James M. Jeffords: “Let me explain the position I have taken. My concern is getting amendments now which should be on the Elementary and…”

“Let me explain the position I have taken. My concern is getting amendments now which should be on the Elementary and Secondary Education Act which is presently under consideration by the committee, if we are to start passing programs out here that should be more properly considered in committee as to how to allocate expenditure of funds and matters like that. I understand that the pending amendment--we all know in the exigencies of time, and sometimes in order to get a message through, a situation arises where it is necessary, in a sense, to add an amendment that is really nongermane in order to send a message downtown. That is the understanding, and I think clear from the vote, that the Members want to send a message downtown that the process toward getting involved in the privacy of individuals' banking is not one which is acceptable to the Senate. I suspect it will disappear into the great unknown at some point, but my main concern is to make sure that the committee, which is addressing the serious problems we have in education in this country, does it in an orderly process.”