Floor Statements

I concur with Senator Kennedy and look forward to Senate action on S. 558.

Mr. President, I would like to recognize three students from New Mexico who entered and were recognized in the Education: A Gift Without Boundaries, 2007 Native American Student Art Competition sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Indian Education. There were almost 1,400 entries from 34 States in 6 events divided by age.

Native Americans put a very strong emphasis on their culture and in particular, art. Even though the art may be different from tribe to tribe, the universal importance of art is seen in the number of entrants and from the diverse geographic areas that they come from. The number of entrants also speaks to the immense support from teachers and parents in the Native American communities.

Deidra Lee, an eighth grader from Cecditai Middle School, won first place in the sixth- to eighth-grade division; Robert Francis, a 10th grader from Grants High School, won third place in the 9th-10th grade division; and Michael Curly, a 10th grader from Pine Hill School, won first place in the 11th-12th grade division. I ask that all three of these students be recognized for their accomplishments in the arts. These New Mexicans demonstrated a clear understanding of the importance of academic, cultural, and artistic education.

Mr. President, I want to begin by complimenting the chairman, the Senator from Montana, Mr. Baucus, and the ranking member, the Senator from Iowa, Mr. Grassley, for all their work on this Children's Health Insurance Program. You have taken a very difficult and contentious issue and produced legislation that will help many families. You should be congratulated.

I would like to raise the issue of diabetes as part of the reauthorization of the State Children's Health Insurance Program. I have offered an amendment along with my colleague Senator Dorgan, which would reauthorize the Special Diabetes Program for Indians and the Special Funding Program for type 1 diabetes research. This amendment is identical to the language in S. 1494, which I also introduced with Senator Dorgan.

Diabetes is one of the most serious and devastating health problems of our time. Although diabetes occurs in people of all ethnicities, the diabetes epidemic is particularly acute in our Native American populations. That is why during the negotiations on the 1997 Balanced Budget Act, the same bill that created this SCHIP program, I helped craft an agreement to finance diabetes programs of the Indian Health Service and help raise the profile of tribal health programs. The Special Diabetes Program for Indians began with funding of $30 million annually for 5 years and was later expanded to $150 million a year. This funding has been used widely in Indian country, including among the Navajo Nation and the 19 Pueblos in New Mexico.

These programs are set to expire in 2008, and I believe they need to be a priority in this Congress.

I want to thank the Senators for their time. With that I will withdraw my amendment and I ask the chair that my amendment No. 2629 be withdrawn.

amendment no. 2535

Mr. President, today, I would like to mark the annual chile festival in Hatch, NM.

For the last 36 years on Labor Day weekend thousands of New Mexicans and people from around the country converge on Hatch for fun and good food. The Hatch chile festival is the

premiere celebration of this fiery food that is near and dear to the hearts of New Mexicans. Chile, both red and green, is one of the distinctive flavors that makes New Mexico such a wonderful place to live and visit. A good deal of that chile originates in Hatch and it has rightly earned the title ``chile capital of the world.''

I hope this year's chile festival will be a success. I am sure all involved will walk away satisfied and with full stomachs.

Mr. President. I would like to pay tribute to the members of Chapter 641 of the Vietnam Veterans of America, VVA.

Chapter 641 gathers on the first Saturday of every month from April to November to wash the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington DC. The dedication of these veterans helps to ensure the memorial dedicated to all the brave service men and women who gave their lives in the Vietnam war remains worthy of their sacrifice.

In June of this year the Daughters of the American Revolution presented this group with a national service award. I would like to add my praise to Chapter 641 VVA. Thanks in part to their hard work and dedication, we as a nation will never forget those who have sacrificed so much for our freedom.

Mr. President, today I recognize the Georgia O'Keefe Museum in Santa Fe, NM, on its 10th anniversary. Georgia O'Keefe was, and remains, a New Mexico institution. The work she did while living in my State is held in the highest regard by artists and spectators alike.

Georgia O'Keefe settled in New Mexico in 1945 after being a frequent visitor of the State seeking artistic inspiration. She is famous for her vibrant portrayals of flowers and unique New Mexico landscapes. Ms. O'Keefe has inspired a number of aspiring artists, and she is sure to inspire many more for many years. Her work is timeless. New Mexico is proud to be home to most of her prized work.

The Georgia O'Keefe Museum is the first museum dedicated to the work of a woman artist of international stature. It showcases well over 1,000 pieces of Ms. O'Keefe's work. The museum has opened its doors to over one million visitors just in its first few years of operation; countless others will enjoy it in the future. It also boasts a vast education and outreach program that includes internships, teacher workshops, seminars and even afterschool arts programs. The museum is dedicated to the study and interpretation of her work, as well as American modernism.

The museum will commemorate the anniversary with a 10th anniversary celebration. The celebration will include a dinner dance, entertainment, and obviously art. The event will not only commemorate Georgia O'Keefe but also honor the museum's founders, Anne and John Marion. They have worked tirelessly to see that the artwork of Ms. O'Keefe is available for all to enjoy. Through their vision, the work of Georgia O'Keefe will be available for study and viewing for many years to come.

I commend these two individuals for envisioning a place for Georgia O'Keefe's work to be displayed, and maintaining that vision for the last 10 years. I believe Ms. O'Keefe would be proud of the work they have done and honored to be held in such high regard with respect to her art.

Mr. President, the need for targeted restoration work in the Rio Puerco watershed came to my attention during the early 1990s. Congress began funding local efforts to improve the Rio Puerco area in 1992, and the Rio Puerco Management Program was formally authorized by the Omnibus Parks and Public Lands Management Act of 1996.

The Rio Puerco Basin is the largest tributary to the Middle Rio Grande Basin. The watershed encompasses nearly 5 million acres and acts as drainage for portions of 7 counties in my home State of New Mexico. The Rio Puerco watershed is a major source of silt in Elephant Butte Reservoir. In fact, the Department of Interior's U.S. Geological Survey has identified the Rio Puerco as having one of the highest sediment concentrations. The objective of the collaborative program is to curtail sedimentation from washing down the Rio Puerco to the Rio Grande and Elephant Butte. As intended, this program has helped to facilitate cooperation between Federal, State, and local agencies along with local landowners to improve the health of the Rio Puerco watershed by working together to implement projects that help control erosion and reduce the flow of sediment into the Rio Grande.

I believe the program has accomplished much during its tenure, and I fully support its objectives. I am pleased to join my colleague from New Mexico, Senator Bingaman, as a cosponsor of this bill, and I look forward to working with him to see that this important program is reauthorized.

Mr. President, I wish to recognize the statewide effort my great State of New Mexico will put forth for the National Night Out. National Night Out is a community event

designed to bring awareness to preventing crime while building partnerships between communities and local law enforcement agencies. Crime is not limited to urban areas anymore; it affects every person in every town, big and small. Communities need to be proactive in fighting it. National Night Out is a great step locals can take to curb violence and crime in their areas.

Activities for the night out include barbeques, block parties, downtown rallies and townhall meetings and vary by community; each event in an attempt to gain support for local law enforcement and create camaraderie amongst citizens. When communities come together, they can do great things, even fight crime. Some New Mexico communities participating in National Night Out are Albuquerque, Belen, Bernalillo, Bosque Farms, Carlsbad, Gallup, Isleta, Jal, Las Cruces, Los Lunas, all of Sandoval County, Santa Fe, and Truth or Consequences. Each town will celebrate with its own flair, and each night out will succeed in bring awareness to crime in their area.

I applaud these neighborhoods for being proactive in their local fight on crime.

Mr. President, almost 40 years ago, the Ramah Navajo School Board was incorporated in New Mexico as a means to provide education, health, job training, and social services to the Ramah Navajo people. This private, not-for-profit group was created in 1970 and has since strengthened the community through its involvement. As they have done for the past 15 years, the School Board organizes a fair and rodeo as a celebration of Ramah Navajo culture and the culture of New Mexico.

To name a few of the events this year, there is a Pow Wow, kid's carnival, traditional dance performances, and roping competitions. I want to recognize the Ramah Navajo School Board, Inc., and their efforts to promote these public events, specifically the landmark of the 15th annual Ramah Navajo Fair and Rodeo. These events strengthen bonds in the community with the people and their traditions.

Because of their location and separation from the contiguous Navajo Nation, the Ramah Navajo community stands on a mission of self- determination and self-reliance, setting up programs like the School Board to deal with all their people's needs. The Ramah Navajo School Board helped create the first Indian-controlled contract school in the United States, currently educating 600 students.

I would like to bring to the attention of the country how the Ramah Navajo people have kept their cultural identity strong while building on their community through events like this fair and rodeo.

First, let me thank the distinguished Senator profusely. I thought it would not be appropriate to let the SCHIP legislation proceed without some comments about how it got started.

Actually, in 1992, when I was chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, I helped to create the State Children's Health Insurance Program, also known as SCHIP, as part of the Balanced Budget Act, believe it or not.

The program has been a success. The number of children without insurance has declined by a very large amount. The Senate Finance Committee has approved a reauthorization of SCHIP, and the full Senate will take it up this week. The bill increases 5-year funding for the program from $25 billion to $60 billion. The $35 billion expansion is paid for in full by taxes on tobacco products.

In the current form, I will support the Finance Committee-passed bill. I suggest that many should. In my home State's problem with uninsured children, recent reports have New Mexico at the bottom in the Nation in coverage of these children. About 100,000 children in my State are without insurance, 25 percent of the adolescent population.

I have many concerns with the cost of this bill and the way it is paid for. However, I am willing to spend the next 5 years working on these concerns.

If the bill is substantially changed or expanded during debate this week in the Senate, or if it is significantly changed during conference with the House, they can count me out; I will no longer support it. This is about the size we ought to support, to handle our money properly and to create a program that may very well be one of those that will help us immensely with insurance for adolescents and children.

I yield the floor.

Madam President, I would like to honor and give special attention to the 50th annual Bat Flight Celebration Breakfast, at New Mexico's beautiful Carlsbad Caverns. Every evening over 300,000 Mexican free-tail bats exit the caves to feed, only to return in the early morning hours. It is in these early morning hours, once a year, that visitors gather to observe the return of these thousands of bats to their homes inside these incredible caves. On Saturday July 28, 2007, for the 50th time, over 600 visitors gathered and enjoyed a New Mexican breakfast while witnessing this magnificent in-flight return to the cave.

Created by inland sea between 250 and 280 million years ago, the limestone caves of Carlsbad were declared a national monument in 1923, and the surrounding area was made a national park in 1930, in order to preserve its unique beauty and geology. Carlsbad Caverns National Park has more than 100 known caves and covers over 46,000 acres, with approximately 33,000 acres designated as wilderness. The park's most prominent feature is the cavern itself, which contains one of the world's largest underground chambers and countless spectacular geological formations, many of which are easily accessible along a 3- mile paved underground trail.

The next time you happen to be in New Mexico, I encourage you to come visit and take some time to enjoy all New Mexico has to offer. From the beautiful rock formations, the stalagmites and stalactites, the wildlife, the culture and the history--the unique caverns near Carlsbad, NM, have it all. New Mexico is a great place, and the Carlsbad Caverns help make it so. To all, past and present, who have worked hard to preserve Carlsbad Caverns and showcase the annual bat flight celebration, I extend a heartfelt thank you.

Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I wish to recognize Mr. Irvin L. Trujillo for receiving the National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellowship Award. He is one of only 11 artists nationally recognized with this award for his work. The chairman of the NEA, Dana Gioia, will personally deliver the award to Mr. Trujillo this Sunday in Santa Fe. Mr. Trujillo, a Chimayo native, is part of the ever-growing population of talented artists that reside in New Mexico. He is a seventh-generation Chimayo weaver.

Art is such a big part of the New Mexican way of life. Artists from all over the world dream of showcasing their art in one of the many New Mexico Art galleries. Art is a great outlet of creativity and emotion for those who experience its beauty and wonder. Art can take up many avenues; it can be a painting or a piece of pottery, a woven rug or even a photograph. New Mexico is home to many galleries featuring such pieces of art. I am proud to represent a State so full of culture and creativity.

I am proud to be from a State with such a rich artistic culture. Taos and Santa Fe are famous for their world-renowned art galleries. Other areas of the State also demonstrate creative ideas. The deep Native American culture of New Mexico's tribes brings ornate turquoise jewelry and handmade pottery. Las Vegas and Ruidoso also have a vibrant art scene. New Mexico continues to be in the forefront of ever-evolving art community.

Congratulations again, Mr. Trujillo, on your prestigious award. Thank you for your continued pledge to explore and demonstrate your artistic abilities for all of us to enjoy.

Madam President, I was recorded as a ``yea'' on the previous vote. I meant to be recorded as ``nay.'' I ask unanimous consent that I be recorded as a ``nay.'' This would not affect the outcome of the vote.

Mr. President, reserving the right to object, I want to ask both of the leaders--I have not even given any speeches; you all are lucky. But let me ask, is it the intent now that we are at this point that we are not going to--whatever amendments are left, we do not intend to get back into the regime of amendments we just got through taking out by unanimous consent? Those ideas are no longer--we are not going to consider them? I am not agreeing to unanimous consent unless you are agreeing to that. We are not just agreeing to these amendments and second-degrees, we are not going to have that kind of amendment.

I am not talking about any other bill.