Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that William Buhrow, a legislative fellow in the office of Senator George Allen, be granted the privilege of the floor during consideration of S. 1050. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that…
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that William Buhrow, a legislative fellow in the office of Senator George Allen, be granted the privilege of the floor during consideration of S. 1050.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Jason Hamm, of the staff of the Committee on Foreign Relations, be granted the privilege of the floor for the duration of the debate on the fiscal year 2004 defense authorization.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the staff members of the Committee on Armed Services, majority and minority, appearing on the list I send to the desk be granted the privilege of the floor during consideration of S. 1050.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Senator McCain's legislative fellow, Navy Commander Edward Cowan, be granted privilege of the floor during consideration of S. 1050.
Mr. President, I see the distinguished Senator from Michigan on the floor. I advise my good friend and partner on this venture that I will proceed for some 10 minutes and then yield the floor, on the assumption that he will proceed, and then I will resume with the remainder of my statement.
On behalf of the Armed Services Committee, I am pleased and honored to bring the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2004 to the Senate for consideration. The bill was reported out of the committee with overwhelming bipartisan support. I may say, as a tribute to excellent staff work and excellent work by the chairman and ranking members of the subcommittees and, indeed, by the full cooperation of my distinguished colleague, the ranking member, we achieved this markup in what is regarded to be record time. I didn't keep the time, but I certainly recognize that we did it in a very brief period; basically over a 2-day period, where many times heretofore it has been 3, 4, and 5 days for markup.
I think the committee, both members and staff, were aware of the tremendous support across this Nation by the people for the men and women of the Armed Forces today and a recognition of the responsibilities of the Congress of the United States--in this case the Senate--to provide for those men and women of the Armed Forces.
Having said that, I believe that contributed to the swift action we had on our bill in committee markup, and I anticipate--I say this respectfully--in the Chamber a number of amendments will come forth, but I believe we will be able to complete this bill in a relatively short period of time, owing again to the support in the Chamber for the men and women of the Armed Forces and the desire to have a strong bill in place to go to conference with the House.
As we stand here beginning the debate on this bill today, over 300,000 soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines, Active Guard and Reserve, and countless civilians who support them, are serving bravely in not just the Persian Gulf region but Afghanistan.
It is remarkable. I want to mention the civilians. I recently said to the Secretary of Defense, Mr. Rumsfeld, when we talked about the total force concept, I remembered so well that that concept was originated when Melvin Laird was Secretary of Defense and I was privileged to serve as the Secretary of the Navy during the Vietnam war. I said to Mr. Rumsfeld recently that we really ought to broaden the term ``total force'' now to incorporate the many civilians who quite often are in positions of personal risk and other situations not unlike those of the men and women of the Armed Forces, right up on the point of the spear of military action.
In my judgment, they are just as much a part of the total force as the uniformed contingent, and I think the uniformed contingent would want me
to state that. This total force is there to secure peace and freedom for the people, specifically of Afghanistan and Iraq. Other men and women in the Armed Forces, as we all fully recognize, are serving in outposts and at sea across this world. How proud we are of our forces who are deployed throughout the world. Some of those personnel are assuming personal risks as great as those who have been fighting in Afghanistan and in the Persian Gulf. All Americans are proud of the Armed Forces of the United States.
We also want to pay recognition to the various nations that have joined us in these military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq and around the world and that stand guard with us to enforce the principles of freedom throughout this globe.
We are engaged in an international war on terrorism. The principal battlefronts are Afghanistan and Iraq, but indeed there is no less of a challenge in many other parts of the world away. Therefore, we are very thankful to all those who make possible this total force in the cause of not only combating terrorism but other military objectives we have to fulfill in the cause of freedom throughout the world.
I will pause now a moment to reflect on perhaps the most serious consequence of military life. I went back in history and gathered a few statistics. We will, throughout the course of this deliberation in the Senate, as we go about our daily responsibilities, have in mind those who paid the ultimate sacrifice with their loss of life and those who were wounded in the course of serving the cause of freedom in Afghanistan, Iraq, and other places in the world. I went back in history, and I would like to recite the following figures:
The total casualties in the Iraq campaign thus far have been approximately 612, of whom 117 were killed in direct combat and 495 were wounded. A total of 151 have lost their lives as part of operation Iraqi Freedom. In Afghanistan: Total casualties, 252, of whom 31 lost their lives and 221 suffered wounds. I think it is important to bear those casualty figures in mind as we think with reference to previous engagements. Vietnam: 211,000 casualties, 58,000 killed, 153,000 wounded. Korea: 139,000 total casualties, 36,000 killed, 103,000 wounded. World War II: 1,077,000 casualties, 405,000 killed, 671,000 wounded. We still have missing. I know the Korean conflict alone has some 8,000 American individuals who remain unaccounted for.
Whatever we do, we all join in mourning their loss and resolve to forever remember their service. We care for their families as best we can. We are blessed truly as a nation to have this new generation of great Americans, those who have recently suffered as casualties in the Afghanistan and Iraq operations, and indeed many others throughout the world in other actions. This new generation of great Americans is so committed to the traditions, mindful of the sacrifices of their forebears, and they have performed their services in exemplary fashion in keeping with the tradition of the military men and women who have gone before them--indeed, their values and their ideals and likewise the suffering of the families.
I will bet all of us here in the last few days have attended graduations and spoken at them. I have been privileged to do them myself. Each time I look at these young graduates, I say the casualties in Afghanistan and Iraq and elsewhere around the world are young men and young women of the same age basically--from the years 18 through 24. Some are older, but basically those generations graduating today, looking upon the joys of their college or university careers, should pause for a moment to reflect on those who are elsewhere in the world enabling them to achieve their goals and their respective graduations.
The stunning and very swift military success we had in Operation Iraqi Freedom, achieving the military goals laid out in the plan devised by the Commander, U.S. Central Command, General Tommy Franks and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in consultation with the joint staffs of the coalition nations, and in approval with that of the President and the Secretary of Defense primarily, and I expect to some extent the Secretary of State--those achievements are a testament to the dedication and professionalism of the men and women in the Armed Forces. The precision and the skill with which recent operations have been conducted are a tribute not only to their bravery and commitment, and indeed their sacrifice, but also to the industrial base of America, which is providing the weaponry, providing the means by which they pass through each day, and the requirements for human existence and human protection. So we pay tribute to that industrial base today, for the American technology and ingenuity, which has made a definite contribution to the welfare and the survival of the men and women in the Armed Forces.
Those statistics I gave about earlier military engagements--obviously high in contrast to the current losses--tell a story of how high-tech weaponry can save lives--not just the smart bombs and smart ordnance but indeed the very uniforms and protection devices the Armed Forces wear today. We had, in the course of our update briefings, a visit by several soldiers who came in and showed us the armored vests, the night vision, the special scopes on their weapons. It is far different from what this humble person witnessed in Korea, in World War II, and in training commands. Today's weapons bear little resemblance to the basic weapons that fought through the battles of World War II and Korea and, to a lesser extent, Vietnam, because we had a transition of the basic weapon in Vietnam. This is a magnificent tribute to the industrial base of this country that has provided this weaponry. That is what this bill is about: the need to have ever-changing technology to afford even greater protection to the men and women of the Armed Forces as we face the uncertain, unchartered, and unknown threats that face us in this century.
Military strategists and historians will study the Afghanistan and Iraqi military campaigns for years to come and will recognize them as a total new chapter in military history in many ways. Without a doubt, the U.S. military is the most capable military force in the world today, a model of excellence and the standard by which others are measured.
Senator Levin and I visited Afghanistan on Thanksgiving almost two years ago, as those operations were just beginning to get underway. We witnessed how small units, anywhere from 15 to 25 individuals, would get in their helicopters and go in to the darkness of night, all enlisted, save one officer, and perform extraordinary feats of heroism and professional courage in achieving their objectives.
We witnessed it again, just weeks before the start of military operations in Iraq, in its full measure, when we both visited Qatar and Kuwait in February of this year.
It is precisely for this reason we must send a strong message of support to our men and women in uniform by passing this important bill this week. This bill contains much deserved pay raises and benefits for our military personnel, for their families, needed increases in family housing and quality of life projects on military installations, as well as prudent investments in the equipment and technology our military needs to deal with the future in uncertain and ever-changing threats.
I urge my colleagues to participate in the debate of this bill to the fullest measure desired, to come forward with such amendments that they may have to improve and strengthen this bill, and hopefully to gather together and support the final and swift passage of this bill.
The President's budget request for defense for fiscal year 2004 continues the momentum of recent years in making real increases in defense spending to sustain readiness and enhance the quality of life for our military personnel and their families, and to modernize and transform the U.S. Armed Forces to meet current and future threats.
The bill before us would provide $400.5 billion for defense, an increase of $17.9 billion, or 3.2 percent in real terms, over the amount appropriated for fiscal year 2003.
Since the beginning of the 108th Congress, the Armed Services Committee has conducted 44 hearings and received numerous policy and operational briefings on the President's budget request for fiscal year 2004 and related defense
issues. As a result of these deliberations, we identified six priorities to guide our work on the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2004.
First, to enhance the ability of the Department of Defense to fulfill its homeland defense responsibilities by providing the resources and the authorities necessary for the department to assist in protecting this Nation against all current and anticipated forms of attack, primarily terrorist attacks, at home.
I mention at home, and I will repeat it several times because it is so important, because our President has quite wisely put as his top priority homeland defense. The Congress, and most particularly the Senate, went through long debates about the creation of the Department of Homeland Security which is now up and running.
Homeland defense, however, in my humble judgment, does not start here at home. It starts on the farflung outposts of the world on land and at sea where the men and women of the Armed Forces are serving. To the extent they can deter, interdict, and defeat imminent threats to the U.S., especially terrorist operations, it lessens the chances of that operation finding its way to homeland USA--right here at home.
That is my definition of homeland defense, and this bill is constructed to do everything we can to equip and protect those men and women of the Armed Forces in their role of homeland defense beyond our shores and, indeed, their role in homeland defense, those who are stationed in the continental limits of the United States, Hawaii, and Alaska.
Second, to continue our committee's commitment to improving the quality of life for the men and women of the Armed Forces--Active, Reserve, Guard, Retired--and their families.
Third, to provide the men and women in uniform with the resources, training, technology, and equipment they need to safely and successfully perform their missions both now and in the future.
Fourth, to sustain the readiness of our Armed Forces to conduct the full spectrum of military operations against all current and anticipated threats.
Fifth, to support the Department of Defense efforts to build the innovative capabilities necessary to continue the transformation of the Armed Forces to enable them to successfully confront future threats, particularly by enhancing technological advances in areas such as unmanned systems. That is an initiative on which this committee has placed great emphasis for some several years now.
Sixth, and final, to improve the efficiency of the Department's programs and operations to reduce the cost and time required to develop and acquire the new capabilities and needed services in the entirety of this bill.
I will yield the floor. This is a suitable point at which I can return to my opening remarks. I assume my colleague from Michigan will seek recognition.
I thank my colleague, Mr. President, for all his hard work, not only on this bill but for the now quarter of a century we have been together working on this committee. How many times we have been on the floor together on our respective bills.
Mr. President, I thank the distinguished Senator from Michigan for his very fine statement, for his kind reference to the chairman.
The committee's first priority was to enhance the Department of Defense to fulfill its homeland defense responsibilities to combat terrorism both at home and abroad. In these areas, this bill authorized an increase of $400 million over the budget request, including $88.4 million for 12 additional civil support teams. Now, these are the teams that join with the first responders should we have the misfortune of a weapon of mass destruction, be it chemical, biological, or fissionable, utilized in the United States. That is a very important initiative that this committee has taken over several years now and the inclusion of this in the budget represents our strong unequivocal support of this program particularly by adding 12 additional teams, to get us closer to the goal of a team in every State and territory.
Likewise, we added $181 million for the development and fielding of chemical and biological agent detection and protection technology. In addition, the committee supports the President's request of $9.1 billion for missile defense, a key component of homeland defense.
As we all know, our most valuable military asset is our people. We will always fulfill our commitment to improve the quality of life of the men and women in uniform and their families. This bill authorizes a 3.7-percent across-the-board pay increase for all uniformed service personnel as well as a targeted pay raise of up to 6.25 percent for certain senior noncommissioned officers and midcareer personnel. Those provisions are necessary in order for the Armed Forces to compete with the pay scales and the job opportunities in the private sector.
This bill also contains several key provisions to recognize unique sacrifices of the members of the Armed Forces and their families, including increases in the family separation allowance and hostile fire pay, designation of assignment incentive pay for those stationed in Korea, and approval of a ``high tempo'' allowance for those service members deployed away from home for extended periods of time. We have experienced this, particularly in the Navy.
I hope these provisions are acceptable to the Department of Defense. We are still working our way through that at this particular time.
The services all try very hard to limit the time of deployment away from home, particularly unaccompanied tours, for our service members, but there are isolated cases where you simply go beyond those times. One was recent, with a carrier setting one of the longest records in contemporary history for the away-from-home deployment of a carrier and its crew.
The administration requested $9 billion for military construction and family housing due to pending realignments of overseas bases. This bill contains adjustments to the administration program which resulted in increased investment in installations in the United States and a reduced but prudent investment in overseas locations that will be of long-term value to the United States.
This bill contains an overall increase of approximately $400 million in military construction, including increases of over $200 million in quality-of-life projects such as barracks, family housing, and child development centers.
Over the past several years, my colleagues and I have encouraged the Department to increase procurement spending to a level that could sustain the timely recapitalization, modernization, and transformation of the Armed Forces. This year, the bill before the Senate authorizes $75.6 billion in procurement funding, a $1.1 billion increase over the budget request. Key procurement items include over $12 billion in shipbuilding and conversions which will fund seven new ships just for the year 2004. That is in keeping with the Chief of Naval Operations's commitment to this body last year
that he, in conjunction with the whole Navy Secretariat, would increase the number of ships--not a very large number, but it is an increase over the past.
Further, we have the continued investment in aircraft programs, such as $3.5 billion for 20 F/A-22 Raptor aircraft and over $2 billion for 11 additional C-17 lift aircraft; and over $1 billion for the Army's lighter, high-mobility stryker combat vehicle.
Additionally, it is critical we invest in future capability. This bill authorizes $63.2 billion for research and development, test and evaluation, activities, an increase of over $1.3 billion over the President's budget request. Key R&D funding items include $1.7 billion for the future combat system, the Army's centerpiece of transformation, $5.8 billion for development of various tactical aircraft, including $4.4 billion for the continued development of the joint strike fighter, and $10.7 billion for advanced science and technology initiatives, an increase of over $500 million over the budget request.
This committee has strongly encouraged the Department to invest in unmanned systems. This bill fully funds the budget request of $1.7 billion for major unmanned aerial vehicle programs and adds $130 billion to enhance unmanned technologies.
Together, the investments in procurement necessary to sustain current capabilities and research and development needed to transform to a more capable force would give the men and women of the Armed Forces the equipment they need to deter threats, and if deterrence fails, to prevail across the full spectrum of military operations both now and in the future.
The sustained readiness of the Armed Forces is what protects America. The success of recent military operations represents the real return on added investments made by the Congress in recent years in training, munitions, maintenance, and spare parts. As the force reconstitutes after operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, we must closely monitor whether additional funds are needed for those items not covered by supplemental funding to pay for these operations and to ensure the overall readiness of the Armed Forces.
Readiness accounts funds were increased to address currently identified shortfalls such as equipment maintenance and testing, depot maintenance, technical assistance, corrosion control, and systems testing as well as additional funding for Active and Reserve Forces to accelerate fielding and replacing personal and field equipment.
Transformation of the Department of Defense will depend on effective management and stewardship of DOD resources. This bill contains numerous legislative provisions to improve the management of the Department. Some of these provisions will streamline the acquisition process, provide for greater personnel flexibility to manage the acquisition workforce, and ensure that joint requirements can be more rapidly achieved. Acquisition authorities to facilitate the war on terrorism, and support contingency operations were extended, and proposed new authorities will give State and local governments rapid access to antiterrorism technologies and services available to the Department. Again, that is another very important contribution to homeland defense.
The Department of Defense and the Congress have been and must continue to be good stewards of the environment. Military readiness and prudent conservation can and must be complementary principles. This bill assures access to military training ranges in a way that safeguards the protection of endangered species and contributes to the readiness of the Armed Forces.
Some will argue we have not covered all the subjects that were brought before the committee. Indeed, the committee did delete a number of items from the President's request, but that is the judgment that the committee must render. We are an independent but coequal branch of the Federal Government. While we have great respect for the President's budget, some of those provisions were deleted from his budget and not incorporated in this bill.
While I am proud of this legislation and the remarkable spirit of bipartisanship that enabled our committee to move this bill to the floor, we did have areas of disagreement within the committee, which will be revisited during the floor debate.
With our Armed Forces poised on distant battlefields and countless others standing watch at home, we are committed to providing the resources needed for the men and women of the armed forces, and their families. The Congress's past support for increased defense spending has proven to be a wise investment. There is no greater evidence than the successes witnessed on the battlefield of Iraq.
I strongly believe that this National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2004 builds on the advances made in recent years. I urge my colleagues to join me in sending a strong message of bipartisan support for our troops at home and abroad: we honor your service, and we stand with you now, and in the future.
Madam President, on behalf of the whole committee, I express appreciation to our colleague from Maine. She no longer will be subcommittee chairman on our committee because she is the full chairman now of one of the major subcommittees of the Senate as a whole, but she is very active.
I wonder if I might ask the distinguished Senator from Maine, the issue of transformation by the Secretary of Defense was addressed in the House and to some extent addressed by our committee. But basically, the committee over which the distinguished Senator from Maine is chairman has the primary oversight responsibilities. In the course of the debate on the floor, I hope--if not now at some point--she will give some guidance to me as to how this committee can address such amendments as may be brought up in the context of responsibilities of our committee. If she could find some time to consult with me on that, I would be very appreciative, as will the Senator from Michigan.
Madam President, I thank our colleague on this point. But bear in mind that there are some in the House bill. We will have to deal with them in conference.
To the extent we can have any interlocking on this bill with those provisions of the House bill, which the Senator's committee and our committee and the Senate as a whole feels should be incorporated into the bill, it would be helpful to do that.
I think in general the Secretary of Defense is on the right track in the sense that when you stop to think, today's military is so different than it was 2 or 3 years or even a decade ago.
As I mentioned earlier, before the Senator from Maine joined us on the floor, the total force today is not only the uniformed men and women of the Armed Forces, they are very much part of the civilian force. There are thousands of civilians over in the Iraqi situation and in Afghanistan right now taking risks commensurate with those of uniformed personnel and performing services to give infrastructure to the military to do their missions.
The Secretary of Defense has to have some flexibility in how he assigns and reassigns civilian personnel. I hope we could achieve some measure commensurate with what the wisdom of the Congress enabled the Secretary of Homeland Defense to have. It seems to me that is sort of the bar at which we ought to look.
Might I inquire, does the Senator share views similar to the Senator from Virginia?
Mr. President, I thank both my colleagues. But before we conclude this very valuable and important colloquy, I ask the Senator from Maine, who speaks with such conviction if we are going try to do something on this bill or is the thought that it is just not achievable? Because we have an issue with the House right now.
And the question is, are we going to address that issue in part-- maybe not all, but in part--in such a way that we can do constructive advancements in this field to assist the Secretary and the administration in this enormous Department with a diversity of responsibilities? Can we conclude we are going to give it a try, and that would move it along pretty quickly? Because hopefully this bill will be voted on early this week.
I will have one more word, but I yield--not necessarily yield--to my colleague from Michigan if he wishes to reply to the Senator from Maine.
Right.
Do you think the provisions the Congress provided for in the Department of Homeland Security offer certain precedents we should achieve in this legislation?
Well, as both my colleagues recognize, this will be, for the distinguished Senator from Michigan and myself, our 25th conference, and we know full well at this stage of deliberations on this bill we cannot predict what is going to come out of conference, nor can we take a stance that not one single one of these provisions which are in the House bill will not survive the conference. So having said that, time is of the essence, I hope, in the reconciliation of views.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.
It is my understanding that the Senate, at the hour of 5 o'clock, will proceed to a rollcall vote and that the vote will be held open for the period of 1 hour, until 6 o'clock; is that correct?
My distinguished colleague, the ranking member, and I hope Members could come up to see either of us, if we are here--and if we are not here, both staffs will be here--and indicate the possibility that they may have amendments that will be forthcoming and the time, say tomorrow, that would be convenient for them to bring up those amendments.
Tonight we will be addressing some amendments after 6 o'clock. We will resume with amendments in the morning. We have gotten excellent cooperation from those desiring to offer amendments. But by midday tomorrow, we should, at our respective caucuses, be able to give the Senate some idea during the caucuses of the progress of this bill and the likelihood of when final passage could be achieved. Am I not correct on that, I ask my colleague?
In any event, Mr. President, there have been some rumors to that effect.
There is nothing in the Record as to post-6 o'clock as to further votes tonight. That is the case until we hear from the majority leader; is that correct?
I yield the floor.
I thank our distinguished assistant leader.
With respect to amendments, I urge colleagues to look at the daily calendar in which the reference is made, on the covering page, to the order with regard to this bill and the proviso:
Provided, That all first degree amendments be relevant and
that any second degree amendment be relevant to the first
degree amendment to which it is offered.
There are restrictions on the subject matter. We want to cooperate with our colleagues. But it is very clear that this is the order that has been adopted by the Senate.
I yield the floor.