Johnny Isakson

Mr. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Craig amendment which is at the desk 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 measure be printed in the Record.

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the committee on Veterans' Affairs be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 3200 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that I now be permitted to speak as if in morning business.

Mr. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported amendments 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 related to the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 139, S. 1017.

Mr. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Environment and Public Works be discharged from further consideration of S. 1709 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I rise on the advice and consent question of Judge John Roberts. Before I address my judgment on that, I would like to pay tribute for a second to Sandra Day O'Connor and the late William Rehnquist. Sandra Day O'Connor's announced retirement caused the nomination by the President of John Roberts, and subsequently the untimely passing of Chief Justice Rehnquist afforded the opportunity for that nomination to be for Chief Justice as well. In the anticipated furor of this debate and confirmation, the credit never was given that should have been to Justice O'Connor or Justice Rehnquist. Sandra Day O'Connor was the first woman appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court. She served with honor and distinction. She wrote brilliantly, concisely, and succinctly, and, most importantly of all, she had an insight and wisdom second to none. In fact, I commend to everyone her final writing, her dissenting opinion on the eminent domain case, if you want to see a Justice who was well grounded and interested in the American people. Judge Rehnquist was the 16th Justice of the United States, an outstanding individual of immense capacity, dedication, and commitment to the United States of America. His loss is a tragedy, and the retirement of Justice O'Connor is a loss to the Court. But now we are confronted with our constitutional responsibility as Members of the Senate to address the question of John Roberts, the nominee of President Bush. I come to this debate somewhat differently than a lot who preceded me. I am not an attorney. Before my election to the Senate, I was a businessman, always had been, always will be when I leave. I come also as a new Member of the Senate. In fact, a year ago today, I was engaged in a debate in Columbus, GA, with my Democratic opponent for the Senate seat. The issue that night of that debate was clearly what was the role of the Senate in terms of the confirmation of a Justice to the Supreme Court and the issue of the day, which was filibuster. It was only a year ago when whether a judge could even get an up-or-down vote was a major question on the floor of the Senate. I happen to have been elected, obviously, to that Senate seat, sworn in on January 4, and came to the Senate to find that advice and consent was impossible because filibuster was the rule of the day. Then a unique thing happened. Fourteen Members of this body made a deal--and I commend them for it. They broke a logjam, and very quickly we were able to confirm six appointments to the court, some who had languished as long--as in the case of Judge Pryor--as 4 years. No one knew Justice O'Connor would announce her retirement a few weeks later, nor that Chief Justice Rehnquist would die, but all of us knew that when an appointment came, the agreement that had been made might be put in jeopardy because it set forth a standard that filibuster might be necessary under extraordinary circumstances. There were many who anticipated whomever the President appointed would be in and of itself an extraordinary circumstance. Then along came John G. Roberts, who is an extraordinary man. I will vote to confirm the President's nomination of John G. Roberts as Chief Justice of the United States. In large measure, I will do so because of who and what John G. Roberts is, has been, and will be--a decent and humble man of immense intelligence and demonstrated compassion. We will hear and I have heard earlier today some in this Chamber who will tell us that he never answered any questions; we don't know where he stands. Well, to me, those are simply code words for them saying they couldn't pin him down, tie him in knots, or prejudice him for future decisions. Personally, I don't want a Justice who any lawyer can tie in knots or predispose. I want a judge I can stand before and count on the fact that he will call them like he sees them, that he won't be in one corner or the other, that he will do what is right, what is dictated by the law and the Constitution. In my 33 years in business, I was in court from time to time--as few times as possible. But all of us have been. I served as a foreman of a grand jury. I served on a petit jury. I have been, in the case as a businessman, in court myself. I don't want to go into a courtroom where I know I have a judge who has a bent, a predisposition, or an agenda. I want to go before a judge who wants to treat me under the law as equally and as fairly as my opponent on the other side, who will rule based on the facts, based on what is before him, based on the law, and based on our Constitution. I want a Justice who will study the law, listen to my side of the case, listen to the other side, and call it as he sees it. In his introduction, John Roberts said he was an umpire and he was a humble man. That says a lot about John Roberts. If there is anything we need on the bench today, it is those who see themselves umpires making the right call, the right decision the right time in every single case, for there is no instant replay on the Supreme Court of the United States of America. As Judge Roberts said in his confirmation hearing before the Judiciary Committee, just as people do not go to a baseball game to watch the umpires, they do not go to court to watch the judge. They go to court to get a fair decision, unvarnished and untainted. I was in Columbus, GA, during the break in August. I did an education listening session. After it was over, I met with some 6th grade kids of that school, some kids I gave the chance to ask me questions, some children I gave the chance to find out what they would like to know from a Senator. A little girl by the name of Maleka said: Senator Isakson, I have one question for you. What is the hardest decision you are going to have to make in the U.S. Senate? What is the most important decision you are going to have to make in the U.S. Senate? That was about a month ago today. The first answer I gave her was confirming Justices to the Supreme Court of the United States. It came to my mind instinctively because we all knew the nomination of Judge Roberts had been made and we would make that decision. All of us in here also know that the Constitution specifically says it is our advice and our consent which makes that determination. We also know that the third leg of the stool which is the great genius of the United States of America is the judicial branch, which is equal and separate from the courts and the executive. But it is also in these confirmations where the executive, the legislative, and the judicial come together. There is no more important decision made by a Member of the Senate than who the next Justice or Chief Justice of the United States will be. I close my remarks by telling you this: John G. Roberts has made the toughest decision I will have to make an easy one. He is a class act. He is an intellect. He is an honorable man. He is a man who, when the cases of justice in America are decided before our Supreme Court, will call it as he sees it, listen to both sides, rule on the law, and understand the Constitution. You can ask no more of a man than John Roberts has demonstrated time and again. That is precisely what he will deliver. Thursday at 11:30 I will be honored to cast my vote on behalf of the people of Georgia to confirm John G. Roberts as the 17th Chief Justice of the United States in the history of our country. I yield the floor.

Mr. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 3767 which was received from the House.

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill 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. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 3667 and that the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate, and that any statements relating to measure be printed in the Record.

Mr. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I rise today on the 15th anniversary of the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act to commemorate its passage, commend its many authors, and suggest some actions we should take to protect, preserve, and advance its legacy as a vital component of our laws on civil rights. Fifteen years ago, President George Herbert Walker Bush signed into law the Americans with Disabilities Act, a landmark piece of legislation that extended civil rights protections to individuals with disabilities. Prior to the passage of the ADA, far too many of our fellow Americans with disabilities faced utterly unnecessary obstacles. Many lacked accessible transportation, reasonable workplace accommodations, and entree to government buildings. Passionate reformers of all stripes sought to change this, and we cannot discuss the ADA without first mentioning the name Justin Dart, Jr. Never without his trademark cowboy hat, Justin Dart worked tirelessly for enactment of the act. His efforts came to national attention in 1981, when President Reagan appointed him to be the vice- chair of what is now known as the National Council on Disability. Mr. Dart and others on the council drafted a policy that called for civil rights legislation to end discrimination against people with disabilities, a policy that eventually would form the basis for the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Widely respected and beloved by both sides, Justin Dart passed away in 2002. Another champion for Americans with disabilities was, without question, our former colleague, Bob Dole. It was 1942 when, at the age of 19, Bob Dole joined the Army to fight in World War II. A year later, in the hills of Italy fighting the Nazis, Senator Dole was hit by gunfire. The shot shattered his right shoulder, fractured vertebrae in his neck and spine, paralyzed him from the neck down, and damaged a kidney. Of course, he recovered to become one of the most influential legislators of the 20th century. Urging Congress to pass the ADA, he said, ``This historic civil rights legislation seeks to end the unjustified segregation and exclusion of persons with disabilities from the mainstream of American life.'' A study of the legislative history of the act reveals that it was, in every sense, a bipartisan accomplishment. The legislation supports a notion in which President Reagan deeply believed. He used to say that there is no limit to what you can accomplish if you don't care who gets the credit. The act was then signed into law by another great American, President George H. W. Bush. In signing the legislation, President Bush spoke of what he felt the law would offer Americans with disabilities. He said ``This Act . . . will ensure that people with disabilities are given the basic guarantees for which they have worked so long and so hard: independence, freedom of choice, control of their lives, the opportunity to blend fully and equally into the rich mosaic of the American mainstream.'' Since the passage of the ADA, we have seen significant improvements in the employment and economic well-being of citizens with disabilities. In 2003, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that over the previous 15 years, the employment rate for working age men with a disability had increased by more than 25 percent. Other evidence of the ADA's impact was even more readily apparent. For instance, the barriers to mobility once posed by public transportation have been largely eliminated. Here in Washington, DC, for example, 95 percent of the Metro system is accessible to persons with disabilities. However, anniversaries are not just for looking back and celebrating the achievements of the past. They must also be an occasion for looking forward to the challenges that still lie before us. A report issued by the Institute for Higher Education Policy in 2004 revealed that less than two-thirds of youths with disabilities receive standard high school diplomas. Although this graduation rate represents a significantly higher rate than 15 years ago, it remains inadequate, and significantly behind the rate for individuals without disabilities. We in Congress must maintain high expectations for all Americans. Americans with disabilities can compete and cooperate at the same level as Americans without disabilities. I was happy to work on the No Child Left Behind Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, both of which incorporated the principle of high expectations for all, regardless of race, gender, or disability. We also must incorporate the latest technology to help further incorporate Americans with disabilities into our workplaces. I was pleased to support President George W. Bush's New Freedom Initiative, which builds on the progress of the ADA by supporting new technologies that make communications easier, and thereby helping people with disabilities live full, active lives in their communities. We in Georgia know that people with disabilities can realize their incredible potential and better our workplaces, our schools, and our society. For 6 years, we were represented in this body by Senator Max Cleland, a disabled Vietnam veteran. No one knew the potential of Americans with disabilities better than Bobby Dodd, whom most Georgians would associate with Georgia Tech and his phenomenal years coaching, winning football teams. But after his retirement, he developed the Bobby Dodd Institute, which works to ensure that Atlantans with disabilities are given the opportunities to achieve economic self-sufficiency through employment. Another name that comes to mind when we discuss heroes to Americans with disabilities is Tommy Nobis. Tommy was the first draft pick in the history of the Atlanta Falcons, taken No. 1 in the 1965 draft. A steady and reliable linebacker, Tommy was a five-time Pro-Bowler and NFL Rookie of the Year in 1966. Yet far more important than his football accomplishments are his accomplishments off the field. In 1975, he founded the Tommy Nobis Center to provide vocational training to persons with disabilities. Originally run out of a small, crowded trailer, the center now operates a $2 million state-of-the-art center in Marietta, GA. The center enables individuals to enter or return to employment and to enjoy productive and independent lifestyles while contributing to the greater business community. Over their proud 25- year history, the center has assisted over 11,000 individuals with disabilities. Again, I am pleased to cosponsor today's resolution and offer my sincerest congratulations to all of those who have worked to ensure better lives for Americans with disabilities.

Mr. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, today I pay tribute to the Home Depot for the support, employment, and assistance it provides to the men and women of our active duty Armed Forces, Reserves and National Guard and their families. Beginning with its founding by Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank and continuing under CEO and President Bob Nardelli, the Home Depot has always been a great corporate citizen. Nothing exemplifies the company's commitment more than its support of our veterans and their families. In the years 2003 and 2004 combined the Home Depot hired 25,000 veterans, and was recognized by G. I. Jobs magazine as America's No. 1 military-friendly employer. In 2004, the company launched Operation Career Front with the departments of Defense, Labor, and Veterans Affairs to provide career opportunities to military personnel and their spouses. Since the tragic terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, our Nation has depended on our military Reserves and National Guard in waging the war on terror, and no American company has been a bigger supporter of the Reserves and Guard than the Home Depot. In March of 2003 the company enhanced its military leave policy to provide active duty associates with full pay and an extension of their health benefits. In April 2003 the Home Depot launched Project Homefront, donating more than 1 million hours of volunteer service and $1 million to help repair the homes of deployed military families. In September of 2004 the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserves presented the Home Depot with its Freedom Award. In June of this year the company established a program for returning veterans to provide associates with the critical resources needed for a smooth transition back to work. For all these reasons and so many more, Home Depot was recognized this year by the Marine Corps Law Enforcement Foundation and the Partnership for Public Service with awards for leadership and distinguished service to America's veterans. I am very proud to recognize CEO Bob Nardelli and the men and women of Home Depot for their leadership in employing and assisting America's active duty and veteran military personnel and their families.

Mr. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I rise today to offer my congratulations to Heath and Lee Garrett on the birth of their second child. William Heath Garrett was welcomed into this world at 4:45 p.m. on July 6th, 2005, weighing 7 pounds and measuring 19 inches. Little William Heath was named after his father and joins big sister Martha ``Mattie'' Lee, who will turn 3 in October 2005, as the newest addition to the Garrett family. Since his graduation from the University Of Georgia School of Law, Heath Garrett has been a trusted advisor as well as an honored friend. He served as my policy advisor on the Georgia Board of Education and served as my chief of staff in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1999 through 2004. He came with me this year to the U.S. Senate where he continues to serve ably as my chief of staff. I congratulate Heath and Lee Garrett on the newest addition to their family and wish them years of continued health and happiness.

Mr. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I am very pleased to rise and commend Mr. Joe Kelly McCutchen of Ellijay GA for his selection as outstanding alumni for the living history program of Georgia Tech. Georgia Tech could not have made a better decision. Joe McCutchen is a living role model for community involvement, excellence in action, and sharing the American dream. His selection places him in the company of great Georgians like medal of honor winner General Raymond Davis, former President Jimmy Carter, astronaut Jan Davis, former Lockheed president Robert Ormsby, and Federal judge Marvin Shoob. No one in northwest Georgia has had a greater positive effect on the young people than Joe. He constantly engages with young people to inspire them to excellence. He teaches the promise of free enterprise, and power of the American dream. Joe McCutchen is also Georgia's leading advocate for lower taxes and sound fiscal policy in government. He and his friend Oscar Poole travel to Washington often to present their Taxpayer Champion Award, and there is not a credible radio or television public policy call in show in the United States on which Joe has not participated. Joe McCutchen has lived the American dream and commits his life to sharing its promise with others. Georgia Tech is to be commended for its living history program and its selection of Joe McCutchen.

Mr. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. I ask unanimous consent the reading of the amendment be dispensed.

Mr. ISAKSON. I express my appreciation to the subcommittee chairman, Senator Gregg of New Hampshire. It is my understanding from the chairman that it has been agreed to accept the amendment.

Mr. ISAKSON. I ask unanimous consent the pending amendment be set aside and my amendment be called up.

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I call up my amendment.

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, the amendment is a sense-of-the-Senate amendment to the Homeland Security Appropriations bill dealing with border security. I commend the subcommittee chairman on the tremendous investment this bill makes in homeland security and in border security to the United States of America. A few months ago when I made one of the first speeches in the Senate with regard to the floor supplemental, I talked a little bit about REAL ID and what is the largest single domestic issue in the United States today, illegal immigration. In that particular speech I made a note that I love our system of immigration, love the fact you can come to this country and become a citizen--I am a second-generation American myself--but we have been flooded as a nation over the past decade by a tremendous influx of those who have come illegally, many over the border of the south, although obviously to the north as well. This goes a long way toward providing the funding to Customs and to Immigration to begin enforcing laws on the books, making it tougher to come into the United States the wrong way and hopefully making it easier to come to the United States the right way, the legal way. We need a partner on our southern border. The sense-of-the-Senate amendment is very simple. It simply asks the Government of Mexico to assist in helping to secure the border between the United States and Mexico to ensure that those who immigrate into this country are coming in consistent with the laws of the United States of America. We have a great trading partner to the south. We have a great neighbor to the south. We have a country that shares many common interests. We have a country that we enjoy being our neighbor. We also would like for them to be our partner in seeing to it that the border we share is secure so that those who are crossing are crossing legally and consistent with the laws of that nation. I thank the subcommittee chairman for his cooperation. I thank the Senate for agreeing to this amendment. I am pleased we can express this sense of the Senate that the common interest of both countries is in the best interests of America when it comes to the border security between ourselves and the country of Mexico. I yield the floor.

Mr. ISAKSON. I ask unanimous consent the amendment be agreed to.

Mr. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I wish to take just a minute to address 48 extraordinary hours in my life this past weekend I spent with the men and women in the U.S. Armed Forces, first on Saturday in Ellijay, GA, at the funeral of 1LT Noah Harris of the U.S. Army, and then 24 hours later at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where I spent the day with U.S. Armed Forces in the work they are doing with the detainees in the war on terror. I wish to do the best I can today to speak for those with whom I talked. I take responsibility for every word I say, but they are every bit a message from the people with whom I talked and who shared with me. First, at the funeral of 1LT Noah Harris, I eulogized Noah on last Thursday and made a promise that I would make it to Ellijay, GA, on Saturday to be at his service. He was a distinguished Georgian, and like every other soldier who served and sacrificed, we mourn his death but we praise his service to our country. But this was an extraordinary funeral service. A thousand Georgians--500 in the high school gym and 500 in the First Methodist Church--attended a 2\1/2\ hour service that passed in a microsecond, a service not by ministers but by laymen, Americans, citizens of Georgia to praise Noah Harris but also to praise our men and women in harm's way. When the service came to a conclusion, it was his mother Lucy and his dad Rick who talked for the last 20 minutes. To honor what they said and their son to the best of my ability, I want to recount it to all of you. Lucy stood up before that crowd of 500 and said: You know, when we got the word of Noah's death, I knew I had two choices: I could mourn and I could be sorrowful and I could grieve, and I have done all those, but I could also do the good and the godly thing, and that is to praise my son and all those other men and women who fight in Iraq on behalf of freedom and democracy. She gave a beautiful and eloquent statement about the tribute her son's life was to that for which our men and women fight. Then her husband stood up and asked rhetorically: What was it the American press is really writing about today? Everything you hear about what is going on in Iraq is negative and wrong, questioning our motives and our reasons for being there. Yet in this church in quiet Ellijay, GA, in northwest Georgia, thousands had come to honor a man who had sacrificed his life in harm's way for the people of Iraq and the principles of this great Nation. Rick Harris asked the question: Have we forgotten 9/11? Have we forgotten that since that date there has not been an attack on American soil? Since we went after terror, wherever its exists, and since we committed the resources of our country, our Nation has been safer. And what we are doing is right--is not only right morally, but it is right for the future of peace and freedom and democracy. So for Lucy and Rick Harris, on behalf of their son, I rise today in this Senate and send that message loud and clear that I got last Saturday from a thousand Georgians proud of their native son's service, sorrowful for his loss but appreciative of living in a country that has been willing to make the commitment we have made on behalf of freedom and democracy around the world and on behalf of the security of the United States of America. And then, Mr. President, I went to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. I went with two other Members of the Senate. I went with a specific desire in mind: the desire to go and see for myself that which I heard so many people talk about and have seen so much about on television. I learned something very interesting. There must be two Guantanamo Bay, Cubas--the one I visited and the one all the news media talks about because they did not resemble one another. I thought when I landed at Guantanamo Bay and went to visit the detainees that I would see men incarcerated in cyclone fences with razor wire on top of it. That does not exist anymore. That was Camp X-Ray. It was closed 3 years ago. It was the original temporary place we took the enemy combatants to until we could spend the millions of dollars to build the buildings that now house them. I saw 538 people who are intent on hurting and destroying Americans, who are incarcerated in a facility from which we are gaining intelligence that is saving lives of Americans and citizens around the world. The most hardened of those I saw are in air-conditioned facilities, not unlike what I have seen in the United States in sheriffs' jails and prisons. The food they eat is unbelievable. The medical care is first rate. The security is tight and, yes, they are controlled, but they are there because they are the enemies of our Nation and were captured in battle in the worldwide war on terror. After seeing all those facilities and having totally dispelled that which television shows, I had lunch with two Georgia sailors. I promised them I would bring a message back to the Senate. They are on a 6-month rotation as guards guarding the enemy combatants, the terrorists who threaten America. I asked them: If I could take back anything, what would you like me to do? They said: Please tell the American media to stop saying what they are saying about what we are doing in Guantanamo because what we are doing is right and what is being alleged is not correct. And tell them what we, the guards, the American soldiers, are subjected to. The two gentlemen with whom I had lunch are two African-American citizens of the State of Georgia serving in the U.S. Navy. They go 12 hours on and 12 hours off, 4 consecutive days guarding enemy combatants. Every day, they have to take a shower more than once during their duty to wipe off and wash off the human waste that is thrown on them by the enemy combatants they guard. They are subjected to racial epithets that we in the United States would never accept. They continue to stay on their post and do their duty, and there is no harm to the enemy combatants. They are sitting there guarding the people who would take the lives of your loved ones and mine. They are abused every day, and what is alleged by people in this Chamber and other places about what may or may not be happening at Guantanamo is not correct. The people subjected to abuse are the men and women in the Armed Forces of the United States who take it from those who would harm us and harm our loved ones. They are standing guard in the front line in the war on terror. My time is about up, but I came to the floor for this time to deliver two messages. First, for Rick and Lucy Harris on behalf of their son, Noah, I hope I did an adequate job. Second, to deliver the message by those two servicemen from Georgia, who stand on the front line of the war on terror guarding the enemy combatants from whom we are gaining the intelligence that is saving American lives; enemy combatants who are treated well, fed well, clothed well, and medically treated well; enemy combatants who would take the lives of our loved ones but because of the commitment of our President, this country, and the men and women in harm's way, are safely incarcerated, and from whom we are gaining the information necessary to win the global war on terror. I hope tonight all Americans will watch our President on TV. I hope tonight in some small way the message I have brought back from those valued soldiers will help us to remain to stay the course against the war on terror for democracy and freedom and in support of this country, its leadership, and the liberty and freedom we all cherish and love. I yield back my time.

Mr. ISAKSON

Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I thank the chairman and ranking member for allowing me this time.