James M. Jeffords: “I rise to introduce, with my colleagues Senators Kennedy, Frist, and Collins, the National Science Foundation…”

“I rise to introduce, with my colleagues Senators Kennedy, Frist, and Collins, the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 1997. Our legislation authorizes the National Science Foundation [NSF] for fiscal years 1998 and 1999 and is similar to the legislation that was approved by the House of Representatives by voice vote on April 24, 1997. The strong bipartisan support which NSF enjoys is a product of its historic contribution to American security and competitiveness. The prominent role of science in the American war effort during World War II left Americans with a new appreciation of the importance of research in establishing and preserving economic and military security. Federally funded research provided the American war effort with radar, sonar, the proximity fuse, blood plasma, sulfanilamide, penicillin, and the atomic bomb. In 1944, President Roosevelt charged Vannevar Bush, his chief science adviser, with evaluating the most effective way to harness this technological infrastructure in peace-time. The Bush report--Science--The Endless Frontier--established a strategy and rationale for Federal support of basic research.”