John Warner

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask for 60 seconds on my time.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I yield myself 60 seconds.

Mr. WARNER. I yield the floor.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I thank my colleague for his kind remarks. But I want to draw the attention of the Senate to the fact that we--the U.S. taxpayers--have already spent $4.5 billion on this Kosovo operation. The President did not ask for any money for the year 2000. That is why we are faced with this supplemental of another $2 billion. So $4.5 billion plus $2 billion is $6.5 billion. Then the authorization bill, which we are now working on, and the appropriations for the next fiscal year, has another $1.6 to $1.7 billion. Wake up, colleagues. We are shoveling money out of here as fast as we can swing our arms, without giving, I think, due consideration.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that I be given 1 minute prior to Senator Robb.

Mr. WARNER. I did not hear that.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I thank my distinguished colleague from Georgia. He is on the Senate Armed Services Committee. He just exemplifies duty, honor, and country in every respect. I hope our colleagues take to heart the message from this distinguished Senator and soldier-citizen of America. I will yield the floor after one procedural matter. As I understand it, the distinguished Senator from Oregon, Mr. Smith, will next address the Senate--if, after that, we could have our colleague from Texas for 6 minutes?

Mr. WARNER. I had to make that case.

Mr. WARNER. That is correct. I say with some dismay, we have been trying to alternate. If the tactic here is to hold those in opposition until the end, I think an element of fairness in this debate may be slipping away.

Mr. WARNER. We have the same situation. Senators Feingold, Thomas, and Cleland are on the floor waiting to speak in support of the Byrd- Warner amendment. I yield the floor. I yield to Senator Feingold 7 minutes.

Mr. WARNER. We are trying to conduct this in an orderly debate. I hope some from their side will begin to appear.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, we are alternating between those who wish to strike the provision and those who wish to retain it. I see Senator Levin is prepared to accept a speaker from his side.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, the next speaker will be the distinguished Senator from Montana, Mr. Burns, for 7 minutes.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I yield myself 30 seconds. I thank the distinguished Senator from New Jersey. This clearly shows this is a bipartisan issue. It is not a political issue. We are not directing anything at our President. We are directing it solely, as my distinguished colleague said, at fulfilling our duties under the Constitution. I am grateful for his pointing out that the United States, in the Korean conflict, where we have had a large number of nations, stands alone today. In Iraq, we stand alone with Great Britain containing that situation, after a dozen allies in 1991 helped us with that conflict. I yield the floor.

Mr. WARNER. I yield the Senator another minute.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I believe the distinguished Senator from New Jersey is to be recognized for a period on my time of 8 minutes.

Mr. WARNER. I yield myself 30 seconds. I, again, thank my distinguished colleague for his contribution to this very important debate, and particularly to his thoughtful references to this humble Senator, but I must say that I respectfully disagree. The time has come when we have to speak to the people of the United States who are constantly giving us this money--to expend $2 billion in this instance--to provide for the men and women in uniform, who march off in harm's way. This is simply a procedure by which to speak on behalf of this constituency and not just always our allies abroad. But I thank the Senator.

Mr. WARNER. I advised the Chair when I arrived this morning that all my comments will be charged to the Chair.

Mr. WARNER. I ask unanimous consent to speak for 2 minutes on my time.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I add that following Senator Kerry, I will have a speaker for about 7 minutes. I thank the Chair and my colleague.

Mr. WARNER. I reserve 8 minutes for a Senator in support of the amendment.

Mr. WARNER. Will the Chair act on the unanimous consent request, and now with 7 minutes for the Senator from Texas?

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. At some point, would the Senator allow asking questions? I find very troublesome the accusation by General Clark. I have always believed General Clark to be a very brilliant field commander, despite the fact he was reversed in his desire to do certain things in Kosovo by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Secretary of Defense, time and time again. As a matter of fact, I was a supporter with him on the ground troops issue, traveled with him the day before the hostilities ceased. That we would do something to place in harm's way those who serve today and those who serve for the remainder of the time--I looked, as a matter of record, at the cosponsors of this resolution. I think I counted 10 persons who are veterans of previous wars and engagements. For General Clark to be pointing a finger at up to a dozen Members and saying, we veterans are taking an action endangering our people--let me ask this question.

Mr. WARNER. That is precisely why, when I visited the region in January of this year--I try to go every 6 months or every several months. The officials told me, the U.N., the E.U., all of them said: Senator, if they just keep the money flowing and the police flowing, then eventually we can get some timetable for the withdrawal not only of U.S. forces but other military forces and turn it over to a civil society to operate itself with such security as needed along the borders. We are not pulling out. We are 100 or so miles away for some of our troops in the NATO installations. The sky is not falling in. The Senator raises a key point. For General Clark to come up and say, in effect, that if we take out just the U.S. combat troops--again, leaving 100,000 in NATO, just a short distance away--Milosevic would read that as a signal and come charging across the borders--what does that say to the other allies? There are 32 nations providing armed forces in the KFOR force of a total in excess of 40,000. It says ``You don't count.''

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, might I add, I then follow my distinguished colleague and ranking member for 30 minutes?