Debbie Stabenow

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise today to offer an amendment to provide $200 million for humanitarian assistance to the innocent Lebanese and Israeli citizens who have been caught in the hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. The last 3 weeks have brought horrific bloodshed on both sides of the Israeli and Lebanese border. The Secretary of State has pledged $30 million in humanitarian aid. That is a good first step, but considering the extent of the humanitarian suffering in both Lebanon and Israel, it certainly is not enough. On July 25, the U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon, Jeffrey Feltman, declared a humanitarian emergency in Lebanon, and since that time the situation for innocent people has worsened. The violence affects mothers and fathers and sisters and brothers and children and whole communities on both sides who need our assistance. Many innocent Americans from both sides of the Israeli-Lebanon border have fled back to Michigan and to other places in the country to escape the violence. Thousands of people from Michigan, including buses of schoolchildren who went to Israel for a trip and thousands of people who went to Lebanon for summer vacation, for weddings, for funerals, for the ability to visit grandpa and grandma to have them see the new grandchildren, and family members who are sharing with each other during the summer, as we all do, found themselves caught in a situation that was certainly unexpected when Hezbollah attacked Israel. Many citizens have been able to escape the violence, but unfortunately some have been too poor to relocate or frankly don't want to leave their homes. Too many innocent people, families with elderly relatives, small children, have had a horrific front row seat to this conflict. The Lebanese Government estimates there are 841 dead as of today, 3,243 injured, and over 700,000 Lebanese civilians--one-quarter of the population of the country--have been displaced internally or to other countries. The stories of innocent citizens have weighed heavily on me, and I believe we must do something to help them. I know my colleagues feel that way as well. In Israel, it is the same. There are 51 dead, and more than 300 civilians have been wounded by rocket attacks. More than 500,000 Israeli citizens are spending a significant amount of time in bomb shelters, their children terrified, with families trying to console each other in constant fear, terrorized by Hezbollah rockets. I believe, and I hope my colleagues will agree, that the U.S. Government must assert its leadership at this critical point in time. It must assert its leadership to stop the violence as soon as possible. We must also make it clear that we will step forward as a country to provide humanitarian aid at this critical time. So many people from these two countries have friends and relatives here in America who are desperately concerned about what is happening, who are asking us in America to step up and to help. Time is really of the essence. This is a critical time to both send the dollars and send a message that we in America, with big hearts, are willing to reach out and make a difference in terms of humanitarian aid that is needed at this critical time. I hope my colleagues will join with me in supporting this amendment.

Ms. STABENOW. Reclaiming my time, Mr. President, and I thank my colleague from Massachusetts very much, let me also just say when it comes to the temporary protected status, the legislation the Senator from Illinois has spoken about, I would add one more occasion recently in which we moved in this direction. On another piece of legislation, Senator Levin and I offered an amendment that was accepted by this Senate to address the concerns of those from Iraq who are in the Chaldean community, who are Christians in Iraq, who are truly the true minority religious community in Iraq, and concerns that those who are here, who are Chaldeans, do not have to be returned now that Saddam Hussein is no longer in power because they in fact continue to find themselves in a situation of religious persecution. So we have passed that in another bill, supported by colleagues on both sides of the aisle, which continues the whole premise of making sure that while those who are here on a temporary legal status would not be required to return if, in fact, their lives are in jeopardy; if we are putting them back into a danger zone. I wholeheartedly agree and appreciate what the Senator from Illinois has done. I once again ask colleagues--I see my friend from New Hampshire on the floor so I will bring this to a close. I am hopeful that we will come together and that we could unanimously move forward in this effort to provide humanitarian assistance to those in Lebanon and in Israel who are innocent citizens, caught in the middle of the violence that has occurred. Many, many people have suffered. I hope we will send a strong message that we will stand with those who are working very hard to bring humanitarian assistance.

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, will the Senator yield for a question?

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I ask the Senator from Alaska if he would join us in working through those accounts to make sure that the dollars are, in fact, available. We understand that an amount has been identified of possibly $300 million needed, at least by the State Department. It is my understanding about $100 million has been pledged by other countries, leaving a $200 million gap. I ask the chairman if he would work with myself and others who care deeply about this to identify specific funds to be able to go toward this desperately needed humanitarian effort.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, what just happened is extremely unfortunate for American families, extremely important for people all across the country who want Members to do things in the Senate that affect them and their lives. People are feeling squeezed on all sides: Jobs, health care costs are rising, they are afraid they will lose their pension, maybe have lost their pension, the costs of college, men and women serving overseas want to know when they come home their house is not gone because of foreclosure, or they worry their family has a more difficult time because they have been serving our country. The extension bill, the amendment Senator Reid offered with Senator Durbin, and of which I am proud to be a cosponsor, speaks to those issues the American families are asking Congress to address. It speaks to the kind of tax policy that makes sure middle-class Americans are supported and that we are doing something for them, not just for those who are the most blessed, the multibillionaires of this country. Let me give an example. Our amendment that was just objected to included a provision to extend the $4,000 deduction for higher education expenses for families to send their children to college or for people going back to school themselves to be retrained or get a new degree to better meet the demands of the new global economy. Why in the world would we not want to rush to extend that $4,000 tax deduction for individuals who are just trying to make it, trying to get the American dream for themselves or their children? Extending the research and development tax credit, again, is absolutely critical. Our State has gone through and continues to go through major transformations in manufacturing. This is not your father's factory anymore. This is high tech. The R&D tax credit is critical to be extended. It is about jobs. There are many provisions in this amendment just objected to that directly relate to jobs, directly relate to our way of life in this country, creating opportunity, as well as supporting our troops. One of the provisions treats combat pay as earned income under the earned income tax credit for our brave men and women in uniform. Who would not support doing that as quickly as possible? I regret this amendment was not supported. Let me go on to say, as our leader Senator Reid indicated, there is another bill that affects middle-class Americans that is being held up, essentially is being used for political maneuvers right now, that affects upwards of 45 million people in this country. That is the pension bill. We are talking about people who have paid into a defined benefit plan all their lives. They assumed it would be there. They assume in the United States of America one shouldn't have to worry, after paying into a pension, that the funds would not be there at retirement. Yet that is happening for too many people I represent and too many people around the country. We have a bill that has been worked on very hard. People on both sides of the aisle in the Senate have worked together in a bipartisan effort, a good-faith effort--the Committee on Finance, with Senator Grassley and Senator Baucus, and the HELP Committee, with Senator Kennedy and Senator Enzi, working very hard along with Senator Mikulski on our side playing such a critical role to make sure we get it right. Unfortunately, the process for this bill has been a disaster despite the best efforts of people on both sides of the aisle in the Senate. Unfortunately, the price is being paid by families who find their economic interests, their future, their retirement security, put on the back burner. Three failed deadlines have occurred on this bill, 7 months of lost time in conference. Now the same families are being told they have to wait some more so we can take up a tax bill with provisions that do not even expire until 2010. People have pensions in jeopardy because of the possibility we will not act in 2 days, and we are not acting. Hopefully we will get this done. We ought to get this done now before we focus on legislation that affects only .2 percent of the wealthiest in this country, people who are not even impacted for 4 years. There is something wrong with this picture. There is no way to justify this. In my opinion, it is immoral to watch working Americans lose pensions they have earned over the last 30 or 40 years, and not step up and do something about it as quickly as possible. People have waited too long. In Michigan alone we have over 1.5 million families counting on their pension plan. They are counting on Congress to make sure it will be there. They are counting on Congress to make sure what they have worked for all their life will be there. There is a fundamental principle: You work all your life, you pay into a pension, you ought to get it, period. We shouldn't be spending the time to take up another bill. This should have been done months ago. I don't understand this. The families I represent are betting on us to help them. They are counting on us to make sure they have their pensions. Unfortunately, the leadership on the other side of the aisle has decided to prioritize a bill that impacts .2 percent of the wealthiest taxpayers while a bill that affects upwards of 45 million people is waiting to come to the Senate floor. We have no guarantee it will be passed this week. We cannot count on the fact when all of this is done on Friday that they will even proceed with this critical pension bill. On the pension bill itself, I commend, as I said before, my colleagues, our leaders, who have worked so hard. I commend the conferees for considering the unique aspects of manufacturing and the auto industry. These are tough times in Michigan. The bill as it passed the Senate did not fully represent what we need for manufacturing. In the conference committee, people of good will worked together. We fixed those things. I am very pleased about that. Our automakers are trying to do the right thing, trying to fund their pension plans. The pension bill addresses those things that will allow them to continue to do the right thing. We also have folks in the construction industry and building trades, the multiemployer plans, who are asking for flexibility to fix their pension plans. That is in this bill. We have companies such as Northwest Airlines, which has gone into bankruptcy but has chosen up to this point not to dump their pensions in the Pension Guaranty Fund. We have to make sure we do everything possible to help. Thousands of people, their livelihoods, their future, their retirement security, are at stake. I thank all those working on the pension bill. I thank all of my colleagues who have worked to address our manufacturing issues and the multiemployer provisions. I am proud to be one of the sponsors of the amendment to address the pension plans of about 10 million Americans in what is called multiemployer pension plans. I thank the conferees for including that, as well. I thank all of those businesses that are trying to hang in there and do the right thing. Most importantly, people are counting on us to do the right thing. Part of the American dream has been to work hard all your life, care for your family, put money aside for retirement, be able to afford college, which this last amendment would have addressed if it had not been objected to. Right now, too many people in America are feeling squeezed on all sides. They see decisions being made, issues being brought up, that have nothing to do with their lives. They see policies being proposed that have nothing to do with helping them do better, hoping they will able to keep the American dream, be able to protect their way of life. It is time we had a new direction in this country. It is time we had a new direction and focus on that which will directly affect people every day so they will trust in their Government again that we will have the right values and priorities that allow every middle-class American, every working American, everyone who is working hard and playing by the rules, to have a chance to know they will not only make it but we will keep our promises, as well. In conclusion, I urge my colleagues, urge the leadership in the Senate, to bring before the Senate a bill that can have universal support, overwhelming support in the pension bill. As we complete this very important Defense bill, this funding bill critical to our men and women, our troops, a bill we all want to see passed, I urge we then bring up the pension bill and let us pass it so 45 million people will have the assurance by the end of this week that their pensions will remain intact, or at least we will have given it our very best effort.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, today I am pleased to offer this resolution in honor of Will Keith Kellogg, who founded the Kellogg Company in 1906 in Battle Creek, MI. I am pleased to be joined by my colleagues, Senators Isakson, Chambliss, and Levin. Today, Kellogg's company employs more than 25,000 people worldwide and operates production sites in thirteen states. Additionally, the Kellogg Foundation is one of the largest philanthropic institutions in the world. Last year, it celebrated its seventy-fifth anniversary and has donated more than $3 billion to health, education, agricultural, and youth-development projects. I am proud of the work of Mr. Kellogg and the great work of both the Kellogg Company and the Kellogg Foundation. I ask for unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise today with a heavy heart concerning the violence taking place in Israel and Lebanon. On July 12, Hezbollah committed a reckless act of aggression against Israel by killing eight soldiers and kidnapping two others. Following this outrageous act, I joined with all of my colleagues in the Senate to support a resolution reaffirming Israel's rights to defend itself. I stand by that commitment, because Hezbollah and its large cache of arms is a threat to Israel and to America. But I also watched the last 2 weeks, and those last 2 weeks have brought bloodshed on both sides of the Israel-Lebanon border--innocent people dying, families being torn apart, communities being destroyed. It has gone on too long, and it must stop. I am proud to represent the great State of Michigan. When you come from Michigan, violence in the Middle East isn't just a news story. It isn't just ``over there.'' It is here, and it affects thousands of people--friends of mine, people whom I know and respect. In the case of Lebanon and Israel, this violence affects mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, children, and whole communities on both sides. Some people call Bint Jubail a Hezbollah stronghold--and I understand that. But 15,000 of my constituents call it their hometown. In fact, Dearborn, MI is home to the Bint Jubail Cultural Center that provides sort of a home away from home for many families. Tragically, many Michigan families, their relatives, and their loved ones are trapped in Bint Jubail at this moment. They are caught in heavy fighting between Hezbollah and Israel, and people are dying on both sides. Today I pray for them and grieve with their families. The lucky ones were able to get out--such as Rania Horani from Dearborn who was vacationing with her family in Bint Jubail when the fighting broke out. Fortunately, Rania was evacuated, but she spoke to the Associated Press about this terrifying experience. She said: You're waiting, you're scared, you don't know if you are going to die. But you have to get out because you're going to die either from starvation, fear, stress, or a bomb. Thank God we're [in Cyprus]. We share that sentiment. But the tragedy continues for hundreds of others stuck in Bint Jubail right now. The State Department must not stop the evacuations until every American and their family is safely out of Lebanon. Last evening I spoke with one of the assistant Secretaries of State about American citizens and their family members who are still there. And I appreciate the attention of the assistant Secretary and of the Embassy, but we can not stop the ships. We can not stop the rescue missions until all Americans and their families can come home. Too many people are still stuck there. On the Israeli side, there is also too much destruction and loss of life. I understand how they must feel. Thousands of Americans fear for their families. Thousands of people in Michigan, friends of mine, hundreds of Michigan teenagers were evacuated in the middle of a summer trip to Israel because they were close to Hezbollah rocket attacks. I know their families and the fear of their moms and dads about whether their children would come home safely from a summer trip. Brandon Lebowitz, a student at West Bloomfield High School, was a few miles away from the bombings in Tiberius. He talked about his harrowing experience: We saw the missiles hitting the city and the smoke and we heard them from across the sea. We were pretty close to the missiles exploding. I know how I would feel if that were my son. Innocent Americans from both sides of the Israeli-Lebanese border have fled to Michigan, have come back home to escape the violence, watch the news every day, waiting to see what will happen to their families. Unfortunately, many civilians did not escape the violence. Over 400 Israelis and Lebanese have died in the fighting. This has got to stop. The U.S. Government must push hard to stop the hostilities and the violence against innocent citizens. Innocent citizens are being killed in Lebanon and in Israel. I believe it is our responsibility to stand up and do everything possible to bring that violence to an end. That is why I am pleased to be a cosponsor of a resolution with Senator Dodd, my colleague, Senator Levin, and Senator Sununu that expresses support to attain a cessation in hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. We know this is not easy, but we know innocent people--families, Americans--are counting on us to show leadership. Regrettably, over the last 5 years our Government has not played the leadership role so critical in the Middle East, the leadership role played by every other administration, whether Democrat or Republican. It is time to assert our leadership and put a stop to the violence as soon as possible. The innocent people of Lebanon and Israel have had enough of the violence and bloodshed. It is time for them to be able to live their lives in peace. I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Senior Nutrition Act, which will make needed improvements to the Commodity Supplemental Food Program to prevent our seniors from having to make the difficult choice between food and medicine as they try to balance their budgets. I am pleased to have the support of my friend, Senator Domenici of New Mexico, who has been one of the Senate's strongest supporters of CSFP. Also I am pleased to have the support of Senators Johnson and Durbin. Nationally, 32 States and the District of Columbia participate in CSFP, which works to improve the health of both women with children and seniors by supplementing their diets with nutritious USDA commodity foods. According to USDA, more than half a million people each month participated in CSFP during fiscal year 2005, with the overwhelming majority being seniors. My State of Michigan has one of the largest and oldest CSFP network in the Nation. Last year, over 80,000 people in Michigan benefited from this important program. The bill I am introducing today will make the following important changes to CSFP. First, categorical eligibility is granted for seniors for CSFP if the individual participates or is eligible to participate in the Food Stamp Program. No further verification of income would be necessary in such cases. The Food Stamp Program provides a medical expense deduction, which seniors may use to account for their high prescription drug costs. Second, this bill says that the same income standard that is currently used to determine eligibility for women, infants, and children in CSFP--185 percent of the poverty income guidelines--would be applied to seniors as well. The current income eligibility standard for seniors has been capped at just 130 percent. Under the current Federal poverty guidelines, a single senior cannot earn more than $12,740 per year to qualify. By raising the standard to 185 percent of poverty, the same senior can earn as much as $18,130 to qualify for food. This will make a major difference in the lives of so many seniors who are struggling with the high cost of prescription drugs. This bill has been endorsed by the National CSFP Association as well as several national and Michigan senior advocacy and faith-based groups. I ask unanimous consent that a copy of these support letters be printed in the Record following my remarks.

Ms. STABENOW

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

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, earlier this week I spoke about the fact that there would be tremendous hardship on people who are currently in Lebanon--American citizens leaving in the midst of a war zone. The stated policy, earlier this week, was to require people to pay a fee to leave, and I am appreciative of the fact that, after speaking out and after introducing a bill that, in fact, would allow them to waive the fees, in fact, the Secretary of State has done that. I appreciate the fact that they are proceeding with that and the fact that people are now beginning to move from the region. I urge that that continue to happen as quickly as possible. We have many innocent people in harm's way. We need to remember that and do everything we possibly can to protect them.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise in support of the Fannie Lou Hamer, Rosa Parks, Coretta Scott King, and Cesar Chavez Voting Rights Reauthorization Act of 2006. We all know that this reauthorizes existing but currently expiring provisions of the Voting Rights Act for 25 more years. I personally believe that when this was instituted in 1965, there should not have been an expiration date and would prefer that in this bill there not be an expiration date. But I am appreciative of the fact that we have bipartisan support to continue this provision, and hopefully at some point we will be able to take off the ending date. I think about standing in this very important spot in the Senate. Right around the corner from us is a room we call the President's Room that President Lyndon Johnson used in 1965 to sign the original legislation because of its significance. We all know this is the bedrock of our democracy, the right to vote, the right to vote without harassment, intimidation, with correct information, knowing your vote in fact will be counted. I am proud of the fact that one of the folks who this bill is named after is Rosa Parks, who is from Detroit. We claim her as our own and are so proud of all she has done, along with the others this bill has been named after. But we are very proud that the mother of the civil rights movement is from our own beloved Detroit. Before 1965 and the bill's passage, we had communities with explicit poll taxes and literacy tests to prevent people of color from voting. We have in fact made great progress on civil rights since the original law. But as many of my colleagues have said, there is much more to be done. Now, unfortunately, we have more subtle and sometimes not so subtle forms of voter intimidation and suppression. Voters too many times are being told of the wrong polling place or flyers and phone calls tell people that the election was moved. I know in my State we have struggled with misinformation going out around elections. Why is it that it is predominantly in our cities where the lines are the longest, the voting machines are the oldest, and, in fact, there are fewer machines? We need to know we are not done with what this bill represents until those things are fixed, until every voting machine works, until there is enough to make sure everyone can vote, until there is a paper backup so we know the votes are being recorded accurately, and until every person or group that attempts to harass anybody in terms of exercising their American right to vote has been stopped. These practices are a reminder that our laws are only as good as the people who enforce them. That is the commitment we have behind it, to make sure that the principles and ideals of our democracy and of America are upheld. Passing this bill is a very important step for us. I am pleased this has been placed on the agenda and that we are going to come together overwhelmingly and pass it today. We need to make sure we are willing to take the next steps. We have election reform legislation introduced in the Senate that needs to be passed. For the life of me, I cannot imagine why when I go to the ATM machine, I can get a piece of paper, a receipt that tells me about my transaction, and yet there is resistance to us having a paper backup so we know that in fact the integrity of our vote and the voting process has been maintained. I hope this will be phase one in a series of things we do to make it clear that everyone in America has the right to vote, that we are stronger because of that. We certainly know we are a better country, a stronger country because of the law that was passed in 1965, the Voting Rights Act, and that we will be stronger because of this legislation's passage and that we, in fact, will be at our strongest and our best when we are fully committed to an accurate, full, and open voting process for every person and every community in America. I urge adoption of the bill and thank the Chair.

Ms. STABENOW. Thank you, Mr. President. Before speaking about this very important piece of legislation we are about to pass, I wish to briefly just indicate a thank you to the State Department. (The remarks of Ms. Stabenow are printed in today's Record under ``Morning Business.'')

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I appreciate being able to come to the floor to speak about something of great urgency for people in Michigan and all across our country who have family and friends who are trapped in Lebanon--and certainly people in Israel as well--as a result of what is happening with the violence in the Middle East. We understand those Americans in Israel are able to leave and come home, but we have literally up to 25,000 Americans who are in Lebanon and trapped and unable to leave. They are frightened, and family members here are worried about their families in desperate situations, and they are asking for us to act much more quickly than has been occurring. It is deeply disconcerting to me as I watched other countries, such as Italy, Spain, Great Britain, and France, on Saturday beginning to evacuate their citizens from Lebanon, taking them to Cyprus or taking them to other places to safety, and yet I understand that even though we have had some helicopters that have gone in--and I am grateful to the Department of State for that because we have families from Michigan who have been evacuated because of medical emergencies--the vast majority of people are waiting for ships. One ship was supposed to come today. I understand that was delayed, and now they are waiting until tomorrow. And there will be, I understand, two ships--one that will allow 1,400 people to leave, and one that will allow 1,800 people to leave. But we are talking about in Michigan alone over 5,000 people, mostly women and children who have gone to see grandparents, have gone home for weddings, funerals, birthday parties, gone to see grandpa and grandma or elderly, people going home who are frightened and who are in harm's way. I am deeply concerned that we have not moved more quickly. I have images of people sitting on rooftops in New Orleans waiting to be evacuated, waiting to be rescued, and now we have a similar situation going on with people waiting now 5 days, 6 days to leave a country that is in a war zone. On top of that, we are now hearing that people who find themselves in a war zone, not of their making, who thought they were going to visit family during their vacation time while the children were off school or for some special event, are going to have to pay. Our Federal Government is requiring them to sign a promissory note to pay to leave to take their families to safety. That makes absolutely no sense. So I plan to introduce a bill that will give the Secretary of State the authority to waive the reimbursement requirement for U.S. citizens who wish to evacuate Lebanon. The bill would waive the requirement in two cases: if it would create an undue financial hardship for a family or for an individual who is evacuated or if those citizens would be unable to recoup the cost of or reuse or get credit for a previously purchased airline ticket. That is the least we can do given the current situation that is underway. This would give those who cannot afford thousands in unexpected travel costs an option for help. We cannot abandon American citizens who are currently in a war zone. I have been in touch with hundreds of people from Michigan. I am proud to have thousands of members of Michigan who are an important part of our community, who have family members and friends trapped in the conflict in the Middle East. Frankly, our Government should be focused on the fastest, the safest way to bring people home, not how much we are going to bill them once they get here. Let me share a couple of the hundreds of calls we have taken. Iman Hatoum called her two young children, girls 14 and 7, who were in Lebanon visiting their grandmother when the conflict broke out. She was terrified, of course, for their safety, as anyone would be, and was working to get them out, but she was worried because this promissory note our Government is requiring them to sign would not be able to be signed by a minor. So we were able to help her work through that situation and to move forward. But she was terrified of what was going to happen to her children. Samar Saad: Her family members--her cousins--were in Lebanon attending a wedding. They were all registered as requested by the Department of State on the Web site. But now one of her cousins was critically injured in the bombings and is in the hospital. We now find the family having to worry about medical bills because they were caught in a bombing and someone is now in a hospital, and they are having to pay for, of course, the physical injuries suffered by their family. We should not be charging them to come home, to come back to America where they will be safe. Hoda Amine sent this very desperate e-mail to my office: Here we are stuck in Beirut, Lebanon, with over 25 family members. We need you and others to contact our gov. locally and nationally to get us out of here. We are all U.S. citizens and tax payers. Let our money be put to good work by saving ``real U.S. citizens who are in desperate need to be saved. We have infants (my granddaughter) and elders (in- laws and friends) who need help desperately. It goes on to indicate that they have registered with the embassy three times and have been informed to stay put, paying $150 each night at a hotel, and they say they are in a real, real emergency. Help us. We need to do that. We need to be doing two things. We need to be getting ships there as quickly as possible. They should already have been there. If ships from other countries could be there Saturday or Sunday or Monday--now we are talking about not having something happen until Wednesday--there is no excuse for this. The U.S. State Department estimates there are approximately 25,000 American citizens currently in Lebanon; 15,000 have registered with the State Department's Lebanon task force to receive evacuation information. We are keeping in constant contact with the task force. Unfortunately, while we are working through all of this, current law requires that U.S. citizens and others who qualify to be evacuated by the Federal Government sign a promissory note pledging to reimburse the Government for their travel. They are later going to be billed by the State Department for the cost of any air, land, or sea transportation. I am sure we all can imagine the situation or have family and friends--I have many friends, I have many people with whom I have talked, a friend over the weekend whose wife and young child went to visit family and have tried various roads and avenues to leave and have not been able to do that. People are frightened, people who are American citizens, who are asking us to help quickly and to please not put them in a situation of more financial hardship because they thought they were visiting their family in the summertime or they thought they were going to a beautiful wedding celebration or they were sharing the sorrow of a funeral or visiting grandpa or grandma or schoolchildren going on buses. A colleague from the other side of the aisle has 300 members of a church community who are in Lebanon right now and have not been able to leave. Surely we can come together on a bipartisan basis. I know there is bipartisan interest in this issue. I am hopeful that we can come together and agree that we ought not to be charging for these people to leave in order to be able to survive with their families. They did not know this was going to happen. They had no idea they were going to be facing this situation. But now they find themselves needing help from their Government to bring them home and to keep them safe. We have a responsibility to make sure innocent people are not losing their lives or concerned about the safety of their children or their family members because of this situation. That is our responsibility, I believe, very strongly. This situation is frightening enough without people being placed in financial hardship to pay for a ship to Cyprus and then find themselves where their airline ticket doesn't work from Cyprus so they have to buy a whole new ticket, or whatever it takes--thousands of dollars. People are being told that it is anywhere from $3,000 to $5,000 to be able to protect their families and leave. That is just not right. I really am hopeful--I know colleagues are concerned about this--I am hopeful that this legislation will be strongly embraced and that we can quickly give the Secretary of State the authority. We have been told by legislative counsel they do not now have the authority to waive these costs. So I am hopeful we will give them that authority very quickly and the Secretary of State will then be able, in a humanitarian way, to address a very critical and frightening situation for many Americans right now in Lebanon. Mr. President, I yield the floor.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, first, I thank the distinguished chairman of this important bill and the ranking member for allowing me to speak about a different subject for a few moments. This is a very important bill which is before the Senate. It is very important to Michigan. I very much appreciate all the hard work they have put into bringing this bill to the floor. I also thank my friend and colleague from California for allowing me to use a few moments of her time. (The remarks of Ms. Stabenow are printed in today's Record under ``Morning Business.'')

Ms. STABENOW. Certainly, Mr. Chairman, I would have no objection.

Ms. STABENOW. Yes. Through the Presiding Officer to the chairman, thank you very much for including me in this process. My question would only be, how much time does the Senator from Missouri require?

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, today I offer an amendment cosponsored by Senator Levin and Senator Baucus that will require U.S. Customs and Border Patrol to charge inspection fees to Canadian shippers who export municipal solid waste into Michigan in order to pay for truck inspections. My amendment would impose approximately a $420 fee on every trash truck that crosses into Michigan. In 2003, the city of Toronto started shipping 100 percent of its trash to Michigan. The result? Every day, 350 trucks carrying trash from Toronto enter Michigan on their way to Michigan landfills. But they don't just carry trash. In recent years we have found illegal medical waste, including radioactive materials, and illegal drugs and currency. There is no limit to what could be smuggled in these trucks. In February, the Department of Homeland Security inspector general released a report that I requested with Senator Levin and Congressman Dingell. The inspector general found that trash trucks are extremely difficult to inspect and carry dangerous waste. The report also points out that trash trucks are difficult to screen with traditional x-ray equipment and must be physically inspected to verify their contents. Finally, the report states that it is virtually impossible to find dangerous items because of limited resources for conducting time- intensive physical inspections. The people of Michigan know exactly what kinds of dangerous materials are in these trash trucks. Over the past few years, we have seen numerous examples. Customs officials seized nearly 1 ton of illegal drugs hidden inside a Canadian trash truck that entered the U.S. from Toronto over the Blue Water Bridge. A Canadian trash truck arrived in Michigan dripping blood because it contained broken bags of untreated blood and hospital waste in direct violation of Michigan and Ontario law requiring medical waste to be placed in secure containers separate from other waste. A trash truck that was on fire attempted to cross the Blue Water Bridge, requiring 8,000 gallons of water and valuable local, State, and Federal resources before it was finally doused. Most recently, a Canadian trash truck spilled sewage sludge across a main thoroughfare of Huron Township closing the road for hours and diverting valuable local resources for the cleanup. These outrageous incidents and the inspector general's report led me to offer an amendment to the fiscal year 2007 budget resolution that was unanimously accepted by the Senate. My amendment assumes $45 million a year in Federal funds that would be collected by charging Canadian trash shippers an inspection fee as they enter Michigan. The collected fees will pay for the increased personnel costs associated with increasing the number of physical inspections of trash trucks, ensuring that taxpayers are not on the hook to pay the costs for inspecting these dangerous trash shipments. Based on information provided by the inspector general, we know that it will take four Customs agents about 4 hours for each trash truck inspection. Based on personnel and administrative costs, we estimate that the fee for each trash truck will be approximately $420. The next step is to ensure that Customs can actually collect these fees. The amendment I am offering today does exactly that. On March 30, the Committee on Homeland Security's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations released a report called ``An Assessment of U.S. Efforts to Secure the Global Supply Chain.'' This report includes a section on Canadian trash shipments. The subcommittee report states that it is ``inherently difficult and dangerous to physically inspect trash containers.'' Furthermore, the subcommittee recommends that Congress ``enact into law the provisions recently adopted by the U.S. Senate to impose a fee on international shipments of trash to pay for a more rigorous inspection regime to protect U.S. citizens from the security risks currently associated with trash containers.'' This is what the amendment that I am offering today does: establishes the inspection fees that the Senate already approved in the budget resolution. We need to give Customs the resources to more effectively screen and inspect them. Mr. President, I also wanted to make some remarks and discuss the two reports I previously mentioned in order to provide some legislative history and intent of my amendment No. 4657, that the Senate just adopted. The Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations' March report, among other things, analyzed the unique security risks posed by the importation into the United States of cargo containers carrying trash. The report points out that the importers of consumer products, by contrast, have more control over the specific content and the origin of the imported products, making it easier to take steps to monitor and ensure the security of the supply chain. There are few, if any, security measures in place to screen trash or ensure that trash does not conceal illegal or harmful materials, such as weapons or nuclear material. Growing imports of trash present an increasingly serious security problem. For example, according to the Senate report, Canada shipped roughly 100,000 containers of trash across U.S. borders into Michigan in 2004 alone, an 8-percent increase over 2003. Another 10,000 containers of trash come through nine other ports of entry on both the northern and southern borders of the United States each year. The inspector general's report found that from 2003 to 2004, tons of illegal drugs and millions of dollars in illegal currency have been transported into the United States in trash containers, among other forbidden cargo. The Senate report concluded that the Department of Homeland Security should ban imports of trash into the United States entirely until the Secretary of Homeland Security ``can ensure that the supply chain of a trash importer is secure or develops protocols ensuring adequate inspections of individual trash containers.'' In order to pay for more rigorous inspections to protect people in the United States from the security risks currently associated with trash containers, the Senate report recommended enacting into law a ``fee on international shipments of trash.'' In my amendment, the shipments that would be more rigorously inspected would be in the Customs Territory of the United States, which has the meaning given the term in the general note 2 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States. Also, the term ``municipal solid waste'' means all waste materials discarded for disposal by households, including single-family and multifamily residences, and hotels and motels; and all waste materials discarded for disposal that were generated by commercial, institutional, municipal, and industrial sources, to the extent such materials are essentially similar to what I just described and were collected and disposed of with other municipal solid waste previously described as part of or normal municipal solid waste collection services, except that this does not apply to hazardous materials other than hazardous materials that, under regulations issued under section 3001(d) of the Solid Waste Disposal Act are not subject to regulation under subtitle C of that act. The term ``municipal solid waste'' includes food and yard waste, paper, clothing, appliances, consumer product packaging, disposable diapers, office supplies, cosmetics, glass and metal food containers, household hazardous waste, and debris resulting from construction, repair, or demolition of structures. The term ``municipal solid waste'' does not include any solid waste identified or listed as a hazardous waste under section 3001 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act, except for household hazardous waste; any solid waste including contaminated soil and debris resulting from a response action taken under the section 104 or 106 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, a response action taken under a State law with authorities comparable to the authorities of such section 104 or 106 or a corrective action taken under the Solid Waste Disposal Act. It also does not include recycled materials that have been separated, at the source of the waste, from waste otherwise destined for disposal or that have been managed separately from waste destined for disposal; scrap rubber to be used as a fuel source; materials and products returned from a dispenser or distributor to the manufacturer for credit, evaluation, and possible reuse, any solid waste that is generated by an industrial facility and transported for the purpose of treatment, storage, or disposal to a facility or unit thereof that is owned or operated by the generator of the waste, located on property owned by the generator or a company with which the generator is affiliated or the capacity of which is contractually dedicated exclusively to a specific generator, or as long as the disposal area complies with local and State land use and zoning regulations applicable to the disposal site, any medical waste that is segregated from or not mixed with solid waste, combustion ash generated by resource recovery facilities or municipal incinerators, or waste from manufacturing or processing, including pollution control, operations not essentially the same as waste normally generated by households. Mr. President, I hope this will provide the executive and judicial branches with a fuller explanation of the intent and meaning of this amendment. amendment no. 4626

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise today to join my colleagues in calling for a ``Checklist for Change.'' We need a real jobs agenda in this country--one that stands strong and fights for American workers and American businesses. This is about our way of life--a way of life based on good-paying, middle class jobs and the promise that--with hard work--every American can aspire to do better tomorrow than they did yesterday. We need to stop the flow of American jobs overseas. Last year, a new $2 billion tax cut that I authored took effect, rewarding companies that create manufacturing jobs here in the United States. We need to level the playing field for American businesses. Currency manipulation and the free flow of counterfeit goods from countries such as China have put American workers at an unfair disadvantage for too long. It is time we had an international trade prosecutor who can go after countries that cheat and make sure that America is getting a fair deal in the world market. We need a new direction for American workers. We challenge the Republican Congress to enact tax policies that stop the outsourcing of American jobs. We challenge them to stand up and enforce our trade agreements so American businesses can compete on a level playing field and keep good- paying jobs here at home. Americans want to export our products, not our jobs. And we challenge the Republican Congress to follow the lead of my State of Michigan and raise the minimum wage

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Madam President, I rise to speak in support of the Lautenberg-Stabenow amendment. I understand Senator Levin has offered it and Senator Lautenberg will be coming shortly to speak on our amendment. This is an incredibly important amendment for the men and women who are currently serving us so bravely, courageously around the world. We all know that prescription drug costs are one of the largest drivers of health care costs, rising every year at double or even triple the rate of inflation. This is certainly an area where I have been focused for much of my Senate career--on the high cost of prescription drugs. We all know that is the case. Like every manufacturer, small business, and State Medicaid Program, the military is facing the same challenges of controlling prescription drug prices. Instead of supporting policies that would lower prescription drug prices, such as reimportation of prescription drugs from other countries like Canada, which is very close to Michigan, or focusing on more generic, lower cost drugs that can be brought to the market and create competition to bring down prices, or allowing Medicare to negotiate pricing, unfortunately, this administration wants to put the costs on the backs of our men and women in uniform and their families. I strongly oppose that policy. The President's budget proposed increasing the prescription drug copays for our troops and their families, almost doubling copays for both generic and brand-name drugs. The proposed pharmacy copay increases represent a 70-percent increase for military beneficiaries over the next 5 years--far in excess of the 24-percent increase in military pay, or the 14-percent increase in retiree pay over the same period. These increased copays will affect Active-Duty members of the Armed Forces and their families, members of the Guard and Reserve and their families, and retired members of the Armed Forces and their families, as well as surviving spouses who are enrolled in TRICARE and get their prescription drugs from retail pharmacies. Unfortunately, the Senate Defense authorization bill only rejects the increases if people use mail order pharmacies for their prescriptions. While mail order may work for some, many military families cannot wait 2 weeks or more to get the medicine they need right now. The vast majority of our military families purchase their drugs at pharmacies. Of all TRICARE prescriptions filled, about 43 percent are through retail, going to local pharmacists, 51 percent are through military pharmacies, and only 6 percent are through mail order. Unfortunately, in Michigan, there are no military pharmacies for the 64,000 military men and women and their families who call Michigan home. So this will impact the families in Michigan who are serving us abroad--the troops as well as their families. Are we going to tell an Active-Duty mother to wait 2 weeks to get the antibiotics that her children need? Are we going to say to our troops that their family should have to pay more for prescriptions while they are serving and protecting us in Iraq? The Lautenberg-Stabenow amendment makes sense. It would temporarily freeze retail copays at their current rate through the end of next year. I understand there has been a request from the chairman of the Committee on Armed Services to change that to the end of the fiscal year. I don't object to that. The amendment is consistent with the committee's findings that military beneficiaries should be held harmless from TRICARE fee increases until Congress is satisfied that the Defense Department has done all it can to constrain health care costs, without shifting the costs to our military families. Clearly, Madam President, we have not done all we can to cut health care costs, and we ought not to be shifting this burden to our military families. If we don't pass this important amendment, our soldiers and their families will be asked to pay an additional $200 million next year for their medicine. I was fortunate enough to spend Memorial Day with our troops in Iraq and saw firsthand, as so many of my colleagues have, their dedication and courage under incredibly difficult circumstances. We have an obligation to support these men and women, and that means not raising their prescription drug copays while they are fighting to protect us. I hope the Senate will unanimously support this effort that would stop the doubling of copays for our military families for their medicine. I am hopeful that we will be able to do that as soon as possible. I yield the floor.

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

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Mackinaw--WAGB 83--and her crew for their years of service to the United States, the State of Michigan, and the Great Lakes. Today, after 62 years of service, the Mackinaw's commissioning pennant will be lowered, and the Coast Guard will pass the honor of keeping the Great Lake's shipping lanes open to her namesake and legacy, the new U.S. Coast Guard cutter Mackinaw--WLBB-30. On March 20, 1943, construction of the Mackinaw began at the Toledo Ship Building Company. When commissioned on December 20, 1944, the Mackinaw was the most powerful icebreaker in the world. The ship measures 269 feet from bow to stern, and it is still the largest cutter in the Great Lakes. The ``Big Mac,'' as it is affectionately known, set the standard for other icebreakers to live up to. The Mackinaw began her service at the end of 1944 breaking ice and keeping the shipping lanes open to ensure the flow of steel during World War II. The cutter's design was state of the art and gave her the ability to break channels 70 feet wide through 4 feet of ice. The Mackinaw once broke through an astonishing 37 feet of ice. During her first season she made 17 passes through the Straits of Mackinac. While the Big Mac's primary mission was to keep the shipping lanes open during the winter months, she also conducted search and rescue, aid to navigation, law enforcement, and public relations missions. On a tragic day in 1965, the U.S. Cedarville and Norwegian Topdalsfjord collided in Lake Huron, and the Mackinaw rushed to aid survivors and take on casualties. When performing its primary mission from December to April, the Mackinaw's motto is ``we move ships when no one else will.'' In 1948, the Mackinaw freed 12 ice-locked ships in Buffalo, N.Y., and in 1984 opened a channel through the St. Clair River Ice Jam freeing 13 vessels stuck in the ice and opening a passage for 75 other freighters waiting for passage. For these and other feats, the Mackinaw also became know as the ``Great White Mother.'' Today, I also pay tribute to the men and women, past and present, who have served on the Mackinaw. The Big Mac and its crew spent many months away from home from home in the bitter cold navigating the frigid waters of the Great Lakes. This was often lonely duty for her crew, but the Big Mac's efforts were crucial to keep Great Lakes commerce moving during the winter months. The ``Big Mac'' is being replaced but not forgotten. I am pleased that the Big Mac will remain in Michigan as an attraction and educational experience so that everyone can enjoy the wonders of this legendary ice breaker. The new Mackinaw will perform as an icebreaker and will also maintain navigational aids. I am sad to see the Big Mac retired but am excited the torch will pass on to such a fine ship. The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Mackinaw and its crew have done a remarkable job over the years. I thank them for their service to their country, Michigan and the Great Lakes. Finally, I say thank you and goodbye to the Big Mac.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise today to speak to the nominations before us. I appreciate my distinguished colleague and friend from Oregon relinquishing the floor. He is very passionate and such a wonderful leader on so many topics. I appreciate his good work. I rise today to support the nominations of Judge Sean Cox and Judge Thomas Ludington to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. Both nominees will bring distinguished legal careers and judicial experience to the Federal bench. Judge Sean Cox has served as a Circuit Court Judge for the Third Circuit of Michigan since 1996. He is a graduate of the Detroit College of Law at the University of Michigan and has over 12 years of private practice experience. Judge Thomas Ludington has served on the 42nd Circuit Court for Midland County since 1995. He has served as chief judge of this court for the past 6 years. Judge Ludington is a graduate of the University of San Diego School of Law and Albion College. After graduating from law school, Judge Ludington worked at Currie and Kendall law firm for 14 years. He also served as president of the firm before he left to join the Michigan circuit bench. I thank Senator Specter and Senator Leahy for working with me and Senator Levin to bring these two truly qualified nominees to the floor of the Senate. I look forward to continuing to work with them on issues related to the Michigan District Court and the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. I urge my colleagues to join with us in strongly supporting the nominations and confirming Judge Cox and Judge Ludington. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the votes on the confirmation of judges begin at 2 p.m. today; provided further, that all the votes in the sequence after the first be limited to 10 minutes each.

Ms. STABENOW. I ask for the yeas and nays, Mr. President.

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that it be in order to ask for the yeas and nays on all four of the nominees.

Ms. STABENOW

Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I take a special moment to say thank you to Rev. Tim Tuthill for giving the invocation today. As a lifelong United Methodist, I am very proud of him. He is associate pastor of the First United Methodist Church in Mason, MI, and one of our brightest and most engaging young leaders in the community. I am so pleased he is here today. He has been very active in the mid-Michigan community and served in a number of different leadership positions in the Mason area United Way, the Mason Ministerial Association, the Wesley Foundation, the St. Francis Retreat Center, the West Michigan Conference Leadership Team, and a host of other organizations. After 8 years with the First United Methodist Church, Reverend Tuthill was recently appointed by the Wesley Foundation to lead the campus ministry at Michigan State, my alma mater, as well as Lansing Community College. I wish him and his family well. We are so pleased he would take time to join us. We appreciate his words of inspiration this morning.