Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I thank my good friend from Massachusetts. There has been reference made to a side agreement which was entered into at the time of START I. There is a major difference between what happened then and what is being proposed by Senator Kyl now. That side agreement, first of all, was in front of the Senate but there was no effort at that time to do what Senator Kyl's amendment does, which is to say prior to the entry into force of that treaty the President shall certify to the Senate that there was a legally binding side agreement. That was not part of START I, and it would seem to me would absolutely derail this New START agreement. Second, that was a political agreement, that side agreement that was entered into, which would last as long as the Presidents of both countries were in office but would not necessarily last beyond that because it was not a legally binding agreement in that sense. So there are two major differences between what happened at the time of START I and what is being proposed here by Senator Kyl. I hope we could defeat the Kyl amendment No. 4860. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Massachusetts.”