Debbie Stabenow

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Madam President, I rise for a moment to bring the best wishes and heartfelt condolences again to our colleagues from New York for this additional tragedy that has befallen them. All of my friends and family and the citizens of Michigan have their hearts going out to you. There has been such a difficult time for New York, as well as the entire country.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Thank you, Madam President.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Madam President, I would like to share an experience this evening and commend a group of individuals who were involved in U.S. Airways Flight 969 last evening where I was a passenger going from Pittsburgh to National Airport. It was diverted into Dulles, as many of us have heard. There was a situation where someone stood up in explicit contradiction to the words from the pilot about what was to be done under national policy. Once you are within 30 minutes of Reagan National Airport, passengers are not under any circumstances to leave their seats. Unfortunately, this individual did and headed towards what appeared to be the cockpit. I commend the air marshals who were on that flight. They responded with professionalism. They responded quickly with what appeared to be a threat to those of us who were on the flight. I commend the pilot on U.S. Airways Flight 969 who responded with professionalism. He calmed what obviously was a potentially very confusing situation and what could have been great panic. This was the result of the pilot, the flight attendants, and the crew. I would like to give my thanks and congratulations to everyone who was involved in this incident with the way they conducted themselves. I was thinking as I sat in the 11th row and the B seat that this is an example of what could happen with national law enforcement officials professionally trained to do our airline security. It reaffirmed my commitment to the belief that we need to do what this Senate did 100 to 0, which is to pass a law that says those who look at the baggage and those who do the security checks of our carry-ons are professionally trained Federal law enforcement officials. I call on my colleagues to bring that bill back from the conference committee with that provision in it. I don't believe there was a person on that plane last night who was not grateful for the fact that we had Federal law enforcement officials trained to protect the people on that plane; they responded professionally as Federal law enforcement officials. Every day we are grateful to receive that kind of protection from our Capitol Police as well, and I think our families deserve to have that. I encourage my colleagues to reflect on what is best for all Americans, and not what is best for the interests of one party or the other. I can say with great confidence--and it was reaffirmed last night for me--that having Federal law enforcement officials who are trained both on the ground checking the baggage as well as on our airplanes is in the interests of all of our families. I find it interesting now as we are grappling as a body of the Senate and the House and coming together as Americans to support the President; this is our team on the field. We are the team of Americans. The coach is the President, and we are all there together. We are supporting the President. We want him to be successful. We all need to be successful in fighting these terrorist attacks and making sure that our people are safe. I think it is also important and it is our responsibility to be able to disagree about a particular play or a particular strategy when the team is on the field. In this particular case, I urge the President to join us in embracing the principle that we should have Federal law enforcement security at every level of airport and airline security. I also ask our colleagues to focus now as we stimulate this economy and put money back into people's pockets as well as homeland security. The time is now to act. We know that workers need assistance. We know the economy needs stimulus. The best way to do both of those is to provide relief to workers who need it the most. Economists across the country agree that providing relief to low- and moderate-income families is one of the most successful ways to stimulate the economy. Why? They will immediately take those dollars and go to the grocery store. They will buy shoes for their children who go to school. In Michigan they will go buy a winter coat. They may buy a new car, which we would also be very happy about in the State of Michigan. People will turn those dollars around because they need to be able to live and to be able to care for their families. Studies have shown that every $1 invested in unemployment insurance for those who have lost their jobs because of September 11 or other downturns in the economy generates $2.15 in gross domestic product. Directly, we know that $1 generates $2.15. So I hope this week we will embrace what the Democrats have porposed to stimulate this economy, to put money back in people's pockets, who will then use it to care for their families, to spend in the economy, and that we will invest in those critical homeland security measures that are absolutely necessary for us to move forward as a country. This is an opportunity to get it right. This is an opportunity for us to take action, action to keep us safe in airports and on airlines, action to keep us safe whether it relates to bioterrorism or food safety or other critical measures that have been proposed for action by the Democratic caucus, and action as it relates to focusing on those who are unemployed and those who are low- and moderate-income families who need to have money in their pocket to help stimulate this economy. The time to act is now. I call on my colleagues, this week, to put that at the top of the agenda for both of those items. Madam President, I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise at this time to support the conference committee on the energy and water appropriations bill. I want to indicate how extremely pleased I am that this bill includes an absolutely critical provision to protect the Great Lakes from oil and gas drilling. This provision, which I offered, along with Senator Fitzgerald and numerous others, including the occupant of the chair, as an amendment to the Senate bill, protecting the waters of the Great Lakes by asking, first, for a complete study of the impact of oil and gas drilling in the Great Lakes to be done by the Army Corps of Engineers, and it places an immediate 2-year ban on new oil and gas drilling during the process of this study. It is my hope that this is the first step to a permanent ban on any oil and gas drilling in the Great Lakes. I first thank the distinguished chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development of the Appropriations Committee, Senator Reid, for his support of this important Great Lakes amendment. I thank him very much. I thank the ranking member of Energy and Water, Senator Domenici, who was equally as supportive. I very much appreciate both having that amendment adopted in the Senate and their willingness to make sure that it remained in the conference report. I also thank House Chairman Callahan and Ranking Member Visclosky for their willingness to support this provision and include it in the conference report, as well as all of the House and Senate conferees. Mr. President, I emphasize that preventing drilling in the Great Lakes is an issue about which we all care on both sides of the aisle. As I indicated earlier, Senator Peter Fitzgerald was the lead Republican cosponsor of my amendment. I am extremely pleased and grateful to him for stepping forward. He and Senator Durbin of Illinois have both stepped forward in strong leadership to protect the Great Lakes. I also thank these distinguished Senators who joined me in this effort, in lending their name and their leadership: My senior Senator from Michigan, Senator Carl Levin; as I mentioned, Senator Durbin; Senator Voinovich; Senator Dayton, who is in the chair; Senator Feingold, Senator Schumer, Senator Kohl, Senator Wellstone, Senator Clinton, Senator Bayh, and Senator DeWine. This was a Great Lakes effort of Senators on both sides of the aisle. Finally, I thank my colleagues in the House, Congressmen Dave Bonior and Bart Stupak, and the Michigan House delegation that worked together on a bipartisan basis to support this effort--particularly Bart Stupak who has been a real pioneer in the effort of protecting the Great Lakes. When it was time in the conference committee to call on critical support to explain what we were doing, I am very grateful to Congressman Dave Camp for his willingness to be intimately involved in this effort, as well as Congressmen Fred Upton, Pete Hoekstra, and Vern Ehlers for their wonderful support. In case my colleagues are not aware, this is a particular issue of concern to Michigan, where it was decided they would be interested in providing up to 30 new permits for oil and gas leasing in the Great Lakes and Lake Huron. At this point in time, this will allow us to staff and reevaluate what was being proposed and what, I might add, has been overwhelmingly opposed in Michigan, as well as in all of the Great Lakes States. There has been overwhelming opposition to doing anything that would jeopardize our Great Lakes. The Great Lakes are one of our Nation's most precious public natural resources. And 33 million people rely on the Great Lakes for their drinking water. In fact, 10 million of them rely on Lake Michigan alone. Millions of people use the Great Lakes each year to enjoy the beaches, the great fishing, and boating. The latest estimate shows that recreational fishing totals a $1.5 billion boost to Michigan's tourist economy alone. The Great Lakes coastlines are also home to wetlands, dunes, endangered species, and plants, including the rare piping plover, Michigan monkey flower, Pitcher's thistle, and the dwarf lake iris. Lake Michigan alone contains over 417 coastal wetlands, the most of any Great Lake. Great Lakes drilling would place the tourism economy, the Great Lakes ecosystem, and a vital source of drinking water at great risk for a very small amount of oil. Last year, Michigan produced about 2 minutes' worth of oil--2 minutes' worth of oil--from Great Lakes drilling, which has been allowed since 1979. That is 2 minutes of usage in a year. From our standpoint, this amount of oil is certainly not worth any potential risk. I can't stress how important tourism is to the Michigan economy and how important it is that we are coming together in this way to address our important natural resource. The Great Lakes are interconnected, and they border eight States: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and, of course, Michigan. This means that an oil spill in Lake Michigan could wash up on the shores of not only Michigan, but Indiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin. That is why we joined together to put forward this Federal policy to protect the Great Lakes. The provision in the energy and water appropriations conference report is reasonable, prudent. It is an approach to an issue that makes sense. It asks the Army Corps of Engineers to study the safety and the environmental impact of drilling in the Great Lakes, and it places a 2- year ban on any new drilling. Again, I thank Senator Harry Reid for his outstanding leadership in so many ways, as he manages the floor, and certainly in this area of energy and water, where my great State of Michigan is in his debt for his leadership. He and Senator Domenici together have put forward an excellent bill and one that is going to make sure we have put forward a policy to protect our Great Lakes. I might say one other thing. I hope this is the beginning of an effort to look for ways, as the Great Lakes Senators, to work together to address a number of threats to the Great Lakes. We have now stopped oil and gas drilling. I hope now we will join together on issues of invasive species, ballast water dumping from ships that come in from outside the Great Lakes Basin and are bringing in zebra mussels and sea lamphrey and other invasive species wreaking havoc in the lakes. We have a number of threats to this great natural resource, and I think the amendment we were successful in achieving here is a wonderful example of what we can do together on a bipartisan basis, working together with colleagues in the House. I thank again everybody who was involved in this effort, including, I might add, a wonderful staff of mine, Noushin Jahanian, the person working specifically on this issue; my legislative director, Sander Lurie; chief of staff, Jean Marie Neal, and all of those who worked hard to achieve this very important goal for the Great Lakes. Thank you.

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to use the time allocated to me under the energy and water appropriations conference report at this time.

Ms. STABENOW

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

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I yield back the time on the Treasury- Postal appropriations bill.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Will my friend yield?

Ms. STABENOW. One more time, I thank the Senator from New Mexico for his commitment on this issue and the way he is able to explain the importance of it. I stress, along with the Senator, if we had private insurance coverage, then the facilities would be there. They would know there is a way for this to be paid for and, in fact, as we do with other kinds of health insurance, the hospitals would know there is a reimbursement system, the physicians would know there is a reimbursement system, and they would know as well there would be for these mental illnesses. I thank the Senator for his wonderful commitment and leadership, as well as Senator Wellstone. I am hopeful we can move forward and that this can truly be a historic day.

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to be added as a cosponsor of the amendment.

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I am proud to be a cosponsor of the legislation and to add my name to this amendment. I join with others who have thanked Senator Domenici and Senator Wellstone for their diligence and dedication on what is an extremely important issue. It is extremely important to all of our families. I have been involved with mental health issues all of my adult life, starting when I was in the State House of Representatives in Michigan chairing the Mental Health Committee and writing legislation we have in place in Michigan for children, families, and adults. But today I rise in support of this amendment because of my personal situation. My father, who was an extremely loving and wonderful man, a businessman in business with my grandfather in a car dealership in Eau Claire, MI, when I was growing up, in his mid-thirties found himself being diagnosed a manic-depressive. At first, we did not know what that meant in terms of the highs and lows he was experiencing. At that time--it was the midsixties--there was very little available in the community. It mostly was hospitalization for anyone who had any kind of mental health problems. We did not have a lot of money. Our family was not a wealthy family, and we struggled with attempts to get my father adequate care. One of the things we learned as we moved through this disease with him was that mental illness is as physical as any disease that is now covered by our insurance system. If you are a manic-depressive, that means you have chemicals in your brain that are off balance. They provide too much of a stimulus that causes one to be awake, to go into a manic state; it causes then too less of a stimulus, so one goes into a depression and they may swing back and forth. Just as we have now developed medicines to help those who have cancer and diabetes or those who have Parkinson's or Alzheimer's disease--and we are moving on all kinds of fronts to develop new medications--we have medicine now for those who are diagnosed manic-depressive. When my father was finally able to find someone who understood his disease, there was something developed called Lithium, and he had the opportunity to begin taking that medication each month. He was able to go back to his normal life. He was able to work and function and be a part of the community because this was a physiological disease that was treatable by medication. We know, whether it is schizophrenia, manic-depression, or other diseases, that we are talking about imbalances in the brain. These are physiological changes. These are health problems, as much of a health problem as diseases that are covered by insurance. I cannot think of anything more basic than finally, in 2001, understanding in our health insurance system what we have now known in the medical community for years, and that is: If we provide treatment, we can treat those with mental illnesses as well as physical illnesses with great success. My colleagues have spoken to the fact if we do not do that, we will treat them in our jails, we will treat folks who are homeless and under the bridges sleeping at night. There will be some way that those who have mental illnesses will find themselves in situations where they will be reaching out, and we will be addressing it in some way in the community. The question is, do we do it in a positive way in the health care system where it needs to be addressed or will we be addressing it in some other way that is not positive? I hope we will all come together. It would be wonderful to see everyone coming to the Chamber and supporting this long overdue amendment on mental health parity. I hope my colleagues understand this has been worked out. This is a bill that has been balanced. For those concerned about small business, this is legislation addresses those companies with less than 50 employees being exempt, that there is a year delay--there is a lot that has been put together in this amendment. I compliment my colleagues who have worked so hard to come up with a balanced approach and yet proceed with the principle of mental health parity. In this day and age, shame on us if we do not understand the variety of ways in which someone can become ill and require our health system to address those equally. It is long overdue. I strongly urge adoption of this amendment. I again thank my colleagues who have come forward and have fought so diligently for this principle for so many years. I yield the floor.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the order for the quorum call be dispensed with.

Ms. STABENOW. I see my colleagues on the floor are ready to proceed. I defer to my senior colleague, Senator Levin, from Michigan.

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise also to support this very important effort and very important amendment. I, first, thank my senior colleague and friend from Michigan for his ongoing leadership in this effort to support our apple growers in Michigan and across the country, and my colleagues who are joining us in the Chamber certainly have been at the forefront of this battle. We really have had two strategies. One is to focus on research for apple fire blight. I thank the chairman of the subcommittee and the ranking member for their ongoing efforts. There are dollars in this bill for apple fire blight research. That continues to be a priority. I thank him for his vision and his support because in the long run we are hoping the research will allow us to be able to find ways for our farmers to eradicate this terrible disease that is so afflicting the apple growers across the country. In the meantime, we know that in the last 5 years apple growers across our country have lost $1.5 billion. Last year alone, $500 million was lost as a result of this effort. We are talking about a serious disease affecting a very important Michigan industry and national industry. I am very hopeful that we can come together and support the $150 million effort. I am very pleased that the House has finally recognized this and is supporting this effort in the House bill. Let me stress one more time that originally we had this supplemental funding in the emergency supplemental that we passed. As a member of the Agriculture Committee, we worked very hard with colleagues to get that money in the Senate bill. I appreciate everyone's efforts at that time. Unfortunately, we were not able to pass the Senate bill. We were not able to address it earlier, which we had hoped would happen. Now we find ourselves in a situation where we are seriously in need of addressing this as quickly as possible. This amendment is absolutely critical. I hope we will have the support of colleagues. While I have the floor, I also want to say one more time a thank you to our leader, the chairman of the subcommittee, and the ranking member for a number of different issues in this bill that are important to Michigan--the focus on the eradication of bovine disease and specialty crop research in other areas are very important. I very much appreciate the fact they are willing to undertake this issue and support our apple growers. It is absolutely critical to our economy and to the economy of many, many States. I yield the floor. Thank you, Mr. President.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. I thank the chairman and ranking member for their strong support. This community needs only $80,000 next year to purchase this new vehicle. Since the village has already raised the required matching funds necessary, once it receives this $80,000 it will be able to move forward immediately on the project. Will the chairman and ranking member continue their strong support for this project until the Village receives this necessary funding?

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise to engage in a colloquy with the distinguished chairman and ranking member of the Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee. The Village of DeTour in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan is living with an unfortunate safety hazard. Currently, the Village of DeTour is using a World War II era fire engine to fight fires within its jurisdiction. This antiquated fire engine is so old that safety personnel can no longer drive it to emergency situations. Instead, firefighters must tow the fire engine to any dangerous area. This represents a tremendous safety hazard for the hard working people of this unique Upper Peninsula town. The Rural Facilities Program at USDA provides funding for rural communities like DeTour to improve their public facilities, including providing money for new fire equipment. Therefore, I would ask the distinguished chairman if he would agree to include the Village of DeTour in the statement of managers accompanying the conference report to this appropriations bill, and list the purchase of a new fire truck as a high priority project that deserves funding in fiscal year 2002?

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Thank you, Mr. President. I want to, first, thank my colleague, Senator Hutchison, for her leadership and for the eloquent words of Senator Mikulski who spoke earlier. This is a wonderful example for working together. We are in the Chamber today not as Democrats or Republicans but as the women of the Senate speaking because we believe it is our responsibility to speak up on behalf of the women and children of Afghanistan who are being terrorized by their own government, the Taliban. Senator Hutchison spoke very eloquently about the statistics and about what is happening. I am honored to represent in Michigan a very large Muslim-American population. They assure me this is not Islam. It is not the words of the Koran. This is an extremist, perverted group of people who have twisted the words. They hide behind the religion, which is a very perverse and twisted view of the world that is disenfranchising half of their population. We come together to indicate that, as they move to a new coalition government, we expect and we will demand on behalf of the women and the children of the world that the women and children of Afghanistan are not left out of this new government; that the women who are physicians in Afghanistan will be allowed to treat their patients; that the country will benefit from the women who have been educated and who have the skills to help rebuild that country; and, that we empower the next generation of girls by making sure they are educated and will have the skills and knowledge they need to help rebuild the country of Afghanistan. We know that once the Taliban has been defeated there will be much work to be done. If they continue to exclude half of their population, they are not only committing a travesty against them but they are placing their own country in jeopardy by not using the talents and the abilities that are there. I, once again, thank all of my colleagues. It is wonderful to see everyone in the Chamber and to see a unified effort. I know we will continue to stay focused until we make sure the outrageous violence and atrocities that have been committed are stopped, and that the women and children of Afghanistan have the opportunity to live and be healthy and successful in their country. I yield the floor.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Thank you, Mr. President. I want to, first, thank my colleague, Senator Hutchison, for her leadership and for the eloquent words of Senator Mikulski who spoke earlier. This is a wonderful example for working together. We are in the Chamber today not as Democrats or Republicans but as the women of the Senate speaking because we believe it is our responsibility to speak up on behalf of the women and children of Afghanistan who are being terrorized by their own government, the Taliban. Senator Hutchison spoke very eloquently about the statistics and about what is happening. I am honored to represent in Michigan a very large Muslim-American population. They assure me this is not Islam. It is not the words of the Koran. This is an extremist, perverted group of people who have twisted the words. They hide behind the religion, which is a very perverse and twisted view of the world that is disenfranchising half of their population. We come together to indicate that, as they move to a new coalition government, we expect and we will demand on behalf of the women and the children of the world that the women and children of Afghanistan are not left out of this new government; that the women who are physicians in Afghanistan will be allowed to treat their patients; that the country will benefit from the women who have been educated and who have the skills to help rebuild that country; and, that we empower the next generation of girls by making sure they are educated and will have the skills and knowledge they need to help rebuild the country of Afghanistan. We know that once the Taliban has been defeated there will be much work to be done. If they continue to exclude half of their population, they are not only committing a travesty against them but they are placing their own country in jeopardy by not using the talents and the abilities that are there. I, once again, thank all of my colleagues. It is wonderful to see everyone in the Chamber and to see a unified effort. I know we will continue to stay focused until we make sure the outrageous violence and atrocities that have been committed are stopped, and that the women and children of Afghanistan have the opportunity to live and be healthy and successful in their country. I yield the floor.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, we all witnessed a great national tragedy on September 11. While the deaths and damage occurred in New York, Washington, and the fields of Pennsylvania, a piece of all of us died that day. Many people came up to me in the weeks after the attack and asked: ``What can I do? I've given blood. I've donated to relief efforts. But I want to do more.'' We all shared in the horror. Now everyone wants to share in the healing. But how? Then a constituent of mine, Bob Van Oosterhout, wrote me with an idea. Why not have the Federal Government devise a program that would encourage communities throughout the Nation to create something that would honor the memory of one of the victims lost in the attack? Together these local memorials to honor individuals would dot our Nation and collectively honor all those lost in the attack. What could be simpler? Or more moving? From that idea came the Unity in the Spirit of America Act, which I am introducing today along with my distinguished colleague Senator Kyl. Here's how it would work: Communities, it could be as small as a neighborhood block, or nonprofit organizations, houses of worship, businesses, or local governments would choose some kind of project that would unite them and their community. Applications and the assigning of names for each project will be handled by the Thousand Points of Light Foundation in conjunction with the Corporation for National Service. Once the bill has passed, applications and procedures will be posted on the foundation's web page. In the meantime, I urge people to meet with their neighbors, or coworkers, or fellow church members to start identifying projects that would make fitting memorials to the victims of the attack of September 11. It could be cleaning or creating a park, adopting a school and mentoring students, creating a meals program for the homeless, or just about anything that would do honor to the memories of those who died on September 11. The Thousand Points of Light Foundation will track each project's progress on their web page. The only rule would be that qualified projects should be started by September 11, 2002. Then on that day--as all over America we gather to grieve over the first anniversary of the attack that enraged the world--we'll also be able to look over thousands and thousands of selfless acts that made our world better. In our sadness, we can create 6,000 points of life across our Nation. And we will show the world that our resolve was not fleeting, or our memories not short. They will see Unity in the Spirit of America. And what could bring more fitting honor to all those innocents we lost. I am also pleased that this bipartisan legislation enjoys the support of the Senators from New York, Mr. Schumer and Mrs. Clinton, and the Senators from Virginia, Senators Warner and Allen. I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, we all witnessed a great national tragedy on September 11. While the deaths and damage occurred in New York, Washington, and the fields of Pennsylvania, a piece of all of us died that day. Many people came up to me in the weeks after the attack and asked: ``What can I do? I've given blood. I've donated to relief efforts. But I want to do more.'' We all shared in the horror. Now everyone wants to share in the healing. But how? Then a constituent of mine, Bob Van Oosterhout, wrote me with an idea. Why not have the Federal Government devise a program that would encourage communities throughout the Nation to create something that would honor the memory of one of the victims lost in the attack? Together these local memorials to honor individuals would dot our Nation and collectively honor all those lost in the attack. What could be simpler? Or more moving? From that idea came the Unity in the Spirit of America Act, which I am introducing today along with my distinguished colleague Senator Kyl. Here's how it would work: Communities, it could be as small as a neighborhood block, or nonprofit organizations, houses of worship, businesses, or local governments would choose some kind of project that would unite them and their community. Applications and the assigning of names for each project will be handled by the Thousand Points of Light Foundation in conjunction with the Corporation for National Service. Once the bill has passed, applications and procedures will be posted on the foundation's web page. In the meantime, I urge people to meet with their neighbors, or coworkers, or fellow church members to start identifying projects that would make fitting memorials to the victims of the attack of September 11. It could be cleaning or creating a park, adopting a school and mentoring students, creating a meals program for the homeless, or just about anything that would do honor to the memories of those who died on September 11. The Thousand Points of Light Foundation will track each project's progress on their web page. The only rule would be that qualified projects should be started by September 11, 2002. Then on that day--as all over America we gather to grieve over the first anniversary of the attack that enraged the world--we'll also be able to look over thousands and thousands of selfless acts that made our world better. In our sadness, we can create 6,000 points of life across our Nation. And we will show the world that our resolve was not fleeting, or our memories not short. They will see Unity in the Spirit of America. And what could bring more fitting honor to all those innocents we lost. I am also pleased that this bipartisan legislation enjoys the support of the Senators from New York, Mr. Schumer and Mrs. Clinton, and the Senators from Virginia, Senators Warner and Allen. I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. I thank our distinguished chairman and my friend from Wisconsin for allowing me to proceed before he presents his amendments. I rise this evening to congratulate all involved in this effort. As has been said on so many occasions, it is not perfect but we have come together with a very positive, important step forward that we can all celebrate this evening on a bipartisan basis. As the Senator from Michigan, along with my colleague, Senator Levin, we certainly celebrate the efforts along the northern border and the important authorizations for dollars that allow us to continue to protect and strengthen the efforts at the border. I thank my chairman of the Banking Committee, Senator Sarbanes, for his efforts to put into this important bill language dealing with the critical issue of money laundering which essentially allows us to follow the money. My colleague, Senator Levin, has been extremely involved in helping to lead efforts to lay out the case for this. Senator Kerry and Senator Grassley have been involved in important work. I thank them. The antiterrorism bill before the Senate takes a significant step forward in cutting the flow of terrorist money. As the President has repeatedly said, stopping the flow of money is key to stopping terrorism. That is what we are doing this evening. In particular, we are establishing important new responsibilities, both for our Government and for our financial institutions. The bill authorizes the Treasury Secretary to take special measures to stop suspected money- laundering activities. This anti-money-laundering language is significant because it requires financial institutions to set up their own due diligence to combat money laundering, particularly for private and corresponding banking situations. This is a key provision of which I was proud to be a part. I am pleased we were able to come up with language that allows that. Another important provision I was pleased to offer in the Banking Committee, which is now part of the bill, was clear authority for the Treasury Secretary to issue regulations to crack down on abuses related to concentration accounts. These accounts are administrative accounts used by financial institutions to combine funds from multiple customers, various transactions. They do not require any identification or accountability of who is involved or how much money we are talking about. The amendment I advocated urges the Treasury Secretary to issue regulations ensuring these concentration accounts identify by client name all of the client funds moving through the account to prevent anonymous movement of the funds that might facilitate money laundering. This is a classic case of why this is so important: Raul Salinas, brother of former Mexican President Carlos Salinas, transferred almost $100 million to Citibank administrative accounts in New York and London without any documentation indicating the ownership of these funds. The wire transfers sent the funds to Citibank and asked each transfer be brought to the attention of a specific private banker. Later, the private banker transferred the funds to private accounts controlled by Mr. Salinas. The origin of this money--$100 million--was never satisfactorily identified. Allegations of drug money or other corporate sources persist to this day. We know, through Senator Levin's exhaustive documentation at his hearings, that other private banks use this practice as well. Although financial regulators have cautioned against this practice over and over again, they have not yet issued regulations to stop this loophole. That is why the language in this bill is so important. The use of these anonymous concentration accounts breaks the audit trail associating specific funds with specific clients. Again, the goal, as the President said, is to follow the money. We have to have information if we are going to follow the money. It should now be abundantly clear to Treasury that they have the authority to stop this practice. I hope it is also abundantly clear it is a serious problem. I am very concerned that the administration act quickly on these anonymous accounts. I congratulate everyone involved in this effort. I think the effort regarding the anti-money-laundering language is a critical part of making sure we have an effective antiterrorism bill. I thank my colleagues for their work.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize National Stepfamily Day, a day that reminds us that families don't need to be bound by biology to be grounded in love and respect. The Stepfamily Association of America and 38 States recognize September 16 as National Stepfamily Day. On this day, stepfamilies nationwide are encouraged to hold picnics and other activities to bring our stepfamilies together so they can share their experiences. Stepfamily Day came about through the efforts of Michigan's Christy Borgeld, a board member of the Stepfamily Association of America. I applaud her efforts and those of the membership of the Stepfamily Association of America. When we celebrate Stepfamily Day, we really celebrate the ties that make all our families one of our most precious national treasures, dedicated parents working to ensure their children grow up in safe and loving homes. It is my pleasure to pay tribute to the Stepfamily Association of America for its commitment and hard work on behalf of American families, and to wish families in Michigan and nationwide a happy and successful Stepfamily Day.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, our national will is being tested as it never has before. On the clear, sunny morning of September 11, we were attacked from out of the shadows. There are no words to fully describe the depth of this infamy. And not enough tears to properly mourn the innocent lives so cruelly taken. Thousands of families are grieving today over loved ones lost in this senseless attack on our nation and all of us mourn with them and keep them in our prayers. But from within the depths of this horror, we saw and honor the heroism of our police and firefighters, many of whom gave their lives trying to rescue others. We thank them and offer our condolences to those who lost a loved one in the line of duty. We also offer our thanks to all the medical workers who are working tirelessly trying to save lives. While our enemy is still uncertain, our resolve must be unflinching. Those who thought they could bring us to our knees must instead see us standing tall, united, and resolved to see that justice is done. We stand firmly behind President Bush and his diplomatic and military efforts to discover who is behind these attacks and hold them accountable. The United States will respond decisively and forcefully against those who have perpetrated this atrocity and those who offer them safe harbor and assistance. I am also outraged by reports of price gouging at gasoline stations around the Nation. Those who would profit in our time of grief are not only contemptible; in Michigan they are also criminals. The Michigan Attorney General has asked me to direct complaints to their regional offices. Our Nation will come through this crisis even stronger than before. Those who attack from the shadows will see that we do not surrender to fear, but rather will go forward united in steely purpose and iron resolve. Even as we mourn, it is important that we carry on with the nation's business, with the immediate priority being to get help to the families and communities that were the victims of this horrendous attack.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Under the previous order, the Senate will now resume consideration of H.R. 2500, which the clerk will report.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise today to talk about how Tuesday's terrorist attack is testing our national will and our character. There are no words to fully describe the depth of that infamy and not enough tears to properly mourn the innocent lives that have been so cruelly taken. We join all Americans in a focus to help those victims, families, and communities who have been terrorized, and also to focus on those who are responsible and hold them accountable. We have come together to say loudly and clearly that we will respond to those who have attacked and murdered Americans. But I am also concerned that in our anger, an anger we all share, we would lash out at fellow Americans who come here from the Middle East, which is also wrong. I am disturbed by reports from my home State of Michigan that Arab Americans have been victims of threats and hate mail and their businesses and institutions have been vandalized. One businessman felt so threatened that he bought two American flags--one for his home and one for his business--as he felt he needed to prove his love for his country. We want people to fly American flags out of pride, not out of fear. The Koran, just as the Bible, is a book of love, peace, and tolerance. There are those who have outrageously perverted that message. It reminds me of the Ku Klux Klan that took the symbol of the cross and the words of Christianity and perverted them to lash out with hate and violence against other Americans. There are those in the world who are extremists who are doing the same thing with the religion of Islam. I know Arab Americans, as all Americans, grieve and have anger and outrage about what has happened, and they want justice for Americans. I stand here today urging all of us to come together as Americans and not allow the terrorists to have another victory by having us turn on each other. Arab Americans, as all Americans, have lost loved ones. They are part of the rescue crews, and they are the nurses and the doctors working around the clock to save lives. We, all of us, have been attacked and assaulted as Americans of all faiths, of all backgrounds. We stand as Americans to take on those who threaten us and to respond and hold them accountable. It is important in our grief and in our anger that we not allow the terrorists to turn us on each other. This is a time of testing our American values, our beliefs, and our will. It is an opportunity for all of us to stand together and make a statement about who we are and what we believe. I know that in the great State of Michigan, all that I represent, everyone I represent, stand together arm in arm to make sure the victims and the families have what they need and that justice is served in this outrageous attack on America. Thank you, Mr. President.