April 27, 1995 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S5751

It’s fitting that we pay tribute to the

dedication of those who were busily

working in the public’s interest at the

moment of that terrible blast.

Mr. SIMPSON. Mr. President, I rise

TRAGEDY IN OKLAHOMA CITY

fto speak briefly about the recent tragedy in Oklahoma.

Mr. President, throughout our land,

so many have already spoken out so

eloquently about this, that I can add

but little to what has already been

said. The suffering of the victims, the

inhumanity and cowardice of the

bombers, the compassion and heroism

of our community of citizens, and our

solemn resolution to exact justice and

punishment—all of these have been

powerfully attested to already.

I will therefore limit myself to praise

a particular aspect of our President’s

handling of this crisis.

There has been so much of our American democracy which has shown itself

to be worthy of praise and of pride in

this last week—from the behavior of

ordinary citizens in a time of trial, on

up through the labors of rescue and

medical teams, through to the highest

ranks of our law enforcement agencies,

and up to the conduct of the President.

I trust that terrorists the world over

would be rightly awed and cowed by

the great skill, energy, and resolution

that has been displayed.

In the wake of such a horrible tragedy, there is a terrible feeling of powerlessness, and it exists for all of us, even

those of us at the highest levels of government. We had to hope that the perpetrators would be caught. Many had

to wait and to hope that loved ones

would be found alive. Even those who

were actively engaged in bringing relief and justice had to contend with so

many factors outside of their control.

When I think of what the President

faced, I am reminded in a small way of

Dwight Eisenhower’s recollection of

the Normandy invasion. He had done

all he could to plan and to provide, but

once he issued the fateful order—‘‘Let’s

go!’’—his subordinates scrambled to

carry out their tasks, and he was left

alone with a sudden realization: that

he was now powerless to do more than

to hope that his orders would be carried out successfully.

I can only imagine that a similar

anxiety must have gripped the President as he issued orders which he hoped

would bring answers—and arrests—in

the wake of this tragedy. He must indeed believe himself to be fortunate

that law enforcement agents across the

country worked so doggedly and so

well, and so successfully, even as much

remains to be done.

But even with everything the President had to hope for in terms of carrying out an investigation, there still remained a duty that was his, and his

alone, as President of the United

States. There is no way for a President

to delegate the responsibility of speaking for the Nation, and of providing a

voice of resolution and reason when

events have gone awry.

This action of the President has

served this country so well in the days

after the tragic event. Yet now there

appears to be some scapegoating by

him today. He first voiced the Nation’s

determination to bring the criminals

to justice. He had steadfastly resisted

the temptation to blame the tragedy

on specific ethnic or ideological

groups. And he gave voice to what so

many Americans were feeling, the fundamental commitment to law and to

peaceful order shared by nearly all

Americans, no matter where they

stand politically.

It is not a duty to be underestimated.

At a time when so many Americans

must necessarily feel themselves powerless to fight back against this cowardly attack, the need is great to have

their feelings expressed, and to have

them channeled into a constructive

collective response to this tragedy.

In those first few days, the President,

even as he worked to comfort the victims of the attack, succeeded in drawing a clearly understood line as to

where this Nation stands. He asserted

with great force and clarity that, on

the one hand, Americans have a right

to be suspicious of government, and to

exercise their first amendment rights,

their second amendment rights, and

every other protected right. But this

Nation cannot and will not tolerate the

exercise of rights that include violent

attacks on Federal officials, on their

children, or anyone else.

I pray that none of us, including the

President, become vindictive toward

any group in America—whether they

are Islamic Americans, conservative

organizations, talk show hosts, or anyone else—we must remember that virtually all of these people are as horrified by this violence as are we.

The President spoke well soon after

the tragedy when he left no doubt that

Americans are not divided over these

matters, but united in our commitment to law and order, in a way that

law-abiding Americans as well as terrorists should be able to understand.

And this was an important cathartic

process for Americans as we coped with

this tragedy.

I close by giving my thanks to those

in our government who have worked so

hard in these last days to ‘‘bind the Nation’s wounds.’’

Mr. BRYAN. Mr. President, I was

pleased to join with my colleagues in

adopting Senate Resolution 110 which

condemns the horrendous violence that

happened in Oklahoma City and urges

the administration to bring to justice

those responsible for committing this

evil crime. In addition, the measure expresses our deepest sympathy to the

families that have lost so much and

conveys our gratitude to all the Americans who have been assisting in rescue

efforts.

Today, I would like to recognize

those individuals from Nevada who

have joined in the heartbreaking struggle to help our friends in Oklahoma.

Dr. Scott Bjerke, a specialist in critical care at University Medical Center’s

trauma unit, Dave Webb, a fire specialist with the U.S. Forest Service, Metro

Police Sgt. Bill Burnett, and Clark

County fire paramedic coordinator

chief Steve Hanson all are members of

Clark County’s elite 60 member Urban

Search and Rescue Task Force which

headed to Oklahoma City to assist rescue workers. In addition, the Clark

County American Red Cross has sent

Caroline Johnson, officer for the disaster computer operations, to Oklahoma

City. In times of tragedy, there are always heroes. All the Americans who

have been devoting endless time and

emotions to ease the pain of so many

are the true heros of this tragedy. I am

proud that Nevadans have united together with the country during this

time of such need. I thank these individuals for their commitment to others.

Although we cannot ever heal all the

wounds both emotional and physical

from this tragedy, I hope that those in

Oklahoma will know that Nevadans are

praying for them and somehow that

will lessen their pain.

CONCLUSION OF MORNING

fBUSINESS

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Morning

business is now closed.

COMMONSENSE PRODUCT LIABILITY AND LEGAL REFORM ACT

fThe PRESIDING OFFICER. Under

the previous order, the Senate will now

resume consideration of H.R. 956, which

the clerk will report.

The bill clerk read as follows:

A bill (H.R. 956) to establish legal standards and procedures for product liability litigation, and for other purposes.

Pending:

Gorton Amendment No. 596, in the nature

of a substitute.

The Senate resumed consideration of

the bill.

Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise this

morning to express my strong support

for the Product Liability Fairness Act,

which is the pending legislative business before the Senate. Balanced reforms in this measure will help to promote fairness in the product liability

system, help injured people get fair

compensation for their injuries, allow

businesses to get out of unjustified

lawsuits, and improve safety conditions for working men and women in

this country. With these reforms in

place we will help alleviate the problems that undermine the present system.

I want to commend at the outset the

principal authors of this legislation,

Senator ROCKEFELLER of West Virginia

and Senator GORTON of the State of

Washington, for their hard work. They

have worked tirelessly on this effort

for a number of years. I am pleased to

have joined them in that effort over