Patricia Schroeder: “I rise in strong opposition to the Solomon amendment, which would prohibit the Department of Defense from making grants…”

“I rise in strong opposition to the Solomon amendment, which would prohibit the Department of Defense from making grants to schools that bar military recruiters. I am joined by our Nation's major universities and colleges and the Department of Defense in opposing Solomon for five reasons: First, contrary to what the gentleman from New York has just said about courts upholding his previous legislative initiative with respect to Federal funds to individuals who refuse to register with Selective Service, this issue is very different. In fact, last Friday, in the gentleman's own State, the State court of appeals held that school boards have the authority to bar discriminatory organizations--civilian or military--from recruiting on campus. The court further observed that the military is not being singled out: Any employer who violates the school's nondiscrimination policy is also barred from recruiting on campus--whether it's a private corporation or the Marines. Second, Mr. Solomon professes concern for our Nation's high schools and the need to preserve the quality of our Nation's recruits. But his amendment would apply to our Nation's high schools, only 2,400 of which currently allow military recruiters on their campuses. DOD opposes the Solomon amendment precisely because in DOD's words: Enforcement of this amendment by DOD would require a level of effort for which we are not staffed. There are over 15,000 accredited high schools that we know of.…”