U.S. State Secretaries of State

I am talking about our distinguished Secretary of Defense and the way he handles us children on the Armed Services Committee.

I am afraid our guards men and women will have to serve a long time. Many of them have already been serving a long time, in their estimation. They will have to serve a much longer time if they wait the appointment of the commission and…

They are entitled to know. They are employed and they are entitled to have their expectations met. Here we are with our men and women in Iraq. They are there like sitting ducks. It is like a shooting gallery. They are in an area I am sure…

What I am trying to do is make it possible for these men and women who are in the Guard and Reserve units to return home to their children, their families, their wives, their mothers, their fathers, their jobs, their communities…

I am trying to get some predictability worked into the equation. That is the reason I have offered this amendment. I am getting these letters from the men and women from West Virginia who are in Iraq. They want to come home. They think…

Is the Senator aware of any complaints from his National Guard in Alaska or other Reserve units there that they are being held longer than the 180 days and being redeployed for a longer period?

Then why shouldn't the people in the hot sands of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Iraq be likewise?

The distinguished Senator speaks of our forces being deployed in various and sundry continents, countries, and climes. Are these guardsmen and reservists whom the Senator is talking about?

In West Virginia, torrential flooding is becoming an annual event--since 1993, the State has had 11 federally declared disasters. In this year alone, the State has had two federally declared disasters. In the latest round of devastating…

It is our hope that you and Senator Domenici, when drafting the Fiscal Year 04 Energy Water Development Act will be able to address these emergencies in these two States, as well as others that have experienced massive flooding in this…

My thanks to the senior Senator from Illinois who has added his voice and his vote in support of his conscience on this matter.

I don't want to overtax the leader at this point or overtax other Senators. Just suffice it to say, we had better get out of this habit of just having 3-day workweeks, staying here until 10, 11, 12 on Thursday night so that people can go…

I thank him for his kind words. Future generations will not rise up to call us blessed.

I say that Congress has not only the right, it has the responsibility to state how those funds shall be spent. We should not turn over the whole kit and caboodle to some unelected somebody down there, who will be the Secretary of Homeland…

Well, that is quite all right, but I would at least like to know in advance that it is being done, that is No. 1. No. 2, this is an open-ended increase in the debt ceiling.

I must state my surprise at the distinguished chairman having offered an amendment that would provide for an open-ended increase in the national debt. I didn't even know this was going to happen. No one spoke to me about this. Yet this is…

Ours has been a long friendship. It is going to continue. But I expect to be a partner in this fight. I expect to be told at least by the chairman that he anticipates calling up an amendment of this nature. A point of order would lie…

I do not support the policy that brought us where we are today in Iraq. I have no hesitancy in saying that. I can defend that position any time, anywhere. I am sure not everybody will agree with me, but I have reasons for my position. So…

I fear that many have succumbed to an intellectual and moral laziness that views the coming war through the lens of our victory in 1991. This next war in Iraq will not be like the last. Twelve years ago, there was a war in one act with an…

Absolutely. We are taking a reckless course in advocating this doctrine. It is a nefarious doctrine, and it is scaring the world to death today. No wonder we are looked upon as being warmongers. When our friends begin to fear us, may I say…

It has vast implications. I will say to the Senator that some of us have trouble going to sleep at night as we ponder this question. I thank the Senator for his observations today and for the service he has rendered not only to the State…

No question. But even without the U.N. Charter, we have the inherent right. It is under the Constitution. I will be the last person to give up on that right.

No question about it. The President--whether it is a Republican or a Democrat--has an inherent power under the Constitution. If there is an imminent threat about to be carried out against the United States, of course, the President has a…

This doctrine is exceedingly dangerous. It not only will set a precedent, it has set a precedent, as we have seen it begun to be put into play in Iraq. It will be a precedent. There will be a blotch on the escutcheon of the United States…