Quick viewing(Text Mode)

Congressional Record—Senate S690

Congressional Record—Senate S690

S690 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE February 15, 2012 spend X percent of money on certain RECOGNIZING JOHN HERSCHEL Whereas the public viewed projects, such as bike paths and walk- GLENN, JR. John Glenn and the astro- ing paths and other so-called enhance- nauts as men on the front line of the war not Mr. BROWN of . Mr. President, I only for space supremacy but also, in many ments. I am not against that. I use ask unanimous consent that the Sen- those. I jog on bike paths and appre- minds, for the survival of the United States; ate proceed to S. Res. 377, submitted Whereas John Glenn accurately captured ciate some of those enhancements. But earlier today. the significance of the time when he later that ought to be a State decision in The PRESIDING OFFICER. The wrote that ‘‘the world was at the door of a terms of how it allocates its money and clerk will report the resolution by new age, and we were the people who had not a Federal decision because a one- title. been chosen to take the first steps across the size-fits-all dictated by a particular The legislative clerk read as follows: threshold’’; piece of legislation simply does not Whereas the A resolution (S. Res. 377) recognizing the take into account the individual needs 50th anniversary of the historic achievement trained for their manned space flight mis- of a particular State. Some States may of John Herschel Glenn, Jr., in becoming the sions in the Multi-Axis Space Training Iner- want to say: Look, our roads are in first United States to the tial Facility at NASA’s Research Center in such shape and our bridges need re- Earth. , Ohio; Whereas was chosen to pilot paired. At least for this year or the There being no objection, the Senate next 2 years, we are going to divert the the first manned Project Mercury mission on proceeded to consider the resolution. Freedom 7 on May 5, 1961, which proved that money into strictly construction and Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. President, I the United States was capable of successfully repair projects. Others might say: Well, ask unanimous consent that the reso- launching a person into suborbital flight; we are in a little bit better shape this lution be agreed to, the preamble be Whereas Virgil Grissom was chosen to year and we can use some of this. That agreed to, the motion to reconsider be pilot the second manned Project Mercury ought to be for the States to decide and laid on the table, with no intervening mission on Liberty Bell 7 and became the sec- not a piece of legislation coming out of action or debate, and that any state- ond United States astronaut to achieve sub- orbital flight on July 21, 1961; this body. ments be printed in the RECORD. Whereas the had successfully Finally, another amendment I would The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without have liked to offer, if not for the ma- launched the spacecrafts Lunar 2 and Lunar objection, it is so ordered. 3 in 1959 before successfully launching and jority leader’s refusal for an open- The resolution (S. Res. 377) was amendment process, is one that would returning to Earth Yuri Gagarin, who agreed to. completed a 108-minute single orbit around have limited the scope of eligible The preamble was agreed to. the Earth in 1961; transportation enhancement projects. The resolution, with its preamble, Whereas John Glenn was selected from We hear these reports every day about reads as follows: among the Project Mercury astronauts to crumbling roads and unsafe bridges. command the first United States capsule to S. RES. 377 Yet what we are doing in this bill is orbit the Earth; limiting how a State determines where Whereas John Herschel Glenn, Jr. was born Whereas John Glenn, with the help of his on , 1921, in Cambridge, Ohio to par- children Dave and Lyn, named the first it puts its funds. I think we ought to ents John and Clara Glenn; narrow that option, if not take it away. United States to orbit the Whereas John Glenn grew up in New Con- Earth Friendship 7, re-emphasizing the peace- To wrap up, let me just say I think it cord, Ohio with his childhood sweetheart and ful intentions of the United States space ex- is very unfortunate that we have re- future wife, Annie Castor, 150 miles east of ploration program; sorted to a system where if the other Dayton, Ohio, the birthplace of the Wright Whereas John Glenn trained vigorously, brothers, who first took humankind into side—and I would say this to my leader working through 70 simulated missions and flight; if my party was in the majority. This reacting to nearly 200 simulated system fail- Whereas John Glenn enlisted in the Naval is not how the Senate is supposed to ures, to prepare to orbit the Earth and suc- Aviation Cadet program shortly after the operate. Someone from the other side cessfully complete the first manned orbital December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, who has an amendment we don’t like, mission for the United States; Hawaii, and was commissioned as an officer Whereas the work that John Glenn con- they ought to have the opportunity to in the United States Marine Corps in 1943; ducted on the cockpit layout, instrument offer that amendment and they ought Whereas John Glenn received many honors to have the opportunity to debate that for his military service, including the Distin- panel design, and spacecraft controls in the amendment and to require a vote on guished Flying Cross on 6 occasions, the Air Mercury spacecraft enhanced the design of that amendment. Then we can vote yes Medal with 18 Clusters, the Asiatic-Pacific Friendship 7 and the ability of an astronaut to control Friendship 7, which proved useful or we can vote no and the public can Campaign Medal, the , the World War II Victory Medal, the during the mission; judge us accordingly. But to simply Whereas, at 9:47 a.m. Eastern Standard shut it all down and not give anybody , the National Defense Service Medal, and the Korean Service Time on , 1962, the 109D that opportunity I think is not the Medal; rocket boosters ignited and John Glenn and kind of procedure we want. Whereas, with the onset of the , Friendship 7 commenced liftoff at NASA’s Finally, let me simply say this bill the United States and the free world feared Space Center in , Florida; brought before us is a flawed bill. With- the intentions of the Soviet Union in space; Whereas John Glenn, aboard Friendship 7, out the process of amending it or the Whereas President Dwight D. Eisenhower became the first United States astronaut to opportunity to amend, to fix what we asked the National Aeronautics and Space orbit the Earth, orbiting 3 times and observ- think is wrong with it, puts us in a po- Administration (referred to in this preamble ing 3 sunrises, 3 sunsets, and the wonder of sition where it is impossible to say we as ‘‘NASA’’) to find the most talented, patri- the universe in only 4 hours and 56 minutes; Whereas, when John Glenn learned that can vote for something such as this. otic, and selfless test pilots to participate in Project Mercury, the first human the heat shield on Friendship 7 had possibly For the reasons I have articulated become loose in orbit, compromising the suc- and for other reasons that will come program in the United States; Whereas John Glenn and fellow candidates cessful completion of the space mission, out as we make these speeches on the for NASA’s Astronaut Corps underwent pres- Glenn bravely managed the reentry proce- floor but don’t have a chance to offer sure suit, acceleration, vibration, heat, loud dures and proved that a person can safely amendments, I simply cannot support noise, psychiatric, personality, motivation, and successfully complete a NASA mission; this bill as it is. and aptitude tests at the Aeromedical Lab- Whereas John Glenn successfully com- I yield the floor and I suggest the ab- oratory at the Wright Air Development Cen- pleted reentry into Earth, splashing down in sence of a quorum. ter in Dayton, Ohio; the Atlantic Ocean at 2:43 p.m. Eastern The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Whereas John Glenn, Malcolm S. Car- Standard Time, east of at clerk will call the roll. penter, L. , Jr., Virgil I. 21 degrees, 25 minutes North latitude and 68 The legislative clerk proceeded to ‘‘Gus’’ Grissom, Walter M. Shirra, Jr., Alan degrees, 36 minutes West longitude, and was call the roll. B. Shepard, Jr., and Donald K. Slayton were recovered by the USS Noa; Whereas, in the context of the Cold War, Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. President, I selected from among hundreds of other patri- otic candidates to be named the original the success of the Friendship 7 flight restored ask unanimous consent that the order ‘‘Mercury Seven’’ astronauts; the standing of the United States as the for the quorum call be rescinded. Whereas Project Mercury was charged with leading country in the race to space against The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. the unprecedented responsibility of com- the Soviet Union; WHITEHOUSE). Without objection, it is peting with the strides that the Soviet Union Whereas the completion of the inaugural so ordered. was making in space exploration; orbit of the Earth by John Glenn validated

VerDate Mar 15 2010 03:22 Feb 16, 2012 Jkt 019060 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G15FE6.060 S15FEPT1 jbell on DSK7SPTVN1PROD with SENATE February 15, 2012 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S691 NASA’s manned space flight mission and se- Our Nation was in the midst of the hopes of an entire nation rested on the cured the future missions of NASA’s manned Cold War—worried about Russian nu- shoulders of a single man in a space space capsules; clear aggression, worried about the capsule hurling into an unknown place. Whereas the people of the United States race into space. Everything was going as planned— heralded John Glenn as the personification of heroism and dignity in an age of uncer- Cronkite would later say that: from launch to orbital entry—and once tainty and fear; It was a time when the intricacies of successfully in space, John Glenn be- Whereas the press later described John science were complicated by deep American came the first American to orbit the Glenn as a man who embodied the noblest doubts and anxieties over where we stood in Earth. human qualities; the race with Russian science. He would observe three sunrises, Whereas President John F. Kennedy With the arms race in a dead heat, space three sunsets, and the wonder of the echoed the belief held by John Glenn that had become the scoreboard of Cold War com- petition. universe in 4 hours and 56 minutes. the United States space program was not But during the flight, problems oc- That’s why a few years earlier, Presi- just a scientific journey but also a source of curred. The spacecraft’s automatic inspiration and pride, saying, ‘‘our leader- dent Eisenhower launched Project Mer- control system malfunctioned, causing ship in science and industry, our hopes for cury as the first Glenn to manually control the capsule. peace and security . . . require us to solve program in the United States—to put And he was prepared to do so—bene- these mysteries and to solve them for the our country on the playing field. fitting from NASA’s vigorous training good of all men’’; Hundreds of our Nation’s bravest and Whereas John Glenn is a patriot and space that included 70 simulated missions patriotic aviators signed up—only pioneer who encouraged the people of the and malfunction response training for seven were selected as the original United States to rightfully view NASA as an nearly 200 simulated system failures. Mercury 7: John Glenn, Jr. of Ohio; M. embodiment of the persistent quest of the His model of calmness, which I have people of the United States to expand their of Colorado; L. Gordon seen many times over the years in all knowledge and explore frontiers; Cooper, Jr. of Oklahoma; Virgil I. kinds of situations, would become Whereas, in retirement, John and Annie ‘‘Gus’’ Grissom of Indiana; Walter M. standard operating procedure for fu- Glenn continued their public service by es- Schirra, Jr. of New Jersey; Alan B. ture NASA manned space missions. tablishing the John Glenn School of Public Shepard, Jr. of New Hampshire; and Affairs at The , living And despite having to deal with the Donald K. ‘‘Deke’’ Slayton of Wis- up to the words of John Glenn, who said, ‘‘If malfunctions, Glenn still carried out consin. there is one thing I’ve learned in my years critical parts of the mission. Glenn later wrote of the original on this planet, it’s that the happiest and He took photographs of the Earth, Mercury 7 astronauts, ‘‘The world was most fulfilled people I’ve known are those observed weather on the Earth’s sur- who devoted themselves to something bigger at the door of a new age, and we were face, and gave constant feedback to and more profound than merely their own the people who had been chosen to take flight controllers about his physical re- self-interest.’’; and the first steps across the threshold.’’ sponses to the zero-gravity environ- Whereas, although 50 years have passed, And when President Kennedy took ment. the historic orbit of John Glenn around the office, he continued our Nation’s pur- Earth aboard Friendship 7 remains a source But earlier in the flight, Glenn saw suit into space—and race against the of pride and honor for the people of the an indicator light that Friendship 7’s United States: Now, therefore, be it Russians. He said, ‘‘Our leadership in science heat shield had loosened—threatening Resolved, That the Senate— his re-entry into Earth. (1) honors the 50th anniversary of the land- and industry, our hopes for peace and With its world-class scientists and mark mission of John Herschel Glenn, Jr., in security . . . require us to solve these engineers leading the way—and con- piloting the first manned orbital mission for mysteries and to solve them for the fident in its flight planning—NASA de- the United States; good of all men.’’ (2) recognizes the profound importance of Alan Shepard piloted the Freedom 7 in cided to keep the retrorocket pack at- the achievement of John Glenn as a catalyst May 1961 and piloted Lib- tached to secure the heat shield. for space exploration and scientific advance- As planned, Friendship 7 re-entered ment in the United States; and erty Bell 7 in July 1961 to prove that Americans could launch humans into the Earth’s atmosphere—with Glenn (3) honors the thousands of dedicated men describing the ‘‘fire-ball’’ re-entry as and women of the National Aeronautics and suborbital flight. Space Administration who worked on But then the Russians successfully one of the most exhilarating parts of Project Mercury and ensured the success of launched Yuri Gagarin into orbit the flight. the Friendship 7 Mercury mission. around the Earth. It is the streak of light that people Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. President, America’s response was left to a on Earth could see in the sky. on behalf of Senator PORTMAN and my- decorated Marine aviator born in Cam- And in descent, the capsule success- self, I am proud to have submitted this bridge, Ohio who grew up a few miles fully parachuted and splashed down in bipartisan resolution—joined by 18 away in New Concord. the Atlantic Ocean, east of the Grand Senators, 10 of whom served with John On the morning of February 20, 1962, Turk Island, at 2:43 p.m., Eastern Glenn in the Senate. the eyes of the world were on John Standard Time. The USS Noa retrieved Fifty-years ago next week, on the Glenn, who was tasked with piloting Friendship 7 and brought Glenn morning of February 20, 1962, John Her- our space program’s most dangerous aboard—validating our Nation’s pur- schel Glenn, Jr. of Ohio became the flight at the time. suit of discovery and ensuring its place first American to orbit the Earth. He would command Friendship 7— in the against the Russians. I was 9 years old. Like other families named by Glenn and his children, Dave And just as important—the flight of around Ohio, I watched him on tele- and Lyn, to emphasize our Nation’s in- Friendship 7 and the courage of John vision at home in Mansfield with my tentions in space. Glenn inspired generations of new sci- parents and two brothers. But over weeks and months, his mis- entists, engineers, and aviators. It The broadcast also showed John sion was scrubbed ten times. launched a new era of science, aero- Glenn, Sr. and Clara Glenn, John’s par- The reasons were varied—from in- space, and defense industries, and it ents, watching anxiously. clement weather to technical prob- showed that our advancements in Across the country, others were lis- lems. Tensions remained high through- science—in exploring the unknown— tening on transistor radios. In New out. are not only a national security imper- York City, the subway system broad- Any miscues or failure would under- ative, they are an economic impera- cast the liftoff and flight progress over mine national security—along with na- tive, too—reaffirming that we have loud speakers. tional pride and the country’s psyche. what it takes to out-compete and out- In Grand Central Station, CBS News Finally, at 9:47 a.m. on February 20, innovate any nation in the world. set up a large 12 foot by 16 foot screen 1962, with 70 degree Fahrenheit weather After his flight, Glenn received a over the main ticket window—by the at NASA’s Space Center in Cape Canav- hero’s welcome—decorated with awards time of lift-off 10,000 people had packed eral, Florida, Friendship 7 was blasted and accolades—and honored in ticker- the terminal. off into space. tape parades and magazine profiles. Like millions of Americans, they As the rocket ascended, people Throughout it all, he remained hum- watched set the scene. cheered. Others cried and prayed—the bled by his patriotism and his small

VerDate Mar 15 2010 03:22 Feb 16, 2012 Jkt 019060 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\A15FE6.015 S15FEPT1 jbell on DSK7SPTVN1PROD with SENATE S692 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE February 15, 2012 town Ohio roots—as a son whose father years ago—44 years ago, I believe— State and local ownership. IRR funds was a plumber, and whose mother was when John Glenn was not Senator can be used for any type of title 23 a schoolteacher. And he remained Glenn but still Glenn. I re- transportation project that provides grounded by his love for his wife, his ceived my Eagle award in Mans- access to or within Federal or Indian childhood sweetheart, Annie. field earlier in the year, and COL John lands and may be used as the State and Much has been written about John Glenn came to a dinner with a number local matching share for a portion of and Annie. Both are just as in love of other Eagle Scouts in Mansfield. I Federal aid highway funds. The IRR in- with each other now in their 90s as have a picture in my office in the Sen- ventory is a comprehensive database of they were as children when they met— ate Hart Building of me standing there all transportation facilities that are el- as John says, in a playpen in New Con- in my Boy Scout uniform with my igible for IRR Program funding by cord. Eagle Scout pin with John Glenn, and tribe, reservation, BIA agency, region, He says of Annie, ‘‘that she was part next to that is a picture of John Glenn congressional district, the State, and of my life from the time of my first and me some 38 years later before he the county. memory.’’ walked me down the center aisle to be I think it is important to understand It is fitting that in celebrating the sworn in to the Senate with the Sen- how we came to the position of where 50th anniversary of John Glenn’s his- ator from Rhode Island in January of we are today with MAP–21. For years, toric orbit of Earth, we honor his fam- 2007. Alaska received very little assistance ily—Annie and their children, Dave and John Glenn is special to our Nation. from the IRR Program because we only Lyn who gave public blessing and pri- He is special to my wife Connie and me have one reservation, a very small res- ervation down in southeastern Alaska, vate prayers and support during his because of our love for John and Annie Metlakatla and, therefore, little to no service to our Nation. and our respect for Dave and Lyn, their BIA-owned roads. The BIA maintains a I was fortunate to sit with Lyn and children. He has honored our country national database of roads, the IRR in- Dave and Annie in the Rotunda when in so many ways, it is my honor to sub- ventory, which is used to allocate IRR John Glenn, with three other astro- mit this resolution and I thank my col- funds and determine locations where nauts, received the Congressional Gold leagues. IRR funds can be used. State and coun- Medal for his flight aboard Friendship 7. I yield the floor and suggest the ab- ty-owned roads comprise the majority We also honor the thousands of dedi- sence of a quorum. of the road miles within the IRR sys- cated and patriotic men and women of The assistant legislative clerk pro- tem. A few decades ago, there were NASA’s Project Mercury Program. ceeded to call the roll. very few villages in Alaska that were It took a huge team of people as dedi- Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I putting any inventory into the system. cated as John Glenn, and perhaps as ask unanimous consent that the order TEA–21 gave the committee criteria in courageous, who ensured the safety and for the quorum call be rescinded. establishing the funding formula based security of their astronauts and pre- The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without on the needs of Indian tribes for trans- served the pride of a grateful Nation. objection, it is so ordered. portation assistance, cost of road con- John will be in Florida on this weekend f struction, geographic isolation, and to meet with those who were part of ALASKA RURAL ROADS SYSTEM difficulty in maintaining all-weather that operation—the engineers, the sci- access to employment, commerce, Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, we entists, the technicians—thanking health, safety, and education re- are dealing with the Transportation them again for sending him up and sources. With the passage of TEA–21, a bringing him down safely. Their service bill, and let me say I hope we truly rulemaking committee was estab- has inspired generations of future deal with the Transportation bill even- lished, the IRR Program Coordinating NASA technicians and mission control tually because there has been a great Committee, which helped to develop specialists—from Plum Brook Station deal of work on this measure by the the funding formula which was pub- in Sandusky, to NASA Glenn in Cleve- chairman and the ranking members of lished in 2004. The coordinating com- land, to NASA centers around the the relevant committees, and I thank mittee was made up of 12 primary country. them for the hard work they have put members from Indian tribes, one from At one of the first press conferences into this. I support their efforts to give each region. There were 12 alternates of the Mercury 7 astronauts, Glenn States long-term security for moving and two nonvoting Federal representa- said: forward with Federal highway aid and tives. Decisions that were made by the This whole project . . . stands with us now transit programs. I support the efforts committee were reached by consensus. like the —Ohioans also— to give States that long-term security It was not a majority decision process. stood at Kitty Hawk . . . I think we stand on for planning purposes, improve the The funding formula, which is known the verge of something as big and expansive project approval process, and reduce as the relative need distribution for- as that was 50 years ago. duplicative and excessive programs. mula, adopted in the IRR Program It is that spirit of discovery, that However, I do have very serious con- final rule, reflects Congress’s intent conviction, duty, and faith that John cerns with certain aspects of the legis- that the funding distribution method Glenn embodies and that his flight lation proposed. Most particularly, and balance the interests of all tribes and aboard Friendship 7 symbolizes. It is the reason I have come to the floor this enable all tribes to participate in the my honor to submit this bipartisan res- evening, is to discuss what this legisla- IRR Program. I should note that 40 per- olution celebrating such an important tion does to the Indian Reservation cent of all federally recognized tribes national and scientific achievement. Roads Program. This is the program in the Nation reside in the State of It is also my honor to be accom- known as IRR. Alaska—40 percent. I think that is panied on the floor today by Nicole IRR is a jointly administered pro- something many of my colleagues are Smith, who is a fellow from NASA gram between the Federal Highway Ad- not aware of. That balancing of inter- Glenn, an aeronautical engineer, who ministration and the Bureau of Indian ests called for avoiding substantial al- has done things as varied as having Affairs that addresses the transpor- locations from the larger tribes while trained cosmonauts to the work she tation needs of our tribes by providing still addressing the central problem has done in our office, guiding the suc- funds for the planning, the design, the that historically left the smaller tribes cess of NASA Glenn, one of the best construction, and the maintenance ac- out of the program. The prior formula NASA centers in the country. tivities. distributed funds based on an inven- I am also joined on the floor by The Indian Reservation Roads are tory limited to roads built and owned Laura Lynch, who has been with my of- public roads. They provide access to by the BIA. But the new formula fice for 3 years—a Clevelander—who is and within Indian reservations, Indian broadened tribal participation by al- actually leaving our office for bigger trust land, restricted Indian land, and lowing the inclusion of State, county, and better things in a couple of weeks. Alaskan Native villages. There are ap- and municipally owned IRR-eligible fa- She has been part of this too. proximately 29,000 miles that are under cilities in the inventory so the actual In my last personal moment with jurisdiction of the BIA and the tribes, IRR transportation needs could be this resolution, I remember 40-some and another 73,000 miles are under counted for funding purposes.

VerDate Mar 15 2010 05:12 Feb 16, 2012 Jkt 019060 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\A15FE6.019 S15FEPT1 jbell on DSK7SPTVN1PROD with SENATE

Top View