amendments as they are offered. Over the last couple of weeks we have been attempting to work out an agreement for consideration of the bill with the Democratic leadership. With the March 1 deadline behind us, it is imperative we attempt to consider this bill in an expeditious way. We have been unable, unfortunately, to reach agreement with our colleagues on the other side of the aisle to limit the nature of the amendments to the underlying bill. Thus, we are proceeding today in good faith and hope we can consider related amendments in order to make progress. Again, the March 1 deadline has passed. It is incumbent upon us to address this bill in an organized and expeditious way. Rollcall votes can be expected today in relation to the Jumpstart JOBS bill. We will alert all Members as the votes are scheduled. It is critical that we work aggressively on the bill Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of this week. Next week we will be going to the budget.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, this morning, under the order from last week, the Senate will resume consideration of the gun manufacturers liability bill for the final amendments and debate. This morning until 11:35 the remaining amendments enumerated in the list will be offered in the debate time and the time will be equally divided. At 11:35 this morning, the Senate will begin a series of stacked rollcall votes. I would expect approximately seven votes to occur, including final passage in this series of votes. Both parties do have their weekly policy luncheons and therefore I expect we will pause after the third vote or so and recess to allow those meetings to occur. When the Senate reconvenes at 2:15, we will resume the voting sequence until we vote on final passage of the pending gun manufacturers liability legislation. It will, thus, be a busy morning and afternoon. I encourage Members to remain on the floor or in close proximity to avoid missing any votes.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I thank the Senator from Arizona. Again, these physicians who came to see me from Iraq had seen with their own eyes these chemical weapons having been used before. They had come--and this is just last January--to me to say: We need help to protect ourselves and our communities from the use of these biological and chemical weapons. Is the Senator aware many of the critics of the war to topple Saddam Hussein seem to suggest there was never cause to be concerned with Saddam Hussein? In fact, if you listen closely to the critics, they go so far as to imply there was never a threat at all. Is the Senator from Arizona familiar with the details of one of the most horrendous examples of Saddam's brutality, the 1988 massacre of Kurdish civilians in the village of Halabja? Indeed, at the time, 50,000 Kurds lived in the village of Halabja, a city that is very close to the Iranian border. They had already suffered immeasurably from the 8 years of conventional war between Iraq and Iran. But for Saddam Hussein, that was not enough. On March 16, 1988, the Iraqi regime launched an artillery attack against Halabja, driving the residents of the city there underground. They went to these underground shelters and to the basements for protection from this overhead attack. But that is when the real, true terror began. Iraqi helicopters then came in with planes, and they came back once again, but this time with chemical weapons. The chemical weapons were all carefully documented--nerve gas, VX, mustard gas--all weapons of mass destruction, which were aimed at these buildings, these cellars, all of a sudden turning these cellars in which the Kurds were hiding into gas chambers. They fled, of course, gathering their families, exposed, running for their lives. Graphic evidence showed the results of Saddam's use of weapons of mass destruction. The Senator from Arizona just showed that picture with the question: No weapons of mass destruction? It reminds me so dramatically of what one survivor relayed at the scene: People were dying all around. When a child could not go on, the parents, becoming hysterical with fear, abandoned him. Many children were left on the ground by the side of the road. Old people as well. They were running. Then they would stop breathing and die. Experts agree over 5,000 innocent citizens died as a result of the chemical weapons attack. These were weapons of mass destruction used on Halabja. Again, those physicians in my office told me these stories. Other survivors had scarring of the lungs, something called fibrosis of the lung, where the lung becomes nothing but a fibrous scar. Others were blinded permanently. The consequences of this cruelty continue to this day, and indeed these physicians continue to treat the residual effects of people in that Kurdish community. Chemicals contaminated the food and water supply. The chemicals caused cancer. The chemicals caused those respiratory diseases like fibrosis. They caused infertility and high levels of severe abnormalities in Halabja's children. Christine Gosden, a British professor of medical genetics, traveled to northern Iraq in 1998 to study the effects on the Kurdish population of the poison gas unleashed on them. She founded the Halabja Medical Institute and discovered the consequences of the chemical weapons attack were even more damaging than she expected. She wrote in the Washington Post: What I found was far worse than anything I had suspected-- devastating problems occurring 10 years after the attack. These chemicals seriously affected people's eyes and respiratory and neurological systems. Many became blind. Skin disorders, which involve severe scarring are frequent, and many progress to skin cancer. An increasing number of children are dying each year of leukemias and lymphomas. The Halabja Medical Institute, in its research on the attacks, discovered something even more vicious. Its conclusions noted: While these weapons had many terrible direct effects, such as immediate death, or skin and eye burns, Iraqi government documents indicate they were used deliberately for known long-term effects, including cancers, birth defects, neurological problems, and infertility. Inexpensive in terms of death per unit cost, there is evidence that these weapons were used in different combinations by Baath forces attempting to discern their effectiveness as weapons of terror and war. Yes, Saddam's regime conducted experiments using chemical weapons on innocent Kurdish civilians. These are Kurdish civilians in his own country. Experimenting. The Kurdish physicians told me--it is to vivid in my mind--that in buildings like hotels with different wings, single floors, people would be herded and placed into these rooms; one wing would be to test VX gas on humans, killing them, and another wing would be mustard gas, and there would be another gas in a third wing, to see which was more effective. Iraqi soldiers even went so far as to return to the town after that attack in Halabja to study how efficient, how effective those chemicals weapons were, using the number of people who died as a measure of success. I want to ask the Senator from Arizona another question. Does the Senator from Arizona have any doubt in his mind that Saddam would continue to develop and use such weapons at the first possible opportunity?

Mr. FRIST. Madam President, I just want to share with my colleagues some recent experiences I had in meeting with Kurdish physicians not too long ago in my office, not too far from here, because it relates so dramatically to the debate and to the unfolding of many of the questions that seem to be raised today. I should really begin by saying in my home State of Tennessee there are a number of Kurdish residents who live, who reside particularly in the area of Nashville where I am from. I have had the opportunity to meet with them and to listen to their concerns and have had the opportunity to support a project called the Health Partnerships With Northern Iraq, which is a project that is sponsored by the Meridian International Center here in the District, with the support of the State Department. It is a fantastic program, it is a great program, the purpose of which is to train Kurdish doctors in northern Iraq to do primary care; that is, basic care. It is probably 90 percent of health care in terms of responding to individual needs of families and individuals. What is interesting is these doctors, for a period of time, spent a few weeks, and then months, of their training in this country in primary care, and part of that time was spent in Tennessee at East Tennessee State University. Last January, I met with this group of Kurdish doctors in my office, just down the hall. They came to me as a physician, as a doctor, and also as majority leader, but they came to me with very specific concerns. They shared with me that they knew the war to topple Saddam Hussein was near, and they were concerned--these are Iraqi physicians-- that they would be attacked with chemical and biological weapons. Their concern, as I will share with my colleagues shortly, was based on practical experience, experiences they have firsthand knowledge of, in terms of being with people who had suffered from attacks. But at the time when they were in my office, they came to me because they said: We are simply unprepared to be practicing primary care in our homeland in northern Iraq. They were in a region of about 6 million individuals, which had 240 primary care centers, but they had very few supplies. They had only the very most rudimentary needs in terms of treatment. They had no personal protective equipment in terms of biological contaminants or chemical weapons. They had no ability to contain or even treat victims of a chemical or biological attack. They had little time for the intensive training they knew they would need in order to respond to such a biological or chemical attack. Yet they came to my office very specifically asking for help. Dr. Ali Sindi, the delegation leader, asked for basic supplies. He asked for medical supplies and some help with acquiring medical supplies, coming to the majority leader, but also coming to a physician. He asked for hydrogen peroxide. He asked for bleach. Hydrogen peroxide and bleach, as most people know today, are used to decontaminate affected areas from biological or chemical weapons. He asked for gas masks. He asked for chemical suits. He asked for antibiotics in the event there was a biological attack. He noted--and, again, it was a group of Kurdish physicians--he told me the Kurdish water systems are generally open to the air and, a lot of times, sitting on the rooftops of the villages there. So he, concerned about chemical and biological attacks, said: And in addition, what I need is some kind of protection for these rooftop water systems. Their fear--these doctors' fear, the doctors from Iraq--was not based on intelligence briefings. Their fear was based on experience. Their fear was based on reality. Their fear was based on what they had seen, and their fear was based on what they had actually treated; that is, chemical weapons, weapons of mass destruction. As the Senator from Arizona knows, the Kurds had been attacked by chemical weapons before, most notably in the city of Halabja. There, thousands of innocent Kurds were killed with weapons of mass destruction, these chemical weapons. These doctors from that region had come to see me. They had treated victims of that particular attack. They know from that direct experience what chemical weapons, weapons of mass destruction, can do. These doctors believed, obviously, the Kurds were going to be attacked with chemical weapons once again. They asked from me and from our Government, through me, for that help to be prepared. At this juncture, I ask the Senator from Arizona, in light of these doctors' past, direct experience with weapons of mass destruction-- these chemical weapons--does the Senator agree the Kurds were acting reasonably when they, with this direct experience, believed Saddam Hussein possessed and intended to use weapons of mass destruction; namely, the chemical weapons they had seen and had experience with being used before?

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent that following the first vote the remaining votes in the sequence prior to the luncheon be limited to 10 minutes each. I further ask that when the Senate reconvenes at 2:15, the first vote be 15 minutes under the standing order, with all remaining votes in the sequence limited to 10 minutes each.

Mr. FRIST. As I indicated last week, following the conclusion of this bill, the Senate will next take up consideration of the jumpstart jobs bill, also known as FSC/ETI. I will have more to say on that and the schedule later today, following the completion of the gun manufacturers bill. I thank everyone for their attention.

Mr. FRIST. That is correct. We will do three votes under the time agreement we just agreed to. We may adjust that as the day goes on, but that would be the plan.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Energy Committee be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 2584, and that the bill then be referred to the Commerce Committee.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I object to further proceedings on the measure at this time.

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I understand that S. 2137 is at the desk and is due for a second reading.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. 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. 555, and all nominations on the Secretary's desk. I further ask unanimous consent that the above listed nominations be confirmed, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, the President be notified of the Senate's action, and the Senate return to legislative session.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, we will be wrapping up very shortly for the week. Because it has been a very busy week, I would like to run through the progress that has been made. We have proceeded in step-wise fashion and advanced the business of this body in a very thoughtful way. We started the week hoping to consider the OB/GYN medical liability bill, aptly entitled ``Healthy Mothers and Healthy Babies Access Care Act.'' We debated the issue on Monday and Tuesday but, unfortunately, were prevented from formally going to the bill. A cloture motion was filed on the motion to proceed. I also want to thank our colleagues, Senator Ensign and Senator Gregg, for their real leadership on this particular issue. As we closed that debate, it was clear--as both sides stated--that we were going to have to come back and address the liability issues, and we will bring it back before the Senate again. S. 1805, the gun manufacturers' liability bill, which is more formally called the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, was then addressed, continues to be addressed through today. I commend our leader, Senator Craig, for his leadership. We do plan on proceeding and having a final vote on this bill Tuesday. There was an objection to proceeding from the Democratic side of the aisle initially on that bill and thus we had to file, once again, a cloture motion. We prevailed on that cloture motion to proceed by a vote of 75 to 22, and thus we were able to get on the bill and debate the bill. We were able to lock in the agreement limiting amendments to the gun liability bill, and during Thursday and Friday's session we have considered 16 amendments. We disposed of eight of those amendments, conducted six rollcall votes on Thursday. Under the agreement, we will pass the legislation on Tuesday. The House passed their version of this bill April 19th of last year. I hope we will be able to proceed on a conference on this bipartisan legislation so we can reconcile the differences. Again, I understand there is an objection to proceeding to a conference from the other side of the aisle, but we will continue to discuss with the Democratic leadership how we can best proceed to conference. Finally, just a few moments ago, we passed H.R. 3850, a 2-month extension of the highway bill. As we witnessed over the course of the day, it has required a lot in terms of discussions among colleagues in this body with Members of the House of Representatives, but I am pleased to announce we have reached a satisfactory conclusion for all parties involved. I thank all the Senators who were just appropriately thanked for their participation. Again, the 5,000 Transportation employees who were at risk of not being able to go to work and being paid for work on Monday can rest now and, indeed, will receive both those checks and show up for work on Monday.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, before making further remarks, I wanted to make sure that was done. As we started about 7 hours ago, we had two issues. One was the extension which we passed. There have been a lot of people over the course of the day who have wondered whether they were going to get paychecks on Monday and whether they would show up for work on Monday. After all of this, we have settled pretty much both issues in terms of moving forward. The highway extension has just been passed. So for those people who were on furlough and wondering what was going on today, they are going to be OK on Monday.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. It is an experience, Mr. President.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. Is that what the Senator from Arizona is basically implying, that the Commission has cut back this week or if it is not settled today that the Commission has been compromised?

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the consideration of H.R. 3850, a highway program extension bill, which is at the desk. I further ask unanimous consent that the bill be read the third time and passed, and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table. (Mr. CHAFEE assumed the Chair.)

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I thank my colleagues for bringing this matter to my attention. As the bipartisan leaders of the full Appropriations Committee and its Transportation Subcommittee, they have all been unified and consistent in their view as to the legislative intent of the 2004 appropriations act. They have been equally unified in their insistence that this matter be fixed as quickly as possible. Given the fact that the other body has now adjourned, we are required to pass a bill without this technical correction in order to keep the highway program operating beyond its expiration date of this Sunday, February 29. I give my personal assurance to my colleagues that, in the coming few weeks, I will work with my Senate colleagues as well as with the House leadership to ensure that the necessary technical correction is incorporated in a legislative vehicle that the President will sign in the very near future. I share their hope that this can be accomplished prior to the expiration of the short term highway extension bill that we will be adopting today.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now proceed to the consideration of S. 2136, a bill to extend the 9/11 Commission. I further ask unanimous consent that the bill be read the third time and passed and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

Mr. FRIST

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

Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, we are still in some negotiations and will be in for a bit longer. But I will speak for a few moments on several issues while those negotiations continue.

Mr. FRIST

Mr. FRIST. At this juncture, Mr. President, I rise with heavy heart in that Thursday morning, Boris Trajkovski, the President of Macedonia, perished in a plane crash in the mountains of Bosnia. He was a good man, a man I had met, a man with whom I had extensive discussions, a man who was a great leader. Indeed, the people of Macedonia have lost a true hero and, indeed, America has lost a great friend. Elected to his country's highest post in 1999, President Trajkovski held his country together through terrible crises and conflicts. He kept the struggling new Republic from descending into anarchy and civil war and, in doing so, set an example for the entire region. President Trajkovski was one of our first allies to publicly support Operation Iraqi Freedom and to commit troops to the liberation. The Iraqi people owe President Trajkovski and the Macedonian people a debt of gratitude for his belief in them. He was a sincere champion of freedom. Only 47 years old, Boris Trajkovski was a President, a minister, an attorney, a father, and a husband. Our prayers go out to his family and the families of all who were lost on that fateful plane. It is my hope that the people of Macedonia will honor him by carrying on his work of cultivating and nurturing their newfound freedom. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.