Floor Statements

Mr. President, on the morning of March 7, the Prime Minister of Australia, Julia Gillard, will take the stage in front of the Lincoln Memorial to announce a $3 million donation on behalf of the Australian Government to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund to help build the Education Center at the Vietnam Wall. This generous contribution is a testament to the strength of the United States' relationship with the Australian people and is critical to our continuing efforts to honor the men and women who served in Vietnam.

As one who strongly supported legislation to establish the Education Center, I want to recognize and commend the Prime Minister, the legislature and the Australian people for their deep commitment to helping it come to fruition. Australian soldiers made terrible sacrifices during the Vietnam war. More than 500 Australian servicemen lost their lives, andsome 3,000 were wounded, injured, or struck ill.

For years, Australia has been a steadfast ally and friend of the United States. Besides Vietnam, Australian soldiers fought alongside Americans during many of our struggles in the 20th century, including World War I, World War II, the Korean war, and more recently in Iraq. Currently, over 1500 Australian troops are fighting alongside our Armed Forces in Afghanistan, working to train Afghan troops.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial bears the names of the more than 58,000

brave men and women who gave their lives in service to our great country during the Vietnam war. It is a memorial, built by the American people, designed to ensure that names of those who made the ultimate sacrifice would never be lost to history.

By telling the stories of the men and women who fought and died in Vietnam, the Education Center will help visitors understand their courage, sacrifice and devotion.

And through interactive exhibits and primary source materials, visitors will be able to better understand the profound impact the Vietnam war had on their family members, their home towns, their communities and the Nation. Visitors will understand the importance of The Wall and the role it continues to play in healing the wounds left by the war.

The Vietnam Memorial has always been profoundly meaningful to me, both as a moving way to honor those who died and a remarkably effective means of healing the terrible national wounds from that war. The Education Center will be an important complement for both of those efforts. I hope to continue to play a role in making the Education Center a reality and look forward to the day that the United States can share the rich stories there with all visitors. When that time comes, I will be grateful to the Australian people and mindful of their kind generosity.

I wish to thank the Prime Minster, the government of Australia, and the Australian people for their strong support for this worthy endeavor.

Mr. President, Senate standing rules XXVI requires each committee to adopt rules to govern the procedure of the committee and to publish those rules in the Congressional Record not later than March 1 of the first year of each Congress. On February 23, 2011, a majority of the members of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs' Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations adopted subcommittee rules of procedure.

Consistent with standing rule XXVI, today I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record a copy of the rules of procedure of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.

Mr. President, rule XXVI, paragraph 2, of the Standing Rules of the Senate requires each committee to adopt rules to govern the procedure of the committee and to publish those rules in the Congressional Record not later than March 1 of the first year of each Congress. On February 28, 2011, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs' Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia adopted subcommittee rules of procedure.

Consistent with standing rule XXVI, I ask unanimous consent to have a copy of the rules of procedure of the Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia printed in the Record.

Mr. President, rule XXVI, paragraph 2, of the Standing Rules of the Senate requires each committee to adopt rules to govern the procedure of the committee and to publish those rules in the Congressional Record not later than March 1 of the first year of each Congress. On February 28, 2011, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs' Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and International Security adopted subcommittee rules of procedure.

Consistent with standing rule XXVI, I ask unanimous consent to have a copy of the rules of procedure of the Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and International Security printed in the Record.

Mr. President, rule XXVI, paragraph 2, of the Standing Rules of the Senate requires each committee to adopt rules to govern the procedure of the committee and to publish those rules in the Congressional Record not later than March 1 of the first year of each Congress. On February 28, 2011, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs' Ad Hoc Subcommittee on Disaster Recovery and Intergovernmental Affairs adopted subcommittee rules of procedure.

Consistent with standing rule XXVI, I ask unanimous consent to have a copy of the rules of procedure of the Ad Hoc Subcommittee on Disaster Recovery and Intergovernmental Affairs printed in the Record.

Mr. President, rule XXVI, paragraph 2, of the Standing Rules of the Senate requires each committee to adopt rules to govern the procedure of the committee and to publish those rules in the Congressional Record not later than March 1 of the first year of each Congress. On February 28, 2011, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs' Ad Hoc Subcommittee on Contracting Oversight adopted subcommittee rules of procedure.

Consistent with standing rule XXVI, I ask unanimous consent to have a copy of the rules of procedure of the Ad Hoc Subcommittee on Contracting Oversight printed in the Record.

Mr. President, rule XXVI, paragraph 2, of the Standing Rules of the Senate requires each committee to adopt rules to govern the procedure of the committee and to publish those rules in the Congressional Record not later than March 1 of the first year of each Congress. On February 15, 2011, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs adopted committee rules of procedure.

Consistent with standing rule XXVI, I ask unanimous consent to have a copy of the rules of procedure of the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs printed in the Record.

Mr. President, as chairman of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, I rise to express my deepest sorrow about a tragic attack on American law enforcement that happened earlier this week in Mexico.

On Tuesday afternoon, two agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement were attacked by unknown individuals while driving between Mexico City and Monterrey, Mexico. Today, I honor the incredible sacrifice of Special Agent Jaime J. Zapata, who lost his life in service of our country, and Special Agent Victor Avila, who is recovering from injuries from the shooting.

Special Agent Zapata joined ICE in 2006. He joined one of ICE's offices in Laredo, TX, where he served on the Human Smuggling and Trafficking Unit, as well as the Border Enforcement Security Task Force. He was most recently detailed to ICE's Attache office in Mexico City. He began his Federal law enforcement career with the Department of Homeland Security as a member of the U.S. Border Patrol in Yuma, AZ. A native of Brownsville, TX, Special Agent Zapata graduated from the University of Texas at Brownsville in 2005 with a bachelor of science in criminal justice.

My thoughts and prayers are with Special Agent Avila as he recovers.

These two brave agents gave their all to shield others from harm. They worked tirelessly against dangerous criminal elements. They bravely took dangerous assignments, ultimately making a profound sacrifice.

They were two of the hundreds of ICE personnel around the globe. Honorable agents like these two individuals collaborate with their counterparts in joint efforts to dismantle transnational criminal organizations. Agents like them give their all day in and day out on fighting money laundering, contraband smuggling, weapons proliferation, forced child labor, human rights violations, intellectual property violations, child exploitation, and human smuggling and trafficking.

An incident like this serves to remind us all as a nation how grateful we are for the sacrifices made by these brave men and women every day. The work they do serves to make the public safe and protect the Nation's security.

I have been in contact with law enforcement, and I know that they are working closely with the authorities in Mexico to ensure that the perpetrators of this horrible attack on American law enforcement are brought to justice as quickly as possible.

In the meantime, I offer my deepest condolences to the family of Special Agent Zapata. He died for a just cause and will forever be remembered as a man of courage and honor.

And a message for Special Agent Avila. I think I speak for a nation when I say that I hope, and pray, for your recovery. Words cannot express our thanks for your service.

Mr. President, I regret having missed the February 8 vote to consider an amendment to the FAA Air Transportation Modernization and Safety Improvement Act. I was celebrating the joyous occasion of my newest grandson's birth with my wife and children.

Had I been present, I would have voted in favor of Senator Nelson's amendment to strike section 605. Section 605 would have established an advisory committee on aeronautics, but such a committee is not necessary because NASA already plays that role.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, in 3 days' time, across our country, from the North Country of New Hampshire to his final resting place in Simi Valley, CA, Americans will celebrate the legacy of President Ronald Reagan. It will be the occasion of the 100th anniversary of his birth. I am very honored to rise today to join other colleagues of both parties and others throughout the United States and, I am sure, the world in paying tribute to America's 40th President.

I cannot speak as personally about President Reagan as some in this Chamber can. I met him only a few times when, as a visiting State attorney general during the eighties, I was at the White House. He was always gracious, always responsive to us. But I did have one meeting that I might call a virtual meeting with President Reagan that reminds me of his enduring importance for our country today.

Twenty-two years ago, on January 4, 1989, as President Reagan was departing the White House, having completed his second term, I had just arrived in Washington as a freshman Senator from Connecticut. President Reagan was set to give his final weekly radio address on that brisk Saturday morning, and then-Senate majority leader George Mitchell had honored me by

asking me if I would give the Democratic response. It was a real honor, although a daunting one, for me to be asked to do that on that occasion.

Looking back, I believe President Reagan's 331st and final radio address on that January morning was among the most masterful and moving of his career. In it, he captured the very essence of the American spirit. He said:

Whether we seek it or not, whether we like it or not, we

Americans are keepers of the miracles. We are asked to be

guardians of a place to come to, a place to start again, a

place to live in the dignity God meant for his children. May

it ever be so.

President Reagan concluded that morning. Needless to say, President Reagan's final radio address was quite literally a tough act to follow. In my remarks, I praised him for his love of country, for his fervent devotion to freedom, and for his commitment to the values of faith, flag, and family. I was, as I put it then, inspired and encouraged by his patriotism, and I urged all Americans to ``work on our unfinished business and the challenges ahead with the spirit of purpose and confidence that is the legacy of the Reagan years.''

Today, 22 years later, I continue to feel deeply honored that I was able to deliver those remarks and evermore confident of the importance of Ronald Reagan's legacy to us and the generations of Americans to come. The optimism, moral clarity, and confidence President Reagan radiated inspired a generation, and they are precisely the ideals we need today to rekindle and reinspire the current generation of Americans and others, frankly, living without freedom around the world.

I didn't always agree with President Reagan. That is a matter of public record. But I always understood the enduring value and strength and sincerity of his faith in America's values and America's destiny. In 1980, Ronald Reagan promised to make America great again. And he did. He expressed with total confidence that those who would challenge our hard-won freedoms would collapse. And they did.

He led our country and the free world to victory in the Cold War against Soviet communism, and he never doubted for a moment that America and our cause could and would prevail. When in 1977 Ronald Reagan was asked about his vision for the end of the Cold War-- remember, he was not yet President--he responded with characteristic and refreshing directness. He said:

My idea of American policy toward the Soviet Union is

simple, and some would say simplistic. It is this: We win and

they lose.

Well, President Reagan's understanding of world affairs was far from simplistic. He was an optimist without illusions, who guided by and, frankly, expressed moral judgments about what was right and what was wrong. We do not see that enough today. There is a kind of relativism afoot. But some things are just plain wrong, and some things, thank God, are just plain right.

President Reagan had the moral clarity to make distinctions between good and evil and the moral courage to speak the truth of those distinctions unambiguously and to support them unwaveringly.

When he addressed an audience of veterans and world leaders commemorating the 40th anniversary of D-day, standing as he spoke on the windswept coast of northern France, the very clifftop in Normandy where courageous allied soldiers fought to liberate Europe from the yoke of Nazi tyranny, President Reagan magnificently, masterfully, compellingly revealed again his moral clarity, and I am honored to quote these words today on this floor.

The men of Normandy had faith that what they were doing was

right, faith that they fought for all humanity, faith that a

just God would grant them mercy on this beachhead, or on the

next. It was the deep knowledge--and pray God we have not

lost it--that there is a profound moral difference between

the use of force for liberation and the use of force for

conquest. You were here--

He said to the veterans--

to liberate, not to conquer, and so you and those others did

not doubt your cause. And you were right not to doubt. You

all knew that some things are worth dying for. One's country

is worth dying for, and democracy is worth dying for, because

it's the most deeply honorable form of government ever

devised by man. All of you loved liberty. All of you were

willing to fight tyranny, and you knew the people of your

countries were behind you.

It is thrilling just to read those words again. Yet President Reagan never spoke about America's enemies belligerently; rather, he spoke firmly and frankly about the deep divide between our morality and that of the Soviet Union. In doing so, I think he reawakened in all of us the belief that every human being has the potential to change history because history, as Reagan knew, was not by abstract inexorable forces, but by real live men and women.

It was President Ronald Reagan who came to the defense of the dissidents in their fight against the Soviet Union and reminded the world that a single courageous human face, a single courageous voice can tear down the faceless inhumanity of a massive repressive system such as the Soviet Union.

The great Soviet dissident and later Israeli leader and human rights activist Natan Sharansky once shared with me his memory of the moment he first learned of President Reagan's 1982 speech before the British Parliament, the speech in which Reagan described the Soviet Union as an evil empire.

There were some in this country who thought that was much too stark and disrespectful. But Sharansky, who was a prisoner for nearly a decade in the Soviet gulag, described to me how word of Reagan's speech spread through that heartless prison and he and his fellow dissidents tapped on walls and talked through pipes and even toilets to communicate the extraordinary news that the leader of the free world had spoken the truth, a truth, as Sharansky put it, ``that burned inside the heart of each and every one of us.''

Indeed, President Reagan was willing to expose an inconvenient truth about the Soviet Union that unsettled and unnerved some of his contemporaries who feared his undiplomatic words were a threat to stability. The truth is, they were. President Reagan refused to accept the stability of an authoritarian status quo that consigned millions of people to live under perpetual tyranny. So he did challenge the stability of the Berlin Wall and the gulag as the Stasi. In doing so, his moral courage helped inspire the men and women who brought down the Iron Curtain and expanded the frontiers of freedom.

In his approach to foreign policy, President Reagan embodied that quintessentially American combination of idealism and pragmatism. He understood what America was about, which is freedom and opportunity. He fought to extend those great values here at home and throughout the world.

In his final words to the Nation as our President, in a radio address on that January morning 22 years ago, President Reagan shared a story about a meeting Winston Churchill had with a group of American journalists in 1952. It was a time when many doubted whether the West could meet the challenges of the Cold War and prevail.

Churchill asked the reporters:

What other nation in history, when it became supremely

powerful, has had no thought of territorial aggrandizement,

no ambition but to use its resources for the good of the

world? I marvel at America's altruism, her sublime

disinterestedness.

Churchill's friend and physician, Lord Moran, described the Prime Minister's demeanor as he spoke:

All at once I realized Winston was in tears. His eyes were

red. His voice faltered. He was deeply moved.

President Reagan was drawn to that story in his final radio address to the Nation 22 years ago because he understood that in that moment Churchill understood and acknowledged the greatness of the American spirit. Imperfect though we are as human beings, it is the spirit that explains who we are and expresses all we aspire to be. He saw America's devotion to a cause that has defined us for over two centuries, a cause greater than our own individual self-interest or even national self- interest very often and that has given an enduring purpose to our national destiny. That is the cause of human dignity and human freedom.

At a time when we face many challenges both at home and abroad and when it has, unfortunately, become fashionable to suggest that our best days as a nation are behind us, President Reagan's optimism and his abiding faith in America are more important to remember than ever before. They are as wise as they are true. Our shared national destiny has always inspired us as Americans and propelled

us forward together. It is the spirit that Ronald Reagan reinspired in America at a time of great peril. It is spirit, at this time of peril here at home and around the world, that can carry us forward and continue to make us the greatest Nation on Earth and the last best hope of mankind.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I regret having missed votes to consider amendments to the FAA Air Transportation Modernization and Safety Improvement Act. I was celebrating the joyous occasion of my newest grandson's birth with my wife and children.

Had I been present, I would have voted to oppose the motion to waive the Budget Act on the amendment to repeal the landmark health care reform legislation, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. This law provides health care coverage to more than 30 million Americans and also reduces the deficit. The benefits that have already been achieved by this law are substantial. Its repeal would force seniors to pay more for their drug coverage, businesses would lose valuable tax credits that enable them to provide health care coverage to their employees, and millions of Americans would no longer receive vital consumer protections from the health insurance industry. Additionally, this law extends the solvency of Medicare for 12 more years.

I have said before that a law this comprehensive would not be without flaws. I will support efforts to strengthen the Affordable Care Act and reduce the unintended consequences from it. I do not, however, support its repeal, which would not only be risky for our economy, but would have the effect of increasing the number of uninsured and causing vital programs such as Medicare to face insolvency in the very near future.

Had I been present, and consistent with my desire to continue to improve the Affordable Care Act, I would have supported both Senators Levin and Stabenow's amendments to repeal the form 1099 reporting requirement. This provision imposes an onerous compliance obligation on businesses of all sizes, and Congress should act quickly to remove that burden and allow businesses to direct their time, energy, and resources to growing their businesses and creating new jobs.

Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Scholarships for Opportunity and Results Act--SOAR--which seeks to reauthorize the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program or OSP. And I am proud to be joined by a bipartisan group of Senators in introducing this bill--Senator Collins, Senator Feinstein, Senator Alexander and Senator Ensign.

The DC Opportunity Scholarship Program offers scholarships to low- income students, especially those from failing schools, to attend private schools where they can get a better education. This program offers District of Columbia students and their families a choice that improves the quality of their education and significantly increases their likelihood of graduating from high school and attending college.

Here in Washington, there are many families who can exercise school choice. They can afford to live in neighborhoods with good schools, they can provide engaging supplemental and afterschool opportunities for their children, or they can choose to send their children to private schools. However, there are many low-income families whose children are trapped in failing schools and do not have those options.

School reformers in Washington, through their hard work and, at times, controversial policies, have begun to make a difference for students in the District of Columbia. I applaud the work of Michelle Rhee and her team in their tireless efforts to make the District's schools better. I am pleased that Mayor Gray has indicated he will continue school reform because there is much more work to do on behalf of Washington's schoolchildren. District of Columbia test scores are on the rise but even so, according to recent National Assessment of Educational Progress data, the District of Columbia, while having one of the highest per pupil expenditures in the country, settles at the bottom of all states in reading and math for both 4th and 8th grade students. District of Columbia schools also have among the lowest graduation rates in the country.

We all know that meaningful and effective change is slow and we still have a long way to go before we can be confident that each student in the District is getting the public education they deserve. Ronald Holassie, a high school student in the OSP, expressed the implications of this well when he said ``public schools in the District did not go bad over night and they won't get better over night.'' Students cannot wait for reforms to take effect in the worst of the District's public schools--they need a good education right now if they are going to be able to fulfill their potential. The Opportunity Scholarships respond to that immediate need.

One of the goals of the OSP is holistic support of the reforms that are helping to improve education in all sectors of education here in the District. Since 2003, Congress has supported a tri-sector approach by appropriating new funds for District public schools, District public charter schools and the Opportunity Scholarship Program. Critics of the OSP argue that it takes away funds from public schools. That is simply not true. The scholarship program was intentionally designed to ensure that any funding for Opportunity Scholarships would not reduce funding for public schools. This legislation will provide additional new money for the District of Columbia's Public Schools, for District of Columbia Public Charter Schools, and for the continuation of the Opportunity Scholarship Program. We have not changed the three part funding design of the initiative.

The SOAR Act also strengthens the existing requirements for all schools participating in the OSP by requiring a valid certificate of occupancy and ensuring that teachers in core subjects have an appropriate college degree. The bill continues to target students from lower income families who are attending those schools most in need of improvement and it increases the tuition amounts slightly to levels consistent with the tuition charged at typical participating schools. The new amounts are still well below the per pupil cost of educating a child in the District of Columbia public schools. While we have kept the income ceiling for entry into the program unchanged, we have increased slightly the income ceiling for those already participating in the program to ensure that parents are not forced to choose between a modest raise in their income and the scholarship.

The most recent study conducted by the Department of Education's Institute of Education Science shows that the offer of an OSP scholarship raised a student's probability of completing high school by twelve percentage points overall. The offer of a scholarship improved the graduation prospects by thirteen percentage points for the high- priority group of students from schools designated ``Schools in Need of Improvement'' and for those students actually using an OSP scholarship the improved graduation rate went up to twenty percentage points. In the District of Columbia, where the graduation rates are among the lowest in the country, this is important data that cannot be overlooked. Overall, parents of OSP students were more satisfied and felt school was safer if their child was offered or used an OSP scholarship.

In a landmark education speech at the outset of his presidency, President Obama promised that Education Secretary Arne Duncan ``will use only one test when deciding what ideas to support . . . : It's not whether an idea is liberal or conservative, but whether it works.'' By that standard, this program should be continued. It is not a Democratic, Republican, or Independent program--it is not a liberal or conservative program--it is a program that puts children first. The Opportunity Scholarship Program works as evidenced by increased graduation rates, higher reading proficiency, and the overwhelming support of District families. I urge Republicans and Democrats to rally behind the OSP program. Last year we had a vote on the bill that received the support of 42 Senators. In this Congress, I will be fighting for another vote and am confident there will be more than 50 votes to reauthorize the program. With these votes and the strong support of Speaker Boehner I am hopeful we can give students here in the District the opportunities they deserve.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Scholarships for Opportunity and Results Act--SOAR--which seeks to reauthorize the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program or OSP. And I am proud to be joined by a bipartisan group of Senators in introducing this bill--Senator Collins, Senator Feinstein, Senator Alexander and Senator Ensign.

The DC Opportunity Scholarship Program offers scholarships to low- income students, especially those from failing schools, to attend private schools where they can get a better education. This program offers District of Columbia students and their families a choice that improves the quality of their education and significantly increases their likelihood of graduating from high school and attending college.

Here in Washington, there are many families who can exercise school choice. They can afford to live in neighborhoods with good schools, they can provide engaging supplemental and afterschool opportunities for their children, or they can choose to send their children to private schools. However, there are many low-income families whose children are trapped in failing schools and do not have those options.

School reformers in Washington, through their hard work and, at times, controversial policies, have begun to make a difference for students in the District of Columbia. I applaud the work of Michelle Rhee and her team in their tireless efforts to make the District's schools better. I am pleased that Mayor Gray has indicated he will continue school reform because there is much more work to do on behalf of Washington's schoolchildren. District of Columbia test scores are on the rise but even so, according to recent National Assessment of Educational Progress data, the District of Columbia, while having one of the highest per pupil expenditures in the country, settles at the bottom of all states in reading and math for both 4th and 8th grade students. District of Columbia schools also have among the lowest graduation rates in the country.

We all know that meaningful and effective change is slow and we still have a long way to go before we can be confident that each student in the District is getting the public education they deserve. Ronald Holassie, a high school student in the OSP, expressed the implications of this well when he said ``public schools in the District did not go bad over night and they won't get better over night.'' Students cannot wait for reforms to take effect in the worst of the District's public schools--they need a good education right now if they are going to be able to fulfill their potential. The Opportunity Scholarships respond to that immediate need.

One of the goals of the OSP is holistic support of the reforms that are helping to improve education in all sectors of education here in the District. Since 2003, Congress has supported a tri-sector approach by appropriating new funds for District public schools, District public charter schools and the Opportunity Scholarship Program. Critics of the OSP argue that it takes away funds from public schools. That is simply not true. The scholarship program was intentionally designed to ensure that any funding for Opportunity Scholarships would not reduce funding for public schools. This legislation will provide additional new money for the District of Columbia's Public Schools, for District of Columbia Public Charter Schools, and for the continuation of the Opportunity Scholarship Program. We have not changed the three part funding design of the initiative.

The SOAR Act also strengthens the existing requirements for all schools participating in the OSP by requiring a valid certificate of occupancy and ensuring that teachers in core subjects have an appropriate college degree. The bill continues to target students from lower income families who are attending those schools most in need of improvement and it increases the tuition amounts slightly to levels consistent with the tuition charged at typical participating schools. The new amounts are still well below the per pupil cost of educating a child in the District of Columbia public schools. While we have kept the income ceiling for entry into the program unchanged, we have increased slightly the income ceiling for those already participating in the program to ensure that parents are not forced to choose between a modest raise in their income and the scholarship.

The most recent study conducted by the Department of Education's Institute of Education Science shows that the offer of an OSP scholarship raised a student's probability of completing high school by twelve percentage points overall. The offer of a scholarship improved the graduation prospects by thirteen percentage points for the high- priority group of students from schools designated ``Schools in Need of Improvement'' and for those students actually using an OSP scholarship the improved graduation rate went up to twenty percentage points. In the District of Columbia, where the graduation rates are among the lowest in the country, this is important data that cannot be overlooked. Overall, parents of OSP students were more satisfied and felt school was safer if their child was offered or used an OSP scholarship.

In a landmark education speech at the outset of his presidency, President Obama promised that Education Secretary Arne Duncan ``will use only one test when deciding what ideas to support . . . : It's not whether an idea is liberal or conservative, but whether it works.'' By that standard, this program should be continued. It is not a Democratic, Republican, or Independent program--it is not a liberal or conservative program--it is a program that puts children first. The Opportunity Scholarship Program works as evidenced by increased graduation rates, higher reading proficiency, and the overwhelming support of District families. I urge Republicans and Democrats to rally behind the OSP program. Last year we had a vote on the bill that received the support of 42 Senators. In this Congress, I will be fighting for another vote and am confident there will be more than 50 votes to reauthorize the program. With these votes and the strong support of Speaker Boehner I am hopeful we can give students here in the District the opportunities they deserve.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, today, I introduced legislation to protect the coastal plains region of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from oil and gas exploration and drilling. Every Congress since the 101st, I have either introduced or been an original cosponsor of legislation to protect the Refuge, making tomorrow the twelfth time since 1989 that I will mark my unwavering support for reaffirming the original intent of the Refuge: to provide habitat for Alaska's wildlife, by designating 1.5 million acres of the Refuge as Wilderness to be included in the National Wilderness Preservation System.

I have long believed we have a responsibility to future generations to preserve the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and I have fought to protect it for as long as I have been in the Senate. The fact is, we do not have to choose between conservation and exploration when it comes to our energy future; we can do both simultaneously while moving toward a sustainable and diverse national energy policy.

The Arctic Refuge is home to 250 species of wildlife. Drilling there would severely harm its abundant populations of polar bears, caribou, musk oxen, and snow geese. Beyond that, the amount of commercially recoverable oil in the Refuge would satisfy only a very small percentage of our Nation's need at any given time and would have no appreciable long-tem impact on gasoline prices. The permanent environmental price we would pay for ravaging the Refuge to drain those limited resources is simply too high.

I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass this important legislation.

Mr. President, today, I introduced legislation to protect the coastal plains region of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from oil and gas exploration and drilling. Every Congress since the 101st, I have either introduced or been an original cosponsor of legislation to protect the Refuge, making tomorrow the twelfth time since 1989 that I will mark my unwavering support for reaffirming the original intent of the Refuge: to provide habitat for Alaska's wildlife, by designating 1.5 million acres of the Refuge as Wilderness to be included in the National Wilderness Preservation System.

I have long believed we have a responsibility to future generations to preserve the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and I have fought to protect it for as long as I have been in the Senate. The fact is, we do not have to choose between conservation and exploration when it comes to our energy future; we can do both simultaneously while moving toward a sustainable and diverse national energy policy.

The Arctic Refuge is home to 250 species of wildlife. Drilling there would severely harm its abundant populations of polar bears, caribou, musk oxen, and snow geese. Beyond that, the amount of commercially recoverable oil in the Refuge would satisfy only a very small percentage of our Nation's need at any given time and would have no appreciable long-tem impact on gasoline prices. The permanent environmental price we would pay for ravaging the Refuge to drain those limited resources is simply too high.

I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass this important legislation.