Trent Lott: “One final point that the Senator made that I think is a very important one. If we do not allow this provision to remain…”

“One final point that the Senator made that I think is a very important one. If we do not allow this provision to remain in this legislation, the net cost is going to be twice as much or more. I believe the questions that have been posed have been answered correctly and appropriately by the chairman of the committee. This provision does not require additional funds. Payments will come out of funds that have already been earmarked for shipbuilding recovery. It is not going be a process where the shipbuilder will be relieved of trying to recover from the insurance company and, if they recover, they get to keep it. It is important to emphasize those points. Let me confess to my colleagues, this is personal with me. I admit it. This is my hometown. I grew up in the shadow of this shipyard where 13,000 men and women make their livelihood, the biggest single employer in the States of Mississippi and Louisiana and at one point of Alabamians, a critical component of our national security. They build some of the most sophisticated ships in the world--destroyers, cruisers, LHAs, LHDs, LHARs. And that shipyard got hammered by hurricane Katrina. My dad was a pipefitter in that shipyard and was in the pipe department when he was killed in an automobile accident. I don't just see statistics and numbers; I see neighbors, classmates, men and women who believe in what they do and build quality product. They have been hit a grievous blow. I understand the effort of the Senator from Oklahoma.…”