John Warner

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I have listened very carefully to my colleague. I spoke earlier about what our committee had done. The organization is now in place to try to monitor the situations the Senator has enumerated. We will proceed to a vote at 3:45. I will at that time seek to be recognized for the purpose of tabling the amendment. I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record at this juncture a paper provided by the Department of Defense, a copy of which I hand to my distinguished colleague, which recites the Department's understanding with regard to the career of this woman to whom the Senator has referred.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, we are awaiting the arrival of Senator McCain. I ask unanimous consent that the Senate recognize Senator McCain upon his arrival at the floor. The Senator may wish to ask unanimous consent to place further material into the Record after he has had an opportunity to examine that paper. There may be some material the Senator believes should be added.

Mr. WARNER. I got unanimous consent to have this printed in the Record but as a courtesy gave the Senator a copy thinking the Senator may wish to supplement it.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I am deeply moved by the thoughtful remarks of my longtime friend. I express my everlasting gratitude first and foremost for that friendship and, indeed, the friendship of your father, commander and chief of the U.S. Forces in the Pacific, who helped guide me in those difficult days of Vietnam when I was entrusted with the Department of the Navy. I say to my friend, it is my fervent hope when I step down as chairman, as prescribed by the rules of our caucus, I will have the privilege to nominate you to become the next chairman of the Armed Services Committee. And I am confident that will be confirmed in our caucus and eventually by the full Senate and that you will lead this committee to greater levels and higher achievements, as has been the case of almost every step of your career. I wish you well and also your family, dear friend. Now, Mr. President, I believe we are going to turn to another amendment by the distinguished Senator from Arizona, and I am privileged to be a cosponsor of that amendment. I commend the Senator. This is a very important step that you are initiating with regard to the future of how financing the Department of Defense is handled in the Congress of the United States. I yield the floor.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to extend the time for the vote by 5 minutes and that I be recognized at the conclusion of the 5 minutes.

Mr. WARNER. I thank my longtime colleague and friend, Senator Levin, for his remarks. I advise the Senate at this time we will proceed to the vote. I will momentarily make a tabling motion, and then upon conclusion of the vote, we will return to the McCain amendment. It would be my fervent hope that we can have a vote on that amendment prior to the time the leadership desires that floor activities be terminated. Amendment No. 4230 I move to table the Dorgan amendment and ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the time until 5 o'clock today be equally divided between myself and Senator McCain and the Democratic leader or his designee, with 20 minutes of the Democratic leader time under the control of Senator Byrd, and that at 5 o'clock a vote occur in relation to the McCain amendment No. 4242, with no further intervening action or debate, and no second-degree amendments in order prior to the vote.

Mr. WARNER. I assure the Senator he will have time.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I wish to advise colleagues that it may be that we can expedite the vote prior to 5 p.m. So it really, in a sense, is no later than 5 o'clock.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, may we have order, please.

Mr. WARNER. The Senator is entitled to be heard.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I thank the very distinguished senior Senator from West Virginia, the West Virginian, the gentleman from West Virginia. Amendment No. 4242

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, may I commend our distinguished senior colleague, former majority leader of the Senate, for that brilliant speech, most appropriate on this day. I am certain that speech will be carried and viewed by our troops wherever they are in the world. In well over 60-some nations our men and women are standing guard tonight, protecting our freedoms. I congratulate you, sir. Thank you very much.

Mr. WARNER. I thank my colleague. Mr. President, I fully support the McCain amendment. This amendment would require regular budgeting for ongoing military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. Since 2001, the administration and Congress has funded our ongoing operations in Iraq and Afghanistan through emergency supplemental appropriation bills, as has been the case in previous times in our Nation's history. As the Congressional Research Service noted in a June 13, 2006 report, ``Supplementals have been the most frequent means of financing the initial stages of military operations.'' The report continues: In general, however, past administrations have requested, and Congress has provided, funding for ongoing military operations in regular appropriations bills as soon as more accurate projections of costs can be made. Operations have stabilized to an extent that accurate estimates of future years' costs of the operations in Iraq and Afghanistan may be made. And, it is now time for the administration to present these costs as part of the regular budgeting process. Emergency supplemental appropriation requests are not forwarded to Congress with the same level of budget justification and details that are routinely sent to Congress when the President's annual budget is forwarded in February each year. If the authorizing and appropriation committees are not allowed to scrutinize fully the effectiveness of defense programs, we are not providing the taxpayer with the full diligence due for scrutinizing the President's budget request. While, I--and I am sure all my colleagues--fully support our troops, and want to ensure they have all the resources they need, we must also provide strong budgetary oversight. We have not always funded our war efforts through routine supplemental appropriations measures. It is worth examining history to perceive how the practice has been exploited beyond all reasonable defense, as Senator McCain recently recounted, and it bears repeating: For the Korean war, which lasted 3 years, there was only one supplemental appropriations bill; During the 11-year Vietnam War, there were four supplemental appropriation bills. As soon as troop levels in Southeast Asia stopped climbing, the Johnson and Nixon administrations requested funding for ongoing operations in the regular defense authorization and appropriation bills; Since 9/11, there have been nine supplemental appropriation bills in 5 years to fund the ongoing war on terror, including two in each of the years of 2002, 2004, and 2005. It now totals over $420 billion in emergency supplemental funding. Most of us have voted in recent years to support several Sense of the Senate amendments stating that the war should be budgeted for in the regular process. Just this past April 27, the Senate voted 94-0 to approve such an amendment. I fully supported that proposition each time it has been offered. Now, this amendment before us would put real meaning into the positions we previously voted to support. Let me also be clear about what this amendment does not do. It does not seek to prevent any future emergency funding requests for war operations. But it does require budgeting for the ongoing expenses we know are going to occur. If next year, after the budget is submitted in February, a totally unforeseen expenditure arises that must be urgently addressed, the administration would have the ability to submit a supplemental request. But simple ``costs of doing business'' expenditures--costs that can be estimated and budgeted for, but are more conveniently funded without any offsets--would not be allowed. I simply say that this amendment goes a long way to restore the proper balance, as we lay down our Senate procedures in committees, between the authorizing process and the appropriators. I do not suggest in any way that the appropriators intentionally encroached on the authorizing process. To the contrary. It was because of the exigencies, the difficulty in predicting the expenditures associated with the current military operations that necessitated these large appropriations. But this amendment will go a long way to restore that. I urge my colleagues to support the amendment. I know my distinguished colleague from Michigan has a few words, and then we will go to the vote.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the following Senators be added as cosponsors to this amendment: Senators Snowe, Ensign, Lieberman, Obama, Inouye, Akaka, and Salazar.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Indian Affairs be authorized to meet on Wednesday, June 14, 2006, at 9:30 a.m. in Room 485 of the Russell Senate Office Building to conduct a hearing on S. 374, the Tribal Parity Act and S. 1535, the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Equitable Compensation Amendments Act of 2005.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Wednesday, June 14, 2006, at 10 a.m., to mark up S. 418 ``Military Personnel Financial Services Protection Act,'' as amended by the committee print; S. 811 ``Abraham Lincoln Commemorative Coin Act,'' and to vote on the nominations of Ms. Sheila C. Bair, of Kansas, to be a member and chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; Ms. Kathleen L. Casey, of Virginia, to be a member of the Securities and Exchange Commission; Mr. Robert M. Couch, of Alabama, to be President of the Government National Mortgage Association; Mr. Donald L. Kohn, of Virginia, to be vice chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; and Mr. James B. Lockhart III, of Connecticut, to be the Director of the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight. Immediately following the mark up, the committee will meet in open session to conduct a hearing on ``FASB's Proposed Standard on `Employers' Accounting for Defined Benefit Pension and Other Postretirement Plans.' ''

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on June 14, 2006, at 2:30 p.m., to conduct a hearing on ``Extension of HUD's Mark-to-Market Program.''

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I would like to ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Environment and Public Works be authorized to hold an oversight hearing on Wednesday, June 14, 2006, at 9:30 a.m. to consider whether potential liability deters abandoned hard rock mine clean up.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs be authorized to meet on Wednesday, June 14, 2006, at 10 a.m. for a business meeting to consider pending committee business. Agenda Legislation 1. S. 2145, Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Act of 2005; 2. S. 1554, a bill to establish an intergovernmental grant program to identify and develop homeland security information, equipment, capabilities, technologies, and services to further the homeland security of the United States and to address the homeland security needs of Federal, State, and local governments; 3. S. 1741, Disaster Area Health and Environmental Monitoring Act; 4. S. 1838, Federal and District of Columbia Real Property Act of 2005; 5. S. 2068, a bill to preserve existing judgeships on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia; 6. S. 2146, a bill to extend relocation expenses test programs for Federal employees; 7. S. 2296, Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Latin Americans of Japanese Descent Act; 8. H.R. 3508, 2005 District of Columbia Omnibus Authorization Act. Post Office Naming Bills 1. S. 2228/H.R. 4456, a bill to designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 2404 Race Street in Jonesboro, Arkansas, as the ``Hattie W. Caraway Station;'' 2. S. 2376/H.R. 3934, a bill to designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 80 Killian Road in Massapequa, New York, as the ``Gerard A. Fiorenza Post Office Building;'' 3. S. 2722, a bill to designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 170 East Main Street in Patchogue, New York, as the ``Lieutenant Michael P. Murphy Post Office Building; 4. H.R. 4108, a bill to designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 3000 Homewood Avenue in Baltimore, Maryland, as the ``State Senator Verda Welcome and Dr. Henry Welcome Post Office Building;'' 5. H.R. 3440, a bill to designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 100 Avenida RL Rodriguez in Bayamon, Puerto Rico, as the ``Dr. Jose Celso Barbosa Post Office Building;'' 6. H.R. 4786, a bill to designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 535 Wood Street in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, as the ``H. Gordon Payrow Post Office Building;'' 7. H.R. 4561, a bill to designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 8624 Ferguson Road in Dallas, Texas, as the ``Franciso `Pancho' Medrano Post Office Building;'' 8. H.R. 4688, a bill to designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 1 Boyden Street in Badin, North Carolina, as the ``Mayor John Thompson `Tom' Garrison Memorial Post Office;'' 9. H.R. 4995, a bill to designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 7 Columbus Avenue in Tuckahoe, New York, as the ``Ronald Bucca Post Office;'' 10. H.R. 3549, a bill to designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 210 West 3rd Avenue in Warren, Pennsylvania, as the ``William F. Clinger Jr. Post Office Building;'' 11. H.R. 2977, a bill to designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 306 2nd Avenue in Brockway, Montana, as the ``Paul Kasten Post Office Building;'' 12. S. 2690, a bill to designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 8801 Sudley Road in Manassas, Virginia, as the ``Harry J. Parrish Post Office;'' 13. S. 3187, a bill to designate the Post Office located at 5755 Post Road, East Greenwich, Rhode Island, as the ``Richard L. Cevoli Post Office;'' 14. H.R. 5245, a bill to designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 1 Marble Street in Fair Haven, Vermont, as the ``Matthew Lyon Post Office Building.''

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate Committee on the Judiciary be authorized to meet to conduct a hearing on ``Judicial Nominations'' on Wednesday, June 14, 2006, at 9:30 a.m. in Dirksen Senate Office Building Room 226. Witness list: Panel I: The Honorable F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr. and The Honorable William Kovacic, Commissioner, Federal Trade Commission, Washington, DC. Panel II: Vinton Cerf, Vice President & Chief Internet Evangelist, Google, Inc., Herndon, VA, David L. Cohen, Executive Vice President, Comcast Corporation, Philadelphia, PA, Walter McCormick, President and CEO, U.S. Telecom Association, Washington, DC, Christopher Putala, Executive Vice President, Public Policy, Earthlink, Inc., Washington, DC, Blair Levin, Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Inc., St. Louis, MO, Paul T. Morris, Executive Director, Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure Agency, West Valley City, UT, John Kuhns, Senior Director of Information Technology, Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Select Committee on Intelligence be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on June 14, 2006, at 2:30 p.m. to hold a closed business meeting.

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation Subcommittee on Technology, Innovation, and Competitiveness be authorized to meet on Wednesday, June 14, 2006, at 10 a.m. on Alternative Energy Technologies.

Mr. WARNER

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Finance be authorized to meet during the session on Tuesday, June 13, 2006, at 10 a.m., in 215 Dirksen Senate Office Building, to hear testimony on ``A Tune-Up On Corporate Tax Issues: What's Going On Under The Hood?''

Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Foreign Relations be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Tuesday, June 13, 2006, at 9:30 a.m., to hold a hearing on ``Counterterrorism: The Changing Face of Terror.''