Robert Smith: “I was inspired to come to the floor to respond and to support the words of my friend from Arizona as he spoke very…”

“I was inspired to come to the floor to respond and to support the words of my friend from Arizona as he spoke very eloquently and emotionally about the plight of the people of Kosovo. Growing up as a little boy, I have to tell you, I saw, with all Americans, reports and film footage from the Second World War where we saw a holocaust carried out in a previous decade. And I reacted with horror at things that I saw that humankind could do to one another. It just seemed to me, at a young age, that if we had the ability to stop holocausts in our time that we should. I know we cannot be the policemen of the world, but I am here to tell you we are right now in Bosnia. We supported our President. And we are maintaining peace in Bosnia. But right next door we are witnessing a holocaust unfold before our eyes, and we apparently are paralyzed in our efforts to respond. Winter is coming, and tens of thousands of Kosovar Albanians are in the hills and will soon die if something is not done to ensure their rights, to ensure their safety, and to stop the bloodshed. Mr. President, I want to suggest that one person is solely and directly responsible for the catastrophe unfolding before our eyes, and that is President Milosevic of Serbia. He has indicated no willingness to negotiate a solution that will allow the Kosovar Albanians to exercise their legitimate political rights.”