Mike Levin: “I join with our chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Mr. Warner, in bringing S. 2400, the National Defense…”

“I join with our chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Mr. Warner, in bringing S. 2400, the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2005 to the Senate floor. This bill is the product of 45 hearings, 3 days of markup, and countless hours of hard work by the members and the staff of the Armed Services Committee. Throughout this process, Senator Warner has led the committee with his usual fairness and graciousness. There was a unanimous vote of our members in support of this bill, which is a tribute to the able leadership of my dear friend and the balanced approach which Senator Warner takes always in matters under consideration by our committee. He chairs this committee in the finest tradition of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and I commend him for it. I wish every Senator could see him in action as he chairs our committee. Senator Warner has balanced the committee's legislative and oversight responsibilities over the last several weeks so there has been an additional challenge that Senator Warner has had to face as we have worked to report out this bill while at the same time beginning vital oversight over the abuses of Iraqi detainees at Abu Ghraib prison.”