Rod Grams: “as a strong critic of the Administration's policy in the Balkans, I am uncomfortable expressing my reservations now that…”

“as a strong critic of the Administration's policy in the Balkans, I am uncomfortable expressing my reservations now that we are in a state of war. The U.S. forces conducting air strikes against Serbia have my full support as they go into battle even though I do not support what I believe to be an ill-defined mission. Mr. President, I opposed the resolution authorizing the President to bomb Serbia, because I did not see how bombing Serbia would end the atrocities being committed, bring about stability in the region, or lead to greater political autonomy for Kosovo. And I am going to oppose this resolution as well. The Senate should not be moving to authorize the President 'to use all necessary force'--when the President has not asked us for that authority--and when the President has given every indication that he has no intention of moving in that direction. I know that the authors of this resolution have the best intentions, but I do not think that it is prudent to push the Commander-in-Chief towards putting U.S. troops on the ground.”