macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 1981-04-07
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. the Soviet Union is perpetuating a brutal military and political stalemate in Afghanistan. The Soviets hope the world will come to accept their illegal occupation of another sovereign nation and go on to other matters. But they have failed to broaden the political base of their proxy regime led by Babrak Karmal. They have failed to build an effective Afghan military force responsive to their dictates. They are totally unable to legitimize their presence. . Yet. they have so far succeeded in their primary goal: To remain there. Soviet tyranny is perpetuating itself indefinitely. Soviet brutality is widening its reach day by day. Determined to tough it out. they want the normalization of their destruction of the sovereignty of Afghanistan. Despite the continuation of active armed resistance. the Soviet military presence guarantees their control of the key population centers. the communication network and major roads. Despite a variety of diplomatic initiatives by many nations over the last year. the Soviets remain unresponsive. This Is so even though they have suffered significant damage to their international image. It is so even though they continue to bear a significant economic penalty imposed by the U.S. grain embargo. Soviet intransigence on the Afghanistan question was reiterated by Soviet President Brezhnev before the 26th Soviet Party Congress in Moscow in March of this year. It was reinforced by his negative response to an iniovative proposal recently made by French President Giscard dEstaing. It was repeated subsequently in a bellicose statement by "Soviet leading circles" in Tass which charged that American actions are now making an Afghan political settlement more difficult. The continued Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. and the daily commission of acts of brutality toward the Afghan people. is an international scandal. It must remain on the top of the International agenda until a political solution acceptable to the Afghan people is achieved. This solution must satisfy two basic standards: The removal of Soviet troops and selfdetermination for the Afghan people. Any proposal. any mechanism. any process which accomplishes these goals should be vigorously supported by the United States. Any conclusion which perpetuates Soviet control of Afghanistan must be rejected.
Date: 1981-04-07
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. I appeared on "Face the Nation" on the CBS Television Network last Sunday. I ask unanimous consent that the transcript of that programin which George Herman of CBS News was the moderator. and John Mashek. of U.S. News & World Report. and Phil Jones of CBS News constituted the panelbe printed in the RECORD. There beingno objection. the transcript was ordered to be printed in the RECORD. as follows:
Date: 1981-04-07
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. I yield 1 minute back to the distinguished majority leader and I will yield the remainder of my time to Mr. PRYOR.
Date: 1981-04-07
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. reserving the right to object. there is no objection on the side to proceeding Immediately to consideration of the budget waiver.
Date: 1981-04-07
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

I move to lay that motion on the table. . The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
Date: 1981-04-07
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. Preqident. in response to an earlier statement. I say to the distinguished majority leader. there is no objection to securing the consent of the Senate at this time to proceed to the consideration of the supplemental appropriations bill for fiscal year 1981 if he wishes to propose the request now.
Date: 1981-04-07
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. I inquire of the distinguished majority leader as to what the business is for the remainder of the day and for the week.
Date: 1981-04-08
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. I thank my friend for his expression of interest and will say that his words of approbation are heartwarming. This is the 37th speech on the U.S. Senate that I have made. beginning I anticipate that I will probably continue throughout this year. I* do this in anticipation of the forthcoming 200th anniversary of the U.S. Senate which will be commemorated in 1989. I again thank the distinguished Senator. Mr. President. I ask that the time of this colloquy will be charged against my time.
Date: 1981-04-08
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. I ask unanimous consent that the time for commencing the pending business. S. 734. be. extended until 12:46f.
Date: 1981-04-08
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. with respect to the request for immediate consideration. it has been cleared on this side of the aisle.
Date: 1981-04-08
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to. S 3620 CC
Date: 1981-04-08
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

I move to lay that motion on the table. S 3672 CO The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
Date: 1981-04-08
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

On tomorrow. will the Senate transact any business or will the session be for the purpose of routine type morning business?
Date: 1981-04-08
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. reserving the right to object. and I shall not object. I simply want to be sure that I understood the distinguished acting majority leader correctly. He is excluding from consideration at this time Mr. John B. Crowell of Oregon to be Assistant Secretary of Agriculture and Mr. Thomas W. Pauken of Texas to be Director of the ACTION agency. Am I correct?
Date: 1981-04-08
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. reserving the right to object. I wonder if the distinguished Senator would excise from the request the provision providing for rollcall votes by unanimous consent? Could we order. that in the usual rather than including the unanimousconsent request?
Date: 1981-04-08
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. I ask unanimous consent that official leave be granted today for the junior Senator from New Jersey . who is attending the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development/International Energy Agency Parliamentary Symposium on energy and the economy in Paris. ]Trance.
Date: 1981-04-08
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. as Congress nears adjournment before the 2week Easter recess. I believe it is important to reflect on the state of the economy. As Members return to their States and meet with representatives of business. labor. and consuming public. I believe we will learn that many people are concerned that the recovery may be sputtering. The twin evils of high inflation and high interest rates continue to inhibit sustained economic growth in this country. While there have been some positive signs on both fronts. it is clear that these problems will not abate simply as a result of positive expectations on the part of many administration officials.
Date: 1981-04-09
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. I thank the distinguished Senator from Alaska. the assistant majority leader. Does my friend from Alabama wish to have any additional time?
Date: 1981-04-09
Speaker: WILLIAM J. COYNE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I am proud to bring to the attention of my colleagues one of my constituents. Chief Hospital Corpsman John T. Potts of Dormont. Pa. This courageous man was awarded the Naval Medal for Heroism at a ceremony which I attended at the National Naval Medical Center on March 19. I would like to share his story with you. Chief Corpsman Potts was involved In a near fatal accident aboard the U.S. Navy survey ship Chauvenat off Indonesia last September. Potts and Lieutenant Linda Paul were in a small landing craft that was being hauled aboard the bigger ship when one of the steel hoisting cables snapped. As the landing craft began to fall. Potts threw Lieutenant Paul overboard to safety. but the snapping cable severed his left hand and a falling box of tools fell on his leg. breaking it In three places. Chief Corpsman Potts was the only medically trained crewmember aboard the Chauvenat and. despite the intense pain. he refused morphine so that he could direct his fellow crew. men how to pack his severed hand in ice and splint his broken leg. He was airlifted to Singapore where a team of microsurgeons reattached his left hand. Since that time. Chief Corpsman Potts has been a patient at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda. Md. Recently. the cast was removed from his leg and he is now able to walk with the assistance of a crutch. Doctors have restored circulation In his hand. however it remains paralyzed and he faces more surgery. As was his wish. Chief Corpsman Potts was not presented with his award for heroism until he could wear his uniform and stand at attention. In spite of his ordeal and the prospect of more surgery. John Potts looks to each new day with enthusiasm and humor. He is indeed a credit to the Navy and a fine example to his fellow man. I commend him for his courage and dedication and wish him well in all his future endeavors.e
Date: 1981-04-10
Speaker: WILLIAM J. COYNE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. last week I made a statement on the floor of the House concerning the need to control handguns. In that speech I implied that the right to bear arms was a questionable right. After I spoke and while I was absent from the floor another Member took to the well and made reference to my statement. He indicated that he did not think any right which appears in the Constitution was questionable. The gentleman obviously misunderstood my statement. I think that it is questionable whether mnis right does in fact appear in the Constitution. I include at this point in the RECORD a memorandum prepared by the American Law Division of the Congressional Research Service:
Date: 1981-04-27
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. the distinguished majority leader and I have discussed on several occasions his maternal grandmother. I am sure that she experienced a great deal of pride in the accomplishments of her illustrious grandson. the distinguished Senator from Tennessee . who is the majority leader of the Senate. I am sure that he was the source of many conversations that she must have held with her friends. and I am certain he was the fountainhead of tremendous pride and enjoyment as she talked of him and his achievements. Tennyson said. "I am a part of all that I have met." I have no doubt that the impressions that were made upon the young mind of HOWARD BAKER when he was a child. his impressions of his grandmother and her stories about being sheriff. were certainly such as to influence his own life and his own outlook as to public service. I share with him the sadness of her passing. but I also noted and I think very appropriately that he emphasized the good influences that she had had and emphasized the fact that her long life had meant much to him and his Iamily. and I am sure that she had an opportunity through that extraordinary lifetimenot only extraordinary from the point of longevity but extraordinary from the point of the bart that she played on lifes stage to play a considerable role. I am sure. in fashioning the outlook and attitudes of the thousands of people who were fortunate to know her. Even I. who never had the privilege of meeting her. have come to know her considerably through my contacts with her grandson. I admire the majority leader for the respect he has had for his grandmother. and the fact that he has more than once pridefully referred to her in conversations both privately and publicly on this floor.
Date: 1981-04-27
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. I yield to the distinguished Senator from California . the minority whip. and. if I may. I promised some time to Mr. PROXMIRE. if the minority whip has some time left. and I hope he will yield it.
Date: 1981-04-27
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to. The nominations considered and confirmed en bloc are as follows:
Date: 1981-04-27
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. on behalf of Mr. BOREN. I ask unanimous consent that there be a star print of S. 507 and that the complete text of 5. 507 and a factsheet explaining its provisions be printed in the RECORD.
Date: 1981-04-27
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. I thank the Senator for the remarks that he has just made. We were told that the grain embargo was not hurting the Soviets anyhow. but yet we are told that if they go into Poland. the embargo will be reinstituted. I cannot reconcile the two statements. If it was not hurting the Soviets anyhow. what good would it do to reinstitute the embargo if they should go into Poland? I do not believe it enhances. in the slightest degree. the security of Poland that the grain embargo has been lifted. The Soviets were drawing down their foreign currency. They had drawn down their grain reserves. and portions of meat for the Soviet people were less than the portions of meat for the people of Poland and other Warsaw Pact countries. Mr. Brezhnev himself had said that the agricultural economy of the Soviet Union was in a sad state of affairs. So the embargo was hurting the Soviet Union. After all. the grain that would have otherwise have gone to the Soviet Union. as I understood it. was going to Japan. Mexico. the Peoples Republic of China. and Taiwan. I think it sent a very bad signal to lift the embargo. I realize that campaign promises are sometimes made. but an illadvised promise need not be kept. in my judgment.
Date: 1981-04-27
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. the people of Afghanistan have sacrificed. They continue to sacrifice. Hundreds of thousands of Afghans have been driven from their homes. driven from their country. Scores of Afghans have been slaughtered. Even boys and girls in Afghanistan. students. have had the courage to stand before the Soviet rifles and be shot down for their courage. What a sacrifice those people are making and will continue to make. I am afraid that the signal we send is one of wishywashiness. a lack of fortitude and forebearance. a lack of resolve. a weakness. and it will not do us well in history or in our own time.
Date: 1981-04-27
Speaker: DE LA GARZA (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. 20 years ago Wednesday. April 29. I had the honor of attending the ceremony where the Honorable Reynaldo 0. Garza took office as a U.S. district judge for the Southern District of Texas. beginning a very distinguished career as a jurist. Today Judge Garza serves as a U.S. circuit court judge for the Fifth Cir. cult Court of Appeals. which covers the States of Georgia. Florida. Alabama. Mississippi. Louisiana. Texas. and the Canal Zone. Judge Garza was named to the Federal bench during the administration of the late President John F. Kennedy through the efforts of my predecessor. Joe Kilgore. and the recommendations of Senators Ralph Yarborough and William A. Blakely and the Vice President at that time. our late President Lyndon B. Johnson. The judge is the first Spanish surnamed attorney appointed to the Federal bench in Texas and the second Hispanic in the U.S. federal system as a whole. Born in Brownsville. Tex.. n1 1915 on the coast of my 15th Congressional District. the judge is a true son of the Lone Star State. He received his law degree from the University of Texas in 1939. He was a city commissioner for the city of Brownsville and a member of the Brownsville Independent School District board of trustees. He served on the Texas Good Neighbor Commission and the State Committee on Education Beyond High School. He was also the Texas State deputy for the Knights of Columbus and has long been active in civic and church affairs. On the Federal district bench. Judge Garza conducts court proceedings when necessary in both English and Spanishan invaluable asset in a State which has nearly 3 million persons of Hispanic origin. He is known by his fellow jurists and by those who have dealt with him in the judicial chambers to be a tenderly tough guy who metes out justice firmly and fairly. yet tempers the balancing of the scales with an understanding of the imperfections of human nature. This mixture makes Judge Garza a fine human being as well as a distinguished jurist. As a fellow south Texan I am proud to honor him this day in the House of Representatives.
Date: 1981-04-28
Speaker: DE LUGO (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. In September 1975 I introduced H.R. 9460 which authorized the people of the Virgin Islands to call a Constitutional Convention for the purpose of draftIng a constitution providing a republican form of government and a Bill of Rights. This bill received tremendous support in the House. with 102 bipartisan cosponsors. it was passed on an unanimous vote by the Interior Committee. and It passed on an unanimous vote of the entire House on October 6. 1975. The bill became Public Law 94584 on October 21. 1975. Today. I am pleased to Introduce this Joint resolution supporting the proposed constitution for the U.S. Virgin Islands. Joining me as cosponsors are Hon. ANTrONIO WON PAT. chairman of the Subcommittee on Insular Affairs. Hon. ROBERT LAGOMARsiNO. ranking minority member. and lon. PHILLIP BURTON. previous chairman of the Subcommittee on Insular Affairs and longtime friend of the territory. The constitution reflects the efforts of the delegates elected to the Fourth Constitutional Convention. who have worked diligently to create a document which provides the greatest opportunity for selfgovernment while recognizing our position as part of these United States. The people of the Virgin Islands have not taken the opportunity to demonstrate their political maturity lightly. This is evidenced by the fact that this is the fourth constitution drafted. The delegates. ever aware of their responsibility. have presented a document reflecting major concerns of the people. Approval of this Joint* resolution. as submitted. would be consistent with established congressional policy to provide everincreasing self -government for the territory and to allow the people of the Virgin Islands to exercise their basic right to selfdetermination. Upon approval. the constitution will be returned to the people of the Virgin Islands for them to complete this process by exercising their judgment In referendum.
Date: 1981-04-28
Speaker: WILLIAM J. COYNE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. the month of April marks the eighth year since Benjamin Bogomolny was first refused a visa by the Soviet Union. He Is one of the longest term Soviet refuseniks on record In Russia. In 1096.. the Bogomolny family received affidavits to emigrate to israel. His mother. father. and four sisters were given permission and forced to leave the Soviet Union. while Mr. Bogomolny was drafted In the army. Completing his service in the army. Benjamin Bogomolny applied in November 1972. for permission to emigrate. His application was denied In April 1973. on the grounds that he may have learned state secrets while In the army and that he constituted a threat to national security. Benjamin Bogornolny has been under constant harassmen~t since he first sought a visa. His telephone has been disconnected. his apartment ransacked. HebA ew books stolen. and his life threatened during this period. The Soviet police have made no attempt to investigate his complain ts. An example of this treatment was reported in the May 1975 Jerusalem Post. It was stated that he was a victim of a ruinipogrom as the KGB stepped up its campaign to crush the Jewish activists In the Soviet Union. The paper wrote that he was manhandled by two drunks. Returning home later. he found the same two drunks. now fully sober. and 12 other men wielding clubs and shovels and breakIng things In his apartment. Benjamin Bogomolny. whom -the men threat11 1542 CC ened to hang. escaped through a back window and immediately complained to the police. On visiting the police precinct the following day. he discovered that there was no record of his complaint. The police denied any knowledge of the incident. In addition. the Jerusalem Post reported that a student who rents a room from Mr. Bogomolny was warned by the police that he should not sublet a room from a man who wished to emigrate. The treatment of Mr. Bogornolny Is appalling. There Is no reason why he has been restricted from leaving the Soviet Union these last -8 years. The anctions of the Sovlkt Union are in direct violation of the Helsinki accords. I urge the Soviet Union to allow Mr. Bogomolny and his wife. Tatina. permission to Join his parents and four sisters who have been anxiously waitIng 11 long years to see each otherne
Date: 1981-04-29
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. I would like to inquire of the majority leader what the outlook Is for the rest of the day and the rest of the week. if he might say So at this time.
Date: 1981-04-29
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. may I say to the distinguished majority leader that here Is no objection to proceeding to the consideration of Calendar Order No. 45 on this side of the aisle. -
Date: 1981-04-29
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

Mr. President. within 5 minutes I would hope to be in a position to tefl the majority lei-?der whether or not there is any problem with getting an agreement on the nomination to which he referred.