Bill Nelson: “I thank Senator Hatch and Senator Leahy for working with me in their capacity as leaders of the Judiciary Committee in…”

“I thank Senator Hatch and Senator Leahy for working with me in their capacity as leaders of the Judiciary Committee in attaching some strong penalties on the most egregious kinds of spam. Spam is clearly a nuisance, and it impedes the course of commerce. When you can't even use your computer because it is so cluttered up, that is one thing, but when spam is used for illicit purposes, such as child pornography, then that is another thing. That needs to be dealt with swiftly and severely. By Senator Wyden and Senator Burns working with Senator Hatch and Senator Leahy, we have, as part of their amendment--and I think it is worth reading. This is a part of the amendment they will offer: It is the sense of Congress that spam has become the method of choice for those who distribute pornography and perpetrate fraudulent schemes and also offers fertile ground for deceptive trade practices; And it is the sense of Congress that the Department of Justice should use all existing law enforcement tools to investigate and prosecute those who send bulk commercial e-mail to facilitate the commission of Federal crimes, including the tools contained in-- And it lists several chapters of the United States Code, one relating to fraud and false statements; another relating to obscenity; another relating to the sexual exploitation of children; and another relating to racketeering.”