Joe Lieberman: “I rise today to support S. 257, the National Missile Defense Act of 1999, and, in doing so, I rise to support…”

“I rise today to support S. 257, the National Missile Defense Act of 1999, and, in doing so, I rise to support development and deployment of a limited national missile defense. Colleagues have said that this debate has begun today, and I am sure each Member of the Senate believes, because we have no greater responsibility under the Constitution than to provide for the common defense of our Nation. That is one of the fundamental reasons people form governments, to provide for their common defense. It is a duty we must fulfill with intellectual honesty and with thoughtful attention to the world in which we reside. Let us look honestly at the world today. The cold war is over, thankfully. Democracy triumphed over communism. The bipolar strategic tension of the world--two armed camps living in a strange balance of terror where each threatened to destroy the other if the first acted-- is over, thankfully over. And in that sense we enjoy today the benefits of that victory.”