Political Quotes

“I am very pleased that the managers of the bill, Chairman Thurmond and Senator Nunn, have accepted my amendment to increase the budget of the Humanitarian Demining Technologies Program to $18 million for fiscal year 1997. This represents about a $10 million increase above the President's request, but my amendment is supported by the Department of Defense. I have no doubt, based on the inquiries I have received from other Senators who have expressed support for this effort, that if there were a rollcall vote on the amendment it would pass overwhelmingly, if not unanimously. I also want to thank Senators Thurmond and Nunn for finding an acceptable offset for my amendment in the Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration Program--PE#0603750D. Adequate funding for demining technologies is urgently needed, as the experience of our troops in Bosnia has so graphically illustrated. They found themselves surrounded by millions of hidden landmines that had been scattered randomly over the countryside, with virtually no way to locate them besides hand-held metal detectors and probes. This is the same technology that has been used for decades, and although effective, it is terribly time consuming and dangerous. Bosnia is just one example. There is wide recognition that the problem of unexploded landmines, particularly in countries where our troops are most likely to be sent on peacekeeping missions, has reached crisis proportions.”