Mitch Landrieu: “I rise, as I said, in opposition to the Warner amendment. The Warner amendment calls for the elimination of about $814…”

“I rise, as I said, in opposition to the Warner amendment. The Warner amendment calls for the elimination of about $814 million in the underlying bill that has been directed to much-needed investments in the Department of Defense to ward off the many threats that are facing our Nation today in a very responsible manner, I wish to add. I thank Chairman Levin, the Senator from Michigan, for his outstanding work on pulling together this underlying bill. I particularly thank our subcommittee chairman, Senator Jack Reed, who has worked very hard on this particular provision. I acknowledge their good work in this area. I rise in opposition to this amendment as a supporter of missile defense--not as one of its critics, not as a detractor for the missile defense system. The Warner amendment is unwise and unnecessary for two reasons, and I wish to comment about both reasons. First, the thrust of the amendment rests on very shaky fiscal parameters. Senator Conrad has spoken very well and clearly on this subject, but one of the problems--not substantive but technical problems--with this amendment is that it basically taps into revenues that do not exist.”