Pete Domenici: “this is an issue on which I have been working for 7 years; that is, character education in our schools, both public and…”

“this is an issue on which I have been working for 7 years; that is, character education in our schools, both public and private. The bill I sent to the desk has seven cosponsors from both parties. I ask other Senators who are interested in helping at the grassroots level in public schools and private schools, who want to bring Character Counts to their character education in their schools, that they might consider this bill. I would like to speak a little bit about character in our Nation and in our schools. I rise today with my friend, Senator Dodd, who is my principal cosponsor, although we now have Senators Frist, Kennedy, Harkin, Cleland, and Cochran. This bill is called the Strong Character for Strong Schools Act. It is not a very big program, and it does not interfere very much at all with the schools, but it does provide for money to be granted to public school systems, partnerships between State agencies and others, bringing character, or character kind of programs, into the schools. Last month, I listened with great pleasure to President Bush's inaugural address. He basically ticked off the tenets of good character that underscore American life. The President's speech was clearly a message about character and the importance of character in American daily lives.”