August 2, 2012 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S5963 

happiness is not an American right alone. 

Israelis, Palestinians, Poles, Russians, Iranians, Americans, all human beings deserve 

to enjoy the blessings of a culture of freedom 

and opportunity. 

f 

AUTOPILOT 

Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I am disappointed that Congress has agreed to 

put government funding decisions on 

autopilot for the first 6 months of fiscal year 2013 through another continuing resolution. This means, in effect, that a half year’s worth of hearings, briefings, and drafting of a dozen 

appropriations bills will have been for 

naught. 

I recognize there are many factors at 

play this year as the clock ticks toward the end of a fiscal year and toward November. But continuing resolutions are no way to run a government, 

and the consequences for the American 

people’s priorities, and for the agencies 

and the dedicated workers who implement our policies, will be dramatic. 

The world does not stand still, and 

time does not stand still. Circumstances that should be reflected in 

our budget decisions are changing all 

the time. Budgets are about choices. 

Budgets are about setting priorities. 

Doing this carefully and thoughtfully 

through hearings, through fact-finding 

and through negotiations among the 

people’s representatives in Congress is 

not an easy process, but it was not 

meant to be easy. Setting the process 

on autopilot is anathema to making 

the right decisions for our country. 

As the veteran reporter David Rogers 

put it today in Politico: 

Continuing resolutions do only one thing 

well: ‘continue.’ They don’t allow for new 

starts and typically set funding at the current rate enjoyed by an agency—with no 

room for new ideas. 

In fact, it is worse than that. As 

chairman of the State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee I am particularly mindful of changes that have occurred around the world in the past 

year. The situation in the Middle East 

and North Africa is one of many examples. Our posture in Iraq and Afghanistan is changing significantly. Humanitarian crises in Syria and South Sudan 

are far greater than anyone envisioned 

1 year ago. At a time when the Chinese 

are ratcheting up their strategic investments across the globe to advance 

their national interests, the United 

States is stuck in neutral. 

I sympathize with the chairman and 

vice chairman of the Appropriations 

Committee and all the committee 

staff, who have worked hard to draft 

and report bipartisan bills. The State 

and Foreign Operations bill was reported on May 24 by a nearly unanimous, bipartisan vote. It has the strong 

support of Ranking Member GRAHAM, 

who worked closely with me in drafting 

it, as well as minority leader Senator 

MCCONNELL. With a day or so of floor 

time we could pass it and go to conference. That is the way it should be. 

Yet continuing resolutions are becoming increasingly common because they 

are a convenient and temptingly easy 

way to avoid hard decisions. Unfortunately, the American people lose, the 

country loses, and a great deal of time, 

effort and money are wasted. 

f 

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION IN 

ECUADOR 

Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, several 

weeks ago I spoke in this Chamber 

about the assault on freedom of expression in Ecuador, where President 

Correa has sought to silence his critics 

including the Special Rapporteur for 

Freedom of Expression at the Organization of American States. 

Last week, these attacks on legitimate expression reached a new height 

when, according to press reports, Ecuador’s Secretariat of Pueblos, Mireya 

Cardenas, said the government is investigating Fundamedios to determine if 

the support it receives from the U.S. 

Agency for International Development—USAID—is being used to interfere in ‘‘internal political affairs’’. She 

specifically criticized Fundamedios for 

lodging complaints at the Inter-American Human Rights Commission. She 

also attacked USAID for supporting 

sustainable forestry, civil society organizations, and the development of local 

productive enterprises, which are designed to protect the environment and 

improve the livelihoods of the Ecuadoran people. 

Mr. President, Fundamedios is a respected Ecuadoran nonpartisan organization that seeks to defend freedom of 

the press at a time when journalists 

and media organizations in that country are being vilified and threatened by 

officials of the very government that 

should be protecting them. It is similar 

to the conduct we have seen in Russia, 

Egypt, Azerbaijan, Venezuela, and 

other countries whose governments 

mistakenly equate legitimate advocacy 

by civil society organizations with unlawful political activity, as if Ecuador’s political affairs are the sole province of those who the government approves of. 

It is also important to reaffirm the 

indispensable role of the Inter-American human rights system, which has 

recently been targeted not only by 

President Correa, but also by the leaders of other Latin countries with weak 

and corrupt judicial systems who, in 

the name of ‘‘reform’’, seek to limit access to alternative fora for its citizens 

to obtain justice for abuses by government security forces. It is interesting 

that these same governments welcome 

the support of the OAS when it suits 

them, but campaign to weaken its 

mandate when it does not. 

To make a bad situation worse, 

President Correa again recently attacked one of Ecuador’s most respected 

newspapers. A few weeks ago, he said 

on TV that an editor with El Universo 

was ‘‘sinister.’’ And on July 28, he suggested that the editor of El Comercio 

was ‘‘mentally ill’’ and ‘‘unethical’’, 

for what appear to be nothing more 

than public comments made on the paper’s website by readers who questioned presidential decisions. 

On July 31, members of the police 

and the labor ministry, reportedly 

without a warrant, seized several items 

and information from the offices of the 

magazine Vanguardia for allegedly violating labor laws. The magazine’s director, Juan Carlos Caldero ́n, said the 

incident is an attempt to silence the 

independent press in Ecuador. 

For those of us who want closer relations between the United States and 

other countries in the hemisphere, including Ecuador, and who believe it is 

everyone’s responsibility to stand up 

for universal human rights of which 

freedom of expression is the most cherished, it is disappointing to see the 

path the Correa government is taking. 

This is not about competing political 

philosophies, party affiliation, or national sovereignty. It is about protecting the right of Ecuadoran journalists and Fundamedios to be free of government interference, and of defending 

the constitutional rights of all of Ecuador’s citizens. The country’s first constitution, written in 1830, stipulated 

that ‘‘every citizen can express their 

thoughts and publish them freely 

through the press.’’ Its current constitution, just 4 years old, protects 

each citizen’s right ‘‘to voice one’s 

opinion and express one’s thinking 

freely and in all of its forms and manifestations.’’ 

The people of Ecuador have a right to 

receive uncensored information. Sometimes that information is accurate, 

sometimes it is not. Everyone in public 

office knows that. Personal attacks 

and inflammatory charges by top officials weaken democratic discourse and 

have no place in a country with a long 

commitment to civil liberties. 

f 

HONORING OUR ARMED FORCES 

CAPTAIN SCOTT PATRICK PACE

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, today I 

rise to pay tribute to CPT Scott Patrick Pace, United States Army. Captain Pace returned with honor to his 

heavenly home on June 6, 2012. By all 

accounts, he lived a life of service, hard 

work, and faith. 

While learning about Captain Pace’s 

life, I was struck by the description of 

those closest to him. They repeatedly 

described the Captain as someone who 

‘‘strived to do well.’’ As a youth, he 

faced obstacles which would keep many 

from pursuing athletics. However, as a 

testament to his character, Captain 

Pace pushed himself and overcame this 

hurdle by becoming an accomplished 

athlete in basketball and swimming. 

His coaches described him as someone 

who ‘‘took responsibility for himself 

and the team but never blamed his 

teammates. He’s the type of player 

every coach wants . . . in fact ever 

coach wants five of him . . . Scott was 

a coach’s dream and a leader. He’ll be 

missed dearly in this community.’’ 


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