Jesse Helms

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Of course. I understand.

Mr. HELMS. I understand the same thing. I have about 2 minutes more. I will stop now.

Mr. HELMS. I wouldn't think of putting you in that position. Mr. President, let me yield to the Senator on condition that I will have the floor when the Senate reconvenes.

Mr. HELMS. I think that was my unanimous consent request.

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, I have worked with our colleague from Georgia, Senator Miller, to craft legislation to protect our soldiers and officials from illegitimate prosecutions by the International Criminal Court. Senator Miller and I and Senators Lott, Warner, Hatch, Shelby, and Murkowski together introduced the American Service Members Protection Act on May 9 of this year. We have worked since that time with the administration to craft the pending amendment, and the administration favors this amendment quite strongly. Our soldiers and decisionmakers will be all the more exposed to the risk of illegitimate prosecution as they proceed with ``Operation Enduring Freedom,'' as it has been named, against those who on September 11 committed mass murder against innocent American civilians. The pending amendment ensures that countries, or overzealous prosecutors and judges, will never be able to use this court to persecute American military personnel carrying out war against terrorism. At this time of national mobilization to fight terrorists who killed thousands of American citizens in New York and Pennsylvania and right near us at the Pentagon, there is a consensus in Congress that we should give the President the tools he needs to carry out the mission. Chairman Henry Hyde, of the House International Relations Committee, and I have painstakingly negotiated refinements to the American Service Members Protection Act with the Bush administration, and this revised version of the bill gives the President the flexibility and authority to delegate provisions in the legislation to Cabinet Secretaries and their deputies in this time of national emergency. As a result of these careful negotiations, I have a letter dated September 25, 2001, from the Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs. His name is Paul V. Kelly. He indicates in his letter that the administration supports enactment of the precise language in my amendment to the Defense authorization bill. By the way, I submitted that letter for the Record last week, specifically on September 26. So it will be a matter of record again, I ask unanimous consent that the letter from Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs Paul V. Kelly be printed in the Record at this point.

Mr. HELMS. If the Senator will indicate why he is seeking recognition, I will be glad to consider it.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, I will finish my statement in a moment, but, first of all, I ask unanimous consent that the Senator from Nebraska, Mr. Hagel, be added as a cosponsor to amendment No. 1724, now pending.

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, I wonder if the managers of the bill would be willing to support a suggestion by me and perhaps Senator Craig that this be converted into a freestanding bill, as suggested by the Senator from Idaho, and be considered immediately following passage of this pending legislation?

Mr. HELMS. I understand. I wonder if the distinguished Senator from Michigan will comment.

Mr. HELMS. I understand.

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, we will be here on another day in another way. I thank the Chair and the distinguished Senator from Virginia.

Mr. HELMS. I do not know how many people were listening breathlessly when I made the first part of my statement earlier today, but I will not repeat it. I will have mercy upon you. This is a very important amendment. I want to serve notice to the managers of the bill that I shall not contest or try to contest any motion that may be made on this amendment. I do hope the managers will give some thought as to whether they will support my offering this amendment freestanding as a bill, but that is up to them. Mr. President, to complete my statement that I began earlier, the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States has sent me a letter in support of my amendment. I want to read part of it. It is from Robert E. Wallace, the Executive Director. It is addressed to all Members of the Senate, dated October 2. It says: On behalf of the 2.7 million members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States and its Ladies Auxiliary, I want to express our strong support for amendment number 1690 to the National Defense Authorization Act, S. 1438, the ``American Service Members' Protection Act of 2001.'' We think this legislation brought forward by Senators Jesse Helms (R-NC) and Zell Miller (D-GA) is an appropriate response to the threat to American sovereignty and international freedom of action posed by the International Criminal Court. Also, we believe it is essential that our nation's military personnel be protected against criminal prosecution under procedures inconsistent with our Constitution. We oppose the International Criminal Court (ICC) in its present form. We believe it poses a significant danger to our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines, who are deployed throughout the world. U.S. military personnel and other U.S. Government officials could be brought before this court even though the United States is not a party to the treaty. The court will claim jurisdiction to indict, prosecute, and imprison persons accused of ``war crimes,'' ``crimes against humanity,'' ``genocide,'' and other ``crime of aggression'' (not yet defined by the ICC.) I ask unanimous consent the entire letter be printed in the Record.

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, I hope Senators will support this legislation, to protect soldiers and their civilian leaders from this new U.N. court. The President and his national security team support the legislation and have raised no concerns about acting on it now. In fact, there is greater need to enact this legislation now. We must not send our troops out to fight terrorists, or any other aggressors, without protection from trumped-up claims that they committed ``war crimes'', ``crimes against humanity'' or some new, undefined, catch-all ``crime of aggression'' before the Court. I urge support for this legislation.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Forgive me for not standing, but who has the floor?

Mr. HELMS. I thank the Chair.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that it be in order for me to deliver my remarks from my seat.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Madam President, this morning marked an unmistakably glorious conclusion to the remarkable military career of one of North Carolina's most famous citizens, GEN Henry H. Shelton. It occurred at Fort Myer, VA, with scores of America's best-known leaders--both military and civilian, on hand for the spectacular event. All branches of the armed services participated. The Secretary of Defense, for example, Don Rumsfeld, was there, as was Secretary of State Colin Powell. The marching bands didn't miss a cue or a note. It was splendid, every minute of it, in every detail. General Shelton's farewell remarks were a modest review of the many things he had seen and things he had done in many places around the world. His wife Carolyn's eyes brimmed with tears a few times, a measurement of her pride in, and her love for, her remarkable husband. All in all, it served to make those of us present a bit prouder of our country as we surveyed the troops from all of the services and heard the bands strike up. I believe Senators will enjoy reviewing the address by GEN Henry H. Shelton on this, the morning of his retirement from the U.S. Army--and especially, as General Shelton turned over the chairmanship of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to his friend, GEN Dick Myers. Therefore, I ask unanimous consent that General Shelton's farewell address be printed in full in the Record. I thank the Chair.

Mr. HELMS. I thank the Senator.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, I thank the Chair. I ask unanimous consent that it be in order for me to make my remarks while seated at my desk.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Again, Mr. President, I thank the Chair. Let me just add a footnote to the remarks of Senator Craig. We have been working closely together on this issue of the International Criminal Court, and we see eye to eye on the danger of this Court presented to our fighting men and women. I appreciate very much the efforts of Senator Craig, who I understand may be offering a second- degree amendment, which he has already done. I want to assure the Senate, as Senator Craig has, that Senator Craig and I will continue working together on this and other important issues in the future. As I indicated earlier in my remarks, my amendment--the underlying amendment, that is--is supported by the Bush administration. Vice President Cheney has personally seen to it the language in my underlying amendment has the approval of the State Department, the Defense Department, the National Security Council, the Justice Department, along with other parts of the Government. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, after those dastardly terrorists deliberately murdered--and I use those words advisedly--thousands of American citizens in New York, Washington, and in the plane crash in Pennsylvania, President Bush instructed our armed services to ``be ready.'' Mr. President, our Nation is at war with terrorism. Everybody knows that. Thousands in our Armed Forces are already risking their lives around the globe, preparing to fight in that war. We bade farewell to 2,000 or 3,000 marines from North Carolina last week. These are all courageous men and women who are not afraid to face up to evil terrorists, and they are ready to risk their lives to preserve and to protect what I like to call the miracle of America. And that is why I am among those of their fellow countrymen who insist that these men and women who are willing to risk their lives to protect their country and fellow Americans should not have to face the persecution of the International Criminal Court--which ought to be called the International Kangaroo Court. This court will be empowered when 22 more nations ratify the Rome Treaty. Instead of helping the United States go after real war criminals and terrorists, the International Criminal Court has the unbridled power to intimidate our military people and other citizens with bogus, politicized prosecutions. Similar creations of the United Nations have shown that this is inevitable. Earlier this year, the U.N. Human Rights Commission kicked off the United States--the world's foremost advocate of human rights--to the cheers of dictators around the globe. The United Nation's conference on racism in Durban, South Africa, this past month, became an agent of hate rather than against hate. With this track record, it is not difficult to anticipate that the U.N.'s International Criminal Court will be in a position not merely to prosecute, but to persecute our soldiers and sailors for alleged war crimes as they risk their lives fighting the scourge of terrorism. Therefore, now is the time for the Senate to move to protect those who are protecting us. I have an amendment at the desk to serve as a sort of insurance policy for our troops. My amendment is supported by the Bush administration and is based on the ``American Service Members Protection Act,'' which I introduced this past May. It is cosponsored by Senators Miller, Hatch, Shelby, Murkowski, Bond, and Allen. I ask unanimous consent that the amendment be filed with the DOD authorization bill.

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, many Americans may not realize that the Rome Treaty can apply to Americans even without the U.S. ratifying the treaty. This bewildering threat to America's men and women in our Armed Forces must be stopped. And that is precisely what my amendment proposes to do--it protects Americans in several ways: (1) It will prohibit cooperation with this kangaroo court, including use of taxpayer funding or sharing of classified information. (2) It will restrict a U.S. role in peacekeeping missions unless the U.N. specifically exempts U.S. troops from prosecution by this international court. (3) It blocks U.S. aid to allies unless they too sign accords to shield U.S. troops on their soil from being turned over to the ICC. And (4) It authorizes any necessary action to free U.S. soldiers improperly handed over to that Court. My amendment to the Defense authorization bill incorporates changes negotiated with the executive branch giving the President the flexibility and authority to delegate tasks in the bill to Cabinet Secretaries and their deputies in this time of national emergency. The Bush administration supports this slightly revised version of the American Service Members Protection Act. I have a letter from the administration in support of this amendment, which I will soon read. Nothing is more important than the safety of our citizens, soldiers, and public servants. The terrorist attacks of September 11 have made that fact all the more obvious. Today, we can, we must, act to protect our military personnel from abuse by the International Criminal Court. The letter I received dated September 25 from the U.S. Department of State is signed by Paul V. Kelly, Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs: Dear Senator Helms: This letter advises that the administration supports the revised text of the American Servicemembers' Protection Act, dated September 10, 2001, proposed by you, Mr. Hyde and Mr. Delay. We commit to supporting enactment of the revised bill in its current form based upon the agreed changes without further amendment and to oppose alternative legislative proposals. We understand that the House ASPA legislation will be attached to the State Department Authorization Bill or to other appropriate legislation. Signed, Paul V. Kelly, as I indicated earlier. I thank the Chair and yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. HELMS. Yes.

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that I may make my remarks seated at my desk.

Mr. HELMS

Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, as of today, during my nearly 29 years in the Senate, I have missed a total of three votes because of ``traffic jams.'' The first was during my 4th year in the Senate. The other two occurred this morning when I was unable to get to the Senate Chamber in time to cast my affirmative votes for H.R. 2888 and S.J. Res. 23, both of which were approved without a dissenting vote. Needless to say, I deeply regret I was unable to reach the Senate Chamber in time to vote for the two critical measures approved by the Senate today. The enormity of Tuesday's terrorist attacks is proving more apparent every day. It is obvious that the lives of all Americans have changed as a result of these heinous crimes against the United States and, indeed, all civilization. Needless to say, I strongly support the Senate's giving President Bush the authority to root out and destroy the heinous terrorists responsible for such brutality and also, of course, the governments harboring them. Needless to say, I support the necessary funding to enable the President to begin this solemn responsibility. I commend the Senate, of course, for its responsible and appropriate actions to provide sufficient funding to help the recovery effort in New York, Washington, D.C. and elsewhere. This is only the beginning of the resources Congress must provide to eradicate the terrorists that perpetrated such horrific violence against America and the American people. Mrs. Helms and I join our fellow Americans in mourning the victims and praying for their loved ones, and we also share the resolve to fight terrorism in any form, by any available means, unless and until we are confident that America will never again have a day like Tuesday, September 11, 2001.