SENATE—Wednesday, November 9, 2005
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November 9, 2005 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD—SENATE 25483 SENATE—Wednesday, November 9, 2005 The Senate met at 9:30 a.m. and was SCHEDULE is extremely important to the State I called to order by the Honorable SAM Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, represent, the State of Louisiana, and BROWNBACK, a Senator from the State today we are going to begin with a 1- to the gulf coast and also to call atten- of Kansas. hour period for morning business, and tion to a small but important victory then we will resume consideration of we achieved this week that I hope will PRAYER the Department of Defense authoriza- signal a turning or a course correction The Chaplain, Dr. Barry C. Black, of- tion bill. We made good progress on that Congress should take to help pre- fered the following prayer: that measure yesterday by disposing of vent the destruction we have seen on Let us pray. a very large number of amendments. the gulf coast in the last several weeks. O God, who reigns forever, You are a Today, we hope to work through the re- Mr. President, you are from Kansas, shelter for the oppressed and a refuge maining amendments, and it is possible and you know the power of tornadoes in times of trouble. Give our Nation that we could finish the bill this and Mother Nature. There is not any- the shield of Your favor that it may evening. The chairman and ranking thing we can do to prevent the fury of bless our world. Guide our Nation’s leg- member are expected to line up addi- nature, but we can minimize the dam- islative branch with wisdom, integrity, tional rollcall votes throughout today, age. We most certainly can use our in- and unity. Strengthen the executive and we will alert Senators as those telligence that God has given us and and judicial branches that they will votes are scheduled. our talent that God has given us and serve Your purposes. Infuse each cit- The majority leader has mentioned the wisdom that He gives us to make izen with a desire to walk on the right several appropriations conference re- wise investments and smart choices road in order to honor You and serve ports that are available or soon will be and try to set priorities that help us this land we love. available. We expect to consider the make good choices for the people we Bless us all with strength of will, foreign operations conference report represent so that we can minimize steadiness of purpose, and power to today or tomorrow and will vote on the their pain and their suffering and we persevere. Remind us that it is better remaining bills as we can clear them can maximize their hopes and their to attempt and fail in some great for action in the Senate. dreams for the future. I believe that is thing, rather than not to try at all. Having said that, Mr. President, we why we are here. I know I have talked Lord, teach us to number our days that look forward to further progress on the with you personally, Mr. President, we may have hearts of wisdom. We Defense authorization bill during the about the reasons you came to the Sen- pray in Your Holy Name. Amen. day. ate and I came to the Senate, and I f I yield the floor. think most of our colleagues share that view. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE f I wish to speak for a few minutes this The Honorable SAM BROWNBACK led RESERVATION OF LEADER TIME morning to remind the Nation and my colleagues about the devastation and the Pledge of Allegiance, as follows: The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- I Pledge allegiance to the Flag of the the destruction that occurred only 10 pore. Under the previous order, the weeks ago in one of the greatest cities United States of America, and to the Repub- leadership time is reserved. lic for which it stands, one nation under God, in the United States of America, and indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. f that is the city of New Orleans and the f MORNING BUSINESS surrounding parishes. New Orleans is our largest city in APPOINTMENT OF ACTING The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- Louisiana, with 450,000 people, but it PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE pore. Under the previous order, there sits right next to Jefferson Parish of The PRESIDING OFFICER. The will now be a period for the transaction 450,000, right next to St. Bernard parish clerk will please read a communication of morning business for up to 1 hour, of about 60,000, and right next to to the Senate from the President pro with the first half of the time under Plaquemine, which is about 30,000. So tempore (Mr. STEVENS). the control of the Democratic leader or it is a metropolitan area of close to 1.5 The legislative clerk read the fol- his designee and the second half of the million to 2 million people. lowing letter: time under the control of the majority We have never in the history of the U.S. SENATE, leader or his designee. Nation seen destruction such as this. It PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE, Mr. MCCONNELL. Mr. President, I is unprecedented. It was not, we now Washington, DC, November 9, 2005. suggest the absence of a quorum. know and as I said 2 days after the hur- To the Senate: The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- ricanes, the hurricanes that got us, Under the provisions of rule I, paragraph 3, pore. The clerk will call the roll. Katrina and Rita—a double hit, one to of the Standing Rules of the Senate, I hereby The legislative clerk proceeded to appoint the Honorable SAM BROWNBACK, a the southeastern part of our State, a Senator from the State of Kansas, to per- call the roll. category 4 and 5, and one to the south- form the duties of the Chair. Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, I ask western part—but it was our own TED STEVENS, unanimous consent that the order for failings, if you will, that got us stuck. President pro tempore. the quorum call be rescinded. It was the breaching of a levee system Mr. BROWNBACK thereupon as- The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- that has successfully protected this sumed the chair as Acting President pore. Without objection, it is so or- city for over 300 years. But because of pro tempore. dered. a lack of investment, because we have f f not set the right priorities in the last several years and over some time, and RECOGNITION OF THE ACTING MINIMIZING DAMAGE FROM because we have our focus abroad and MAJORITY LEADER STORMS not at home, this is the destruction The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, I that has occurred, not just in New Or- pore. The acting majority leader is rec- would like to spend a few minutes this leans but in the region, in the south- ognized. morning speaking about a subject that western part of our State as well, and ● This ‘‘bullet’’ symbol identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by a Member of the Senate on the floor. VerDate Sep 11 2014 08:29 Mar 02, 2017 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 0686 Sfmt 0634 E:\FDSYS\2005BOUNDRECORD\BOOK19\NO-SSN\BR09NO05.DAT BR09NO05 ejoyner on DSK30MW082PROD with CONG-REC-ONLINE 25484 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD—SENATE November 9, 2005 throughout the gulf coast of Mis- sissippi River, the Louisiana Purchase This is akin to taking a gun and shoot- sissippi. by President Jefferson—when he made ing yourself in the head, when you take Let me show another chart that does a very smart strategic investment. He money out of civil works projects, not have the same kind of picture, but did not waste his money on things that away from cities, away from suburbs, in a more graphic form it shows the would not return a benefit to our coun- away from communities, and spend it number of people who have been af- try, but made the Louisiana Purchase on either tax cuts for people who do fected by this storm and the breaching for 3 cents an acre, the best real estate not need them or on other priorities of the levee systems which occurred deal ever done. But we purchased the that are not as important or on wars throughout south Louisiana primarily. mouth of this river, secured it for na- that we cannot win. It is this low line Not many levees were breached to tional security but also secured it for here, right down here to the lowest per- the north, but there were levee systems commerce. centage, under one-half of 1 percent of that were breached. In Louisiana, 3 Mr. President, it is impossible to get the GDP, that results in devastation million people were affected; in Texas, grain out of Kansas, your State, or Ne- such as this. 802,000; in Mississippi, 1.7 million; and braska, or throughout the great Farm You do not have to have a Ph.D. in in Alabama, 829,000 people. Six million Belt in the Midwest of the United economics to understand this. This is people were hit directly by a storm. States, without using the Mississippi not complicated. I am going to show it Again, Katrina and Rita could not have River and its tributaries. Yes, we can to you again. This is 20 years of dis- been avoided, but I promise you, Mr. manage to get some of it over here to investment, disengagement, pretending President, we could have minimized the east coast and out to our trading that these problems do not exist, pre- the damage and maximized hope if we partners to the east, but moving it out tending we have surpluses when we do had set better priorities and invested here, down south to our trading part- not, and underfunding critical infra- our money better right in this Con- ners in the south and also trade routes structure.