Frank Lautenberg: “I thank Senator Leahy. There is no stronger advocate for the protection and safety of our citizens than President…”

“I thank Senator Leahy. There is no stronger advocate for the protection and safety of our citizens than President Clinton. But I don't understand why we take a country such as Iran and start to deal with them in trade of insignificant items. Would you believe--I am almost embarrassed to say it--that caviar, pistachio, Persian rugs are vital items for the well-being of our society? It is outrageous. But there are differences in point of view. I am not a professional diplomat. Maybe I fail to understand the longer term value of something that looks trivial to me as I express myself. For the past five years, I have been proud to stand with Steve Flatow in his effort to achieve some measure of justice for the killing of his daughter. He and I both want to hold Iran accountable. But Alisa Flatow was not Iran's only victim. Matt Eisenfeld of Connecticut and Sarah Duker of New Jersey, a young American couple in Israel, also were killed in 1996 when a suicide bomb from an Iran-sponsored group ripped through a bus they had boarded. One cannot comprehend what these missions are supposed to accomplish.”