Dan Coats

I want to respond to some comments made by the Senator from Minnesota, to whom I want to return the compliment. The Senator from Minnesota has been passionate in his efforts to reach out to the disadvantaged in this country and address…

I rise to address this question of the defense appropriations bill with some degree of disappointment. First of all, I am disappointed that an appropriations bill is going to be passed out of this Congress ahead of the authorization. That…

Although these improvements are certainly laudable, they are not worth the human costs of the FDA's approval system. Rather than protecting public safety, in some cases the FDA's system for approving medical devices actually endangers…

In brief summary, the amendment provides opportunity scholarships for children in the District of Columbia in grades K through 12 whose family income is 185 percent or below the poverty level. The scholarships can be used for tuition costs…

I have clearly come to the conclusion the only remaining problem with the entire 215-page bill is section 404. We have had considerable debate about that yesterday and today. The Senator said this is the last remaining piece. The Senator…

It says here the Senator assisted in making sure the FDA did not withdraw it. It specifically cites, ``Please convey my gratitude to Dr. David Nexon and Gerry Kavanaugh,'' who I believe are on the Senator's staff, ``for their willing…

I have a copy of a letter. The Senator was handed a letter. I was handed a letter. The letter was addressed to Senator Kennedy thanking him personally for the assistance that he provided, for the ``assistance provided by your staff'' to…

again I want to tell Members I think it is important to keep their eye on the goal here and on the facts. Senator Dodd went through part of the chronology of the approval of the device that Senator Kennedy was talking about. I say to my…

Apparently they convinced your staff, Dr. Nexon, that this was a safe procedure and it should not be withdrawn.

They made a change in the ``indication'' and ``contraindication'' in accordance with what FDA asked them to do. They resubmitted for a new 510(k). FDA, with the help, apparently of Senator Kennedy and his staff, approved the 510(k) and…

Section 404, the section under debate, preserves a very key premarket statutory authority to the agency. It is important for Members to understand that the agency can call, still call for a premarket action requiring full data on the…

This committee substitute has been legislated for a 2 rac{1}{2} year period thoroughly and carefully and responsibly. It is a piece of work that has received a 14-to-4 vote in committee by Democrats and Republicans. People of different…

I just urge--clearly, there is a differing point of view. We heard from Senator Dodd from Connecticut, who was involved in the drafting of the bill; and Senator Jeffords from Vermont, the committee chairman, explained this. This was…

we are debating, here, under this limited time agreement, an issue that has received considerable discussion. There is considerable controversy over the issue of national testing. It has received enormous attention. When the issue was…

I felt compelled to give the other side of the story. Yesterday, when I offered the fetal tissue amendment to the Parkinson's legislation, I had discussed the matter with Senator Wellstone. I had indicated I was willing to take a 20-minute…

Or the Republicans have somehow conspired to deny the Senator from Massachusetts the right to make his point or to argue his point, my goodness, we have been hearing that over and over and over and over. We know what the Senator's position…

let me make two points. One is that I don't need to be reminded by the Senator from California about the ravaging effects of Parkinson's disease, having watched my grandfather suffer and die from Parkinson's, and having watched my father…

I was pleased the Senate adopted my amendment related to the whole area of medical research so that we can commission a study which would give us, before the next appropriations and authorization cycle, a better idea of how we can direct…

Let me return to the question of the ethical dilemma that is posed with utilization of fetal tissue in research. There is a broad ethical question that affects all neurological research or any research that utilizes human fetal tissue. I…

The amendment says, briefly, notwithstanding any other provision of law, none of the amounts subject to the provisions of subsection (e) of the Morris K. Udall Parkinson's Research Act of 1997 may be expended for any research which…

I have raised, on a number of occasions, my concerns that we are making decisions about which diseases, which research centers at NIH receive the funds. We are making that decision, I think, in well-intended ways, in ways that we hope will…

let me first say I very much appreciate the efforts of the Senator from New Hampshire in addressing this issue. I think it is an important issue and one which goes to a topic which deserves and needs a great deal of discussion and debate…

I am pleased to introduce for Independence Act, bipartisan legislation designed to help poor and working-poor Americans build the productive assets they need to get out of poverty and invest in their future. Just as people can't borrow…

to privatize religious belief is to trivialize it. When we treat religion as purely personal--irrelevant to the way we live our lives and write our laws--this is not neutrality to religion, it is hostility to religion. The reason is…

First of all, I wish to associate myself strongly with the remarks of the Senator from Louisiana and Rhode Island and the Senator from New York relative to entitlement reform. I spoke at length on it yesterday, and I will not repeat all…