Floor Statements

Mr. President, I rise this morning to share with my colleagues the story of one of my Georgia constituents. It beings with a brave young 3rd Infantry soldier named Diego Rincon.

Diego was a native of Colombia and he came to the United States in 1989 with his family when he was 5 years old. He enjoyed a life of freedom and safety that might never have been possible in Colombia.

Diego was extremely loyal to the country that welcomed him. And after the September 11 attacks, he decided it was time to repay his adopted Nation.

Upon graduation from Salem High School in Conyers, GA, Diego enlisted in the Army. He became a member of the ``Rock of the Marne,'' Fort Stewart's 3rd Infantry Division.

Sadly, PFC Rincon was killed March 29 in Iraq by a suicide bomber at a military checkpoint. Diego was 19 years old. Three other members of his 1st Brigade were also killed.

In late February, Diego wrote his final letter home to his mother just as his brigade was getting ready to move out. I would like to read just a couple of paragraphs from that letter:

So I guess the time has finally come for us to see what we

are made of, who will crack when the stress level rises and

who will be calm all the way through it. Only time will tell.

I try not to think of what may happen in the future, but I

can't stand seeing it in my eyes. There's going to be

murders, funerals and tears rolling down everybody's eyes.

But the only thing I can say is, keep my head up and try to

keep the faith and pray for better days. All this will pass.

I believe God has a path for me.

Whether I make it or not, it's all part of the plan. It

can't be changed, only completed.

This 19-year-old young man, was wise beyond his years. Diego joined the Army for the noblest of reasons. He fought and died in Iraq while defending our Nation's freedom.

And after his death, when I talked with his family, they asked one last request of the Government in return for their son's life--to be able to bury him this Thursday as a U.S. citizen.

I am very pleased and proud to announce today that, with the help of the INS, PFC Diego Rincon has been awarded U.S. citizenship. Tomorrow, this brave soldier will be buried in Georgia as a citizen of this great country.

But there are thousands of noncitizens fighting in our military right now. So I, along with my fellow Senator from Georgia, Mr. Chambliss, have introduced legislation calling for citizenship to be granted immediately to any soldier who fights in our armed services and dies in combat.

For those among our troops who are not citizens and who die on the battlefield, I believe the least we can do is to honor them with posthumous citizenship. I believe it should be done automatically by the Government, with no delay and no burden on the families.

Under our bill, the families of these brave soldiers would not have to fill out any forms or make any phone calls. This citizenship would apply only to the deceased soldier, and it would not make the soldier's family eligible for any extra benefit or any special treatment. It is simply a final gesture of thanks and gratitude for the ultimate sacrifice these immigrant soldiers have made for their adopted country.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I rise today to express my thanks for the Senate's passage of S. 476, the CARE Act, which included my amendment requiring chief executive officers to sign their company's tax returns.

And I especially thank Senator Grassley and Senator Baucus and their staffs for working with me on this issue.

I offered this amendment last summer when we were debating the corporate governance bill amid the corporate scandals involving Enron, World Com, and others. In these corporate scandals, the corporate big shots got the gold mine while the poor employees and innocent stockholders got the shaft.

Now, I am as probusiness as anyone in this body. As Governor and Senator I have worked to give tax cuts and tax incentives and pay for the training of their employees, all to provide a probusiness environment in which the entrepreneurial spirit can thrive and prosper and create jobs.

But folks, there comes a time when so much greed and so many lies become so bad--even if it is by only a few--that something has to be done. The corporate governance bill we passed last summer will go a long way to protect the investor, provide some security for the worker and restore confidence in the market place.

My amendment today will help even more. It is only two short paragraphs, but it goes to the very essence of fairness. It simply says that when the tax man cometh, we all--workers and high-dollar bosses alike--must face him just alike without any go-betweens, liability firewalls or corporate veils.

The standard 1040 tax form that individuals must fill out each year says:

Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have examined

this return and accompanying schedules and statements, and to

the best of my knowledge and belief they are true, correct

and complete.

If Joe Sixpack is required to sign this oath for his family, why shouldn't Josepheus Chardonnay be required to sign that same oath for his big corporation?

So, my amendment simply requires that henceforth the chief executive officer of all publicly owned and publicly traded corporations must sign the corporation's annual Federal tax return.

Currently, there is an IRS rule that corporations can designate any corporate officer to sign their tax return. But that won't get it, Mr. president. Let's be specific. The CEO is the one who must sign the tax return and must be accountable for it.

Where I come from it is expected that those being paid to mind the store should at least know whether the store is losing or making money.

If any CEO is not willing to sign the company tax return if they are not willing to take steps to satisfy themselves that their corporation is accurately reporting financial information--then those CEOs have no right to the prestige and respect that goes with the position they hold.

What is good for the goose is good for the gander.

So, I thank my colleagues for holding our CEOs to the same standard that we now impose upon our average wage earners.

Mr. President, in recognition of being named one of TIME magazine's 2001 Schools of the Year and for being selected as the first Georgia Lighthouse School to watch this year, Senator Zell Miller invited the student council representing Towns County Middle School to visit, tour, and study the Nation's Capital, Washington, DC. The students were accompanied by Mrs. Margaret Dendy, Partners in Education Coordinator for the school, and Mr. Stephen H. Smith, principal and 2003 Georgia Principal of the Year. Senator Miller provided a tour of the Senate to Amber Allen, Bart Arencibia, Sam Clay, Nathan Dye, Katie Dyer, Ali Jones, Josh Lickey, Bryan Miller, Kayla Moody, Jentry Moss, Katie Scott, Anderson Sutton, and Carolyn Sutton.

Mr. President, I rise today to share with my colleagues the story of one of my Georgia constituents. It begins with a brave young 3rd Infantry soldier named Diego Rincon.

Diego was a native of Colombia and he came to the United States in 1989 with his family when he was 5 years old. He enjoyed a life of freedom and safety that might not have been possible in Colombia.

Diego was extremely loyal to the country that welcomed him. And after the September 11 attacks, he decided it was time to repay his adopted Nation.

Upon graduation from Salem High School in Conyers, GA, Diego enlisted in the Army. He became a member of the ``Rock of the Marne,'' Fort Stewart's 3rd Infantry Division.

Sadly, Private First Class Rincon was killed March 29 in Iraq by a suicide bomber at a military checkpoint. Diego was 19 years old. Three other members of his 1st Brigade were also killed.

In late February, Diego wrote his final letter home to his mother just as his Brigade was getting ready to move out. Let me read just a little of that letter:

So I guess the time has finally come for us to see what we

are made of, who will crack when the stress level rises and

who will be calm all the way through it. Only time will tell.

I try not to think of what may happen in the future, but I

can't stand seeing it in my eyes. There's going to be

murders, funerals and tears rolling down everybody's eyes.

But the only thing I can say is, keep my head up and try to

keep the faith and pray for better days. All this will pass.

I believe God has a path for me.

Whether I make it or not, it's all part of the plan. It

can't be changed, only completed.

This 19-year-old was wise beyond his years.

Diego joined the Army for the noblest of reasons. He fought and died in Iraq while defending our Nation's freedom.

And after his death, his family asked one last request of the Government in return for their son's life--to be able to bury him this Thursday as a U.S. citizen.

I am very pleased and proud to announce today that--with the help of the INS--Private First Class Diego Rincon has been awarded U.S. citizenship. This brave soldier will be buried Thursday as a citizen of our great country.

But there are thousands of noncitizens fighting in our military right now.

So, I, along with my fellow senator from Georgia, Senator Chambliss, have introduced legislation calling for citizenship to be granted immediately to any soldier who fights in our armed services and dies in combat.

For those among our troops who are not citizens and who die on the battlefield, I believe the least we can do is to honor them with posthumous citizenship.

And I believe it should be done automatically by the Government, with no delay and no burden on the families.

Under our bill, the families of these brave soldiers would not have to fill out any forms or make any phone calls.

This citizenship would apply only to the deceased soldier and it would not make the soldier's family eligible for any extra benefits or special treatment.

It is simply a final gesture of thanks and gratitude for the ultimate sacrifice these immigrant soldiers have made for their adopted country.

Mr. President, today I share with my colleagues the story of a 3rd Infantry soldier, and a fellow Georgian, who risked his own life to save a civilian caught in the crossfire in Iraq. The following article was printed in the April 1 edition of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Michael Carter wanted to talk about his son, CPT Chris Carter, 31, whose heroic rescue of an Iraqi woman flashed across the newswires Monday, but the batteries on his cordless phone were running down.

``I didn't know about it until the phone rang this morning,'' he said Monday afternoon, adding that it hadn't stopped ringing since.

Constant phone calls kept him from logging on to the Internet and reading about Chris, commander of A Company, part of the 3rd Battalion, 7th Regiment of the 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized).

``I've been so busy with phone calls, I have not had time to download it,'' said Carter, 63.

He and his wife Shirley, 60, live in Watkinsville, where Chris grew up and attended Oconee County High School. On Monday pretty much everyone in Watkinsville wanted to call and congratulate the family.

Chris was an ROTC student at the University of Georgia and a member of the Georgia Army National Guard. He was commissioned as an officer, trained with the 82nd Airborne Division and took the mountain section of his wilderness training with the 5th Ranger Training Battalion's Camp Merrill, near Dahlonega.

Of medium height and a stocky build, Carter loves to hunt, fish, and sing Hank Williams, Jr. songs, said his girlfriend, Amanda Cofer, 24, an assistant to State Senators Mitch Seabaugh and Dan Moody.

Carter distinguished himself Monday when he left his Bradley fighting vehicle and dashed out on a bridge during a firefight outside of Hindiyah, to try to bring an Iraqi woman to safety.

An Associated Press account of the rescue began with Carter saying, ``We've got to get her off that bridge'' and then determining to save her.

The woman had apparently tried to race across the bridge when the Americans arrived, but was caught in the crossfire.

Soldiers who had spotted her through the smoke at first thought she was dead, as was a man sprawled in the dust nearby. But the woman sat up and waved for help during breaks in the gunfire.

According to AP reporter Chris Tomlinson's account, Carter ``ordered his Bradley armored vehicle to pull forward while he and two men ran behind it. They took cover behind the bridge's iron beams.

``Carter tossed a smoke grenade for more cover and approached the woman, who was crying and pointing toward a wound on her hip. She wore the black chador, common among older women in the countryside. The blood soaked through the fabric, streaking the pavement around her.

``Medics placed the woman on a stretcher and into an ambulance; Carter stood by, providing cover with his M16A4 rifle. Then she was gone, and Monday's battle for this town of 80,000, 50 miles south of Baghdad, raged on.''

When Carter's girlfriend, Cofer, heard about the rescue, her first thought was, ``Get back in the vehicle!'' she said.

Cofer and Carter met last October during a victory celebration in Buckhead after the Georgia Bulldogs beat the University of Kentucky in football. ``I knew immediately he was a special person,'' she said. Carter was deployed to Kuwait the next month.

``He is the kind of man every parent in America would be glad to have as a son,'' said Carter's father, who is retired from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Though the Carters haven't heard from their son for 3 weeks, they keep up with him through the news.

``We have more current information on him than any other parent in the United States,'' said the father, adding that Carter's vehicle has been host to an embedded reporter during much of the campaign. ``Every day since he's been over there he's been in some newspaper. The next best thing to being able to talk to him personally has been to read the papers.''

Carter then excused himself to answer the door. Television cameramen were ringing the bell.

Mr. MILLER. Mr. President, today I share with my colleagues the thoughts of Emily Lance, an 8-year-old third grader at Calhoun Elementary School, who had the privilege of watching the launch of the Space Shuttle Columbia:

We left at 6 o'clock Tuesday morning, Jan. 14, to see the

Space Shuttle launch. But first we had to get there. It was a

10-hour drive. We were staying at the Hilton.

Before we could get to the hotel, we had to go through

security because the Israeli ambassador and the astronauts'

families were staying there. Finally, we got to the room.

Then we found our bathing suits and went out to the beach.

That's when we saw the horse patrol. They were very pretty

horses. We found a lot of shells at the beach. Then we went

back to our room, had dinner, and went to bed.

We woke up early and went to the Kennedy Space Center. We

checked in the protocol office and got our mission briefing

passes. Then we had to go through NASA security.

Going to the briefing wasn't all we did. First we checked

out the Rocket Garden. It was huge and had replicas of the

rockets that went into space.

Then it was time for the briefing. First we got our seats.

There were a lot of people. The briefing was very

interesting.

They announced that the shuttle was to go off at 10:39

Thursday morning. I learned a lot at the briefing.

After the briefing we went to the Mad Mission to Mars. It

was 3-D and so cool. They called for volunteers, and I was

picked. I was chosen to be the planet Venus. Then we were

blasting off to Mars. Then it was the end of the show. After

that we went to eat.

Then we got to see a movie called ``The Dream Is Alive.'' I

liked it very much. Then it was time to go back to the hotel.

But before we did, I got to go get Space Dots. That is ice

cream in little balls, also known as Dipping Dots.

Then it was time to go home after a great day at the

Kennedy Space Center. I couldn't

wait until tomorrow. It was going to be awesome.

After dinner I had to go to bed early. We had to get up at

5 in the morning. On the way to Kennedy Space Center, we

stopped at Waffle House to get some breakfast.

When we got there we went to the Protocol Office and got

our bus passes so we could get to the grandstand.

While we were standing in line, we met this man who works

at NASA in California. He was really excited, too. Then I

noticed he had a really cool necklace and on it was the word

NASA. It also had a blue flashing light.

I told him it was really cool. Then he asked me if I really

liked it. I said yes, then he gave it to me. I was so happy.

After that, he showed me his official NASA badge. Then we

got on the bus. It was a 10-minute ride to the grandstand.

When we got there we picked seats on the top row. You could

see the Launch Pad perfectly. It was a long time until the

shuttle went off so I went in the Saturn Building and watched

a movie.

It was about the Apollo 11 mission. Neil Armstrong walked

the first few steps on the moon in the Apollo mission. Then I

had to go sit down.

The shuttle was about to go off. At 9 minutes the countdown

stopped. Then it started again. At 1 minute until it

launched, I was so excited. When it got to 10 seconds, we all

went 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

Then it happened. It was so awesome. It was like an

earthquake. The ground shook, and the noise sounded like an

explosion.

It lasted about two minutes, then it was gone. It was

already in space. It can go around the world in 90 minutes.

Then we got back on the bus. When we got back to the Space

Center, we went to see a 3-D movie called ``The Space

Station.'' The space station is a place where astronauts can

go and live.

Then we went home after our last day at the Kennedy Space

Center. So ends my wonderful space vacation.

Mr. President, I note with deep regret the recent passing of a dedicated public official, defense leader, and a fellow Marine, Russell A. Rourke.

From his humble beginnings in the Bronx, Russ Rourke put himself through the University of Maryland and Georgetown Law School. Through hard work and perseverance, he went on to great success here on Capitol Hill, at the White House, the Pentagon, and later in the private sector.

He served as a top legislative aide in the Congress for 20 years, was a Special Assistant to President Ford, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs, and Secretary of the Air Force under President Ronald Reagan.

Despite these many high honors, Russ made it clear that the highest honor he ever hoped to attain was when he earned the right to wear the eagle, globe and anchor. Throughout his life, nothing else transcended the honor and title of United States Marine. He revered the Marine Corps, its way of life, its traditions and values.

Russ was on active duty in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1953 to 1956, including service in Korea. He remained in an active capacity with the Marine Corps Reserve, and retired after 32 years of service with the rank of colonel in July 1985.

Throughout his career, Russ was recognized as a proponent for a strong national defense. When he served in the Reagan administration as Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs, he was once described by the New York Times as Defense Secretary Cap Weinberger's ``chief scout and musket loader in defending the military budget against a siege of skeptics in Congress.''

As in my life, Russ Rourke's life experience were embodied in the Marine Corps culture and ethos. In all that he did, he conducted himself at all times as foremost a Marine, with honesty and conviction, with a high sense of duty and great pride. His devotion to family, country, and Corps was legendary and an inspiration. His distinguished career demonstrated the highest standards of integrity, professionalism, and devotion to public service.

Russ died at the age of 71 on January 19 after a lengthy battle with malignant melanoma. He leaves his lovely wife and partner of 41 years, Judith Muller Rourke, of Annapolis, MD, their three married daughters, and four grandchildren. Russ also leaves a Marine Corps legacy. His nephew, Col. Arthur White, is the current State liaison for the Marine Corps.

I am extremely proud of my fellow Marine, the Honorable Russell A. Rourke. He will be greatly missed by his family and friends, many in the House and the Senate, and the men and women in the uniformed services. Our Nation's military might is stronger today because of his sterling leadership and his numerous contributions in service to his country.