November 27, 1995 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD Ð SENATE S 17521 in pulling back the Soviet Union and Not until 1964, when the lines in the sand THE BAD DEBT BOXSCORE the United States from what may have were long since washed away, did Scali go Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, the sky- been the brink of war in 1962. public with the story. He received no great tributes thenÐor at rocketing Federal debt is now slightly Mr. President, John Scali kept this any time sinceÐfor the noble career sacrifice in excess of $13 billion shy of $5 tril- episode a secret, and at this point, I he had made two years earlier. lion. shall bring to the Senate's attention a Imagine, especially if you're a devotee of As of the close of business Friday, column by my longtime friend, Max what-if fiction, what the scenario might November 24, the Federal debtÐdown Freedman, himself an erudite gen- have been if, say, Fomin had gotten a steady to the pennyÐstood at exactly tleman whose very credible thoughts busy signal on Scali's line and in his urgency $4,989,260,237,257.80 or $18,939.32 on a per appear regularly in the Jewish Journal called one of the dozens of other such cor- respondents in Washington. capita basis for every man, woman, and published in New York City. At this Not necessarily someone like Lyle child. point, Mr. President, let Max take Denniston of the Baltimore SunÐwho once f over. told an interviewer that if he'd been old I therefore ask unanimous consent enough for World War II he would have re- PRESENTATION OF THE CROIX DE that the Max Freedman column of No- ported the atom-bomb secret or the time and GUERRE WITH SILVER STAR TO place of the upcoming D-Day invasion; in- vember 24 be printed in the RECORD at GOV. HUGH L. CAREY deed, he boasted, he would have even stolen the conclusion of my remarks. such war-forfeiting information. ``They Mr. MOYNIHAN. Mr. President, of There being no objection, the column would have made good stories,'' he explained. the many commemorative ceremonies was ordered to be printed in the No, Fomin needn't have reached a Lyle held on Veterans Day, November 11, RECORD, as follows: Denniston to risk turning us into radioactive one event had particular significance [From the Jewish Herald, Nov. 24, 1995] cinders; a much more moderate practitioner for the Honorable Hugh L. Carey, the of the craft would have done just fineÐsay, HE PUT OUR RIGHT TO LIVE OVER OUR RIGHT former Governor of the State of New one of the thousands of Denniston's col- York, and for his family and many TO KNOW leagues who would never publicly proclaim (By C.H. Freedman) what he did, but who condone, if not heartily friends. The greatest tribute to John A Scali in his approve of, his stance. More than 50 years ago, Hugh Carey, recent obituary was that most readers had Such reporter would have solemnly agreed then a young officer with the not been that familiar with him. to Fomin's request, finished lunch, smiled ``Timberwolves'' of the 104th Infantry Such relative non-celebrity status was reassuringly as he or she waved poh-kah Division, United States Army, led a pa- what made the former ABC correspondent (friendly, informal Russian ``goodbye'') to trol near the Elbe River in Germany. one of the noblest Americans ever. Fomin, then established a world's record The patrol encountered an encamp- Scali could have been a ``superstar'' jour- dashÐnot to the White House, but to his or ment of German soldiers who, unaware her newsroom. nalist had he so chosen. Next to him, such that Germany had surrendered several names as Cronkite, Donaldson, Woodward There, a pious morality play would be and Bernstein would now be comparative staged by reporter and editors: national se- days earlier, were holding a large num- bush leaguers had he embraced the same curity versus that pompously invoked ber of French prisoners. A fight broke ``journalistic ethic'' many of them do. ``public's right to know!'' out, and the Germans were overtaken Scali had what was arguably the greatest And don't you dare even think that we by the American patrol. This capture scoop of all time during the Cuban missile idealistic journalists, in making such solemn by the American soldiers led to the dis- decision, would consider such crass things as crisis in October 1962Ðand forwent it for the covery of some 35,000 French prisoners, sake of America and civilization. instant personal fame, skyrocketing circula- tion and the like. who were then freed by the Allies. I recall the time all too vividly. With city- For his extraordinary valor in this obliterating Soviet missiles pointed at us But, blessedly, Fomin did not get that and ours at them, and our next day's very ex- busy signal. And thus did not turn to some- mission, Hugh Carey was awarded the istence predicated on national egos and on one who would have broken the story that, Croix de Guerre with Silver Star, one two posturing leaders' flashpoints, most of given the lost ``face-saving'' element, could of France's most esteemed military us were shaking in our pre-L.L. Bean boots. well have led to this city and others becom- decorations. Yet, owing to the In the midst of this national trauma, the ing Hiroshima II. It's sad enough to note here that John unpredictabilities of war, he was un- Washington-based Scali unexpectedly re- Scali was never given a fraction of the trib- able to attend the presentation cere- ceived a call from one Aleksandr Fomin, ute he would have received had he sold out mony for the Croix de Guerre. counselor of the Soviet Embassy. Fomin, his soul and America by breaking that story. Time passed, and Hugh L. Carey con- whom Scali knew to be the head of Soviet in- But besides being denied his moral due, he tinued his service to his country. He telligence in this country, invited him to was treated shabbily in a more direct way. was ultimately discharged from active lunch. Based on Scali's expertise in international ``I'd already had lunch,'' recalled Scali, duty with the rank of colonel, and matters, in 1971 President Nixon appointed went on to serve as a Member of the ``but his voice was so urgent and insistent him special consultant for foreign affairs and that I decided to go immediately.'' communications; two years later, Nixon House of Representatives and as Gov- At the Occidental Restaurant, almost in named him to replace George Bush as our ernor of New York, raising 14 children the shadow of the White House, Fomin made representative to the United Nations. with his late wife Helen along the way. an astonishing proposal. But when Gerald Ford assumed the presi- Last Saturday, in a special ceremony ``After the waiter had taken our order,'' dency, he unceremoniously dumped this man at Dacor Bacon House here in Washing- Scali recounted, Fomin ``came right to the who had performed so admirably at the post. point and said, `War seems about to break ton, Governor Carey finally got that To be charitable toward Ford, such action medal. He was presented the Croix de out; something must be done.' '' demonstrated that playing football without Scali recalled answering, ``Well, you a helmet does indeed diminish one's reason- Guerre with Silver Star by Brig. Gen. should have thought of that before you in- ing ability. Gerard de Bastier on behalf of the Re- troduced the missiles'' in Cuba. To be less charitable, it provided further public of France. The decoration was ``There might be a way out'' of the impend- insight into the character of a president who given in recognition of Governor ing conflict, said Fomin. Suppose that ``we owed his career and prominence to conserv- Carey's ``outstanding services during would promise to remove our missiles under ativesÐand showed his gratitude by choosing the operations of the liberation of United Nations inspection and promise never as his vice president, the original ``Rocke- to introduce such offensive missiles into France.'' feller-liberal Republican,'' Nelson. Earlier that day, Governor Carey Cuba again? Would President Kennedy be Had Scali, 33 years ago, embraced the willing to promise publicly not to invade ``ethic'' of many journalists, there's an ex- joined President Clinton at the dedica- Cuba?'' cellent chance Ford wouldn't even have been tion of the site for the World War II Scali judiciously replied that he didn't around to take over the Oval Office in 1974; Memorial at The Rainbow Pool on The know, but was ``willing to try and find out.'' indeed, there might not have even been an Mall. As vice chairman of the Amer- To Scali's eternal credit, he forsook his Oval Office. Or much of a citizenry left to ican Battle Monuments Commission, journalism ``ethic''Ðwhich, to many, de- care about one. Governor Carey pursued the establish- mands such story be propagated forthwithÐ That concept is probably beyond the capac- ment of this memorial with his usual and instead assumed the role of patriot. In ity of Gerald Ford. But maybe some less- the days that followed, he became an unno- dense influential Americans might show be- vigor and unbounded enthusiasm. His ticed, unheralded courier shuttling between lated appreciation to a newsman, John A. commitment to the project has been the White House and the Soviets until the Scali, to whom this scared-silly-in-'62 Amer- such that at one point he even tele- crisis was peacefully resolved.