S6224 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE May 5, 1995

force against the citizens, the people can respond with a superior amount of arms.’’

The Militia of Montana frequently uses

anti-Semitic code words like ‘‘shadow government’’ and ‘‘banking elites.’’ Its director,

Bob Fletcher, defends this rhetoric this way:

‘‘If the bulk of the banking elite are Jewish,

is that anti-Semitic? The people who are

doing this are the international banking

elite, and if they are all Jews, so be it, but

that’s not the case. I don’t care if they’re

Arabs or monkeys.’’

Associated with the Militia of Montana is

the more extreme Freemen movement. The

Militia warns of tyranny to come; the

Freemen say it exists today. A Freeman

leader offers the following ‘‘proof’’: ‘‘A Social Security card/number, marriage licenses, driver’s licenses, insurance, vehicle

registration, welfare from the corporations,

electrical inspections, permits to build your

private home, income taxes, property taxes.’’

Look at the Freemen’s racial theories. The

same fellow who says marriage licenses are

tyranny believes people who are not white

are ‘‘beasts.’’ Only whites go to heaven; Jews

are children of Satan.

The rhetoric of these groups embraces a

range of enemies, from the Federal Government to ‘‘the New World Order.’’ Their real

target, however, is local law enforcement.

Nick Murnion, the Garfield County Attorney, recalls threats the Freemen made

against him last year. ‘‘They told me they

weren’t going to bother building a gallows.

They were just going to let me swing from

the bridge,’’ he says.

A month ago, armed members of yet a

third group, the North American Volunteer

Militia, threatened the marshal in the town

of Darby. He had pulled over a car whose license plates expired in 1992, and later describes what followed: ‘‘They had weapons

and they were shaking them at us and

yelling that they were going to kill us. We

backed off a little bit and then left because

we could see that it could turn into a bloodbath.’’

The good news is that ringleaders of the

hate groups are few. Nick Murnion believes

there are no more than 30 around Montana.

Most refuse to pay taxes and obey the laws.

They should be arrested, tried and jailed.

Otherwise, the situation may worsen. As one

prosecutor, County Attorney John Bohlman,

says: ‘‘The more the Federal and local law

enforcement agencies behave with a handsoff attitude, the more bold and daring these

groups become.’’

But law enforcement is only part of it. Casual adherents of militias statewide are not

criminals. And a united community can deal

with them by taking a stand against hate.

Americans have the right to say what they

believe. But with that right comes the responsibility to respect our neighbors, respect

law enforcement and obey the laws.

In November 1993, a group of skinheads

threw a bottle through the glass door of a

Jewish family’s in Billings. A few days later,

they put a brick through a window of another Jewish household; a 5-year-old boy was

in the room at the time.

In response, Billings rallied behind the

Jewish community. The Billings Gazette

printed a full-page drawing of a menorah,

and people all over town pasted them in

their windows. We held our biggest Martin

Luther King Day march ever in February.

And the skinheads fled.

The same treatment will work this time.

Americans everywhere must speak out. We

all must make hatemongers unwelcome in

our towns and communities. And we must

stand by the heroes in this struggle, the police and county prosecutors who stand up to

the extremists.

It is that simple. And after Oklahoma City,

it is about time.

f∑

CONFERENCE ON AGING

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I want

to congratulate the White House Conference on Aging which, as I understand it, just this afternoon passed a

resolution that I ask unanimous consent be made part of the RECORD.

There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the

RECORD, as follows:

PROTECTING MEDICARE AND MEDICAID

Whereas Congress is beginning an historic

debate on Medicare and Medicaid as the 1995

White House Conference on Aging deliberates on its recommendations to the Nation;

Whereas U.S. health care cost and coverage

shortcomings continue to go unaddressed;

Whereas health care reform and the solvency of the Medicare Trust Fund are inextricably intertwined;

Whereas the opening session of the Conference heard statements of support for Medicare and Medicaid from both Democratic

and Republican members of Congress; and

Whereas the President in his address challenged the delegates to come together on a

multigenerational, bipartisan basis to address the problems facing the nation. Therefore, be it,

Resolved by the 1995 White House Conference on Aging to support policies that:

Address problems facing the Medicare and

Medicaid programs in the context of broadbased health care reform, as the President

has proposed;

Oppose massive cuts soon to be considered

in Congress;

Protect Medicare and Medicaid from any

steps backwards by way of reduced health

care or long term care coverage;

Apply any savings that may come from

changes in Medicare and Medicaid as a result

of health care reform to strengthen the programs and expand coverage, including long

term care, rather than to meet arbitrary deficit reduction targets;

Prohibit additional costs being put on

beneficiaries that would make health care

unaffordable;

Maintain quality, preserve choice of provider and oppose proposals that have the effect of financially coercing beneficiaries into

plans that do not guarantee access to their

own physicians;

Prohibit the use of savings in Medicare and

Medicaid for tax cuts for well off citizens.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, the

resolution is entitled ‘‘Protecting Medicare and Medicaid.’’

The important part of the resolution

simply says:

Therefore, be it Resolved by the 1995 White

House Conference on Aging to support policies that:

Address problems facing the Medicare and

Medicaid programs in the context of broadbased health care reform, as the President

has proposed;

Oppose massive cuts soon to be considered

in Congress;

Prohibit the use of savings in Medicare and

Medicaid for tax cuts for well-off citizens.

I think it is very important that everyone understand the ramifications of

the proposals to cut Medicare in the

budget resolution. It would simply be

the largest insurance rate hike in Medicare history. The plan would cost $900

per person in additional out-of-pocket

expenses for Medicare recipients by the

year 2002, a total of about $3,500 over

the next 7 years. We cannot accept

that. I do not believe that the vast majority of the American people will accept it. Certainly, if this resolution is

any indication, senior citizens across

the country, represented by the White

House Conference on Aging, will not

accept it as part of our budget, as part

of any plan relating to Medicare reform this year.

So I am very pleased with the action

taken by the White House conference. I

hope we can talk more about that in

the coming days.

REMEMBERING VIETNAM 20 YEARS

AFTER THE END OF THE WAR

fMr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, on

April 24, 1964, Sergeant First Class

Raymond Adams, a 10-year Army veteran, was killed by a hand grenade in

South Vietnam. Sergeant Adams was

30 years old and married. More than 8

years later, on July 21, 1972, Specialist

Fifth Class Steven Allen Trant died in

South Vietnam. He was 21 years old,

and had been in the Army less than a

year.

They were the first, and the last

South Dakotans to die in Vietnam. In

between their too early deaths, our

country was changed utterly.

More than 3 million Americans

served in Vietnam. Hundreds of thousands were injured, some permanently,

and more than 58,000 young Americans

died in the war.

Today, 20 years after the last helicopter lifted off the roof of the American embassy in Saigon we pause to say

thank you to all of the men and women

who served in that long, sad war and to

remember those who did not return.

One of the most important ways we

can show our thanks, of course, is by

making sure Vietnam veterans get the

medical care and compensation they

need for injuries they suffered in that

war.

Every man or woman who puts on a

uniform is at risk of harm. They accept

that risk as part of their service. In return, we, as a nation, must accept responsibility to care for men and women

if they are harmed during their military service.

Congress took a big step toward fulfilling that responsibility to Vietnam

veterans in 1991 when we agreed to

allow Vietnam veterans to receive

compensation for nine different illnesses and disabilities caused by their

exposure to agent orange.

The National Academy of Sciences is

now investigating possible links between agent orange exposure and other

illnesses. I suspect that additional illnesses will be added to the list of ailments for which Vietnam veterans may

be compensated in the future, and I

support the Academy in its continuing

research.

It doesn’t matter whether a wound is

inflicted with a bullet or a piece of
May 5, 1995 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S6225

shrapnel or a toxic defoliant. In each

case, the wound is real, and so is our

obligation to help the veteran who suffers it.

We also need more research into our

health concerns of Vietnam vets.

In all, more than 682,000 Vietnam and

Vietnam-era veterans are now disabled

as a result of their military service.

And a respected study by the independent Research Triangle institute estimates that more than 960,000 men

who fought in Vietnam and 1,900

women—nearly one in three Vietnam

veterans—suffer from post-traumatic

stress disorder. For some, the effects

are few and fleeting. For others, they

are chronic and debilitating.

So as we mark this 20th anniversary

of the end of our Nation’s most painful

period this century, let us remember

the words of Abraham Lincoln as he

spoke them in his second inaugural to

the Nation still grieving from another

terrible war that divided our Nation.

He said:

Let us strive to finish the work that we are

in, to bind up the Nation’s wounds, to care

for him who shall have borne the battle and

for his widow and orphan, to do all which

may achieve and cherish a just and lasting

peace.

Let us show our thanks to Vietnam

veterans this week, next week, and at

all times in the future by pledging to

give the Department of Veterans Affairs the resources it needs to keep the

promises we made to all Vietnam veterans.

Let us show our thanks by strengthening community-based veterans

health care centers, by making a commitment to keep veterans centers vital

and independent. These centers do not

duplicate the work of VA hospitals.

They serve different people with different needs, and we ought to maintain

them.

Finally, Mr. President, it is time for

this Nation to move toward normalizing relations with Vietnam. I know the

arguments against normalization, and

I sympathize with them. I understand

that the prospect of restoring diplomatic ties with Vietnam is painful to

many Americans, especially those who

have friends and family members

among those who remain unaccounted

for in Vietnam.

Experience has shown that it is precisely by expanding our ties with Vietnam that we are most likely to learn

what happened to soldiers who never

returned.

In the years when we had no contact

with Vietnam, we made no progress on

the question of those missing in action.

So I stand with my colleagues, Senator MCCAIN, Senator BOND, Senator

KERRY of Massachusetts, and others on

both sides of the aisle in urging that

we move cautiously toward a fuller dialog with Vietnam in order to secure answers for the families and healing for

our Nation.

We can never repay Sgt. Raymond

Adams and Specialist Steven Trant or

any of the other 58,000 Americans who

lost their lives in Vietnam, but we can

show our respect and our gratitude,

and we can continue the effort to bind

up the Nation’s wounds from a war

that, in some ways, still divides us.

MEASURE READ FOR THE FIRST

TIME—S. 761

fMr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I understand that S. 761, introduced earlier

today by myself and Senator BIDEN, is

at the desk.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. That is

correct.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask

for its first reading.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The

clerk will read the bill by title.

The bill clerk read as follows:

A bill (S. 761) to improve the ability of the

United States to respond to the international terrorist threat.

Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask

for the second reading.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there

objection?

Mr. COVERDELL. Mr. President, I

object.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. There is

an objection. This bill will be read for

the second time on the next legislative

day.

Is the Democratic leader finished?

Mr. DASCHLE. Yes.

APPOINTMENT BY THE VICE

fPRESIDENT

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The

Chair, on behalf of the Vice President,

pursuant to 22 U.S.C. 276d–276g, as

amended, appoints the following Senators as Members of the Senate Delegation to the Canada-United States

Interparliamentary Group during the

first session of the 104th Congress, to

be held in Huntsville, ON, Canada, May

18–22, 1995:

The Senator from Iowa [Mr. GRASSLEY], and the Senator from Texas [Mrs.

H

COMMONSENSE PRODUCT LIABILUTCHISON

ITY AND LEGAL REFORM ACT

].

fThe PRESIDING OFFICER. Without

objection, the Senate will resume the

pending business, 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.

The Senate continued with the consideration of the bill.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. In my

capacity as a Senator from Alaska, I

suggest the absence of a quorum. The

clerk will call the roll.

The bill clerk proceeded to call the

roll.

Mr. COVERDELL. Mr. President, I

ask unanimous consent that the order

for the quorum call be rescinded.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without

objection, it is so ordered.

AMENDMENT NO. 690 TO AMENDMENT NO. 596

(Purpose: To provide for a uniform product

liability law and to provide assurance of

access to certain biomaterials)

Mr. COVERDELL. Mr. President, I

send an amendment to the desk.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The

clerk will report.

The assistant legislative clerk read

as follows:

The Senator from Georgia [Mr.

COVERDELL], for himself and Mr. DOLE, proposes an amendment numbered 690 to amendment No. 596.

Mr. COVERDELL. Mr. President, I

ask unanimous consent further reading

be dispensed.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without

objection, it is so ordered.

(The text of the amendment is printed in today’s RECORD under ‘‘Amendments Submitted.’’)

Mr. COVERDELL. Mr. President, I

CLOTURE MOTION

fsend a cloture motion to the desk.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The cloture motion having been presented

under rule XXII, the Chair directs the

clerk to read the motion.

The legislative clerk read as follows:

CLOTURE MOTION

We the undersigned Senators in accordance

with the provisions of rule XXII of the

Standing Rules of the Senate do hereby

move to bring to a close debate on the pending substitute amendment to H.R. 956, the

product liability bill:

Slade Gorton, Dan Coats, Richard G.

Lugar, John Ashcroft, Rod Grams, Kay

Bailey Hutchison, Judd Gregg, Strom

Thurmond, Jay Rockefeller, Trent

Lott, Rick Santorum, Larry E. Craig,

Bob Smith, Don Nickles, R.F. Bennett,

John McCain, Connie Mack.

Mr. COVERDELL. Mr. President, I

suggest the absence of a quorum.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The

clerk will call the roll.

The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call.

Mr. COVERDELL. Mr. President, I

ask unanimous consent that the order

for the quorum call be rescinded.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without

objection, it is so ordered.

Mr. COVERDELL. Mr. President, I

CLOTURE MOTION

fsend a cloture motion to the desk.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The cloture motion having been presented

under rule XXII, the Chair directs the

clerk to read the motion.

The legislative clerk read as follows:

CLOTURE MOTION

We the undersigned Senators in accordance

with the provisions of rule XXII of the

Standing Rules of the Senate do hereby

move to bring to a close debate on the pending substitute amendment to H.R. 956, the

product liability bill:

Slade Gorton, Dan Coats, Richard G.

Lugar, John Ashcroft, Rod Grams, Kay

Bailey Hutchison, Judd Gregg, Strom

Thurmond, Jay Rockefeller, Trent

Lott, Rick Santorum, Larry E. Craig,