Bill Nelson

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I wish to bring to the attention of the Senate a serious threat to the security of our Nation. Criminal gangs, originally from Central America, are infiltrating several major cities in this country and threatening the safety and security of our citizens. MS-13, also known as Mara Salvatrucha, is a brutal and violent gang responsible for horrific acts of violence. MS-13 gang members are identified by the various tattoos on their bodies. They have origins in El Salvador, but you find they are frequently found now in Honduras, El Salvador, and Nicaragua. This gang uses extreme acts of violence to try to intimidate people, not only in Central America but in America itself. According to the Bureau of Immigration, Customs and Enforcement, MS-13 poses the greatest threat to Los Angeles, New York, Baltimore, Newark, the Washington, DC, area, and Miami. MS-13 has been active in increasing their numbers here in the United States by assisting other members enter the United States from Central America. Federal authorities provide that there are between 8,000 and 10,000 members of MS-13 in the United States and my concern is that if we don't act now to stop them, they will be able to get a toe-hold here in the United States and significantly increase their membership and horrific form of violence. What is some of that violence? According to law enforcement officials, MS-13 has been involved in murder, extortion, robbery, rape, drug trafficking and human smuggling throughout the United States. Here in the Washington, DC, area, for example, two members of MS-13 were found guilty of the stabbing and throat slashing murder of a 17-year- old government witness who was 7 months pregnant at the time of her gang-ordered execution. And to apparently to send some kind of message of intimidation, the gang members disfigured her corpse. Many of their crimes also involve drug trafficking and could very well expand to arms trafficking. And, who knows whether their crimes will soon extend into the terrorist network itself that we are so concerned about. The Bureau of Immigration, Customs and Enforcement reports that there has been speculation of links between MS-13 and international terrorist groups like al-Qaida. The F.B.I. is investigating these rumors of a possible link, but to date has discovered no evidence establishing this link. In Honduras, MS-13 members murdered 28 women and children 2 days before Christmas. Their victims were on a bus returning home after having gone to shopping for Christmas gifts; some of the children were still clutching the Christmas gifts they had just purchased with their mothers. The purpose of this horrific act of violence was to intimidate the Government of Honduras from cracking down on these gangs. Over the recess last week, I went to Honduras with our Four Star General, the Combatant Commander of the United States Southern Command. We went there to meet with the Honduran President Ricardo Maduro, and our ambassador, Ambassador Palmer, to try to have a better understanding of this problem, and what we should do not only to help a country such as Honduras that is trying to get its arms around these gangs and to stop the violence but to keep this from spreading into the United States. As a result of what I have learned, and the exceptional threat this gang poses to United States, I am filing legislation today that will do a couple of things. First, it will give our consular officers in law an automatic reason to reject entry into the United States for anyone they know, or have reasonable grounds to believe, is a member of one of these gangs. Secondly, this legislation I am filing would up the penalty for anyone smuggling one of these gang members into the United States from 1 to 10 years. I am also cosponsoring legislation with the senior Senator from California which goes after gang violence by trying to give additional Federal assistance to local law enforcement as they try to grapple with this. I have a good example. In south Florida last week, after I had returned from Honduras, I met with the joint task force of multiple levels of law enforcement--city, the county, sheriff deputies, the Feds, and the State--that has formed a joint team to attack this problem and to try to keep these gangs, specifically MS-13, from getting a toe-hold in south Florida. We hope if we are successful in Florida it will be an example to the rest of the country, and with the increased penalties offered by this legislation, it will give our law enforcement and our consular officers additional tools to stamp out this violence, this gang-related activity that could lead itself very much into the hands of the terrorists who are trying to exact so much harm upon us as a country and as a people. The time to act to stop the spread of this gang is now, before they are able to spread their web of violence to more cities and areas within the United States. I hope that my colleagues will join me and support this bill.

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I wish to bring to the attention of the Senate a serious threat to the security of our Nation. Criminal gangs, originally from Central America, are infiltrating several major cities in this country and threatening the safety and security of our citizens. MS-13, also known as Mara Salvatrucha, is a brutal and violent gang responsible for horrific acts of violence. MS-13 gang members are identified by the various tattoos on their bodies. They have origins in El Salvador, but you find they are frequently found now in Honduras, El Salvador, and Nicaragua. This gang uses extreme acts of violence to try to intimidate people, not only in Central America but in America itself. According to the Bureau of Immigration, Customs and Enforcement, MS-13 poses the greatest threat to Los Angeles, New York, Baltimore, Newark, the Washington, DC, area, and Miami. MS-13 has been active in increasing their numbers here in the United States by assisting other members enter the United States from Central America. Federal authorities provide that there are between 8,000 and 10,000 members of MS-13 in the United States and my concern is that if we don't act now to stop them, they will be able to get a toe-hold here in the United States and significantly increase their membership and horrific form of violence. What is some of that violence? According to law enforcement officials, MS-13 has been involved in murder, extortion, robbery, rape, drug trafficking and human smuggling throughout the United States. Here in the Washington, DC, area, for example, two members of MS-13 were found guilty of the stabbing and throat slashing murder of a 17-year- old government witness who was 7 months pregnant at the time of her gang-ordered execution. And to apparently to send some kind of message of intimidation, the gang members disfigured her corpse. Many of their crimes also involve drug trafficking and could very well expand to arms trafficking. And, who knows whether their crimes will soon extend into the terrorist network itself that we are so concerned about. The Bureau of Immigration, Customs and Enforcement reports that there has been speculation of links between MS-13 and international terrorist groups like al-Qaida. The F.B.I. is investigating these rumors of a possible link, but to date has discovered no evidence establishing this link. In Honduras, MS-13 members murdered 28 women and children 2 days before Christmas. Their victims were on a bus returning home after having gone to shopping for Christmas gifts; some of the children were still clutching the Christmas gifts they had just purchased with their mothers. The purpose of this horrific act of violence was to intimidate the Government of Honduras from cracking down on these gangs. Over the recess last week, I went to Honduras with our Four Star General, the Combatant Commander of the United States Southern Command. We went there to meet with the Honduran President Ricardo Maduro, and our ambassador, Ambassador Palmer, to try to have a better understanding of this problem, and what we should do not only to help a country such as Honduras that is trying to get its arms around these gangs and to stop the violence but to keep this from spreading into the United States. As a result of what I have learned, and the exceptional threat this gang poses to United States, I am filing legislation today that will do a couple of things. First, it will give our consular officers in law an automatic reason to reject entry into the United States for anyone they know, or have reasonable grounds to believe, is a member of one of these gangs. Secondly, this legislation I am filing would up the penalty for anyone smuggling one of these gang members into the United States from 1 to 10 years. I am also cosponsoring legislation with the senior Senator from California which goes after gang violence by trying to give additional Federal assistance to local law enforcement as they try to grapple with this. I have a good example. In south Florida last week, after I had returned from Honduras, I met with the joint task force of multiple levels of law enforcement--city, the county, sheriff deputies, the Feds, and the State--that has formed a joint team to attack this problem and to try to keep these gangs, specifically MS-13, from getting a toe-hold in south Florida. We hope if we are successful in Florida it will be an example to the rest of the country, and with the increased penalties offered by this legislation, it will give our law enforcement and our consular officers additional tools to stamp out this violence, this gang-related activity that could lead itself very much into the hands of the terrorists who are trying to exact so much harm upon us as a country and as a people. The time to act to stop the spread of this gang is now, before they are able to spread their web of violence to more cities and areas within the United States. I hope that my colleagues will join me and support this bill.

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I rise to speak on the nomination of John Bolton. The question for me is, in a position of exceptional importance to the United States and our Government, that of representative to the world body--the United Nations, is John Bolton the kind of person who can best represent the interests of the United States? Is John Bolton the kind of personality who can negotiate and talk and establish personal relationships with the representatives of the other nations of the world as we try to carry forward the agenda of the United States? To those two questions, the answer is clearly no. There are examples of former representatives to the United Nations, nominated by Republican Presidents--such as Ambassador Negroponte, such as a former Senator and former Ambassador John Danforth--who embody the type of person you would want representing our country before the United Nations. This position is particularly critical to our country at this time because two of the greatest threats to the interests of the United States are North Korea and Iran, and their pursuit of nuclear weapons. Clearly we have an interest in preventing both countries from possessing the bomb, even though it looks as though North Korea already does. We ought to be making sure that at the end of the day North Korea does not have weapons of mass destruction that they can proliferate all over the world, particularly into the hands of terrorists. The same with Iran. There is no evidence that Iran has a bomb now, but clearly the evidence is there that Iran is trying to achieve that. We need a representative in the United Nations who can help us work with other nations, particularly European nations, with regard to Iran. Also, we must focus on the nations in the region of North Korea, so, at the end of the day these two countries do not have nuclear weapons. This is in the clear interests not only of the United States, but it is in the clear interests of the world. Otherwise, you raise the possibility of nuclear weapons or nuclear materials getting into the hands of terrorists. And once that happens, Katie bar the door, we would have a whole new and extreme threat to the interests of the civilized world. Is John Bolton the person who we think can establish those personal relationships within the United Nations? The relationships that we will need in order to get Europe to help us with Iran, and in order to get help with North Korea. I think that answer is clearly no. The stakes are high. That is why I speak with passion. That is why I have spoken with passion as a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. But there is more. The ``more'' is simple. Should John Bolton be promoted based on his performance in his existing job as arms control negotiator? Should he be promoted? I think the answer is clearly no because John Bolton has not done a good job. Look at those two nations I just mentioned, North Korea and Iran. Have we gotten anywhere in our arms control negotiations with regard to those two countries in the last 4 years when he was Under Secretary for Arms Control? The answer to that is no. Why should we be promoting an individual who has not done his job well into a position of even higher visibility--I will not say of greater importance--of higher visibility as a representative of our country? It is clear to me that we should not. If we didn't have this deal here about supporting the President's nominations, do you think if Senators on that side of the aisle voted their conscience, they would support this nomination? I think the answer is clearly no. Senator Voinovich has had the courage to stand up and call it as he sees it. I do not know Mr. Bolton, but I have observed him and I have observed his demeanor and I have looked at his record. I think his record is one that does not suggest we elevate him to this position of extreme prominence in the representation of the interests of the United States before the United Nations, particularly at this delicate time when we need our best representative at the United Nations. I think at the end of the day it is clear he should not be our representative at the United Nations. Therefore, I am going to vote no on the nomination of John Bolton. I yield the floor.

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. This filibuster issue is so important to me as I project how it can be taken away from me as I try to protect the interests of Florida. I was about to point out that although the Secretary of the Interior 2 weeks ago, when I requested in the next 5-year plan that she extend the same protections of no additional drilling in the Gulf of Mexico off of Florida, would not give me that assurance. I now see, as the result of a vote today in the House of Representatives, an amendment offered for oil and gas drilling off of the State of Florida. It may have been this amendment, may have been just for gas drilling. That is the proverbial camel's nose under the tent. All drilling, happily, in that amendment failed in the House of Representatives, but the Bush administration's intent is now clear since the Secretary of Interior would not give me that assurance that she gave me back in 2001. It is their intent to start drilling off the coast of Florida in the Gulf of Mexico, which brings me back to the filibuster. I don't want to lose this precedent of 216 years in the Senate, to lose this right of a filibuster. If we do it with regard to these judges, then what is coming next, they will take away our right to stand up here for the interests of our States? This is a matter of tremendous gravity. It affects all of us. I yield the floor.

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Of course.

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, before the distinguished Senator from Montana departs, I want to thank him for obviously something that has been well thought out and deeply felt. He is a distinguished Senator who has served decades in the Senate and who has risen to the position as chairman of the Finance Committee. He understands the traditions and the comity of this institution in order for it to function. It clearly cannot function unless Senators can get along and trust each other, where Senators can have respect for one another, and where the minority is not run over all the time by the majority. That is one of the great checks and balances of this constitutional system that we have. The rights of the minority are protected because of extended debate which, at the end of the day, encourages compromise and consensus building. As the Good Book says: Come, let us reason together. So I thank the Senator for his comments. I thank him for being a mentor to me, as I have so enjoyed his company and his leadership as well as the company of all these Senators. There is not a Senator here that I don't like. I like them all. I want to see this body continue to function as it has for 216 years, as the greatest deliberative body in the world. We are about to change that dramatically if this nuclear option is, in fact, employed. I thank the Senator for his comments. Mr. President, I want to add in my own little way a plea to the rest of the Senators. I have gotten into some of the discussions that are going on around this Capitol Building right now, to see if we can head off this thing. It doesn't look like we can. It looks like people are hardening into their positions. I wonder why. Is it worth changing over two centuries of history and precedent in the Senate for what, in effect, are five judges? Is it worth giving up the traditions and the protection of the minority, under the rules, for over two centuries for five judges? I was surprised when I looked over the record and found out what my voting record has been here. I have voted, under President Bush, for 209 of his judicial nominees; I have voted against 7. That is 97 percent of the President's nominees for Federal judgeships that I have voted for. Am I not entitled, as the senior Senator from Florida, to exercise my judgment on seven people for a lifetime appointment as judge, when I don't think they have the judicial temperament in order to be judge for life? That is what the Senate is all about. That is what the Constitution said it is all about. It says that the judicial process is a two-step process. The President nominates and the Senate decides. In the old language of the constitutional forefathers it was ``advise and consent.'' My advice was, on seven, that I didn't think they had the judicial temperament, that they would look dispassionately at an issue, that they would look at the facts and apply the law. Those seven seemed to me to have their minds already made up. That is not what I want in a judge. I want a judge who is going to be fairminded, who is going to listen to all the nuances and make a fair and reasoned judgment. I gave the President the benefit of the doubt on these 209. I can tell you, some of those were in Florida. On those I didn't give him the benefit of the doubt; those were good because in Florida we have a system whereby we have a judicial nominating commission, which is not by law but has been by custom over the years, and that judicial nominating commission receives the applications of people who want to be a Federal district judge, they interview them, and they make a recommendation to the Senators and to the White House. The arrangement that Senator Graham and I had with the White House, with Alberto Gonzales, then the counsel for the White House, was that we would interview all of those recommended to us--sometimes it was three, sometimes it was six--for the vacancy, and we would tell the White House if we had an objection. That has worked. On the judges from Florida that are within that 209 that I voted for, I can tell you they are good appointments. But that was the give and take between the Senate and the White House in the filling of a judicial vacancy. That is not the ramming down your throat a judicial nomination just because the White House wants it. I have agreed with the White House 97 percent of the time. You can calculate it mathematically, that is 97 percent of the time. So now they want to take away the right, under the rule, to filibuster so that no matter who comes in, they are going to be approved if they have 50 votes. It could be 50-50, because the tie would be broken with the Vice President sitting as the Presiding Officer of the Senate. There is another reason that has just come to my attention why I do not want the filibuster to be eliminated from this particular set of judges. If it is done for this, what is next? What is next? That the majority leader would stand and take away the filibuster and my right to filibuster as a Senator? Is he going to do that on what the administration is bent on doing, and that is drilling for oil and gas off the coast of Florida--drilling for what 18 million Floridians are deathly afraid of; that the $50 billion a year tourism industry is going to be threatened because of oil lapping up onto our beaches? Are they going to take away my right to stand out here and hold up such legislation, to drill off the coast of Florida, that would despoil our environment? Are they going to take away my right to protect our military assets, an asset that is so valuable it is called restricted airspace? It is out in the Gulf of Mexico and portions of the Atlantic Ocean off Florida, which is why we have so much training in Florida. The pilots can go out there in that restricted airspace. Are they going to take away my right to utilize the filibuster to protect the interests of Florida? It is obvious that today they have started trying to drill off the coast of Florida. Two weeks ago, I had a meeting with the Secretary of the Interior, and I pleaded with her, as she had agreed back in 2001, that she would not include within the 5-year plan that there would be drilling further, other than what was the agreement back in 2001, to extend an additional 1.5 million acres for oil and gas leasing, and it started to intrude into the eastern Gulf of Mexico. She promised it in the 5-year plan which was from 2002 to 2007. So when I met with her 2 weeks ago I asked her to give me that----

Mr. NELSON of Florida. I ask for an additional 5 minutes to proceed.

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I rise today with my colleagues, Senators Burns and Clinton, to introduce the ``IP-Enabled Voice Communications and Public Safety Act of 2005'' and ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I rise today with my colleagues, Senators Burns and Clinton, to introduce the ``IP-Enabled Voice Communications and Public Safety Act of 2005'' and ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent I be allowed to speak for 5 minutes on the resolution.

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I join my colleague from Florida and a number of other colleagues who have sponsored this resolution. This is a historic time for Cuba. The U.S. Government is redoubling its commitment to freedom and democracy around the world. We are watching as people around the globe demand accountability from their leaders, and the ability to participate in free, fair, and open elections. The winds of freedom are not only blowing in the Middle East but also closer to home, near to our blessed shores of Florida--in fact, only 90 miles away from Key West. Despite the horrific crackdown in 2003, Cuban civil society and political dissidents continue to meet and to carry out small actions to express their views on a daily basis. This takes courage. The wives of imprisoned dissidents march silently every Sunday following church services. They are known as the Ladies In White. They march largely unopposed, despite attempts to intimidate and to pressure them. A counterprotest was organized. It was organized once, but that counterprotest has not been repeated. This is just one of many examples of the Cuban people organizing in small groups, showing that Fidel Castro does not have the full support of his people and that all people of the world, including Cubans, desire to be free. A few of the dissidents rounded up in that 2003 crackdown have since been released because of the severity of their medical condition. Their time served in Cuban jails has not curtailed their desire to bring freedom to the people of Cuba. One of those individuals, Martha Beatriz Roque, continues her struggles unfazed by the experiences of a summary trial and then imprisonment. And despite the fact that she runs the risk every day of being returned to jail, she continues to fight for basic rights and she continues to organize dissidents working towards the ultimate goal of freedom. In an effort to heighten the level of international attention-- attention to those brave souls' efforts--and in an effort to continue to create greater common cause among the groups of people on the island, the Cuban dissidents are organizing this assembly to promote civil society in Cuba. Over 300 civil society groups are expected to be represented at the meeting. The goal of the assembly is to discuss how they will play a role in the transition after the end of the Castro regime. This end is approaching. The clock is ticking. We must be ready, both on the island and around the world, to ensure that Cubans have the opportunity to freely and fairly choose their successor government. Senator Martinez, my colleague from Florida, and I, along with 20 colleagues, are encouraging the Senate to support this resolution, and in supporting this resolution, therefore, to support this assembly, its participants, and all civil society on the island, and to do it in a bipartisan fashion. This resolution is an effort to bring international attention to the assembly and to all members of civil society on the island of Cuba. These are brave individuals who deserve our support every day, not only on these memorable and momentous occasions but every day in respect for what they have endured as their liberty has been taken away from them. We want that liberty to return. Our thoughts and prayers will be with all these individuals. I yield the floor.

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, just today I initiated an effort to ask Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo to reopen an investigation into the brutal torture-murder of a young journalist from my state. The 28-year-old reporter, Todd Smith, was found dead 15 years ago, his body discovered in Peru's violent coca-producing region. This son of a Florida appellate judge worked for The Tampa Tribune, and was investigating the drug traffic in the northern Peruvian jungle. Officials in Peru were quick to say the murder was the work of the Shining Path--a Maoist insurgent group said to be involved in protecting cultivators of the coca plant. Specifically, Peru's Interior Ministry said Todd had been captured by Maoist rebels and possibly sold to drug traffickers for $30,000. Four years later, a secret counterterrorism trial in Peru resulted in a Shining Path guerrilla being sentenced to 30 years in prison for taking part in the murder. He was the only person ever tried for the crime--and even he reportedly has received an early release. Little else was known. Now, however, the transcript of that secret 1993 trial has emerged, including an intelligence report that identifies a businessman who founded a Peru airline as one of the masterminds behind Todd's killing. The complete court file was obtained by a Lima-based institute for a free press and society. According to one of several detailed intelligence reports in the trial transcript, the guerrillas who tortured and strangled Todd were working for Peru businessman Fernando Zevallos, and two others allegedly involved in the drug trade. But Zevallos--labeled a Peruvian cocaine kingpin last year by the Bush administration--was never charged in the case. The New York Times quotes American and Peruvian authorities as saying he has evaded justice for so long by bribing court officials and killing witnesses. It has been over 15 years since a son of Florida and a member of the fourth estate was tortured and strangled to death in the jungles of Peru--and clearly, justice has yet to be served. In January, I went to Peru and there I established a working relationship with President Toledo and was joined by Ambassador Ferrero, Peru's ambassador to the United States Today, through proper diplomatic channels, I made a formal request that President Toledo immediately reopen the investigation into Todd Smith's death; and, that his government cooperate fully with our State Department and FBI. And Ambassador Ferrero told me he ``would put all [his] effort into this. I hope my Senate colleagues will join me in demanding that justice finally be served in this case. Todd's parents, and his two sisters, deserve no less. Mr. President, I am going to birddog this with everything I have to see that this case is brought to justice. I do believe the Peruvian government clearly has an interest, now that the secret court files have come to light, to get to the bottom of this. I earnestly hope we will get the cooperation of the Peruvian government in reopening the investigation. There is no excuse, when an American newspaper reporter is brutally tortured and murdered, that we should not have all the facts. If it leads, in fact, to this businessman, then so be it. We owe this especially to this family in Florida that for so long has not known any of the facts of this brutal killing of their son. I yield the floor. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, on behalf of Senator Feingold, I ask unanimous consent to call up his amendment 610 and ask that it be set aside after reporting by the clerk.

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I want to speak as to how I am going to vote. Clearly, the necessity of funding for all of our troops requires a ``yes'' vote on this legislation. I gladly do that. I do want to express my concerns about this so-called REAL ID part that was put in in the dead of night, without the notification that was promised to the minority and without the informing of all the various Senators who were part of the conference committee. This is not the way we should be doing legislation. It ought to be in the full light of day. That is why they refer to making legislation is like making sausage-- you don't know what all is in it. With regard to this REAL ID Act, the concern that I have is that we are going to have an invasion of people's privacy without having carefully considered it through committee hearings and through full debate of the issue. For something that is as important to so many Americans as a driver's license, we are going to start on the road of the invasion of privacy. I do not think this is the way to establish what is, in effect, the first step for a national identification card. I don't think this is the way to do it, in the dead of night, by stealth and sleight of hand. Second, I think Senators are going to get an earful if they are starting to get the rumblings that I am getting from constituents in my State. When most people find out they have to haul out a birth certificate when they go down to reestablish their driver's license, it is going to cause a great inconvenience, especially to the senior citizens of this country. I think Senators are going to get an earful. Third, I am quite concerned about the implication that this is going to have on the rights and protections of minorities. Is this the beginning, portending certain discriminations because of minorities? Obviously, this is a must-pass piece of legislation. It is funding the war effort. It is funding our troops. We are all going to vote for it, and we will pass it. But we should not have something that is so important to the privacy rights of Americans added to a bill like this in this secretive way. I wanted my comments made very clearly on the record. I yield the floor. Mr. President, I have something else as long as we are in a holding pattern. What is the pleasure of the majority leader? Does he want to go on and call for the vote or does he want to have some more time before the vote, in which I will speak on another subject?

Mr. NELSON of Florida. I will tell the Senator that I have something that is really burning because they are trying to drill for oil off the coast of Florida. But I am going to yield to the majority leader and to his wishes so he can expedite the process and the vote. I yield the floor.

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. About 5 minutes. I thank the distinguished Senator from Oklahoma. I know this is a subject that he is quite concerned with. The Nation was gripped with the news of this sexual predator who walked into the unlocked home of a 9-year-old, Jessica Lunsford, in Homossassa, FL, took her from her bed--I want the Senator from Oklahoma to listen to the emotion in my voice. He walked into her unlocked home, took her from her bed, raped her, and then buried her alive. The man who is charged is a registered sex offender, previously convicted of molesting a minor, but law enforcement had lost track of him. In fact, he was living within 150 feet of Jessica Lunsford. To add insult to injury, he was working at an elementary school. Unfortunately, it did not stop there. About a month later, 13-year- old Sarah Lunde was abducted from her home in Rushkin, FL, and she was murdered. Her confessed killer is her mother's ex-boyfriend, who is also a convicted sex offender. In our State alone, we have over 30,000 registered sex offenders, and there are more than 300,000 nationwide. The Bureau of Justice Statistics has provided data showing that 70 percent of all the men in prison for a sex crime were men whose victim was a child. In 2003, the Justice Department published a report on recidivism rates of sex offenders, and it has produced some disturbing statistics. The Department of Justice tracked 9,691 male sex offenders released from 15 State prisons, including Florida. They tracked them for a 3- year period and found that 40 percent of the sex offenders who re- offended did so within the first year, and within 3 years of their release from prison, 5.3 percent of those sex offenders were rearrested for another sex crime. Is this beginning to tell us a story? Half of the sex offenders tracked in this study included men who molested children, and within the first 3 years of their release from prison, 3.3 percent of these convicts were rearrested for another sex crime against a child. In the wake of the two recent tragedies in Florida, of Jessica Lunsford and Sarah Lunde, the State legislature passed a law that will provide tougher sentences for child sex offenders, and aid law enforcement in effectively monitoring those sex offenders. This law will require sex offenders, released back into our communities, to wear a bracelet that will have a global positioning system track them. I applaud the initiative by our State, and I believe now there ought to be an appropriate Federal response to be supportive of the States and local governments that want to address this problem. The technology is there, but it is expensive. To be effective, tough laws on these sexual predators of children must be properly funded, and I believe it is worth properly funding them to protect our children. Today I am introducing this bill, the Sexual Predator Effective Monitoring Act, which will provide $30 million in grants to States that establish programs under their State law to get tougher on child sex offenders released back into a community and to get tougher on them with more effective monitoring and tracking. This bill directs the Attorney General to award grants to those States to assist them in carrying out programs to outfit sexual offenders with an ankle bracelet that will track them using global positioning systems. In the first year, I am suggesting that this bill offer $10 million in grants. In the second year, $20 million, and then we would have to come back and readdress the issue. The Attorney General then would be directed to issue a report so we could go on with future extension of the bill. There are no silver bullets to stop these sexual predators from preying on our children, but I believe tough laws, such as the new Florida statute, are going to go a long way in preventing these sexual offenders from reoffending. Nine-year-old Jessica Lunsford's confessed rapist and murderer was living only within 150 feet of her home, but law enforcement officers did not know where he was because he failed to notify them of his changed address. Law enforcement also did not know he was working in a nearby elementary school, nor did the school know they had a registered sex offender on school property. GPS monitoring systems, when properly used, will assist law enforcement in knowing where these child sex offenders are and preventing them from going into restricted areas like elementary schools. We owe it to our children to do all we can to make sure that we keep them safe. That is why I am introducing this bill today. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I commend the leadership. I rise to address the Senate on the subject of sexual predators. We have certainly had our fill of these people who prey on children in the State of Florida. The Nation has recently joined Florida in mourning the deaths of two young girls murdered by registered sex offenders. In March, an attacker walked in to--

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. About 5 minutes. I thank the distinguished Senator from Oklahoma. I know this is a subject that he is quite concerned with. The Nation was gripped with the news of this sexual predator who walked into the unlocked home of a 9-year-old, Jessica Lunsford, in Homossassa, FL, took her from her bed--I want the Senator from Oklahoma to listen to the emotion in my voice. He walked into her unlocked home, took her from her bed, raped her, and then buried her alive. The man who is charged is a registered sex offender, previously convicted of molesting a minor, but law enforcement had lost track of him. In fact, he was living within 150 feet of Jessica Lunsford. To add insult to injury, he was working at an elementary school. Unfortunately, it did not stop there. About a month later, 13-year- old Sarah Lunde was abducted from her home in Rushkin, FL, and she was murdered. Her confessed killer is her mother's ex-boyfriend, who is also a convicted sex offender. In our State alone, we have over 30,000 registered sex offenders, and there are more than 300,000 nationwide. The Bureau of Justice Statistics has provided data showing that 70 percent of all the men in prison for a sex crime were men whose victim was a child. In 2003, the Justice Department published a report on recidivism rates of sex offenders, and it has produced some disturbing statistics. The Department of Justice tracked 9,691 male sex offenders released from 15 State prisons, including Florida. They tracked them for a 3- year period and found that 40 percent of the sex offenders who re- offended did so within the first year, and within 3 years of their release from prison, 5.3 percent of those sex offenders were rearrested for another sex crime. Is this beginning to tell us a story? Half of the sex offenders tracked in this study included men who molested children, and within the first 3 years of their release from prison, 3.3 percent of these convicts were rearrested for another sex crime against a child. In the wake of the two recent tragedies in Florida, of Jessica Lunsford and Sarah Lunde, the State legislature passed a law that will provide tougher sentences for child sex offenders, and aid law enforcement in effectively monitoring those sex offenders. This law will require sex offenders, released back into our communities, to wear a bracelet that will have a global positioning system track them. I applaud the initiative by our State, and I believe now there ought to be an appropriate Federal response to be supportive of the States and local governments that want to address this problem. The technology is there, but it is expensive. To be effective, tough laws on these sexual predators of children must be properly funded, and I believe it is worth properly funding them to protect our children. Today I am introducing this bill, the Sexual Predator Effective Monitoring Act, which will provide $30 million in grants to States that establish programs under their State law to get tougher on child sex offenders released back into a community and to get tougher on them with more effective monitoring and tracking. This bill directs the Attorney General to award grants to those States to assist them in carrying out programs to outfit sexual offenders with an ankle bracelet that will track them using global positioning systems. In the first year, I am suggesting that this bill offer $10 million in grants. In the second year, $20 million, and then we would have to come back and readdress the issue. The Attorney General then would be directed to issue a report so we could go on with future extension of the bill. There are no silver bullets to stop these sexual predators from preying on our children, but I believe tough laws, such as the new Florida statute, are going to go a long way in preventing these sexual offenders from reoffending. Nine-year-old Jessica Lunsford's confessed rapist and murderer was living only within 150 feet of her home, but law enforcement officers did not know where he was because he failed to notify them of his changed address. Law enforcement also did not know he was working in a nearby elementary school, nor did the school know they had a registered sex offender on school property. GPS monitoring systems, when properly used, will assist law enforcement in knowing where these child sex offenders are and preventing them from going into restricted areas like elementary schools. We owe it to our children to do all we can to make sure that we keep them safe. That is why I am introducing this bill today. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Certainly.

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, I commend the leadership. I rise to address the Senate on the subject of sexual predators. We have certainly had our fill of these people who prey on children in the State of Florida. The Nation has recently joined Florida in mourning the deaths of two young girls murdered by registered sex offenders. In March, an attacker walked in to--

Mr. NELSON of Florida

Mr. NELSON of Florida. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. NELSON of Florida. I yield the floor.

Mr. NELSON of Florida. Mr. President, on behalf of Senator Salazar, I ask unanimous consent that amendment No. 581 be withdrawn.