Cord Byrd: “I do not envy myself for being in the position in which I find myself. Senator Stevens is a Senator who can say no and…”

“I do not envy myself for being in the position in which I find myself. Senator Stevens is a Senator who can say no and make you like it--almost. He is always so gracious. I have heard a lot about his renowned temper. I have seen it at work, but he does not lose his temper. He uses his temper and is always, as I have witnessed over several decades, one of the most reasonable individuals. So I do not like to be in a position of being opposite to Senator Stevens. While discussions are going on, let me attempt to point out some flaws of the amendment by Mr. Stevens. The substitute amendment reduces the amount of money available to the Office of Domestic Preparedness, ODP, to $362 million, a $138 million reduction. That is a 39-percent reduction from the bill, as reported, for State and local law enforcement antiterrorism equipment and training. The Office of Domestic Preparedness estimates there is currently no State that is adequately equipped to respond to an incident involving a weapon of mass destruction at the State or local level. Texas, identified as one of the best prepared States, has conducted a study that shows that $159 million in equipment would be needed to bring the State to the minimum level needed to adequately respond to a terrorist incident. In fact, ODP, the Office of Domestic Preparedness, estimates funds needed to bring the Nation's State and local governments up to minimum standards could well exceed $2 billion in fiscal year 2002 alone.”